tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22745440477796501852024-02-20T18:56:02.836+08:00Melati luv DivingMelati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-80163836166895289672011-08-03T21:39:00.027+08:002011-08-04T13:33:56.453+08:00Bali 2011<div align="justify">A week of Easter Holiday comes and on this trip, only me, my mum and my dad went. My sister had her exams coming up, so she decided to stay at home and study instead- what shame... Anyway, my parents decided that we should go to Bali and dive (usual). We always go to Bali every year- even when my I was not born yet! I think it's a tradition in our family! My dad bought a new Olympus camera, which is the Xz-1. It's a compact camera like the Canon we used to have. We gave it away because the lens got stuck, so it needed to be serviced. When my sister started underwater photography, my dad got her a lesson with a famous Australian underwater photographer, Jeff Mullins. He thought that it might be useful if I get a lesson too- and it'll then be fair! I had a two day course in Tulamben. After Tulamben, the three of us had a car ride to Menjangan, North West of Bali. We stayed at a very luxurious hotel, called Mimpi and dived with Disthi Scuba.<br /><br />On all the three days at Tulamben, my parents and I started it off with a one hour morning dive at Liberty Wreck. This dive site is one of my favourites in Bali. Many bump head parrot fish swim there early in the morning, nudibranchs can be found either on the wreck or on the sand as well as flounders hiding in the sand. Liberty Wreck is full of life. I saw Spanish Dancer Eggs stuck on the rock, while swaying in the water following the water flow. Beautiful like a flower, colourful like a rainbow! </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">After the morning dive, Jeff had a look at my previous pictures, therefore he will know what I needed to improve on. This also happened on the second day of lesson. Me and my dad visited jeff's house and Jeff gave my dad and I some papers to read, learn and understand. <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 528px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 393px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/spanishdancer_egg.jpg" /></div><em>(I love Spanish Dancer Eggs because the colour is pink - my favourite colour - and it sways in the water, therefore like a ribbon.)</em><br /><br /><div align="justify"><br />On the first day of lesson, I was taught about the basics of a camera and underwater photography. There is the manual option, the auto option, the aperture mode or the shutter speed mode to use. He also told me what these mode or options are for and why they should be used. Since I love macro the most - and I didn't know how to take wide angle shots yet - Jeff increased my knowledge on taking macro shots. He showed me the best on using macro lens, thus the main subject becomes bigger without the picture being blurred. </div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 408px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 309px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/Melati_blenny.jpg" /> <em>(These fish are tiny. They are the length of a toe nail and I used double macro for this picture.)</em><br /><br /><br /><div align="justify"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 503px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 375px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/Melati_grouper.jpg" /><em>(This Peacock Grouper was hiding under a stone. The shadow hid its beautiful colours until Jeff told me to tae a photo of it.)<br /></em><br />On the second day of lesson, Jeff introduced me to taking 'wide angle shots'. Of course, I can't take wide angle photos as good as my dad's because my camera is only a compact camera. Also, it doesn't have the right lens therefore I have to go further away from the object, though the light from the strobe won't be powerful enough. he gave me some tips and like the previous day, we went diving again. I tried to use the knowledge Jeff taught me. In the end of the day, I produced some wonderful pictures! <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 468px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 371px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/Emperor_shrimp1.jpg" />(<em>This is an Emperor Shrimp on a Blue Sea Star. I used two macro lens and this photo is one of my best works!)</em><br /><br />On the last day of stay in Tulamben, my parents and I only did one dive- which was a morning dive. We went diving at Liberty Wreck, only because we had to go to Mejangan- on a CAR (not that there was any other nice private transport)! Like our previous dives at Liberty Wreck, there were MANY giant Bumpheads!!! We saw a Flounder and there was also a bit of current. I love wrecks because there bug fishes swim around them- though I'm not so sure why... Whatsoever, I really enjoyed the last dive at Tulamben, it was fun and I would suggest the Liberty Wrecks to dive lovers- excellent for any diving levels, as well as for snorkelers!<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 501px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 368px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/Melato_moray_1.jpg" /></div><br /><div align="justify"><em>(There was this Moray Eel and I decided to take a photo of it. Suddenly this blue Cleaner Fish came into the picture and the Moray Eel opened it's mouth. The Cleaner Fish swam into the mouth and started cleaning the Eel. This picture seems as if the Cleaner Fish is lying on the Eel's teeth!)</em></div><br /><div align="justify"><br />On the way to our next diving spot, we stopped at a school where they teach students around my age. We donated some books, since we had way TOO much! Also, it would be a waste if we threw them away- recycle the books ->save the environment, donate the books -> elps other children! Anyways, the trip from Tulamben to Mimpi Resort took us around 4-5 hours. Once we checked-in to our resort, we explored around the villas, then we visited the dive centre Disthi Scuba later on in the evening.