jake11
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TRIP REPORT Dewi Nusantara/ Komodo/Alor/Wakatobi/south tip of Buton and Scuba Seraya
TRIP REPORT
We flew Cathay Pacific through Vancouver and Hong Kong to Bali where we overnighted at the Hotel Puri Bambu. This is a very inexpensive hotel that is close to the airport that has free shuttle service to and from the airport. We got 1hour and 1/2 massages here for apx. $12 US. They are very friendly and efficient and made us a take away breakfast since our flight left at 6 am. This was our 3rd time staying here. The price has jumped from around US $40 to US$85 since we stayed there last year. They are still great! We had an excellent experience on Cathay Pacific there and back. ( read more details in the thread "domestic flights from Jakarta to Sorong) We flew Aviastar airlines from Bali to LBJ and were picked up by one of my all time favorite head stewards from the Komodo Dancer and the former Paradise Dancer..Sebastian! He is a twin of Hendrich!!
We arrived on the beautiful Dewi Nusantara and spent the first day relaxing and getting our gear ready. The Dewi is an amazing ship with a stellar crew! The cruise director " Wendy Brown" is one of our all time favorites! She is a witty, fun, no nonsense girl who LOVES diving and has excellent eyes! Asst. Director , Yan Alifan, is an amazing diver that has eagle eyes!
The dive team is rounded out with Andre and Risko who are also fantastic!!! The rest of the crew is just wonderful including Hendrich, the head steward, that remembers your every wish after the first day. All of the guests were repeat customers except for 2 people. It was the 3rd time for a lot of us! What does this tell you about the operation? A lot of us brought gifts for Wendy and the crew with Wendy liking milk chocolate and the Vit. C drink mixes from Costco and Yan liking jelly beans! The crew likes Dvd's of action movies that they like to watch on long crossings. All of the crew are hard working and very fun loving guys! The captain is a hands on guy that was there to greet you after all of the dives and loved when you came up to the wheel house where he freely shared his maps and information. After each and EVERY dive you are given a hot towel and a wonderful back massage! Fantastic! The camera room is large and the dive deck is MASSIVE! We ate outside this time for every meal as the weather was awesome. You can not beat the Indonesian sunrises and sunsets.
The first day of diving was at Gili Lawa Laut and the highlight dives of the day were Shotgun where we had quite a ride and another highlight was Spanish steps where we saw many spanish dancers , pgmy wolf octopus, saron shrimp, and the usual suspects. Water temps for most of the day were 27. The next day we were at Padar where we spotted many sea apples! We capped off the day with a walk to Pink Beach which is always a crowd pleaser. Water temps ranged from 22-24. Brrrr.
On Day 4 we started the day with an early morning and very exciting walk on Rinca. I must say that we liked this walk a LOT better than our walk on Komodo Island many years ago. The place was hopping with us spotting 12 dragons including a baby in a tree and a fight with 2 females. There were many holes with eggs in them and one female got too close to a hole and was attacked by another dragon. We had to get off of the trail several times so the dragons could walk by us while we moved off into the trees! It was ,to say the least, spectacular! The highlight of the diving for that day was Sebayor with a wonderful night dive!
We then moved slowly on to Maumere and then Lembata Island. Here we macro divers were in our glory with a dive site named "Sizzler." It lived up to its name with lots of baby leaf fish, and the mother lode of pipe fish with 12 on one dive!
On day 8 we experienced a "HIGHLIGHT" of my lifetime while viewing the Komba volcano erupt after the 3rd dive of the day. It was SPECTACULAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We got there around 4 pm and it was erupting around every 10-15 minutes. ( and I mean erupting!!!) As it got darker the whole thing was glowing red and the rocks would roll down and hiss and give a huge splash once they hit the water! It was better than any fire work show that I have ever seen in my entire life! It was surreal to be sitting there eating dinner while watching this thing explode over and over. My best video was on my phone so I won't be able to post it here but the word of the night was WOW..WOW..WOW!!!!!!!!! As we pulled away around 10pm it gave off the loudest and most spectacular display of the whole day! What more can I say? WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! Unreal!!!!!!!!!!!
