Kabanjahe-Where My Heart Lies

“I wish I could show you the little village where I was born. It's so lovely there...I used to think it too small to spend a life in, but now I'm not so sure.”
― Mary Kelly

Kabanjahe is the capital of Karo Regency. It is located 77 km from Medan,the capital city of North Sumatra,Indonesia. Geographically,Karo Regency is located at coordinates 02 ° 50 'to 03 ° 19' north latitude and 97 ° 55 'to 98 ° 38' east longitude. It has an area of ​​2127.25 km²and population of approximately 500,000 inhabitants. Karo Regency is located in the highlands with an altitude between 600 to 1,400 m above sea level. Because it was an altitude,it has a cool climate with temperatures ranging from 16 to 17 ° C. In Karo Highlands,you can find beautiful mountains with natural feel of the cool air and distinctively regional fruits and vegetables.

Kapiten Baru Monument

Karo Regency has some tourism destination which are commonly loved by local and foreign tourists,which are Sinabung Mountain,Sibayak Mountain,Lau Kawar,Lau Debuk-Debuk,Putri Hijau,Gundaling,and Sipiso-Piso waterfall.

Most of the local people are Karoness who speak Batak Karo language with an exotic accent and those unforgettable habitude words like kam (you),ndu(yours),narok(put),sekelini(later on),cekuh(pinch),balekkan(give back),kene/kena(you in plural) and the others. Kam and ndu are concerned as a polite way to speak with another people especially to the olders. For example: Kam lagi dimana ? Bisa ku pinjam pulpen ndu ?- Where are you ? May I borrow your pen ?

One of my classmate in senior high school once protested me for not using those 'kam and ndu' when I spoke with them in class. As I am a Tobaness who are basically use kau(you) and mu(yours) which are considered as a rude way,I found it was really hard to adapt that custom because none o my family member use those words at home. Moreover the fact that Tobaness are graced with a 'good' voice makes them speak with a super loud and bossy voice(including me). My friends often thought that I was angry when I said something. Back in time,in the night after Methodist Expo 2012,my Mom phoned me to ask when I would come home. I thought my voice wasn't that loud when I had conversation with her,but then my classmate,Joe,recklessly repeated how my voice was and told me that I looked like someone who was mad at something when my Mom called me. But no matter what,no matter how I found that time that it was really hard to be able to speak like other Karoness,I naturally learned Karo language. In my new strange place,I even improve my ability to speak Karo language because I eventually realize that I miss those people who speak Karo language beside me.

Another pride of my hometown is the SUPER DELICIOUS FOOD. The most famous food in Kabanjahe of course BPK. There are another delicious food but this is my favorite one,BPK :))). 

Beautiful

Lovable

Those pictures above make me gulp in disbelief. How lucky myself is to be born in a place that has a heavenly delicious food. Ahhh I miss you dear BPK ehikk. Well enough to talk about food,it makes me even miss my hometown worse.

That's it ??? No,of course not. I still want to talk about Bhineka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity) which is happened in my hometown. People who live in Kabanjahe embrace five different religions. I found good Chinese friends who are Buddhist and always passed the Vihara whenever I went back from Elementary School. I remembered those quite and lonely day when Hindu had Nyepi. I excitedly prepared myself to visit my Moslem realtives(my Dad's friends mostly) and my neighbors in Eid Mubarak and enjoyed their hospitality plus those delicious cookie. I spent 9 years studying in Catholic School and even still used 'Atas Nama Bapa dan Putra dan Roh Kudus Amen' in my first year of senior high school. And of course those people who embraced their own religions showed their respect when I celebrated Christmas. This is one of the biggest grace I found in my hometown. The people are so generous,friendly,and helpful.

The last thing I wanna talk is about the tradition on August,17. To celebrate the independent day,every year the citizens of Kabanjahe will hold splendor and gala parade which are known as display(for Kindergarten and Elementary School on August 14) and Pawai Kemerdekaan (for Junior and Senior High School on August,17). On the night of 16 August there will be Taptu,a parade of hundreds people who bring flambeau.

 

 

Senior Hehehe

Junior High School

Elementary School

The three events are actually the same,the participants of those three events will walk along almost the whole town. The most special one is Pawai Kemerdekaan because it is more crowded and entertaining. Students of Elementary,Junior,and Senior High School play the marching band. Usually it is started on 11 a.m after the ceremony in Lapangan Samura but people are already waiting even from 7/8 a.m just to make sure they get a nice spot to watch that beautiful parade.

Super Hot yet Super Excited

Penghormatan(Tribute to Government Officials)

Tari Kipas(One of The Dance Shown)

Gundala-Gundala

It was so amazing...

Tanah Karo.. Tanah Karo Simalem.. Those words describe my hometown perfectly. I don't know how to define Simalem in word. It's something that shows a beauty. A place where you feel comfort,save,and happy. A place where you feel warm and want to spend your whole life there. A place where you can look like a mess and enjoy it. A place where your heart lies... How can not I love you?

I am not a Karoness but I do really love Tanah Karo. I can not speak Karo language well but I am proud of it and learn to know it further. I have visited those modern places but I never find a place that gives me happiness like Kabanjahe does. Kabanjahe is a hometown,a home for me. A small town that means so much to me. A place where I grew up and learned lots of thing. A place where I find peace,tolerance,and love.A place where I can ensconce in my years ahead...

I miss you,Kabanjahe.
I adore you,Kabanjahe.
I heart you,Kabanjahe.

Regent's Office

Landek Karo

My Senior High School

“I wish I could show you the little village where I was born. It's so lovely there...I used to think it too small to spend a life in, but now I'm not so sure.”
― Mary Kelly

-Kutatap ras ku tulihken
Taneh ingan kemulihen
Kujamu ras ku kema-kema bage
Taneh karo mejile
Oh taneh karo simalem
Inganta cio cilinggem
Oh taneh karo simalem
Ingan ta cio cilinggem

Meganjang kal beritana
Sebelang-belang donia
Mehamat kel kap jelmana kerina
La kel lit si cegirna
Oh taneh karo simalem
Inganta cio cilinggem
Oh taneh karo simalem
Inganta cio cilinggem
Ikepar lawit siapi kin ndia
Kecibalenku kin ndia
Kelengkel ateku ia
Lalap la erleka-leka

Oh taneh karo simalem inganta cio cilinggem (Taneh Karo Simalem)-