<br /><br />Disthi Scuba was very well known for it's magnificent pearls. Me and my family went to the same shop a few years ago, but it didn't have any diving centre or maybe we didn't even knew. The hotel I mentioned before was popular for it's hot springs. I didn't have enough time to have a relaxing warm dip. Apparently, you're not allowed to go into hot spring right after scuba diving. However, my parents and I had a chance to dip our legs in. It was warm and very soothing...<br /><br />On our first day of diving at Menjangan, we actually went to the the Menjangan island. We went to three different locations and my favourite was nearby a beach. There was a temple on the hill and when we visited the place (for lunch first), it was very busy- full of people wearing kebaya, trying to get on the shore. Anyway, the diving there was beautiful! It was steep but very clear. What i love about this dive site is that we saw Pygmy Seahorses!!! It wasn't very deep and we saw about three. There were two red ones and one yellow, though the guide said that it was yellow because it was getting old. We were wall diving and it was very COLOURFUL! I loved the blueness of the sea and the colours of the corals. We only went diving for about 30 to 45 minutes. This was because I wanted to dive at the Pearl farm. I have always wondered how it looks like. We stopped at the farm and jumped in as soon as possible. I didn't imagine the clams to be that ugly. Okay, it wasn't ugly but I didn't expected it to be covered in corals and sponges. In cartoons the clam always seem clean and shiny, looking very priceless. However, when it is actually underwater, without the corals and sponges, it would look dull and dirty. I was surprised. The dive was marvelous though I hated one thing. This is at the fact that clams eat plankton. Luckily for the clams and unluckily for us divers, the water was full of plankton and it stung me a dozen times! I was itching my body when I got out of the water. This experience was something I did not expect and something that I will remember! </div><br /><div align="justify"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 439px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 355px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/Melati_shrimp.jpg" /></div><br /><div align="justify"><em>(When the Pearl Clam is still young and is starting to grow, it is put in a net. Corals, weeds, sponges start to grow, attracting other widelife to the Pearl Farm. This is a picture of a shrimp on the net.)</em></div><br /><div align="justify"><em><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 453px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 364px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/Pearl_clam.jpg" /></em></div><br /><div align="justify"><em>(This is a photo of the pearl clam. I'm not fully sure what the orange thig isn, but it looks like sponge. The tiny black thing near the white stuff, is actually the gap of the mouth!) </em><br /></div><br /><div align="justify">Second day at Menjangan... That meant that it was our last dive at Bali for 2011. Our guide was explaining that there is a dive site - not at Menjangan Island - just a few minutes away from the resort by car. It is called Secret Bay. He said that it is good, but FREEZING! The lowest temperature was 24'C and at that time, I didn't know how cold that was. However, they did suggest me (told me actually) that I should borrow their thick short wet suit, since my wet suit is only 1mm. Anyway, when I laid a foot in the water, I felt like screaming (<span style="font-size:78%;">exaggeration</span>)! I nearly felt like I won't be able to take the Apparently, there used to be a Pearl farm at Secret Bay too, but I don't know what happened. There was also some Lobster catchers and I saw a Lion fish over there. There were corals but it didn't cover every single area of the dive site. They were mostly on a rock; some as small as a cushion, others as wide as a sofa. There was also a boat wreck. The sea bottom is white sand and it was very light, therefore it was easy to muck up the water. We saw a Sweetlip or too. Many fishes on the wreck and there was also a sea snake! This snake is not the usual Banded Sea Snake in fact, it seemed like the 'Blinded' Sea Snake! It was swimming like it couldn't see and it nearly bumped a Sea Urchin! I wonder what specie it is... lso, on a rock there was this Frog fish. It was orange and reminded me of an orange! I took many pictures of this creature and guess what? When my dad were looking through my photos on the laptop, he realised that there was also another Frog fish- just a much <span style="font-size:78%;">TINIER</span> one! It was around the size of a thumb nail- maybe a bit bigger. I was very surprised! We also saw a File fish near the weeds, as well as a Gurnard. After a while, my parents and I couldn't take anymore and came up to the surface. As my dad always say, there is always some positive and negative points to everything!</div><br /><div align="justify"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 421px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 358px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/sb_melati_box_fish.jpg" /></div><br /><div align="justify"><em>(I didn't get much photos of this juvenile Box Fish because it kept on swimming into the coral. The fish looks really cute.)</em></div><br /><div align="justify"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 431px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 326px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="http://www.scubaboard.com/gallery/data/5472/sb_melati_juv_baramundii.jpg" /></div><br /><div align="justify"><em>(This fish was not tiny, as big as a child's foot and is an excellent dancer! The fish kept on wiggling and wiggling it was quite difficult to take a photo of this fish...)