Beach Barbeque

Kadek and Victor had set up a bar and served cocktails, wine and beer and soft drinks in glasses with cloth napkins. This was a beach barbecue with 5 star service! Chef Bobby and crew brought ashore the food and cooked everything over the open driftwood fire, which gave all that lovely open air fire flavor, which is hard to find. We had fresh grilled tuna, smoked chicken, lamb and beef kabobs, a lovely curry, sticky rice, and grilled vegetables. Fresh grilled bread and fruit rounded out a lovely beach dinner.

After dinner, we had more singing and dancing with the crew playing the instruments and singing local traditional songs. And finally, Kadek treated us to a fire baton dance, with the twirling fire baton, a skill he has been practising and perfecting. At the end the full tired group went back to Silolona to snuggle into our staterooms dreaming of fresh baked croissants for breakfast.

Ceremonial Dinner Onboard

Again, we were treated to song and dance from the crew, and after being seated at our ceremonial table, the crew appeared in single file, each with a dish, that might be part of a ceremonial buffet, serving us each with a bit from each dish as they circled the table. We were treated to a wide variety of traditional foods, all of which were special and excellent. This was truly and experience to remember.

Breakfast Spread and Table Setting

After breakfast, we went into the local Komodo village to visit. Permission had to be asked of the Elder to visit, as the Elder is responsible for all in his village, incluidng us while visiting. The children, gathered around, all wanting their picture taken. We had washable felt tipped pens and drew "tattoos" on them all, culminating in a group song sung for us, led by Nasir the Chief Carpenter on board Silolona and builder of Silolona.

"Poppa" invited us into his home and we visited sitting on the mats placed out for visitors. The typical home was up on stilts in case of Tsunami. The area under the house, in the shade, is used for daily work and home to the household animals. Up inside the house, accessed by steps onto a porch and into the main room, is a seating and living area, with sleeping areas partitioned off in the back, along with the kitchen. The kitchen had a raised wood burning fire pit, on which the main cooking is done.

Industry in the village, consisted mainly of carving beautiful replicas of Komodo Dragons in various sizes and poses, out of the local woods to sell at the Ranger Station at the National Park. Villagers also use various pearls in the area to string into necklaces, and, of course, some fish and dry fish. "Poppa" showed us his carved Dragons and the tools he used to carve with, which were all hand made. Return from the village was arranged by the villagers, who ferried us out to our tender by small dugout canoe.

I returned to Silolona for a deep tissue massage on the aft deck by Musri, who is also a ship carpenter and guest tender driver. Musri is a talented masseuse, who used local oils and with herbs and spices in his massage.

As darkness fell, we headed for "cocktail hour" in the tenders to watch the fruit bats take off for their night time hunting. Chef Bobby packed us picnic baskets with appetizers and a full selection of cocktail choices as we cruised to a mangrove cay off of the island. As dusk fell, hundreds of fruit bats with the little fox like faces, started to stir and circle. As the sun set, they whirled together in a great cloud and took off, toasted by us with our cocktails, as they set off for another night of hunting.

We then returned to an excellent dinner on board under the stars.

Komodo National Park

Komodo Dragons can grow over 9 feet in length, are part of the reptile family and are carniverous and can be aggressive. While apparently, they prefer deer, humans have lost their lives to the Dragons, including local villagers. The Komodo Dragon has a series of teeth buried under their gums filled with bacteria. When attacking, the Komodo Dragon bites into their victim and death is usually caused from infection from the bite.

Komodo Dragons generally eat once every few weeks and lie in wait for their prey at local watering holes. Other animals on the island are water buffalo, deer, wild pigs, and various other smaller animals, all of which satisfy a hungry Dragon.

Beach Barbeque

Kadek and Victor had set up a bar and served cocktails, wine and beer and soft drinks in glasses with cloth napkins. This was a beach barbecue with 5 star service! Chef Bobby and crew brought ashore the food and cooked everything over the open driftwood fire, which gave all that lovely open air fire flavor, which is hard to find. We had fresh grilled tuna, smoked chicken, lamb and beef kabobs, a lovely curry, sticky rice, and grilled vegetables. Fresh grilled bread and fruit rounded out a lovely beach dinner.

After dinner, we had more singing and dancing with the crew playing the instruments and singing local traditional songs. And finally, Kadek treated us to a fire baton dance, with the twirling fire baton, a skill he has been practising and perfecting. At the end the full tired group went back to Silolona to snuggle into our staterooms dreaming of fresh baked croissants for breakfast.

Ceremonial Dinner Onboard

Again, we were treated to song and dance from the crew, and after being seated at our ceremonial table, the crew appeared in single file, each with a dish, that might be part of a ceremonial buffet, serving us each with a bit from each dish as they circled the table. We were treated to a wide variety of traditional foods, all of which were special and excellent. This was truly and experience to remember.

Sailing in Traditional Sarongs

Silolona has 5 deluxe staterooms, each named for one of the fabled Spice Islands and decorated with original art from that island's culture. Each stateroom has a double bed and side settee, that can also be used as a single bed. The large ensuite bathroom, has a separate shower, with plenty of hot water. The bath products are locally made natural soaps and shampoos.

After settling in, we set sail for a quiet anchorage in the Komodo Archipelago and beach time. Our luggage had all been marked at the airport and was waiting in our staterooms. Before sailing, our full crew was introduced to us, and we learned where in Indonesia each one was from and their crew position on board. While we sailed, lunch appeared on deck, first announced with fresh sashimi, pickled ginger and soysauce with sesame seeds. Lunch then started with a chilled green grape gaspacho topped with guacamole, followed by grilled fresh fish and a lovely lemon sorbet, accompanied by a New Zealand Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc.

On arrival in our evening anchorage, the crew zipped ashore to set up beach umbrellas, lounging cushions, and beach towels anchored with local shells found on the beach. We had each earlier been sized for snorkel gear and fins, which was placed in a personalized bag and all snorkelers' bags were beachside waiting. Several of the group went off in one of the ship's tenders on a fishing expedition, returning with a lovely yellowfin tuna, that again was the evening starter as fresh sashimi.

Fresh Sashimi

(View the Fresh Caught Tuna Picture in the following post)

Recipe from Bobby for cocktail nuts

• Fresh roasted peanuts (on board Silolona the raw peanuts are shelled and roasted)
• sugar to coat
• red pepper sprinkled over
• Kafir lime leaves roughly torn and sprinkled over

Mix the sugar, red pepper and Kafir lime leaves to taste, spread on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until the sugar mixed with red pepper has melted, covering the peanuts with a hot sweet coating infused with kafir lime leaf escense.