On day 9 we moved to Kalabahi Alor. We did 4 dives on a site called Mucky Mosque! We had one of our best night dives ever on this site seeing everything from A to Z like bob tail squid, baby scorpion fish, baby crocodile fish, 2 starry night octopus, snake eels etc. etc. The next day we did the famous dives on Alor ( one called Clown Valley) where you see the little kids with the wooden goggles and so many anemones of every color in the rainbow that it blows your mind. Water temps were around 24.
We moved on to Wakatobi where the highlights were the dive site called Roma( my favorite there) and our night dive on Pastels. Roma was so beautiful with a formation called the Rose and a massive formation of finger coral called the colosseum. What a wonderful dive! Loved it! The night dive included crabs of all shapes , sizes and colors and the halimeda ghost pipe fish as well as many other delightful creatures!
On the last dive day on our way to Bau Bau they just stopped the boat in the early am so we could get in a dive and still have our 24 hours before we flew. Yan and the guys took the tender over to the shore and checked it out.They said it looked okay so we suited up and off we went. They had NEVER been here before and there were no marked dive sites around so Wendy hoped that we wouldn't have to name it "Never Again."Our little group of 4 dropped in and immediately found a bommie with 3 beautiful green leaf fish, 3 ghost pipe fish, many nudis etc. All in all we ended up seeing schools of ghost pipe fish, juv. batfish, stone fish, all kinds and varieties of nudis and flat worms, crocodile fish, rays, ribbon eels, a turtle, demon stingers, flying gunnards, etc etc. It was UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!!!!!! They had a naming contest and we came up with names like "The Mother Lode", Treasure Trove, Thank Goodness, and Dewi's Delight. What a spectacular dive to end the trip with. The Dewi is an amazing LOB and you will not be disappointed if you book a trip on her.
We flew Lion Air to Bali.( again see details in that other post.) We were promptly picked up and taken up to
Scuba Seraya. We had amazing dives on the Liberty wreck, and stellar macro dives on Seraya secrets seeing critters from A to Z including tiger shrimp, tiger cowries, white ghost pipe fish everywhere, nudis everywhere of all kinds and nudi eggs, all kinds of shrimps and crabs. I kid you not, one crinoid must have had 30 squat lobsters or more in it of all sizes. It was unreal. Our dive guide was Komang and he was awesome! Eagle eyes! Great diver. The food was inexpensive and good, the service was excellent all around. Loved our stay there! Peaceful. We ran into Guido ,who owns the Dewi Nusantara , and spent some time with him. If you have not met him he is hilarious and will entertain you all day long! Loved it!
We then flew to Hong Kong where one of the highlights was seeing the Terracotta soldiers on display at the History museum. It cost all of $2.58 for 2 of us to take the tour. We got our tips from a couple at Scuba Seraya who were from Hong Kong . They told us that instead of going to the ICC bldg. and taking the tour to the Observation floor you could make a reservation at the Ritz which is on a higher floor ( 103rd) and enjoy a great afternoon tea for just a bit more money than the tour. We took their advice and it was great. They let you go all over the restaurant and take pictures out of the windows and the tea was to die for. Every chocolate dessert know to man. Taking the express train into the city is a breeze and you can even check in on Cathay before the airport when you head back. Very simple! Easy trip on Cathay home where we were able to go through US customs in Canada.( what a breeze compared to LAX) No luggage problems at all on any leg anywhere. Now we are home where I have a horrible case of jet lag! End of story! Whew!
---------- Post Merged at 07:05 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 07:02 PM ----------
Photos! no underwater..
Dragons fighting and the salon!
---------- Post Merged at 07:08 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 07:02 PM ----------
Komba volcano and the Dewi's dive deck!
---------- Post Merged at 07:12 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 07:02 PM ----------
View of Hong Kong from the Ritz tea, Scuba Seraya and terracotta soldiers.
