Blogs from Lembeh, Sulawesi, Indonesia, Asia
February 8th 2012
Firstly, sorry it's taken me so long to write something! The Internet at Tasikoki hasnt been very reliable! I'll try to start at the start: I was alittle nervous about arriving into Indonesian customs carrying all of those medical supplies, but there was no problem at all and they sent me straight through. I had two people from the centre meet me. I was very glad of that because as soon as we step out of the airport terminal there was a sea of faces staring at me! My driver Antony helped me get an Indonesian sim card and credit so that I could let Tris know I arrived ok. I also sent Dad a txt which he received but didn't tell Mum about! It was about an hour and a half drive from the airport ... read more
August 4th 2011
30.7. Sukellusrutiinia: Aikaisin ylös, sukelluskamat kasaan ja aamupalalle Living Coloursiin. Sieltä veneelle ja 2 sukellusta hienoja seinämiä. Veneestä kiirehdittiin suoraan lounaalle, jonka jälkeen hetki aikaa toipua ja takas veneelle kolmannelle dyykille. Sitten suihkuun, sukelluslogin kirjoitusta terassilla, riippumatossa lojumista, kunnes illalliselle ja taas nukkumaan. 31.7. Rutiinilla meni tämäkin päivä. Sukelluksilla alkoi olla jo vanhaa tuttua virtausta,kun uusi kuu lähestyy. Kaikki tähän mennessä olivat olleet aika mietoja. Lounaan jälkeen otettiin täydellinen välikuolema, mä nukuin koulutustilan sohvalla ja S riippukeinussa pihalla (kunnes joku alkoi luukuttaa Family Guyta). Oli kerrankin aikaa ottaa päikkärit kun päivän 3. sukellus oli mandariinikalasukellus ja se tehdään vasta kun alkaa hämärtää. Lähdettiin joskus 16.30 menemään. Niitä k... read more
May 10th 2011
So after the amazing Ubud I headed down to Nusa Lembongan; a small island just off the coast of the southern end of Bali. On the boat on the way over I met Ben an Aussie surfer and Frauke a German girl, and so the three of us hung out. I didn’t have any where to stay so Frauke, who’d been very organised and booked somewhere, let me share her room. She was also a diver and we convinced Ben to join us so the three of us ended up diving together for a few days. The diving was great... the first dive was ‘the manta dive’ and we saw three huge manta rays which were beautiful. On the first day we all went for lunch at a local warung (cheap Indonesian cafe) and I left ... read more
May 3rd 2011
After a couple of dives at Lembeh, we knew we'd found it. Our Holy Grail of muck diving. Steve & I were in 7th heaven. ... read more
Diving The Wonderful Macro World of the Lembeh Straits
Published: May 6th 2011Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Lembeh
April 12th 2011
How many people can say they discovered a new species? At a guess - something along the lines of number identified species - which depending on definition is between 2 and a 100 million (wikipedia). Lets say for simplicity that there are 10 million species on this planet, and that half were catalogued by a handful of early biologists pre-twentieth century - and another 4 million during the twentieth century. Using this inadequate estimate - there are a million species to be found, identified and described by science this century. I want to be that one in a million. I didn't discover a new species But I saw one - only discovered in 2007 - I must be one of only a few hundred or possibly thousand people to have ever seen it. The astounding amazing ... read more
December 5th 2010
Anecdotes II Well, here is another round of stories and observations I have picked up along the way. I have also found some pictures that sort of matches the spirit of the stories below. The other kind of travel tips In the last installment of Anecdotes I was rambling about how useless phrasebooks are. The same goes for travel guides in general. They do try to warn you of strange customs in the country you are visiting, but there are still some akward experiences waiting for you no matter how closely you study them. So here are some very useful tips for you. Tip #1 I have already mentioned how much I am enjoying massages during my travels. It is the best possible way to relax and get those nasty hours of bus travel out of ... read more
October 21st 2010
This is a bit old now but it took me so long to sort all the photos! Here is Lembeh: On the morning of my transfer to Lembeh I woke up with a blooming ear infection - again!!! Very angry and upset but I started to take drops immediately and got some anti inflammatories in Manado on the way to Lembeh. Arriving at the resort I had to watch everyone else go off for dives and come back very excited...for a whole day and a half! I suppose it is not the worst place in the world to sit and take it easy though..surrounded by jungle, the sound of frogs (really loud and weird!) view over the sea and some Indonesian volcanoes, life could be worse! After a while I was good enough to dive and ... read more
July 12th 2010
Blog 5 - Getting mucky in lembeh Ok so the last 7 days i have spent at NAD Lembeh Resort fulfilling a dream of mine to dive the mysterious and murky waters of Lembeh straits. The resort is run by the renowned underwater photographer and vieographer Mike Veich, the resort itself is small, clean, cosy and very professionally run. Whlst i was there i also spent my birthday so i had the local tradition of all the local people covering me in flour, egg and green food dye, which was a first for my birthday and also made me smell like a cake!! i was also blessed by a few of the local staff which was interesting!! Ok now the real reason to go to Lembeh straits is for critter hunting, for those of you that ... read more
July 5th 2010
Blog 4 - The journey to Lembeh....... Since my last blog i have stayed in Kota Bharu, Kuala Lumpur, The crowne plaza hotel in Singapore (il explain that later in the blog) and on a bench outside Changi Airport and finally i am in Lembeh, Sulawesi!! So thats the easy bit out of the way, now the journey here was fairly broken up so wasnt too bad, i stayed in Kota Bharu(KB) for 2 nights, it was originally going to be one but then realised if i got the night bus then i would miss the England vs Germany game so changed it. Needless to say i know regret making that change as it was a complete waste of my time and money but oh well at the joys of hindsight!!! So from KB i took ... read more
Diving like nowhere else on earth, welcome to the epicenter of marine bio diversity!
Published: February 21st 2010Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Lembeh
February 13th 2010
The word “muck diving” might not say much to most people but once you have tried it you never turn back! It is a little bit like opening a diving book that shows hundreds of weird critters, all with funny colors and shape except that you experience the real thing… Lembeh Strait to that extend is THE place to discover species that you have never seen before, so camera gears all set, ready for some national geographic type of experience! About two hours from Manado, driving trough North Sulawasie, and then taking a short 15mn boat ride lies the island of Lembeh. Its strait separating it from the mainland is covered with healthy coral reef and the notorious black sandy volcano bottom which with a lot of patience and the macro mode on reveals its secrets ... read more
