…well, in a way. I never wanted children. However, for a good cause, I’ve adopted a wonderful creature. Meet my kid: Isn’t she a BEAUTY? Melusine is a 4m wide melanistic female Reef Manta. I have adopted her and made a donation to the marine megafauna foundation. Why am I doing this? The MMF works … [Read more…]
I hope I’m not boring you yet… but I have to talk about all the awesome encounters I had in the seas of Raja Ampat. The sheer numbers of fish to be seen. The giants and the small critters. I even had one of my big dreams come true: I spotted a Whale Shark from the boat. … [Read more…]
As I said in my last post, it is very difficult to show you the awesome, amazing creatures of Raja Ampat. I have shown you an overview, but there is so much more to see… Let’s start with the smallest creatures: pygmy sea horses. Sadly, my Gopro can’t film them, and being somewhat near-sighted, … [Read more…]
School of Sweetlips, tightly packed and very relaxed. In my previous post, I just talked about the dive resort I stayed at in Raja Ampat, the bungalow, the food, the sunsets. But, you might ask, what about the diving? That’s what it’s about, right? You’re right. Gentle reader, diving is the reason to go … [Read more…]
the waterline is beautiful, but diving here is very different from places in Indonesia. Different how? At least on the east coast, there are mostly hard coral. The reef does not look as… fluffy as, say, around Halmahera. There are fan corals growing on some walls, but not that many. Lovers of Nudis or Lionfish will … [Read more…]
I am very predictable. I like to explore new places and things, but I also tend to come back if I liked a place. So this is the third time I go diving with Blue Corner on Nusa Lembongan, the people who introduced me to diving at my OWD course in 2015. There are a lot … [Read more…]
No it wasn’t enough… after diving in Lembeh and Halmahera, I decided to use my last few days to get some more bottom time. Nomad Divers on Bangka Island has the relaxed island castaway style: little bungalows, daybeds, hammocks, an open restaurant/living room, mangroves. Volcanos in the distance. There are various good dive sites, providing … [Read more…]
Travelling from Manado, North Sulawesi, even farther to the edge of the world induces a certain feeling of adventure. Of course there is already a lot of touristy infrastructure, otherwise I would not consider to travel here – I am not Livingstone. (If I ever go to the sources of the Nile, I require a … [Read more…]
Cephalopods are well represented in Lembeh and an endless source of wonder and entertainment. For example, the Mimic Octopus (or maybe Septopus?): Or the Coconut Octopus: This one is apparently late and has to hurry: A Pygmy Cuttlefish the size of a finger: And all the time, I couldn’t shake the feeling that their elder brothers … [Read more…]
The Lembeh Strait is a narrow channel situated between the deep water port of Bitung, on North Sulawesi, and Lembeh Island. Apart from a lot of garbage thrown in from all the freight ships, more garbage blown in from the mainland, and fine black sand and silt coming from the adjacent volcanoes, it is an … [Read more…]