TRIP REPORT
We flew Cathay Pacific through Vancouver and Hong Kong to Bali where we overnighted at the Hotel Puri Bambu. This is a very inexpensive hotel that is close to the airport that has free shuttle service to and from the airport. We got 1hour and 1/2 massages here for apx. $12 US. They are very friendly and efficient and made us a take away breakfast since our flight left at 6 am. This was our 3rd time staying here. The price has jumped from around US $40 to US$85 since we stayed there last year. They are still great! We had an excellent experience on Cathay Pacific there and back. ( read more details in the thread "domestic flights from Jakarta to Sorong) We flew Aviastar airlines from Bali to LBJ and were picked up by one of my all time favorite head stewards from the Komodo Dancer and the former Paradise Dancer..Sebastian! He is a twin of Hendrich!!
We arrived on the beautiful Dewi Nusantara and spent the first day relaxing and getting our gear ready. The Dewi is an amazing ship with a stellar crew! The cruise director " Wendy Brown" is one of our all time favorites! She is a witty, fun, no nonsense girl who LOVES diving and has excellent eyes! Asst. Director , Yan Alifan, is an amazing diver that has eagle eyes!
The dive team is rounded out with Andre and Risko who are also fantastic!!! The rest of the crew is just wonderful including Hendrich, the head steward, that remembers your every wish after the first day. All of the guests were repeat customers except for 2 people. It was the 3rd time for a lot of us! What does this tell you about the operation? A lot of us brought gifts for Wendy and the crew with Wendy liking milk chocolate and the Vit. C drink mixes from Costco and Yan liking jelly beans! The crew likes Dvd's of action movies that they like to watch on long crossings. All of the crew are hard working and very fun loving guys! The captain is a hands on guy that was there to greet you after all of the dives and loved when you came up to the wheel house where he freely shared his maps and information. After each and EVERY dive you are given a hot towel and a wonderful back massage! Fantastic! The camera room is large and the dive deck is MASSIVE! We ate outside this time for every meal as the weather was awesome. You can not beat the Indonesian sunrises and sunsets.
The first day of diving was at Gili Lawa Laut and the highlight dives of the day were Shotgun where we had quite a ride and another highlight was Spanish steps where we saw many spanish dancers , pgmy wolf octopus, saron shrimp, and the usual suspects. Water temps for most of the day were 27. The next day we were at Padar where we spotted many sea apples! We capped off the day with a walk to Pink Beach which is always a crowd pleaser. Water temps ranged from 22-24. Brrrr.
On Day 4 we started the day with an early morning and very exciting walk on Rinca. I must say that we liked this walk a LOT better than our walk on Komodo Island many years ago. The place was hopping with us spotting 12 dragons including a baby in a tree and a fight with 2 females. There were many holes with eggs in them and one female got too close to a hole and was attacked by another dragon. We had to get off of the trail several times so the dragons could walk by us while we moved off into the trees! It was ,to say the least, spectacular! The highlight of the diving for that day was Sebayor with a wonderful night dive!
We then moved slowly on to Maumere and then Lembata Island. Here we macro divers were in our glory with a dive site named "Sizzler." It lived up to its name with lots of baby leaf fish, and the mother lode of pipe fish with 12 on one dive!
On day 8 we experienced a "HIGHLIGHT" of my lifetime while viewing the Komba volcano erupt after the 3rd dive of the day. It was SPECTACULAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We got there around 4 pm and it was erupting around every 10-15 minutes. ( and I mean erupting!!!) As it got darker the whole thing was glowing red and the rocks would roll down and hiss and give a huge splash once they hit the water! It was better than any fire work show that I have ever seen in my entire life! It was surreal to be sitting there eating dinner while watching this thing explode over and over. My best video was on my phone so I won't be able to post it here but the word of the night was WOW..WOW..WOW!!!!!!!!! As we pulled away around 10pm it gave off the loudest and most spectacular display of the whole day! What more can I say? WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! Unreal!!!!!!!!!!!
