Pelabuhan Batubara, located in the northen east of Sumatra, Indonesia, is the perfect example of Indonesia’s rustic traditional dock. I went there at midsummer, arriving at Kuala Namu airport first hand and took a 5 hour car ride to Kisaran, the nearest region to Batubara.
Nothing beats the excitement of exploring an unknown island that rarely anyone has known and seen. The Batubara Dock was unlike any other dock we've seen anywhere. It was indeed small and no one provided any high-end speed boat or a yacht, therefore in order to sail to the virgin islands, I had to take this small kayak-like boat that was driven by a trained local sailor.
All over from left to right was the villagers' homes, and only 1 km later heading to the island, the homes started to disappear, and the wide open sea soon was shown. Then after an hour kayaking, I finally arrived to the island I was eager to see, the Salahnamo Island.
It was unlike any other island you've ever seen in Indonesia. The sand was silky white and the ocean was blue and clean, spreading this peaceful and soothing nuance. At first I felt as if I was on the set of "The Beach", but what made Salahnamo different than Thailand's Koh Phi Phi was these natural volcanic rocks that were spread from the main island to the coast. It was interesting to me, because I've never seen this amazing red volcanic rocks, especially on a beach.
It was what I believe any photographer's dreams. Different colors clashing in one scenery, all those natural beauties and environments, truly will engaged anyone who'd come there. It was a very quiet island, there were only several locals and some were tourists.
But staying a day in there was the big decision I regret. There was only one hotel there, and frankly, it wasn't the kind of hotel you'd find in the big cities. But if you do, it would probably have turned into a crack house or something. There were no restaurants or kitchens, only a stand of warung selling traditional foods like rojak, nasi campur, etc.
There were no bathrooms, at least clean one, and the rooms were too inconvenient to sleep on, so I had to sleep outside the porch where I got to feel the brisk night air. There were no entertainment or what so ever, and I believe there even weren't any of the hotel employees.
Visiting Salahnamo Island is a definite must, but staying there? Let's just say it's better if you just do a dine and dash, and just enjoy the scenery.
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