</em></div><br /><div align="justify"><em></em></div><br /><div align="justify">After the dive, me, my mum, my dad's friends and the guides had dinner at 'Mba Lina'. We ate yam Betutu (Betutu Chicken) which was a Menjangan specialty. It was delicious, but it was also VERY S-P-I-C-Y!!! Menjangan, Tulamben in fact, the whole island o Bali is full of surprises. Either you encounter it underwater or in your tastebuds, Bali is amazing! This trip was really fun and exciting. I enjoyed it very much and I can't wait to go to Bali AGAIN! </div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-52264206452558214862011-08-03T10:54:00.026+08:002011-08-13T15:54:35.012+08:00Palu, Sulawesi, Indonesia 2011<div style="text-align: justify;">Summer is here, meaning more time to relax! My family and I visited Sulawesi again (where Gorontalo, Togian, Bunaken, Lembeh and Tana Toraja is) but this time, we went to the East. From Jakarta, we went to Makassar first (transit) then to Palu. From the city, we went to a small town called Donggala. Just out of town, there is a resort called Prince John- which was where we stayed. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW77nv7y_8pLxPBQVMCBFYZJFz7mgyiJi7QvWn5aFRtuipD1Iul4pMxE9O1DEoLADnmqn0-AUuTiedNbomZ3IaPNWByVQbGhH5wWjJ4_eJNTbGJx3LJe2WZ2ZsiZrblGsDdB3hk-XJivw/s320/Tanjung+Karang.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640236104012144818" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This is the beach at Prince John. I LOVE how there are three different shades of blue for the sea! The big bungalow is the restaurant. There are also deck chairs along the beach, which are always full at midday and afternoon!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: justify;">Prince John is the only dive resort in Palu. The rooms are made out of wood and what I love about these rooms is that most of them (the one bedrooms) are on the edge of the hill, looking like its hanging! Me and my family slept in a different type of cabin. It has two rooms and used to belong to the manager of Prince John, therefore it has a kitchen (though there is no gas). I also love the beach! Why? First of all, the water is REALLY clear! I could see the corals pretty clear when I was snorkeling. Second of all, I saw a BAT FISH, a LION FISH and a FLOUNDER just off the shore- they were only around 1 to 2 metres deep! And last but not least, unlike in Tulamben, the sand at Palu and its surrounding beaches are white making the whole beach seem much relaxing!</div></div><div>
<br /></div><div><div><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowmapV3VeNsHIYZeU4UCi_CVBhrc1ojY6Qenz485TtsygWUaJ0AhBeytJuqgYPrfpJJprco6EcvRmdmei44FpTx9g7xMx1xTwA-QDfFykhM8SBl_baSMsc7g33MRKpWRdqMcx_iE1v7I/s320/Melati.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640235497897266338" /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This was at Prince John. I was playing on a Slack-line. This is where you have to walk on a flat rope from one tree to another!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>
<br /></i></div><div><b>First Day</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On the first day, my dad decided to do only two dives. He just wanted the first two dives to be a 'warm up'. Thus on the second day, we hopefully dive without any problems. Since the whole family only has two underwater cameras now, my dad gave his one to my sister and I use the Olympus Xz-1. </div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVX6ioTodZATlfVP9yghjBvCo7x4t9GyfSXRBZJ6IY8yX5-y52OZIek8CZaA_cmTtvWHeb7aGKPlk7FJiLQvM9QxNpBfqK3lcT1s9YEfnq1vY0GDdnv9tNOABJeJIYaz2WDmJ6SfEWOcM/s1600/Mayang.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVX6ioTodZATlfVP9yghjBvCo7x4t9GyfSXRBZJ6IY8yX5-y52OZIek8CZaA_cmTtvWHeb7aGKPlk7FJiLQvM9QxNpBfqK3lcT1s9YEfnq1vY0GDdnv9tNOABJeJIYaz2WDmJ6SfEWOcM/s320/Mayang.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640235493203296754" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This is a photo of my sister taking a photo of little blue fishes at Grand Canyon!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>
<br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>1st Dive- House Reef</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This place is BEAUTIFUL. It is full of colourful corals and colourful fishes. There aren’t many interesting creatures. However, on an anemone, there were some Clown fishes with a Porcelain Crab walking around the anemone. I was looking at this book after the dive and it was specially featuring on sea creatures (Crabs, Shrimps, Nudibranchs – not fishes though). From this book, I now know the difference between a normal crab and a Porcelain Crab. The main claw on a normal crab is smaller, comparing to a Porcelain Crab’s. Besides crabs, we saw numerous amounts of tiny Emperor Shrimps on Sea Stars and Sea Cucumbers. Also, there was this other tiny shrimp. The colour on my photos and underwater seemed green, but I’m not completely sure. It was crawling up and down on this coral stick thing. It looked like a stick, but it had some soft coral-like features on it.</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPAfMabhwBR6ioPmZAG7C8PYYszsRU1q1bcY-zmnRQBZ4VnsxjJjpTECcuw3Q9DNrD-MFNePE5x8kFpEb-e44iS4_pW9MdEXA_soMvPZ9nHCt_WIaeeP3JvSQh_F06iAXeoU5lKJgzbjU/s320/porcelain+crab.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640234878822665314" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">This is the Porcelain Crab. See how the front claws are HUGE!</div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQB-C0zXAbApznFoYzZeIKTqOPj___2UpreNa8VOGmjqmUouDq_7kWdN49nquoX1HVSD60atfqNtUxSi1iM6EDSYTtR5VwuBNaoDeQWh2rQexm4OjbTKdObXVUsZ2YjTZI_2xFq6kIKd4/s320/Artificial+reef.