AMBON CITY ( 5 )

Mardika

Pasar Mardika

Batumerah

Batumerah

Most of the Moluccan people live in coastal trading settlements. Ambon, an important port on an island of the same name, is the largest city in the Moluccas. The Moluccas were formerly called the Spice Islands, and they have long been famous for growing cloves, nutmeg, and mace. Through the centuries, the spice trade attracted people from many lands. These traders, including Arabs, Dutch, and Malays, intermarried with the Moluccans and greatly influenced their way of life. On some isolated islands, however, the people have kept many old customs. On the Tanimbar Islands, for example, people still make offerings to their ancestors.