Sing Key Beach – Saleman – Seram Island – Maluku – Indonesia

I left Kei Kecil and did not expect to discover anything that could be placed in the realm of superlatives. One might think so, but the world still offers possibilities to continuously place more stones on a stone statue. And slowly, I believe in the immeasurable.

Until the second to last day on Kei Kecil, it wasn't quite clear where the further path would lead. The decision to return to Ambon and from there to the large neighboring island of Seram, I ultimately made emotionally from the gut. I became casually aware of a place called 'Ora Beach'. I simply clicked on this in Google Maps and found myself once again with my mouth open and panting for air.

At 'Wisma Grace' in Ambon, a perfect place in the heart of the City of Music, as it describes itself, Ambon, Sonny suggested that I simply take a trip to Tulehu, 25 km away, and take the ferry to Amahai tomorrow morning.

This ferry took two hours, and I was quickly picked up by the nice Glen. My taxi driver presented me with two options: 700,000 IDR, that is 36 €, directly or 100,000 IDR (5 €) to Masohi and another 100,000 IDR to travel by shared taxi to Saleman. I chose option B. Hardly on the way, I proposed the idea of 500,000 IDR directly. Sounds good, but first, food at the Warung (food hall).

After another delicious Nasi Goreng Ayam, that is rice with vegetables and chicken, we went over the mountains and, not only that, also 60 km through the jungle. Seram is indeed largely still covered by untouched rainforest. The road seemed quite massive, if not for the recurring short makeshift gravel diversions. The simple reason: Heavy rainfalls constantly made parts of the road at the slope disappear.

After about 90 minutes, I arrived at the port of Saleman, from where Mr. Mito took me with his boat to the nearby Sing Key Beach. It would have been 800 m on foot. As soon as I reached my new residence and prepared an Indonesian coffee for myself, I was warmly welcomed again. What happened next, you can guess: Right, it started to rain, no, it poured. Okay, let’s be honest: The big cloud above us settled to the ground in the next 30 minutes! Only then was it possible to try to walk to my bungalow. This time, it was not located on the beach, no, it was situated in the water, accessible via a wooden walkway. The view from the terrace was directly onto an imposing mountain massif. Additionally, there was a colorful house reef.

Do you need more? Nope!

On the third day, I went on a boat tour with my lovely Dutch neighbors to the 'Sungai Sawalewa River', where I discovered nothing less than a 3-meter long crocodile, probably taking a relaxed nap, and even our guide said he had never seen such a large one before.

So let's summarize: If you want to relax and fall asleep to the sound of the ocean right below you and then wake up looking across the water at the mountain massif directly from your bed, you simply have to go to Sing Key Beach in Seram.