A Return to Our Seafaring Past: The Chitty Melakan Journey
There is a quiet pull in the spices we use, an echo of journeys once taken across vast oceans, carried in the hands of traders, cooks, and storytellers. For the Chitty Melakas, whose roots trace back to South Indian seafarers who settled in Malacca, spices are never just ingredients.
There is a quiet pull in the spices we use, an echo of journeys once taken across vast oceans, carried in the hands of traders, cooks, and storytellers. For the Chitty Melakas, whose roots trace back to South Indian seafarers who settled in Malacca, spices are never just ingredients.
They are identity, currency, and connection. This journey is a return to that seafaring past. We begin in Banda Neira, Indonesia, the historic heart of the global spice trade, where nutmeg and clove once shaped empires. Here, spices remain what they have always been, living expressions of land, culture, and time. As history reminds us, spices are not only about flavour, the spice trade is a larger story about exploration, exchange, and the shaping of civilizations.
They are identity, currency, and connection. This journey is a return to that seafaring past. We begin in Banda Neira, Indonesia, the historic heart of the global spice trade, where nutmeg and clove once shaped empires. Here, spices remain what they have always been, living expressions of land, culture, and time. As history reminds us, spices are not only about flavour, the spice trade is a larger story about exploration, exchange, and the shaping of civilizations.
Guests stay in a local hotel, settling into the rhythm of island life, before setting sail on The Mir, a vessel older than the Titanic, guided by Abigail Alling and Mark Van Thillo, founders of the Biosphere Foundation. Abigail and Mark bring a depth that shifts the entire experience. Their work in ecological research and planetary stewardship means this journey is not just about where we go, it is how we see.
On The Mir, something changes. It becomes less of a trip and more of a way of being. You will learn to help crew this 1910 Sailing Ship. You begin to notice the layers, the scent of spices carried in the air, the movement of water, the way everything connects. Days unfold gently with island visits, spice trails, shared meals, and long conversations at sea.
Guests stay in a local hotel, settling into the rhythm of island life, before setting sail on The Mir, a vessel older than the Titanic, guided by Abigail Alling and Mark Van Thillo, founders of the Biosphere Foundation. Abigail and Mark bring a depth that shifts the entire experience. Their work in ecological research and planetary stewardship means this journey is not just about where we go, it is how we see.
On The Mir, something changes. It becomes less of a trip and more of a way of being. You will learn to help crew this 1910 Sailing Ship. You begin to notice the layers, the scent of spices carried in the air, the movement of water, the way everything connects. Days unfold gently with island visits, spice trails, shared meals, and long conversations at sea.
This is more than a journey. It is a homecoming, so book your tickets in 2027. A rediscovery of the Chitty Melakan spirit, resilient, adaptive, and deeply rooted in culture, carried forward through food, tradition, and the enduring rhythm of the ocean.
This is more than a journey. It is a homecoming, so book your tickets in 2027. A rediscovery of the Chitty Melakan spirit, resilient, adaptive, and deeply rooted in culture, carried forward through food, tradition, and the enduring rhythm of the ocean.
Departs: 2027
Location: Banda Neira, Indonesia
To get involved or for enquiries, please email us at partnerships@chitty.org.sg
Donate
Your contributions will directly fund our initiatives, programmes and events.
1
1
Use the QR code to donate via PayNow, or transfer directly to UEN T07SS0189E
Use the QR code to donate via PayNow, or transfer directly to UEN T07SS0189E
2
2
Depending on what you’re donating for, use the following transaction codes:
Hati Kampong Chorus → Code: HATI
Seafaring Expedition → Code: SEA
All other programmes → Code: PROGRAMMES
Depending on what you’re donating for, use the following transaction codes:
Hati Kampong Chorus → Code: HATI
Seafaring Expedition → Code: SEA
All other programmes → Code: PROGRAMMES
Want to get involved?
Whether as a volunteer, donor, or partner — we’d love to hear from you.