Diving and Dragons in Komodo National Park

After a less than comfortable night's sleep on the floor in Bali airport, we met Steve and Rochelle to check in for our domestic flight to Labuan Bajo, where we would be spending a few days diving in the Komodo National Park. These guys were the very first people to come and meet us on this trip, so it was great to see them - especially since the last time we saw Steve was over 5 years ago in London! 

Labuan Bajo is a fishing village on the western edge of the island of Flores, and because of increasing popularity in diving over the years it's become a bit of a tourist hub. I don't know that there's really much to do apart from diving, so it was basically just a place to sleep for us. We chose a place called Gardena Hotel and Bugalows, and despite having to walk up the hill to our rooms, it meant we had a pretty great view of the harbour below.

Our bungalow

On recommendation from Cliff and Joyce who'd been there last year, we'd already been in contact with Flores Diving Centre and booked ourselves in - all four of us to do 6 dives over two days together, then Kurt and I to do another full day (3 more dives) after Steve and Rochelle left. The dive shop is owned and run by a friendly, energetic and helpful Italian woman named Chiara, who was always so quick to respond to my emails with all the answers we needed. After meeting her in person we were more than happy with our decision to go with her dive shop.

There are several dive sites that all the dive shops visit depending on weather and current conditions, and most of them are located within the protected area of the Komodo National Park. Because this area is protected it means that it hasn't been overfished or subjected to the horrifically damaging practice of dynamite fishing, and is therefore still teeming with so many kinds of fish and marine life that it's quite simply one of the best places in the world for diving.

Because most of the dive sites are a long way from shore (up to 3 hours), doing 3 dives per day meant a full day on the boat. We'd leave at about 7:30am/8am and be back at about 5:30pm. But it wasn't exactly a chore - we got snacks, lunch and water onboard, and in between dive sites we'd just sleep on the upper deck. Not a bad life at all really. And when it came time to dive, all our equipment was set up for us ready to put on and jump in. Over our three days of diving we visited 5 or 6 different sites, all pretty different in terms of water conditions, reef and animal life. There were a couple of sites in particular that were bloody spectacular though. Batu Bolong was so packed with coral and fish that you were constantly looking around to take it all in. The colours (which our GoPro didn't do justice) were so vibrant and there was just so much to see it was mind-blowing. Another site, Manta Point, was obviously a highlight because of the incredible Manta Rays that, if you're lucky enough to see (as we were), glide majestically through the water with an unbelievable grace despite their massive size. The actual dive itself was pretty tough as visibility was shit and the current was ridiculous, so much so that we had to dig into the sea-bed or grab onto a rock to prevent being carried away before we could see the manta's. But despite these conditions we were rewarded with a sighting of several enormous manta's gliding into the cleaning station, so we could observe them for a while from a respectable distance. Such an incredible experience.

Surrounded by these views while on the boat to dive sites

After two days of diving we all made the mission out to Rinca Island (about 3 hours by boat) to see the world-famous and deadly Komodo dragons. These massive creatures can grow up to 3m long and weigh up to 130kg, and are unsurprisingly the dominant predators on the islands they inhabit in the Komodo National Park. They eat almost anything (yes, even humans if they have the chance), but even if you manage to escape their deadly jaws you're fucked anyway - their saliva contains 50 strains of bacteria which results in death from blood poisoning. So, the moral of the story is don't get close enough to risk certain death. When you arrive on the island you're greeted by a guide who takes you to sign in and pay, then he walks you around for 30mins or so. I think we were all expecting something different, but the only place you actually see the dragons is outside the kitchen building where they're attracted by the smell of food. They just laze around outside in this area, so if you're under the illusion you'll be dodging them all along the paths across the island, you'll be sadly mistaken. Although, the idea of stumbling across one of these enormous lizards in the wild wasn't really appealing either. We figure they must have recently fed them as they were pretty docile, although at one stage a fairly large male got up and came towards us hissing and carrying on. Needless to say we all stood behind our guide who had our only form of defense - a long stick with a 'V' shape at the end which is used to hold the deadly animal at bay. Reassuring. After a brief walk around where he showed us an egg-laying mound and took us up to the top of a hill with a spectacular view, we were pretty much done. So while it was interesting to see these ancient killer dragons, it wasn't quite what we expected. But I guess if you come away in one piece, you're winning.

Steve and Rochelle had to move on to go to another part of Indo for some surfing, so after saying goodbye to them we still had our final day of diving. We went to our favorite spot again which was just as amazing the second time around, and by the end of our time diving in Labuan Bajo we were blown away by how good it was. If you're ever thinking of going to Indonesia here's a word of advice - skip Kuta or the usual tourist haunts of Bali and discover the amazing underwater world by diving in Komodo National Park. Trust me, you won't be disappointed. 