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640234875450183778" /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">This is a photo of artificial corals at the House Reef. People purposely grow artificial corals to attract for underwater wildlife!</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVbmOuS8eQBeCg8x5j4JpXvRljL_EQLx8Mr9VGPfkcWXob1UTU84TBCjVJDrCWPOrxtSnqOqkoZEcKJO7c80dMn5eEvAGJHWGwlXZ10jSdseI5UcvW51FcHpCib7rbfNApYMRWRQN_7yE/s1600/crinoid+shrimp.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVbmOuS8eQBeCg8x5j4JpXvRljL_EQLx8Mr9VGPfkcWXob1UTU84TBCjVJDrCWPOrxtSnqOqkoZEcKJO7c80dMn5eEvAGJHWGwlXZ10jSdseI5UcvW51FcHpCib7rbfNApYMRWRQN_7yE/s320/crinoid+shrimp.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640234537957848274" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">This green Shrimp turned out to be a Crinoid Shrimp.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>2nd Dive- Alex Point/Anchor</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Alex Point or Anchor is literally 30 seconds off Prince John’s House Reef, with a boat. Just like the dive at Prince John’s House Reef, there were Emperor Shrimps on Star fishes. There were also other types of shrimps, such as the clear shrimps on anemones. Apart from Shrimps, there were different types of crab too. At the end of the dive, there was this small Ornate Ghost Pipefish, swimming nearby a blue crinoid. However, my favourite part of this dive was when I saw Nudibranchs on a Sea Squirt- twice! On the first encounter, the Nudibranch was blue and yellow. It matched perfectly with the Sea Squirt! The colour of the Nudibranch was black and white on the second encounter, nice but not like the blue and yellow Nudibranch.</div></div><div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsRO9Hn0P0RyvaU_0hkUPkmnsiYzyzbBDf8lyHZCoEHs7_TARI-LnNH-dSoL3ZsXLhyphenhyphenqKhVFHuLEjr4Q4Nw7Q8I2jYKjyY9-ggZn8siFBLA-22BiLNnhIyceoIMziCL99e5W8LkePd0lE/s320/emperor+shrimp.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640233608456152082" /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: center; "><i>It took me awhile to take this photo because the shrimp kept moving. The size of the Shrimp was around 2cm!</i></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc5RwEPbYoRIa-AHISxSv6yhsOTUyIZHdpGOZxXLeKAK6aUjSsdOGIj36mjfeXsoKCxZnqBKRXf3vrSmUS4c09FiINdnbrP8E-tlWyLuzVvSZiahPPH6t1onrvHgjfk8zLP6r8Lrkq_qY/s320/Nudi+.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640233607863454194" /></div><div style="text-align: center; "><i>This was the first Nudibranch I saw. There was another one of the same type, but it was under the Sea Squirt.</i></div><div style="text-align: center; "><i>
<br /></i></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify; ">2nd Day</div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify; ">1st Dive- House Reef</div><div style="text-align: justify; ">Second day of diving and we started it off with a morning dive... Like usual. The day before, my dad wanted to know if everyday we could dive before breakfast, so around six. When the guide said it was possible, we went diving at 6.30am the latest. Unfortunately, when I was transferring my images from the previous day, I forgot to put the memory card back, thus I was limited on how many pictures I was able to take and that was 13 pictures. In the beginning, there was this small Mantis Shrimp. It was hiding in a small hole, with it's antennae sticking out. It took awhile to take a photo of the Mantis Shrimp. I saw a Scorpion fish too and a Flounder at the end which I chased for a bit! </div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1lPqHt2Dk6ULuq7NtqjkbAgrLX-_mwed_auBFJA15kZhqCL4wFqE-e8Lg15yO4HzSPnFFwtIEaoPDRhk5bHtyB93klVEjWTWHvT4cBM7CPjzbYSfiy-pCPhWuhVOOYxXAwklucMexr6E/s320/Bearded+scorpionfish.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640233604805758482" /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This Scorpion fish was sitting still on a rock.</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify; ">Day Trip</div><div style="text-align: justify; ">After the dive at House Reef, my dad planned to have a day trip. We went diving at South Atoll first, then Pasi Kava. It took us one hour (by boat) to our first dive site. After a tiring one and a half hour dive we had lunch.</div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>
<br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>1st Dive- South Atoll & 2nd Dive- Pasi Kava</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Both dive sites were not famous for it's macro life, mainly because there were hardly any seen, but for the corals and big fishes and I mean big. Guess what they are... They are as long as me, way tougher than me,I think they can be found in a shop, is also black or white on top, eats everything in the sea, but luckily not me… SHARKS!!! In South Atoll, my family and our guide saw 5 different White Tip Sharks and one Black Tip!!! I was disappointed that I didn't see a single one. Our guide said that sharks swim only in this area and by area I thought he meant South Atoll only. So on the second dive, I didn't expect that I'm going to meet more sharks. Just when we went down, a shark passed by, 10 metres away from us, well more or less. Then another one and another one and another one and more! In the end of that dive, we saw 4 or more sharks!!! I was so exhilarated because I have never seen any White Tips or Black Tips apart from when we went to Sipadan (read my Sipadan blog to get more info)! In Pasi Kava, we also saw TWO Orangutan Crabs! It literally looked like an Orangutan, with long brown fur. There was also a Squat Lobster. It was tiny and was on a Sponge. It had white spikes and a pair of red eyes. Last of all, we saw a Moray Eel. I think it was black and when I took a picture of it, the image didn't turn out the way I wanted and expected. </div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd8NoEsLlOxOLdmB2BnObXlr2fiJz9Xb5_oEZaUfG1sb-7HuvKbaWxvJZdL1MLtQwlUmzzXFk-Mxg78BWYWa6UILnpyRVlOMGA3fDDiAZe-2d3yEplbFE0wJC8TRdftW9Op9WvCeQY9WM/s320/Squat+lobster+Laurea+siagiani.