Landak River, after the floods
Donation protected
This is Landak River (Sungai Landak). The river which we named our son, Atwell after. This place is our second home away from home -> located in Rama's village: Bukit Lawang in North Sumatra, Indonesia. This paradise on earth holds such a special place in our hearts.
COVID has already hit the village of Bukit Lawang very hard as its main industry was tourism. Travelers from all over the world used to visit to go on ecotours of the jungle to see these majestic Orangutans in their natural habitat. However since early February 2020 its national rainforest have understandably been closed off to the public- overnight halting the income of hundreds of local tour guides, restaurant/ hostel owners, shuttle- travel industries.
Many have since gone back to their roots and returned to farming to make ends meet, and the government has aided them as much as possible to meet their basic necessities, yet the local people continue to suffer dire economic consequences.
2-3 months ago, local government officials allowed soft re-openings of local marketplaces. Rama's brother, Kornel created a new source of income for the locals with his brainchild: "Pekan Sungai Landak" a traditional market where food was sold at its weekly bazaars and the ultimate attraction was dining on the river itself.
This place was becoming a successful venture that was starting to revive many families experiencing hardship, until midnight Wednesday, November 11th, when yet another unforeseeable disaster hit the town. Heavy rains and strong winds caused a mudslide that uprooted trees and flooded the river which flattened this marketplace along with many other properties along the riverbank (including our own). Thankfully there were no human casualties although livestock were lost: including at least 13 cows and 3 sheep died in the avalanche, causing their owners immediate financial ruin and grief.
Our beautiful oasis has turned into a pile of rubble and mud that will take many months of hard work, patience, and perseverance from this vibrant community to restore.
We wanted to create this story & fundraiser to help spread the word, and hopefully offer hope to Rama's people who have suffered so much loss this year. Please help our Indonesian family and their neighbors rebuild their land and community in whatever way you can. Proceeds from this campaign will specifically go toward river clean-up, restoration and rebuilding of this traditional marketplace which employed upwards of 70-80 individuals for all of its weekly operations. If not with money, please send your prayers, positivity and strength to this struggling village.
Thank you everyone for all your love and support. We hope to be back to this place soon and host many of you someday to experience Bukit Lawang- Landak River paradise with us <3
Much love,
Prita, Rama, Atwell (river boy), and baby Elloise. PS Also accepting donations directly via Venmo @prita-tandyasraya
COVID has already hit the village of Bukit Lawang very hard as its main industry was tourism. Travelers from all over the world used to visit to go on ecotours of the jungle to see these majestic Orangutans in their natural habitat. However since early February 2020 its national rainforest have understandably been closed off to the public- overnight halting the income of hundreds of local tour guides, restaurant/ hostel owners, shuttle- travel industries.
Many have since gone back to their roots and returned to farming to make ends meet, and the government has aided them as much as possible to meet their basic necessities, yet the local people continue to suffer dire economic consequences.2-3 months ago, local government officials allowed soft re-openings of local marketplaces. Rama's brother, Kornel created a new source of income for the locals with his brainchild: "Pekan Sungai Landak" a traditional market where food was sold at its weekly bazaars and the ultimate attraction was dining on the river itself.
This place was becoming a successful venture that was starting to revive many families experiencing hardship, until midnight Wednesday, November 11th, when yet another unforeseeable disaster hit the town. Heavy rains and strong winds caused a mudslide that uprooted trees and flooded the river which flattened this marketplace along with many other properties along the riverbank (including our own). Thankfully there were no human casualties although livestock were lost: including at least 13 cows and 3 sheep died in the avalanche, causing their owners immediate financial ruin and grief.
Our beautiful oasis has turned into a pile of rubble and mud that will take many months of hard work, patience, and perseverance from this vibrant community to restore.
We wanted to create this story & fundraiser to help spread the word, and hopefully offer hope to Rama's people who have suffered so much loss this year. Please help our Indonesian family and their neighbors rebuild their land and community in whatever way you can. Proceeds from this campaign will specifically go toward river clean-up, restoration and rebuilding of this traditional marketplace which employed upwards of 70-80 individuals for all of its weekly operations. If not with money, please send your prayers, positivity and strength to this struggling village.
Thank you everyone for all your love and support. We hope to be back to this place soon and host many of you someday to experience Bukit Lawang- Landak River paradise with us <3
Much love,
Prita, Rama, Atwell (river boy), and baby Elloise. PS Also accepting donations directly via Venmo @prita-tandyasraya
Organizer
Prita Tandyasraya
Organizer
Tucson, AZ