A brief taste of Malaysia

Our main reason for stopping off in Malaysia was to get our 60 day visas for Indonesia in Penang, but of course the fact that that same place is rated as a foodie heaven might also have had something to do with our decision. And with only 8 days in the country we wasted no time in heading straight from the airport to get on a night bus.

Penang is a pretty small island off the northwest coast of Malaysia and is a popular tourist spot, particularly because it's known as the "food paradise" of Malaysia. Obviously we needed no further encouragement. Georgetown is the capital and where most of the action is, and apart from the food scene a lot of people are attracted there for the colonial buildings and the historical area in the UNESCO Heritage Zone. There's also some pretty cool graffiti in this area, and for that alone it's worth a walk around the town.

Our first order of business was applying for our Indonesian visas. We'd read that Penang was the only place in Malaysia that still issued 60 day visas, but we weren't sure if they made it easy or not. As it turned out, we had absolutely nothing to worry about - it was the easiest, most hassle-free visa experience we've ever encountered, with the nicest woman we've ever dealt with. After telling us not to bother with several things she told us to come and pick them up the following morning. No shit, it was that easy. So with that task completed we were free to relax and gorge ourselves on the famous food on offer.

There are a few different night markets to try out and other famous local spots dotted around, so we tried our best to sample food from as many places as possible. One of the local favourites is a noodle dish called char koay teow, which is quite similar to pad thai and pretty tasty. We also tried noodle soups; pork satay sticks; a couple of different kinds of savoury pancakes; the best pork buns ever; a local dessert called ABC which was a unique mixture of shaved ice with jelly, fruit, beans, rose water and condensed milk; lunchtime buffets of assorted rice, meat and veges; and the best burger we've had in a long time. And while Malaysia isn't pretty expensive for Asia, most of the food we tried was all very reasonably priced. So you really can eat to your heart's content without breaking the bank. This, of course, made us very happy. What also made us happy was drinking cheap beers at a local bar Kurt had read about, so we were more than happy to share this important information with people we'd met on our bus so we could all get drunk together for as cheap as possible. It's all about the good things in life.

ABC dessert - it tastes better than it looks

After 4 days in Penang we decided we should probably go and check out Kuala Lumpur. We're not always fans of the big capital cities, as they can often be dirty, sprawling, polluted shitholes. KL wasn't dirty, in fact it was actually quite clean (the parts we saw anyway), but we still didn't need more than the 3 days we had there. And one of those days was spent entirely at the pub watching both of our rugby games. We did take a walk over to check out the Petronas twin towers (we didn't bother paying the high price to go up them) and we feasted some more in Chinatown, but that was about it. Oh, and we also went to a big Dive Expo that was conveniently in town the day we arrived, so we took advantage of this to buy some necessary diving equipment that Kurt in particular needed for his dive master course. 

Simple but tasty - cheese roti and ice tea

With only 8 days in the country we didn't want to spread ourselves too thin and try and see too much, so splitting our time between Penang and Kuala Lumpur worked out well for us. Perhaps we'll head back one day to check out more places in the north like Langkawi and the Perhentian Islands, but for now our brief time in Malaysia was up. Time to go and utilise our 60 day visas in another island archipelago - Indonesia.

Sri Lanka - an oasis in hectic Asia

We arrived at Colombo airport at the ridiculous hour of 2:30am, so instead of paying stupid money for a taxi to take us the 30kms or so into the city, we waited until we could get the first train at about 6am. We didn't plan on spending any longer in the capital than we needed to, so after a wasted visit to the Indonesian Embassy where we were eventually told they don't issue 60 day tourist visas (Indo being our next destination after Malaysia), we just wandered around a bit before heading back for a much needed nap. That night we tasted a much-loved local dish called kottu roti, which is made of shredded roti (a kind of bread), vegetables, and your choice of meat and/or egg. All the ingredients are thrown onto a large, flat, heated cooking surface and then the fun begins - a deafening clatter as the two blunt metal blades used to chop and mix the kottu clash on the cooktop, before it's all piled onto a plate with a flourish. This distinctive and extremely loud sound can usually be heard in any town, and is the sign of kottu being prepared. It's usually accompanied by a dish of gravy/sauce, often a bit spicy that you can ladle on to your taste. We absolutely loved this dish and never got sick of it - probably a good thing since we had it nearly every single night for the entire month we were in Sri Lanka!

The second day we wanted to get out of Colombo and head to a beach on the south coast, so we chose Unawatuna as our first stop. We took the train which was very slow, but it was the perfect way to take in the gorgeous scenery which was unbelievably green and lush. 

