Got myself to the pick up point after having a mad panic I hadn't been picked up by the boat. Nice & sweaty start to the day running (ok walking quickly) with my backpack on. I discovered that morning that my neighbour at the lovely bungalow's (Louisa from Melbourne) was also going on the trip but we thought it could be different boats as her pick up time was earlier. Once off the first boat we realised that we were on the same boat! So we waited in the cafe for further instructions. There were quite a lot of people there, and after waiting over 3 hours they split us into 3 boats. Who was I going to be stuck with for 4 days! I needent have worried, everyone on our boat was lovely. The group was a mix of male & females (19 of us plus the crew) & spanned a few countries; Germany, Netherlands, USA, Japan, Australia, Finland & the UK. We were shown the sleeping area which was above the main deck & had really flat camping type mattresses, you couldn't stand up & there wasn't much room. All our bags were kept below the main deck. There was 1 loo and no shower. This was going to be a long few days!
We set sail & everyone got to know each other, swapping stories about places we'd been, what our lives were like back in the real world etc. We had lunch then later stopped for a swim. As soon as it got dark the captain had to turn the lights out so he could see where he was going. It gets dark about 6.30pm here. I think I lasted 'till 10pm & could only stomach a small beer as the seas were quite choppy. Tried to sleep but the bed's were so uncomfortable I couldn't lie on one side for too long as it hurt my hips. Then it hurt my back if I lay on my back. Then the sea was choppy. Yeah not a good sleep!
Next morning we were all up about 6.30am (sunrise time). Everyone had had a crappy night's sleep. We docked & went for a morning swim & snorkel. This was more like it! So peaceful, calm & refreshing. Back on the boat we had a banana pancake for breakfast. Yum! Then back off the boat to walk to a waterfall. Then we had lunch & went to an island which had a gorgeous lake where we went for a swim, and more snorkeling in the sea. 18 hours to our next stop... the fun had began!!
As we sailed throughout the night, we were all shattered from the lack of sleep the previous night but could we sleep? Well yes until 1am where we all sat upright. The boat was rocking so much from the choppy sea we were moving up & down the sleeping area. People were banging into the sides of the boat. My bed had moved & I was practically on top of my neighbour! It was pretty scary. I honestly thought the boat was going to topple over. I finally got back to sleep & somehow we made it to morning. Phew!
Breakfast was two pieces of white bread with a nondescript jam. At least I was alive! We did some more snorkeling & then went to Kimodo island. This is what we were waiting for.. the dragons!!! The dragon's are actually lizards but they pretty big, and have been known to kill humans. The Komodo national park is one of the new seven wonders of the world. I was excited!! We were then told that the dragon's are wild so there was no guarantee we would see one. WHAT? No one had mentioned that before! We walked around with our park rangers, happy they had long sticks to defend us should the dragon's want to attack. We were told a park ranger had been attacked a couple of weeks ago on Rinca (where we were going tomorrow) and may have to have his leg amputated. A photo was then shown to the group. I didn't look but from everyone's reactions, it was pretty grim. Now I didn't want to see a dragon! I quite liked my two legs thank you very much! We walked for what felt like ages in the heat & all of a sudden one of the warden's shouts 'dragon!'. We walk to where he was & there before us was a dragon. We all stared in awe.... and took loads of photos. Cool. Then back near the entrance we saw 2 more. They really stare at you & I kept my distance remembering the story from earlier.
That night the boat was docked not too far from a vilage, so we had a bit of a party on the boat. Local kids pulled up alongside the boat in their little boats & tried to sell us wooden dragon statues. Then another boat was the Bingtang (local beer) taxi. Brilliant! Some people joined us from one of the other boats. I was so tired I went to bed pretty early... quite a few people did the same! Had a good night's sleep that night. My body had adjusted to the sleeping arrangements.
Next day we were all so happy it was our last day on the boat. Shower & comfy beds were almost here! We visited Rinca where we saw more Kimodo dragons. A group of them all fought to eat a rat! They move fast when food is involved! Later we did some more snorkeling. Some of the guys saw a stingray! I swam away scared! Finally we made it to Laban Bajo in Flores around 4pm. Everyone had kept all limbs intact. Life was good.
After eating pretty small portions of Indonesian food for 4 days we decided to all meet for pizza that night. We went to a restaurant called 'Little Italy' which was lovely. No tomato sauce on my pizza though. Random.
Really enjoyed the boat trip. Yes it was uncomfortable, the food was average, there was no shower & they ran out of bottled water (even though some of us had paid for additional bottles), it was good fun. Not sure I'd do a boat trip for that long again but never say never!
Enjoyed your writing:thanks. Interesting part of the world.
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