Other Things to do in Sabang

In addition to the Sabang Marine Festival, which is only happens a few days a year, Pulau Weh has a few other interesting things to do. (Nomenclature: Sabang is the major city and one of two harbors on Pulau Weh. Pulau = Island in Indonesian)

Diving

First, we had a couple of days to kill before the Festival, so we moved Soggy Paws over to Pulau Rubiah (Rubiah Island), and did a couple of days of diving with Rubiah Tirta Divers. Several people, including Budi, recommended this dive outfit. One of the first in the area, and still run by the guy who developed diving in the area.

The Dive Center
The weather wasn't the best for diving--pretty breezy and some pretty big wave action--but we had a fun couple of dives.
A Nice Spotted Moray
A Chromodoris Nudibranch (Goniobranchus kuniei)
A Ribbon Eel (Wikipedia)
Puffer Fish
A Bright Red Crown of Thorns Starfish
Soggy Paws Anchored off Rubiah Island in the "Mined" Area
Being strategically placed on a major ocean highway, Pulau Weh was occupied by the Japanese during World War II. The chart still shows the area between the Pulau Weh "mainland" and Pulau Rubiah as a "mined area" on modern charts. We were assured that the mines were LONG gone, and it was safe for us to anchor there.

Tourists Going Out to Pulau Rubiah
Touring

Budi arranged for an all-day tour in a van that took us to a bunch of interesting places on Pulau Weh. If you want to self-tour, which some of the yachties did, you can rent a motorcycle and Budi will tell you where the highlights are. But we were happy being chauffered around by someone who knew where to go and could explain the background. I actually did the tour twice, once with Dave and Linda before they flew off to see Orangutans, and once with the group of yachties that were part of the West Indonesia Rally.

Dave, of course, is always stoked to see remants of World War II activity. But there are other interesting things--a bit of volcanic activity--a beach or two--the ferry port to the mainland, and a waterfall.

Our first stop was along the north coast, to look at the Japanese coastal fortifications.

A Signpost at the World War II Memorial
The Japanese Coastal Fortifications
One of a Number of Bunkers Along the Coast
The Large Cannon that Once Occupied the Bunker
Has Been Removed
One of the Cannons
All the Cannons are Now Lined Up Here
An Anti-Aircraft Gun in Someone's Back Yard
A Beautiful Mosque
The Local Hospital
(Established in 1912 as a Mental Hospital)
A House Built in Traditional Style, Now a Guesthouse
More Fortifications
The Big Gun at Anoi Itam
The Ferry Harbor on the South Side of Pulau Weh
Gunung Api Jaboi = Jaboi Volcano
(Now just a smoking sulfur pit)
Jaboi Volcano Remnants
Smoking Sulfur Pit
It is clove season in Pulau Weh. Everywhere we saw tarps laid out in the sun to dry the cloves.

Cloves Budding in the Trees
Cloves Drying
Driving along the coastal road toward the northernmost point, we stopped to take pictures at this pretty overlook.

What a Pretty Bay!
We Reach the Kilometer Zero Marker
(the northermost (almost) point of Indonesia)
As the next-to-last stop of the day, we hike into a waterfall for a swim.

Hiking in to the Waterfall
Finally at the Swimming Hole, with a Small Waterfall
The last stop of the day was at a little restaurant overlooking the Sabang Harbor anchorage. Sadly, no beer here! But we sampled some "rujack", an Indonesian fruit salad with soy sauce and spices. :p I like my fruit salad, au natural, thank you very much. But the view was stunning!
The Overlook from the Rujak Restaurant
Budi also helped the Rally group arrange a trip to Banda Aceh, to see the Tsunami Museum and the Banda Aceh museum. (Ferry to Banda Aceh and then a driver to take us around for the day). We covered the Tsunami Museum in our last post.