With the beautiful sandy beach and all the tourist accommodation and restaurants located about 1km from the main, busy road, Unawatuna is pretty chilled and probably the most popular beach on the south coast. Unfortunately it was hit hard by the 2004 tsunami, but thanks to donations from foreigners who holidayed there and foreign volunteers, reconstruction was faster here than anywhere else in the country. We found a great room right across the road from the beach, with a big comfortable bed (with a proper mattress!) and wifi for $12.50. We knew accommodation was going to be significantly more expensive than India, but the standards were also a lot higher. 

We only had a couple of days here, but we made sure to check out Galle, which is a very popular tourist spot just 5km away. There's a massive Fort, built by the Portuguese and Dutch, which is a beautiful old place to walk around. There are plenty of hotels and restaurants inside, but that was way out of our budget, so we just walked around for a couple of hours before heading back to Unawatuna.  Then we decided to go just a little bit further down the road to another beach.

Mirissa is only about 30kms from Unawatuna, but it's a bit smaller and more of a surfing beach. As we were walking around to find a place to stay it started to piss down, so we sheltered under a guy's porch. Of course he had rooms to offer us, and when he got down to 1,000 rupees (AU$8.30) we thought we'd stay for the night and see if we could find anywhere better. After dumping our stuff in the room he offered to show us a cheap, local place to eat lunch, so he took us to the main road and got us a good price for a shitload of rice and curry (a variety of vege dishes and fish). Then it was time for a swim, but when we got back Kurt checked our money to see how much we had, and discovered we were missing 4,000 rupees (AU$33) since that morning when he'd counted. Upon further inspection, we were also missing US$10. We didn't want to jump to conclusions, so we did all sorts of calculations on what we'd spent versus what we'd taken out since we arrived. But the only explanation was that the guy we were staying with (or his dodgy friend) had another key to our room and stole it while we were out. That left us with no choice but to pack up and leave immediately. Luckily we found a much nicer place down the road with a huge balcony, and for the same price we paid in Unawatuna.

We spent four days in Mirissa, swimming, eating cheap and delicious fruit (pineapple and mango) and kottu roti, and drinking beer. We usually buy beer from a bottle shop as it's way cheaper than in the bars and restaurants, but Kurt had read about a random local bar right on the beach, that was much cheaper than all the others. It was just a little wooden hut with a couple of benches and tables under thatched roofs, and it's run by the guys in the Coast Guard, which is right behind it. We spent a couple of nights drinking here, and while it's not the cheapest beer we've had, it was still pretty damn cheap at AU$2 a bottle (long neck). 

The best bar in Mirissa

We also paid a visit to a nearby temple, which has a massive 50m tall Buddha towering above. However, it's something quite unexpected that makes it unique compared to other temples. There's a hall of horrors which has life size models of demons and sinners, as well as paintings showing various and inventive punishments that lie in store if you don't follow the path to enlightenment. Things like being sawn in half, dunked in boiling cauldrons and disembowelled. Lovely. At least it made a change from the usual run of the mill temples.

Jumping on a local bus and changing twice we headed up into the hill country, to a small village called Ella. Surrounded by lush countryside, hills and tea plantations, it's a very pretty and relaxing place to spend a few days. Being in the hills it's still very warm during the day, but at night it's a bit cooler which is much nicer for sleeping. Again, we found a really nice room with probably the biggest bed we've ever seen and a nice bathroom, with lovely hosts. The main thing to do in Ella is walk/hike up hills - either to the top of Ella Rock or to Little Adam's Peak, which is a shorter walk. We chose this one, and it's a nice easy walk through tea plantations then up the side of a hill. We didn't want to walk up the steps as Kurt's got bad knees, so we followed the path which wound around in a more gentle incline. We lost the path at one point but luckily it wasn't too overgrown to forge our way to the top. There are a couple of lookout points, separated by a steep walk down and back up another neighbouring hill, but both are worth it. You can see for miles out over the hills and valleys below and really appreciate just how green this country is. 

Tea plantations in Ella

At the top of Little Adam's Peak

Unfortunately we were in Ella over the monthly full moon holiday so all the cheap local food places were shut, and we were left with just the western places to choose from. But we still managed to find a decent kottu roti for not too expensive. And we were able to get in before the holiday to try another local favourite called hoppers. It's basically like a crepe, but it's cooked in a small round pan so it comes out bowl-shaped and you rip it up and dunk it in dahl (lentils) or spicy sauce. We tried egg hoppers, which have an egg cracked into the bottom which cooks perfectly. Finger lickin good.

