IO – The Eastern Region of Indonesia is famous for having beautiful landscape that is very impressive and provides memories that can be very difficult to forget; that’s my first impression when I recall my visit as a tourist in Maluku. The enchantment of tourism in Maluku is truly diverse and each region has a very interesting historical story to explore. Not only Banda Island which has exotic natural scenery. Other islands such as Saparua Island, for example, also have beauty and historical traces of the arrival of Europeans in the archipelago. Saparua Island is about 50 miles from the city of Ambon, the capital of Maluku; its location can be reached by speedboat from Tulehu Port, Central Maluku, on Ambon Island in 1.5 hours. The small island of 247 square kilometers has a population of 36,698 people. The total population is clustered together with two other nearby islands which are incorporated in the Lease Island cluster, namely Haruku and Nusa Laut, which have become a prime tourist destination of Maluku.
These two locations are always a reference for tourists on vacation to Maluku. Saparua, which is surrounded by the Banda Sea, offers beauty through its beaches. Starting from white sandy beaches, such as the beach beside Fort Duurstede and Kulur beach, to the beach which is filled with coral rocks, namely in Tanjung Ouw. When you visit this place, you will be presented with beautiful natural scenery which is very well-preserved. You will also find old buildings typical of Portuguese and Dutch style, including the famous Port Duurstede. Fort Duurstede is one of the mandatory destinations that you must visit when visiting Saparua Island. From the fortress that is still solid: it reflects the glory of this island in the past. It is said that stories of local Portuguese and Dutch residents used to love this island, because it was one of the biggest clove producers in the archipelago at that time.
The Dutch fortress was built in 1676, and is located on a hill as high as 20 feet until now it still stands firm. Kapitan Pattimura, whose real name was Thomas Matulessy is an Indonesian hero who managed to repel the Dutch invaders from this fort on May 16, 1817. From the top of the fort, visitors can see almost all of Saparua Island to Nusa Laut Island, which is east of Saparua. Not only that: tourists can visit the house that was once occupied by Pattimura, in the Land of Haria, visitors can see the legacy of the Capitan. In the building that is still inhabited by the Matulessy family, weaving looms, weaving slings, and headbands are all red, which Pattimura once worn when fighting against the Dutch. A number of documents tell about Pattimura’s struggle. According to the family, all of this was obtained from the Netherlands.
After being satisfied to see the fort building which until now is still standing firmly, I continued my tour to Kulur Beach. Stepping on the first foot on the Kulur beach will give me satisfaction, which at that time I felt walking on the sand of its beautiful clean beaches and accompanied by a view of the exotic sea of Maluku as far as I cast a view across the horizon. It is said that this beach is also the starting point of the entrance on Saparua, because if we search further on this beach there is a port dock that functions to take Saparua people to come and go back home to Ambon every day.
Attractions in eastern Indonesia that are known for having calm and beautiful seas are one of the attractions that I really like. This middle Maluku Kulur Beach can be an alternative vacation destination for you and your family. You can spend your vacation time by exploring historical stories whilst enjoying the coastal scenery, whose sustainability is very well preserved, in comparison to some beaches in other regions that currently have piles of rubbish that disturb the beautiful scenery. The beachfront in Saparua is famous for not being too deep and quite safe for tourists who cannot swim.
Underwater wealth attractions in eastern Indonesia located on the island of Kulur, Saparua Island is no less interesting as in other Indonesian tourist attractions. Here there are many fish species that live among a variety of coral reefs on the seabed. During the afternoon on this beach we will witness extraordinary natural attractions, on the coast of Kulur, Saparua Island, Central Maluku, tourists can watch the sunset very clearly. It is not surprising that many local and foreign visitors have praised Kulur Beach as the right place to see beautiful sunsets. In fact, this beach is one of the best spots in Indonesia. (Aldo)