Manhattan transfer leaves Indonesia with the pearl
Manhattan transfer leaves Indonesia with the pearl
Peter Duncan, Contributor, Cisarua, West Java
No. Not the band or the music, but the greatest land deal in
history. Three-hundred and thirty eight years ago, tiny Pulau Run
in the Banda Islands, a 17th Century source of nutmeg, was
swapped for Manhattan Island, a Dutch trading post on the East
Coast of North America. The deal, settled in 1667, ended years of
an English challenge to the Dutch monopoly over trade in the
Spice Islands, leaving the English to do what they would with the
barren shores of North America. But that is another story --
Nathaniel's Nutmeg by Giles Milton.
This story, however, is one of new beginnings in the Banda
Islands. Since the 1940s, Bapak Des Alwi the patriarch of the
islands and later his daughter, Tanya, have for decades been
steadily building a unique tourist industry from the ruins and
poverty caused by World War II and three years of Japanese
occupation. Among the early tourists to the islands were Jacques
Cousteau, Prince Bernard, Mick Jagger and Princess Diana.
Tourism dropped off, however, after the fall of former
president Soeharto was followed by inter-communal violence in
Ambon, the capital of the Molukkas. The 2002 Bali bombing did not
help either.
However, despite the recent problems, these remote islands, 40
minutes by air from Ambon, are home to arguably the most
beautiful and least-spoiled marine environment in the world.
Last week saw the return of tourism to these most beautiful of
islands. The Ambassador of Mexico Pedro Gonzalez Rubio Sanchez
and his wife were there for snorkeling and scuba diving among the
coral reefs.
Others were there for the historical site -- Belgika Fort --
built in the 1670s and conquered by the British in 1810 during
the Napoleonic Wars.
Travel to the Banda Islands from Jakarta includes one night in
Ambon before going by air or ship to Banda Naira.
There is time to visit historic sites and also for a becak
ride in the streets around Fort Victoria. This is now occupied by
the military but some day, hopefully, will be converted into a
tourist attraction in the center of the city facing Ambon's
magnificent harbor.
Tourists will be shocked by the numbers of buildings around
Ambon destroyed by the recent inter-communal violence but
delighted by the welcoming smiles of the people they meet along
the way.
Going by air to Banda Naira, they will arrive at a panorama of
islands and an airport five minutes from town.
By sea, it is seven hours on one of Pelni's interisland
liners; not bad if one is relaxing in an affordable first-class
cabin.
From the wharf, it is a short walk to Des Alwi's Dutch-era
style Hotel Maulana on the edge of the harbor.