On day 9 we moved to Kalabahi Alor. We did 4 dives on a site called Mucky Mosque! We had one of our best night dives ever on this site seeing everything from A to Z like bob tail squid, baby scorpion fish, baby crocodile fish, 2 starry night octopus, snake eels etc. etc. The next day we did the famous dives on Alor ( one called Clown Valley) where you see the little kids with the wooden goggles and so many anemones of every color in the rainbow that it blows your mind. Water temps were around 24.
We moved on to Wakatobi where the highlights were the dive site called Roma( my favorite there) and our night dive on Pastels. Roma was so beautiful with a formation called the Rose and a massive formation of finger coral called the colosseum. What a wonderful dive! Loved it! The night dive included crabs of all shapes , sizes and colors and the halimeda ghost pipe fish as well as many other delightful creatures!
On the last dive day on our way to Bau Bau they just stopped the boat in the early am so we could get in a dive and still have our 24 hours before we flew. Yan and the guys took the tender over to the shore and checked it out.They said it looked okay so we suited up and off we went. They had NEVER been here before and there were no marked dive sites around so Wendy hoped that we wouldn't have to name it "Never Again."Our little group of 4 dropped in and immediately found a bommie with 3 beautiful green leaf fish, 3 ghost pipe fish, many nudis etc. All in all we ended up seeing schools of ghost pipe fish, juv. batfish, stone fish, all kinds and varieties of nudis and flat worms, crocodile fish, rays, ribbon eels, a turtle, demon stingers, flying gunnards, etc etc. It was UNBELIEVABLE!!!!!!!!!!! They had a naming contest and we came up with names like "The Mother Lode", Treasure Trove, Thank Goodness, and Dewi's Delight. What a spectacular dive to end the trip with. The Dewi is an amazing LOB and you will not be disappointed if you book a trip on her.
We flew Lion Air to Bali.( again see details in that other post.) We were promptly picked up and taken up to
Scuba Seraya. We had amazing dives on the Liberty wreck, and stellar macro dives on Seraya secrets seeing critters from A to Z including tiger shrimp, tiger cowries, white ghost pipe fish everywhere, nudis everywhere of all kinds and nudi eggs, all kinds of shrimps and crabs. I kid you not, one crinoid must have had 30 squat lobsters or more in it of all sizes. It was unreal. Our dive guide was Komang and he was awesome! Eagle eyes! Great diver. The food was inexpensive and good, the service was excellent all around. Loved our stay there! Peaceful. We ran into Guido ,who owns the Dewi Nusantara , and spent some time with him. If you have not met him he is hilarious and will entertain you all day long! Loved it!
We then flew to Hong Kong where one of the highlights was seeing the Terracotta soldiers on display at the History museum. It cost all of $2.58 for 2 of us to take the tour. We got our tips from a couple at Scuba Seraya who were from Hong Kong . They told us that instead of going to the ICC bldg. and taking the tour to the Observation floor you could make a reservation at the Ritz which is on a higher floor ( 103rd) and enjoy a great afternoon tea for just a bit more money than the tour. We took their advice and it was great. They let you go all over the restaurant and take pictures out of the windows and the tea was to die for. Every chocolate dessert know to man. Taking the express train into the city is a breeze and you can even check in on Cathay before the airport when you head back. Very simple! Easy trip on Cathay home where we were able to go through US customs in Canada.( what a breeze compared to LAX) No luggage problems at all on any leg anywhere. Now we are home where I have a horrible case of jet lag! End of story! Whew!
---------- Post Merged at 07:05 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 07:02 PM ----------
Photos! no underwater..
Dragons fighting and the salon!---------- Post Merged at 07:08 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 07:02 PM ----------
Komba volcano and the Dewi's dive deck!
---------- Post Merged at 07:12 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 07:02 PM ----------
View of Hong Kong from the Ritz tea, Scuba Seraya and terracotta soldiers.
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