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640232503414059346" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This little creature is so cute I wanted to touch it, but obviously I'm not allowed.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi66zUlRKRc3gNywqcrnn8HhgCFlRCRbZDHFlRl4AaJo1d3irCgySTDOpogTDpxx22HVKkrLcc_yCHUMz3wEF7csg1c9UOVvCe7NnYl3SoOWlKzuzZsPBnKwDBVCGbQA_vFCyluLQEP8xs/s320/Orang+utan+crabs.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640232500253401090" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: center; "><i>These are the two Orangutan crabs I described. </i></div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify; ">3rd Day</div><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify; ">1st Dive- House Reef</div><div style="text-align: justify; ">Again, we went diving at the House Reef. Luckily, I brought my camera WITH the memory card. If I didn't, I think I would CRY (just kidding) because what we saw was spectacular! (Not as spectacular as a Whale Shark or Dolphins though…) There was that green shrimp on the coral-like-stick-thing AGAIN, though I think it is the same coral-like-stick-thing we saw before, but I wasn't sure. Anyway, when I was looking at an anemone, there were Clear Shrimps jumping about and I decided to take a photo of it. Later on at night, when I was going through my pictures, my dad spotted eggs in the shrimp's body. I was not 100% sure because it was pink and I thought it was the brain…; We also saw a small group of Rigid Shrimp fish and a TINY WEENIE Nudibranch!It was blackish and it was difficult to take a photo of it with only two macro lens. We saw an Ornate Ghost Pipefish hovering about. Just when we were ashore, just nearby the place where we took our fins off, we saw a JELLYFISH!!! The inside of the Jellyfish was purple, but it had NO TENTACLES!!! We talked about this with the guide, after our dive. He said that another fish ate the tentacles therefore, it is tentacle-less!</div><div style="text-align: justify; "><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiifqtKm_mDcxnFRL4d6MSQYZVgFzX4MmtuDswZrwDFP0pK1rxMxbPliJTE0L-sXR3gB3YWKt6rOeVEuKjYxrYig3xYdvVgG_HiEmr53uUTQLlWecXQYOasopWzwex94YjxZID5O5fc_jU/s320/Jelly+fish.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640232497379858802" /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>It was hard taking a photo of the Jelly fish because it was close to the surface and it was a bit choppy!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>
<br /></i></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>2nd Dive- Natural</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: justify;">I didn't find this dive site that special unfortunately. Mostly because there were hardly any macro creatures. There were tons of Emperor fish- as usual and a Moray Eel. But there was this animal that made this dive site have a little specialty- which was the Cuttlefish! I was just swimming around and the guide pointed the Cuttlefish out. I couldn't figure out where the animal was. So I gave the guide an where sign. He pointed to the corals and I saw the Cuttlefish. It camouflaged perfectly with the stone! I was tricked! I took a photo of it and I began to come closer to the Cuttlefish. It swam away and I chased after it. I got tired and stop… Right at the end, there was a Leaf Scorpion fish. However, it was hiding down a coral. I tried to bring it up. I wanted to give up, since my air was running out. Just when I was about to leave, the fish jumped out and it was at a perfect spot for me to take a picture. AGGGGHHH! I felt so frustrated. I refused to go and stayed underwater for a few more minutes.</div></div><div><div><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU7SwN-gHfXrFjBVvrznHqmh0D5jNYU0akMgsP-pjdlR1fC32orB8tMlGLnQii6l0j1FAsemNmHID8zoesSEEqqGX-_v4pMhuvLb1cK-3l2OktTb-d5QJJSnHOlXUVSqDBzjD6yz1emfw/s320/cuttle+fish.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640227848044046386" /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The Cuttlefish kept swimming away and I wasn't close enough to the animal for the strobe to reach.</i></div><div><b>
<br /></b></div><div><b>3rd Dive- Shipwreck</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Just before we were going to do our third dive, we heard that two people was going to a shipwreck. My dad was curious and therefore he asked the guide. Our guide said that in front of the House Reef, there is a shipwreck. However, it was slightly too deep for me, thus he didn't suggest the dive site to us. The guide also said that we might be able to find Bullocki Nudibranchs. They are pink with yellow gills and yellow antennae. In addition, they are very rare and can't be found worldwide. We soon started diving and the ship was around 10 metres in length. I was SO excited! I was looking around and I saw this big Moray Eel, hiding between a little gap of the ship!!! I badly wanted to take a photo of it, but I was scared. However, I don't think it is as big as the one my sister and dad saw when they were night diving. They said that the size of the body was nearly as big as mine! Even my sister was scared to take a photo of the Eel that night! Anyway, there were many Bat fish swimming in the wreck and every time I was 10 metres closer to the group, they swim away! In addition, there was this huge Grouper! I think it was sleeping because it stayed still then again, but then again, I can't be sure since fish sleeps with their eyes opened... </div></div><div>
