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Published: June 25th 2017
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We first visited LaBuan Bajo two years ago, when we overnighted here after seeing the Komodo dragons as part of a five day boat trip from Lombok, which in itself was an excellent experience and highly recommended. We left hearing stories of how beautiful this island is, and how amazing it is to swim with the manta rays, and so returning to do so has been on our bucket list ever since. So much so, in fact, that we completed an Open Water Dive Course last year, got in a couple dozen dives of experience, and returned to dive in the strong currents of Komodo Marine Park and find those manta rays. And find them we did.
Our previous excellent Komodo dragon tour guide, Roberto Daud, now has his own touring company, Flores Discovery Tours, in Labaun Bajo. We did not hesitate to contact Roberto as soon as we knew we were returning to the island to help us with our planning. Roberto recommended Divine Diving company, which proved to be an incredibly positive experience. Diving with the manta rays, having them circle around us numerous times, seeking to interact with us, each time getting closer and closer, close enough
to almost touch us with their massive fins, was an experience we shall never forget. These massive, gentle, elegant creatures truly are the angels of the ocean, and as it turned out, we were seeing them on our daughter's birthday. As she is no longer physically with us, it felt as if she were entirely there in spirit, brushing those angel wings magically near us. In any case, it was a beautiful way in which to celebrate her memory, and the very accomplished and warm hearted divers from Divine Diving made the experience all the more special. In addition to the magnificent manta rays, we also saw beautiful corals, along with vast numbers of other species of fish in abundance, including sharks, groupers, grass snakes, turtles, and countless others, more abundant than any previous diving experiences we have had. When well travelled divers say that diving in Flores' Komodo Marine Park is some of the best diving in the world - and I have heard that on more than one occasion - I now understand why. It truly was amazing, and we plan to be back again next year.
We also rented motorbikes for a day to do some
exploration of the town itself, as well as some of the nearby countryside. Labuan Bajo is not a particularly remarkable place, aside from its absolutely stellar harbour. It is undergoing many changes and will likely be unrecognizable in a few years as tourism continues to develop and the town becomes more commercialized - but at the moment, many of the storefronts are makeshift, the main street is a mixture of pavement and gravel, and construction abounds everywhere. Changes are coming. The countryside, however, is jaw dropping beautiful, and we are excited to soon take off on an driving adventure across the island to see more of its rugged, dramatic beauty.
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