Local dance troupes stage recommended Minangkabau dance shows (8.30pm; Rp7500) nightly in a hall just behind Hotel Jogya on Jalan Moh Yamin; head up the small road on the left of the hotel and the hall is on the right. The dancing is accompanied by talempong pacik, traditional Minang music performed by a gamelan orchestra similar to those of Java and Bali, with gongs, drums and flutes. Most shows also include a demonstration of silek, the Minang martial art taught to both young men and women, and the tari piriang, a dance that originated in the rice fields after harvest time when young people danced with the plates they had just eaten from: piles of crockery shards are trodden and even rolled in by the dancers.

Animal-lovers may balk at the idea of watching buffalo fights , a popular local event, but the reality is rarely gory and usually good fun. Regular contests take place in villages near Bukittinggi: the most accessible of which is Batagak, 9km south on the way to Padangpanjang; the entrance is through a set of white gates just above the road and contests are held here on Wednesdays. Either arrange a Rp10,000 ticket through a travel agent or the tourist office, or go independently and pay Rp1000 at the gate. There are usually three bouts, starting at around 4pm. The massive buffalo are led towards each other and enticed to lock horns. They then push and heave against one another until one turns tail and runs away. At this point the hilarity begins, the crowding spectators diving for cover.