<br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBTrYQ5znXfQt6u8PEeVwXwQfaspOJGaF2Xgm2SgvpaakY4fA8nodPHy5B_535Gu4ohAwLtHqemMQZMEWx1BHITIYYTLTvFafaqBx63YiqyVqpMG0Ra9TbkOzl17-aolr8RTTEEeSYxY/s1600/Emperor+shrimp+on+bullocki.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBTrYQ5znXfQt6u8PEeVwXwQfaspOJGaF2Xgm2SgvpaakY4fA8nodPHy5B_535Gu4ohAwLtHqemMQZMEWx1BHITIYYTLTvFafaqBx63YiqyVqpMG0Ra9TbkOzl17-aolr8RTTEEeSYxY/s320/Emperor+shrimp+on+bullocki.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640226875959787762" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The Bullocki was 'walking' on the top of the shipwreck. The little white animal at the bottom is a shrimp.</i></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimkYoZd_-0Sa4Kg_XeIZZdfRTsk_XLgH1YJZcFA1SwAJ4AbH-8iuyy624KqF4DKOfKg8KoxrNQxxfeyruaIKgcYoD8UTutLBFLrjy6ySmfGIwTnciFMsGOYgYrAZBkfxbbgjT4NK8dlvo/s1600/Emperor+shrimp+on+bullocki+2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimkYoZd_-0Sa4Kg_XeIZZdfRTsk_XLgH1YJZcFA1SwAJ4AbH-8iuyy624KqF4DKOfKg8KoxrNQxxfeyruaIKgcYoD8UTutLBFLrjy6ySmfGIwTnciFMsGOYgYrAZBkfxbbgjT4NK8dlvo/s320/Emperor+shrimp+on+bullocki+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640226872870952546" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;">This is a close up of the Shrimp. The picture has been cropped, but I used 2 macro lens.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbFjm5Vpg1YevmMPgz-BopHEra51Y7qeSHQgfiXm0706KiMInjZO6-YR18qggeclM_tvamRGc5fVDvQIaQMQbNtEQtrWthbf6N6EzTiVbCkcVx3VPOqgqiaTrhUgN8OK6wuN_Lhvbedxo/s320/Nudi+3.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640226867887766882" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This looks like a Flatworm (which was the first thing I thought), but it is actually a Nudibranch because it has a pair of antennae and gills.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>LAST Day- Marantale</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>1st Dive- Maymel</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It took us 3 hours to reach Marantale from Prince John by car. Our first dive site was called Maymel. Actually it's not... None of the dive sites in Marantale is named. Me and my sister therefore wanted to name it Maymel- from Mayang and Melati! Anyway, Maymel was amazing! The visibility was 40 metres (no joke)... Or at least 30 metres. The corals and sponges were huge and beautiful! They also looked very healthy. However, there was one tiny weenie bit that I didn't really like and that was the Antheas-like fishes. Usually Antheas are pink in colour and are easily seen against the blueness of the sea. These Antheas were blue and blend excellently with the sea, therefore the fishes can hardly be seen in the picture, in my opinion. Anyway, on my Gorontalo blog, (for more info on Gorontalo, read my Gorontalo blog) I said that Salvador Dali sponges only exist in Gorontalo... But guess what? It doesn't! In Maymel, we saw a huge Salvador Dali!!! It was only one, but that still makes the fact 'Salvador Dali only lives in Gorontalo', not a fact! Gorontalo and Marantale are both AMAZING, but as I've said, surprises are everywhere!</div></div><div>
<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMmcuUR-2jt1HsCT0DsHAkpuqWUEeyuqSNqycH7XQNfeInhNVK9oxuR1tETHhFPHdF9KiDupTtbIoF2_wlzn6Eo1pjQ-gevkvXSIl0H0VVi0O1nN8DPN1QDKwvFxZFMPwaD6_nZuHE260/s320/Nemo.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640225907084902818" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><i>I LOVE this picture. I like how the purple of the anemone; the orange and white of the Clownfishes match perfectly together! My dad said if I used a lower aperture, the background could've been all black.</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixrQ3BXgMTbzreIhyaRdezD5o4iX8EzUf69WFjFMY59zzIIuIBBsAVKDCHpcS0tT8ahhpMRF2yjYmzxTUQQPAJOa-GaEy2BEEJ4C72J_gPQ7uU3Gntxe7RtdZNgeqmFP0ALmP1ft2EgWU/s320/Blue+sea+stars.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640225909866048034" /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>From the two dives at Marantale, I learnt that Blue Star fishes makes a picture look better! However, this was not my best wide-angle photo at Palu.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>
<br /></i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>2nd Dive/last dive- Grand Canyon</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;">First of all, my dad named this dive site Grand Canyon. Why? Well if there's anyone who has been to the Grand Canyon in the US, picture in mind of an identical one and imagine it being underwater- with blooming corals and sponges; with many tiny blue fishes; with swaying anemones filled with Anemone fishes and Clear Shrimps; with colourful Nudibranchs and other underwater wild life! Yes, this name has been taken - twice! - but the name fits with the dive site PERFECTLY! Just like at Maymel, the visibility reached 40 metres! This is something hard to imagine, thus come to Prince John and have dive trips you'll NEVER (I literally mean never) regret!</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizPNYTCtKzOnWftDaT5NHIYMvwHLrA4icz9VpfrBLTq_V8bFnDqAt8xF4dJJcku266uFBu1LE7ifouHZvHcFm5dsCipzlajWQi7l61hoIiODNQzEqMHassshZNgCR91O5NOkftKlo-9nA/s320/Nudi+5.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640225903218486274" /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>This picture might as well be my favourite because I love how the Nudibranch is at a position where it looks like it was going to flip!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div></div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-69901798588952135542011-05-15T11:04:00.015+08:002011-05-22T21:09:01.427+08:00Gorontalo and Togean Islands<span style="font-family:arial;">On this trip, me and my family went to Sulawesi, central east of Indonesia. We’ve been to Manado (Lembeh and Bunaken), so we travelled a little to the south. We started at Gorontalo, went diving for three days, then we went on a ‘ship’ (ferry, which was super slow!!) ride to Togian Island. Again, in Togian we went diving for three days, including the first day when we got to the island. Apparently, around March the sea is calm and on May the sea is totally flat- not a single wave. In this condition, you can see Dolphins swimming. However, this year is a bit strange, with weather patterns changing. The sea was very rough in Togian when my family and I visit this Island, so we didn’t have the best diving trip.