Blogs from Sulawesi, Indonesia, Asia - page 12

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Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Togean Islands August 15th 2012

We all remember summer camps when we were kids right? They were full of fun days at the beach, swimming, playing and having fun. They got even better when we were teenagers as we could party, drink and smoke which was like breaking bad in a way. However the most important element of the memories we have from those days is people. People we had never met before and had nothing to do with initially but could not imagine better holidays without them at the end of the term. Summer friends we swore to be in touch with forever and holiday romances we thought were going to last. Now we know that it was the place that made us friends and that we share the memories of. I never thought 30-year old us could feel that ... read more
morning cleaning of the beach
Look how clear the water is!!!
view of Poyalisa from the rocks

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi August 9th 2012

Bira, c’est encore un de ces coins de plongée un peu roots, dont on entend si peu parler qu’il est très difficile de savoir ce qui s’y trame. Les quelques voyageurs qui m’en ont parlé auparavant parlent de conditions difficiles, de courant, de vagues mais de gros poissons, de pélagiques et de requins... Ce qui m’intrigue, parce qu’on ne peut pas vraiment dire que de manière générale, l’Indonésie soit très fournie en requins durant les plongées. Après avoir bossé sur Pulau Hoga, je me met donc en route avec François, un autre Divemaster de Hoga, à la découverte de Bira, au sud de Makassar. Pas facile de s’y rendre, mais ça ce n’est pas une surprise... On se trouve un petit bungalow en plein milieu de la nuit et le lendemain matin, c’est parti pour la ... read more
2 especes de raies sur une photo !
Banc de poissons perroquets a bosse
Repechee !

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Tana Toraja August 8th 2012

Majority of people who have traveled for extended period of time know that it is hard sometimes to find the excitement anymore. It can happen especially when you spend too much time in the same region of the world. I guess we got to that point in Borneo where we were so fed up with things and people that we seriously had to try hard to stay motivated to go on. We were very relieved though when we landed in Sulawesi as we knew for fact that we would love this place. From the airport we had no trouble getting to the center of Makassar by public bus (15,000/1,5$ each) and again we did some walking around to find suitable accommodation. Then and there Makassar surprised us. We walked in to probably 5 or 6 hotels ... read more
beautiful Tongkonan
sleepy in Makassar
burial decoration

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi July 30th 2012

Hurry through Sumbawa we did, but only because there was little to specifically hang around for. The countryside is mountainous, arid and pretty monotonous; there are no ‘sights’ as such. Contrary to rumour, it turned out that the people were perfectly welcoming, greeting us not with sticks and stones but smiles and “Selamats” (good morning, good day, etc…) Indeed, one bus driver took a particular shine to us and on changing buses he insisted on speaking to the subsequent driver to ensure that we paid local price. The only other tourists we saw in three days, while crossing the entire island, were two hard-core surfer dudes - apparently there are some serious “breaks” off the north coast. Sape on Sumbawa’s east coast is a pleasant little port town with somewhat of a frontier feel to it, ... read more
Komodo dragon, Rinca
Sulawesi girl
Return from Rinca


Pulau Hoga, c'était pour moi l'aventure totale, n'ayant trouvé personne y ayant plongé auparavant. La plus grande partie des sites de plongée sont des tombants ou des pentes douces où on trouve toutes les formes de coraux durs imaginables. On comprend vite pourquoi le centre de recherche est installé ici ! Potentiellement, on trouve toutes sortes d'animaux dans le coin et le "désavantage" de bosser, c'est qu'on ne choisit pas forcément les sites les plus éloignés... Parfois je reste un peu sur ma faim par rapport aux animaux qu'on rencontre, mais avec le recul, je me dis que je deviens un peu trop exigeante. A chaque plongée, on voit des poissons perroquets à bosse, des serpents de mer et bien sur les bancs de poissons de récifs et partout les balistes bleues forment de grands nuages ... read more
Papa et maman hippocampe pygmee
Poissons clown
Platax


