serui (Seroei) is one of the smaller district capitals (kabupaten) in Irian Jaya. It is located on the south coast of the island Yapen, enclosed by smaller mountains and the sea. It has about 25,000 inhabitants.
Info
Serui was founded by the Dutch in a place sandwiched between a number of traditional villages. The establishment of a so-called ODO (Training for a village teacher) had a great attraction for young people from the region and contributed to the growth of the city.
Arrive
Serui can only be reached by plane from Biak. There are regular boat services to Serui from the east (Jayapura) or from the west (manokwari or even further).
sleep
There are 5 hotels / guest houses in Serui which are:
- Hotel Cenderawasih on the boardwalk,
- Losmen Merpati on Jalan Yos Sudarso,
- Losmen Marina on Jalan Monginsidi,
- Losmen Bersaudara on Jalan Sudirman,
- Hotel Kelapa Duac at Kelapa Dua.
Eat
There are a number of small eateries on the boulevard, such as Restoran Gembira and a number of eateries around the market. Opposite the market you can get Coto Makassar, this is a kind of beef soup. Lately, some nice eateries have also popped up opposite the football field along the road to the village Mariadei which lies about three kilometers west of Serui.
Serui's market is known for its varied range of fruit. Of course it depends on the season, but the following fruits are regularly for sale: jackfruit (jack fruit), durian, pineapple, breadfruit, matoasoursop, cempedak, carambola (star fruit), rambutan, jambu, mango, papaya and various banana varieties and citrus fruit.
drink
In the absence of cheap imported alcohol, the Papuans make their own stuff. It is called saguwér and it comes in two varieties: that of the coconut palm (saguwer kelapa) and that of the nipah palm (saguwer bobo). The coconut has a milder taste. saguwer tastes very sour and resembles much too young sparkling Moselle wine. It has an alcohol content of about 5 percent. The stuff is not offered for sale in the store, now and then you see someone with a jerry can on the market.
do
Get up before 05:00 in the morning and go to the fish market. There are all kinds of beautifully colored fish to see. At about 05:30 almost everything is gone.
Let yourself be driven to Mantembu and walk along and through the river to the waterfall. Because you have to go through the water a few times, you do get wet feet.
See
To the west of Serui is the village of Sarawandori, where the sea enters the country through a number of creeks. The color splendor of the water is overwhelming. Just southwest of Serui is the village of Serui-Laut ("Serui aan Zee"), a traditional village on stilts that stands in a sheltered place in the water.
There are sometimes yosim pancar competitions in the city. Yosim pancar or abbreviated Yospan is a modern dance form practiced by young people, which originated from traditional, regional dances. These dances are mainly performed in Irian Jaya practiced and are very popular.
all around
You can take the road from Serui in three directions: to the north where the road ends in Mantembu (about 3 kilometers), to the west to about 10 kilometers and to the east, to about Randawaya, provided the road is not somewhere washed away halfway by a rainstorm. If conditions permit, the village of Ambaidiru may be accessible, for this you have to go through the primary rainforest for a while and if the road is not used for a while, it is overgrown by the jungle. Ambaidiru is almost the only village on Yapen not on the coast but in the mountains and is known for producing excellent coffee. But because it is so remote, hardly anyone knows that. The same degree of accessibility applies more or less to the village of Yobi, which is located on the northern side of the island of Yapen. Because it is opposite Biak, the influence of that city is greater than that of Serui.
Off the south coast of Yapen are a number of beautiful inhabited and uninhabited islands, especially the Ambai Islands are worth a visit.
The region around Serui, often referred to as Yapen-Waropen, is known for its birds of paradise. These can be admired here in their natural habitat, provided you are accompanied by a guide who knows where they are. Because this region is relatively easier to travel than other regions within Irian Jaya, Yapen-Waropen lends itself to birdwatching and other natural beauty.