</span><p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; ">In Gorontalo, there aren’t many macro lives; you can see at least one Nudibranch in a dive. The maximum amount of Nudibranchs I saw was around three, but you can probably see upto five if you are lucky. The main photography technique that is used is wide-angle. This is best used when there is a current. This is because fishes love sports; therefore they swim in currents, going to the opposite direction of the current. The stronger the current, the bigger the fish and fishes will surround you. Anyway, in total my family and I had nine dives in Gorontalo. Some of these dive sites took an hour to reach from the town.</p><p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; ">Most tourists come to Gorontalo to dive and see its beautiful Sponges. Two types of Sponges grow and live only in Gorontalo. They’re called the Salvador Dali Sponge and the Cigar Sponge. Sounds familiar? Salvador Dali is the Italian Surrealist artist. The Salvador Dali Sponge is named after the painter because of the patterns on the sponge. It looks like the technique used by Dali- squiggly. An example of a painting by Dali, that has a technique used in the patterns of the sponge, is called ‘The Melting Clocks’. It is very similar. The other sponge is called a Cigar Sponge because of it looks like a cigarette. The colour is brown with a white collar on top, making it look as if smoke is coming out.</p><p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; "><u><b>1st Day</b></u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; "><u>1st Dive- Honeycomb West</u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; ">In Honeycomb West, there wasn’t any species that I founded interesting. There was just the usual Butterfly fishes, Trigger fishes, many others. But what surprised me the most was the clearness of the sea. Gorontalo is a city that has a river leading into the sea. The river is brown, mucky, and is used for bathing and washing clothes. I was amazed at the fact that you can see over 10 metres underwater.<br /></p><a style="font-family: arial;" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFydGX9IMRbjupGMlkAXybYVOpnHmeU9xSkatZkY1QTqZKkfcs5ZLBAan0D3k7zr0TaO8z6mtevVgBg40tIeXqdgTZlvIVCxBorePHEGYFFmFLRf0fLyPocnUXhubGn2lfUh8D01qiboc/s1600/Gorontalo+melati+diving+in+front+uleule+village.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 245px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFydGX9IMRbjupGMlkAXybYVOpnHmeU9xSkatZkY1QTqZKkfcs5ZLBAan0D3k7zr0TaO8z6mtevVgBg40tIeXqdgTZlvIVCxBorePHEGYFFmFLRf0fLyPocnUXhubGn2lfUh8D01qiboc/s320/Gorontalo+melati+diving+in+front+uleule+village.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609501649723636034" border="0" /></a> <div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is a split photo of me ( taken by my sister) </span>just away from the Ule-Ule village beach.<br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; "><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguxYqjJezKIz9fh4C1nT9HxX-6n4B5dThYSDXt6D6drGYPxhiK7CSS8nx5mb9oAGzXViwPin7_okm-wwhPL6LaIsaG1rhJa5kNUdyeXXV-ydkGevNL_QjP4FCpon4h8rcizKbM7IvzO-g/s1600/melati+and+sponge.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguxYqjJezKIz9fh4C1nT9HxX-6n4B5dThYSDXt6D6drGYPxhiK7CSS8nx5mb9oAGzXViwPin7_okm-wwhPL6LaIsaG1rhJa5kNUdyeXXV-ydkGevNL_QjP4FCpon4h8rcizKbM7IvzO-g/s320/melati+and+sponge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609057784534862466" border="0" /></a></p> <div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family:arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is a photo of me (taken by my Dad) beside a Sponge.</span><br /></p> <div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>2nd Dive- Buffalo Head</u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">The name Buffalo Head comes from the shape of a nearby island (of the dive site). The side of the island is a bit pointy; making it shaped a Buffalo head. It is interesting actually. I saw one Nudibranch and nothing else apart from this critter and the name Buffalo Head was fascinating.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>3rd Dive- Fallen Rock</u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">Like Buffalo Head, I only find the name and sight interesting. Fallen Rock is practically a fallen rock, or at least it looks like one. Just a few metres of an island, there is a rock. On top is a rock that has apparently fallen, pointing downwards. This objection looks like a sculpture. In fact, if it was entered in an Art competition, it might win! Underwater was as usual, Nemos, Trigger fishes, Sea Cucumbers and many others. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">When we were going back, it started to pour. I slept on the boat, as it was an hour journey back to the town. The guides started yelling ‘Dolphins! Dolphins!’ and in a blink of an eye, I woke up. Dolphins are one of my favourite creatures, as they are loveable, cute and beautiful. At first, the Dolphins were quiet far, so I couldn’t really see them. Minutes later, a huge Dolphin jumped out beside the boat. I was amazed. The dolphin has a big size and no pointy nose! This specie is called the Risso Dolphins. </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u><b>2nd Day</b></u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>1st Dive- White Point</u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">According to our guide, White Point is reasonably popular for the Cowries that live there. Cowries are white shells that have a unique black (with decorations) ‘blanket’ that can cover the shell if harmed or threatened. They are actually quite beautiful. I’m not sure if they’re poisonous but I suggest that you shouldn’t touch them.