Tasty egg hopper

                                 

After a few days in the hills it was back out to the coast for some more beach time. From Ella to Arugam Bay was an all day affair, and we spent most of that on what has to be the most crowded bus we've ever been on. We were in the seats right at the front and there were people literally between our legs, with boobs and asses in our faces. That sounds a lot better than it actually was, I can assure you. Add to that the sticky heat and we were soaked in sweat by the end of it. But, unless you want to hire a private driver it's the only way to travel (when there's no train) and it's also the best way to interact with locals who are, for the most part, quite friendly. They're a bit more reserved than the Indians, but they also don't blatantly stare as much either which was a nice change.

Arugam Bay is the most popular surfing spot for foreigners in the whole country, with people coming from all over the world to fight for a wave during the peak season (April-October), which was just kicking in when we were there. Luckily we managed to find a nice cheap room just steps from the beach, so we thought it'd be rude not to stay for about a week. On our second night we were walking along the main street trying to find a cheap local place for our favourite kottu roti, when someone walking past us recognised Kurt and said hi. Turns out it was Rebecca and Gary, an English couple Kurt had briefly spoken to at the bus station in Jodhpur (India) a couple of months ago, and she obviously had a very good memory for faces. They were also on the hunt for kottu roti so we had dinner together and shared travel stories from India. We spent a lot of time with them over the next few days, drinking cheap beers from the bottle store and a bottle of arrack which we smashed back between us on the beach one night. Arrack is a local spirit which is distilled from the nectar from coconut flowers, and it's pretty potent stuff. The hangover's the next morning were testament to that! Rebecca and Gary stayed on in Arugam Bay a bit longer, so knowing we'd made more great friends and would keep in touch, we said goodbye to continue on up the coast.

View from outside our room

We'd chosen to spend a few days in Trincomalee (Trinco for short), which is on the north-east coast of Sri Lanka. Well, we actually stayed just north in Uppuveli, which has a beautiful long stretch of beach. It's a very chilled out place with not much to do except swim, relax on the beach and eat delicious local food and fruit (Sri Lanka has the BEST pineapples in the world as far as we're concerned), so that's how we spent the next five days. We'd debated whether to go diving or not, but it was quite expensive and we weren't sure if it would be any good, so we decided not to risk it.

Uppuveli beach

Alternative accommodation right on the beach

Individual little pods with a sea view

In Sri Lanka there are plenty of tourist sites to visit, but they're all very expensive. For this reason we'd chosen to do just one - the rock fortress of Sigiriya. It was only a few hours on the bus inland from Trinco to the small village of Sigiriya which is located near the rock, and in fact you can see the towering formation from most guest houses which is an added bonus. The rock itself, also known as Lion Rock in English, is part of an ancient palace and is 200m high. The King built his palace on the top of this rock, and it gets its name from the massive gateway halfway up the rock that's shaped like a lion (only the paws and staircase remain today). After walking across the moat and through the gardens, the ascent up the rock begins. The climb up the stairs isn't too strenuous and it only takes about 25mins, but we'd chosen to start early (7am) to avoid the heat of the day. Good decision by us, because when we got to the top the sun was already blazing down. The remains of the palace on top of the rock are fairly sparse (understandable after 1,600 years), but the 360 degree view is spectacular. The $30 entry fee and climb were worth it just for that. On the way down we realised we'd missed something, so we had to go against the flow of people now on their way up to get a look. There's a spiral staircase that leads up to a small cave-like area where extremely well-preserved frescoes of topless women are painted all over the rock surface. Nothing like a bit of ancient porn to round off a visit to a historical site. 

The lion's paws and staircase which still remain

View from the top of Sigiriya

Moving down to the central part of the country, we stopped off at Kandy for a couple of nights. It's the second largest city in Sri Lanka and is also considered the cultural capital. It's in quite a pretty location next to a lake and surrounded by lush green hills, and if you have the time, inclination and money there's quite a few things to see and do. We had none of these things, so we were content to just spend our day wandering around town. And finding cheap and tasty local food of course. There were significantly more tourist shops and restaurants in Kandy, but why pay $10 for a meal when you can pay $2? 

Another cheap and tasty kottu roti

With only one more night before our flight to Malaysia, we headed back west to Negombo, which is a coastal town right by the airport. It's a much nicer and more convenient option than going all the way back to Colombo. We found a great room with a balcony and sea view right out in front (unfortunately not a nice beach for swimming though), and managed to get in a final feeding of our beloved kottu roti as well as the ridiculously cheap and delicious pineapple and mangoes on offer. 

We enjoyed our month in Sri Lanka as it was a quieter, less hectic version of India, and so intensely green and beautiful. And while it was a nice break, it was perhaps the lack of intensity and daily sensory assaults that gave it a slight feeling of lacking in something. It has some great beaches and amazing scenery though, so we'd definitely recommend it to people. But now we were more than ready to dive into the Malaysian food scene and eat to our heart's content.