Lorsque j'ai décidé de partir en voyage cet été, je me suis mise en quête d'un petit boulot dans la plongée pour éviter la banqueroute financière. En errant sur internet, je trouve une offre qui me parait trop alléchante pour être vraie. Un job de volontaire dans un centre de recherche marin sur une petite île perdue du parc national de Wakatobi. Le temps de créer un CV de "plongeur" et je suis engagée ! Après un vol entre Manado puis Makassar, un autre entre Makassar et Bau Bau puis un ferry de nuit entre Bau Bau et Wanci, je suis sur l'ultime ferry, en route pour Pulau Hoga ! Rejoindre cette université dans les iles dirigée par Operation Wallacea, ce n'est pas de la tarte. Le centre est une véritable fourmillière où étudiants, chercheurs et ... read more
Auu et moi devant notre maison
En route pour la plongée
Sur le ferry entre Bau Bau et Wanci

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Tangkoko National Park July 14th 2012

J'arrive a Batuputih un peu par hasard, en suivant les recommendations des voyageurs rencontrés à Bunaken et Lembeh. Je suis à peine arrivée que je suis de nouveau invitée à un mariage ! Cette fois ci, on m'invite aussi au diner, qui consiste en un grand buffet avec des viandes en sauces et du poisson, et un grand bac de coca cola tiède et sans bulles... Les plats sont très très épicés et je me contente de poisson avec des légumes, pas assez aventureuse pour essayer le chien cuisiné dans une sauce apparement très piquante... Je m'éclipse avant le grand karaoké parce que je me lève tôt ! 5h du matin, mon guide et moi partons à pied dans le parc national de Tongkoko. 30 minutes plus tard, nous attendons le lever du jour au pied ... read more
Singe qui prend la pose
Plage de Batuputih
Tarsier au lever du jour

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Menado July 12th 2012

We got onto a boat with Mike and Michelle for the last time as we headed over to Manado. The guys at the resort look every small but picked up our 20kg bags 2 at a time without straining. At the port in Manado, we docked next to another boat and had to walk through it and up a makeshift ladder to get to dry land. Again the bags were transported by the guys as if they were light as a feather.We said goodbye to Mike and Michelle and also to our wonderful diving guide, Adi. He was going back to the mainland for a day off with his family. It was actually quite sad to leave them all. We hadn't booked a car to the hotel and were just going to get a taxi but ... read more
Tomohon Market
Chili at the market
Fried banana with chili

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Bunaken National Park July 11th 2012

We were back late for diving today because we left late. Some guest including Toby and Harriet had been out in then boat before breakfast to see dolphins. Harriet isn't orally keen on getting out of bed before sunrise, but this morning was different. She and Toby had to be on the boat at 6.00am to sail to the other side of the island. They saw loads of dolphins that jumped and swam around the boat, but weren't keen on people swimming near them. They were late back making the dive late and lunch even later. We have realised that this is pretty normal for Indonesia. Although times are given for things, they are so laid back, things just happen when they happen. Today was our last day diving and we headed over to the mainland ... read more
One of the dolphins
Nice spot to catch a boat
Harriet up early

Asia » Indonesia » Sulawesi » Bunaken National Park July 10th 2012

Fiona's ear started to play up yesterday and she didn't want to risk damaging it, so she decided to snorkel rather than dive today. Mike and Michelle from Manchester got the staff to put us on one boat together. We had normally only had one boat going put but loads of people were diving today. Being together meant that Michelle and Fiona could sunbathe and chat whilst the others went diving. The snorkelling was great and Fiona saw more turtles than the divers! The second dive, she had just gone out over the reef when she saw bubbles and Toby and Harriet popped up below her. They got a shock when they looked up and saw her waving at them. We all had a fantastic massage in the afternoon. We were brought 2 special drinks made ... read more
Special coconut
Hot ginger post massage drink
Let's go!




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