A vast crater lake in the highlands of Sumatra
Lake Toba fills the caldera of a supervolcano that erupted about 74,000 years ago, and it is the largest volcanic lake in the world. In the middle sits Samosir Island, almost as large as Singapore, where the Batak people keep their traditions alive in villages of boat-shaped wooden houses. Tuktuk, on Samosir, has guesthouses along the shore, and days are spent swimming, cycling around the island and visiting old stone tombs and chairs where Batak kings once met. The cool highland air is a relief from the coast.