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Published: August 28th 2017
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CONSTRUCTION IN THE HARBOR
I actually found some photos of the harbor. It is very busy. INDONESIA - MY CUP RUNNETH OVER
There is nothing quite like going on a dive trip and staying for a week or two. I usually plan at least two days of diving when I go to a new country, and as you can see…sometimes I do many more. This is my second trip to Lembeh Straits in Sulawesi, Philippines. It is a marvelous place. I like dive resorts, and dive live-aboards, where the emphasis is on diving. But I also like smaller dive shops so my hotels or hostels are in local neighborhoods and I get to see more of the culture and the people of the country. This trip, which started on December 5
th and ended on February 9
th was a good mix of diving and travel.
I started by joining a friend from my dive club, Emerald Sea Dive Club in Everett, Washington. Sarina and three members of her family allowed me to join them in Costa Rica. It was a fun week, diving with Sarina at an ungodly early hour every morning and being her dive buddy for two dives each day. Then we did some exciting and fun excursions. After they departed I spent another
SOFT CORALS
Soft corals often grow in wild abandon. They can be many different colors. Most I have seen have been pastels but this one, bright red against the green background was particularly striking, I thought. week in Costa Rica, then went on to Panama for some diving and sightseeing, Curacao- strictly diving, and crossed South America to experience Peru, Machu Picchu and Nazca for the Nazca Lines. I continued on to Santiago, Chile, hoping to get transport to Easter Island for a few dives. No luck there, so I opted to travel all the way to Lembeh Straits for eight days of diving at NAD Dive Resort. During all this travel I met many wonderful people; waiters, shop keepers, fellow travelers, people on the street, in restaurants, hotel keepers, too many people to count, but they all count in my memories. I love my extended trips, because I think differently in foreign countries. I meet travel angels. I see new sights, and I begin to appreciate all the wonderful gifts I receive each day.
I had seventeen dives in Lembeh. I heard the life stories of the other divers on the boat each day. I learned to accept the kindnesses of the boatman, the divemaster, Opih, and the people who served us at the resort each day. I appreciated the support and interest in my activities from Michael, my boyfriend and fellow traveler/sometime dive
NEMO IN HIDING
One of my first loves, the fish make good photo subjects and I especially love the purple base of the sea anemone. buddy, and from my family members who do not dive and think I am a little strange.
I continued to dive three times a day till noon on Feb. 8
th. I needed to take time to off-gas the nitrogen bubbles I had been accumulating before boarding my planes taking me home. The last two dive days I began to suffer a little from the cold. Even though the water is warm, it is many degrees colder than our body’s 98.6 degrees F. Fatigue and repetitive dives add up and resistance is lowered. Luckily I purchased a neoprene dive vest with an attached hood in Costa Rica, and I pulled it over the top of my wet suit, which was a big help, especially for those last afternoon dives. Indonesia is famous for “muck diving,” which is usually shallow and without a lot of coral, but burgeoning with unusual sea life. We had it all...deep diving for about twenty minutes and then shallower diving for forty or fifty minutes. The topography is quite different, as is the flora and fauna.
As my latest trip drew to a close, I looked forward to seeing my family and friends, and enjoying
GUNNEL?
I am not certain the name of this little fish, but it is very shy and usually slips quickly back into his hole in the sand before I can get a photograph. I was quite pleased to capture this. the comfort of my life in Monroe. As wonderful as traveling is, I am glad that, “…all roads lead to home.”
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