Sumatra is one of Indonesia's largest islands and the sixth largest island in the world. Wild and rugged, Sumatra is a blend of Mother Nature extremes, blessed with natural wealth as well as proneness to natural disasters. Volcano eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, and landslides are common headline grabbers for this one of the world's richest ecosystems. But nobody can deny Sumatra's beauty from the top of majestic volcanoes to the lush of the jungles and down at sea level, where idyllic deserted beaches are scattered along the island.
Visiting Sumatra can mean never ending action. It has both unique and adventurous activities, starting from the Orangutan sanctuary in Bukit Lawang, some world-class diving sites in Pulau Weh and surfing in the wild Mentawai islands. You can also enjoy spicy Padang cuisines, relax on the shore of Lake Toba, climb to the top of Mount Kerinci of Jambi, stop by the granite beaches of Belitung, and see dolphins at Kiluan, Lampung. The island is also filled with a huge variety of unique as well as common rainforest fauna. On can get the chance to spot not only red-haired orangutans, but also all sorts of monkeys live in the treetops, in addition to Sumatran tigers, rhinoceroses, and elephants.
With almost 40 million inhabitants on this island, the varieties of cultures in Sumatra is another factor that makes the island so unique. From the devout Muslims of Aceh, outspoken and friendly Batak people, matrilineal Minangkabau of Padang, sizable Chinese communities of Bangka-Belitung, to semi-primitive tribesmen of Nias; all of them, with their own distinct cultures and languages, living on one island have been united by mutual respect for centuries.
