AT PLAY

Setting Sail on Silolona

By Scott Goetz Fruit bats flip their leathery wings overhead

as the sun sets; on land 10s-foot lizards, veritable prehistoric monsters, retire to their burrows; and in the water our boat stirs up plankton, lighting the sea with glowing phosphorescence. Here, between the islands of Sumbawa and Flores, in the Eastern Indonesian archipelago lies Komodo National Parkan eco-adventurers dream and one of the last untouched places on earth. Even the 90-minute flight from Denpasar, Bali, to the tiny harbor town of Labuhan Bajo on Flores Island transports the traveler to another world. Gone are the bananas and palms in exchange for dry, craggy, and barren volcanic islands that dot the swirling blue pellucid waters. Komodo is famed for scuba diving, so the best way to explore this isolated region is by live-aboard ship. Its here, after buying strings of pearls from the local villagers that we board Silolona. After a traditional conch shell blow and a call/song to Silolona, the legendary beauty who is said to have created the constellations and protect mankind, the crew, in traditional Indonesian dress from Sulawesi where the ship was handcrafted, set sail for a five-day sojourn. The ultra-luxurious ship garners its beauty not only from its comforts but also in the precision and care that the owner Patti Seery, an American ex-pat who has lived in Indonesia for 30 years, took in building it. Marrying the modern yacht with a traditional handmade Phinisi vessel (cargo ships from the Spice Island trade), Seery hired boat builders who constructed it according to a tradition they inherited from their ancestors. No nails were used, only wooden pegs called passak, and, as was customary, pieces of gold and diamonds were placed at her keel.
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We are at a moment in time when the wood boat-building tradition may disappear, explains Seery. Metal boats are starting to replace wood boats as the price of wood has continued to go up. To continue the tradition and keep the builders working, Seery went to the island of Sulawesi and chose the ulin tree (a type of ironwood) from which to make the main hull. The wood was floated down river to the construction site, and each day the tide would come in and cover the wood, curing it. (After its completion, Seery saw the pride the main boat builder had in his work, and now he continues with Silolona as one of the main crew members.) Itineraries are created at guests discretion, but theres no going to Komodo without visiting the infamous dragons. An endangered species that average eight feet long and weigh 200 pounds, only between 3,000 and 5,000 Komodo Dragons live in the wild, restricted to a habitat of 1,000 square kilometers. They are not fenced off, and it takes some bravery to walk near these apex predators who have been known to attack and kill humans. Still, about 1,000 villagers live amongst them, and even though these fishermen by trade build their houses above the ground, we saw the giant lizards climbing steps, mouths dripping with drool, in search of prey. Back on board guests continue to sail the pristine Flores Sea with stops to take advantage of the world-class diving sites, discovering healthy soft corals that look like florescent underwater Christmas trees, Eagle rays soaring through schools of Big Eyed Jacks and giant wormlike sea cucumbers that could have stepped from the pages of Alice in Wonderland. Throughout the journey, Chef Wayan Subrate prepares menus that taunt the most avid foodie. Watermelon-arugula-goat cheese salad, tuna tartare, truffle cappuccino,

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corn chowder with scallops, and traditional Balinese Rijsttafel are served on deck with China and linens, or during starlight beach barbecues while the crew entertains with guitar, drums, tambourine, and song. The most romantic delight, however, is a private picnic where, after champagne and grilled seafood, couples are left in the tide pools with a basketful of natural spa products (lemongrass, ginger, avocado, and coffee bean). A body scrub in Land of Fire and Dragons is possibly the most remote treatment in the world. info@silolona.com

Organic Spa Magazine | Fall 2008

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