</p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja-_ZznRSy9TGD2sB6W5NSvbCbj3AH31beUv6V0wpN4ccG6Ej-7ADW76xXs2OnDVB7QJnOuHVCHh5bmfO1HqiD-2a0BqwcT9gVs1QnqIntHYY5XvY07F_paJswun8JkFTTllhChrrXHBs/s1600/egg+cowry.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja-_ZznRSy9TGD2sB6W5NSvbCbj3AH31beUv6V0wpN4ccG6Ej-7ADW76xXs2OnDVB7QJnOuHVCHh5bmfO1HqiD-2a0BqwcT9gVs1QnqIntHYY5XvY07F_paJswun8JkFTTllhChrrXHBs/s320/egg+cowry.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609514473580164706" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><p class="MsoNormal" face="arial" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; ">This is an Egg Cowrie. The black skin-looking-thing is a bit opened, revealing it's white shell.<br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>2nd Dive- West Point</u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">West Point is one of the dive sites that I really enjoyed. I found a few fishes that I thought were adorable. On this dive, I went a bit further than my maximum depth. Because of this, on the sand, I saw a Randall’s Shrimp Goby. It was staring out of its hole, while its shrimp friend was making the hole deeper- probably. I love Gobies because they work with other creatures, which is the shrimp. I’m amazed at the fact that shrimps (who work with Gobies) can’t see, or is blind. However, they can dig. On the other hand, Gobies can see, but can’t dig holes. This is why they work together. Apart from this little beauty, I saw a Bluestriped Blenny, orange version though. These types of Blennies live in corals. They pop their head out when trying to get dinner, but hides in their coral hole if they feel threatened. According to my fish book, Bluestriped Blenny may bite divers if they certainly feel hurt. Luckily, when I took pictures, I was at a reasonable distance, enough for me to take pictures, but enough so that I am not disturbing the fish too much. In West Point, I also saw a Spotfin Lion fish. I love this fish because it has a unique fin, as well as the details on its body.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje9CHkfDSpo5dMHhBLeZUc5BCFHkNYe4073_LY7UAAEBxUCtH16X0_0GuEDmZDzsyr7MZnywc32YSrrnbioFWbYlxdLQsu8fy8TjF3_vlrfXIm_tRNax5AsGn6YWw6zNwQBxPm0srYhvM/s1600/Melati+bleny.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje9CHkfDSpo5dMHhBLeZUc5BCFHkNYe4073_LY7UAAEBxUCtH16X0_0GuEDmZDzsyr7MZnywc32YSrrnbioFWbYlxdLQsu8fy8TjF3_vlrfXIm_tRNax5AsGn6YWw6zNwQBxPm0srYhvM/s320/Melati+bleny.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609064101743655442" border="0" /></a></p><div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">This is the Bluestriped Blenny. I was very lucky not to get bitten!</span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhONzc-UjALdGpIkKnLLlSdD61PUh_QPvT4oJ67c17DYk7znuF6t5SPpR_SyORiCms1A-lERpU7uycriJv-a9PhrREvn4C0jSR-I7Yr2E4x8v_54VuvYezVQrg2ZmNgWm9mH3UzmRmJ_ao/s1600/Melati+small+fish+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhONzc-UjALdGpIkKnLLlSdD61PUh_QPvT4oJ67c17DYk7znuF6t5SPpR_SyORiCms1A-lERpU7uycriJv-a9PhrREvn4C0jSR-I7Yr2E4x8v_54VuvYezVQrg2ZmNgWm9mH3UzmRmJ_ao/s320/Melati+small+fish+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609064948069100658" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is a Randall's Shrimp Goby. The Goby looks as if it has eaten some pebbles!</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>3rd Dive- Cliffs/Paradise</u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">This dive site was actually quite a paradise, though I still prefer West Point than this. Anyway, as I was diving, I saw a ribbon looking object - swaying on a rock - though it looks rough. I took a picture of it and realised that it was Nudi eggs. The colour was light pink, pretty faint. The height was short so I know that it couldn’t be Spanish Dancer eggs, because the colour of Spanish Dancer eggs, is hot pink, and is quite tall so it seriously looks like a glued ribbon. Also, on a rock, was a Scorpion fish, hiding, camouflaged, ready to have dinner. Now, scorpion fishes in Gorontalo and Togian are ‘scaredy-cats’, or even ‘scaredy-fishes’! They are not easy to approach, or else they swim away, which one did and got me scared to death! Anyway, the one we saw in Cliffs/Paradise was alright. I was able to get a close-up shot, which was relieving.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u><b>3rd Day</b></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>1st Dive- Honeycomb East</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">This dive wasn’t very exciting. Anyhow, Honeycomb East is the other side of Honeycomb West (as east is the opposite of west). There were just the usual fishes. I loved how the water is VERY clear. In fact my dad was able to get shots where the object (e.g. Sponges, Sea Fans...) seems larger than the model. The trick to this is to have a big lens, and the model has to be at least a metre away from the object. My mum was the model and she also held a torch to make the photo look cooler! While that was happening, my sister and I carried on with our ‘business’, taking photographs- my pictures was mainly macro.</p><a style="font-family: arial;" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFydGX9IMRbjupGMlkAXybYVOpnHmeU9xSkatZkY1QTqZKkfcs5ZLBAan0D3k7zr0TaO8z6mtevVgBg40tIeXqdgTZlvIVCxBorePHEGYFFmFLRf0fLyPocnUXhubGn2lfUh8D01qiboc/s1600/Gorontalo+melati+diving+in+front+uleule+village.jpg"><br /></a><div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWeQPsdrYoPl7GCV_k2WQwxU9ZyBfBd3C0OBHUnkolgdv-ITf4g11VY-CaMCTlxkBEBP5YeIhHXGRxB2YvN32ucZ8rHdFEKbqKvuqqZi41c1Na0qiMLgipLL1t8hTcyND5kO-dzQAyIks/s1600/Salvador+dali+and+celey.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 243px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWeQPsdrYoPl7GCV_k2WQwxU9ZyBfBd3C0OBHUnkolgdv-ITf4g11VY-CaMCTlxkBEBP5YeIhHXGRxB2YvN32ucZ8rHdFEKbqKvuqqZi41c1Na0qiMLgipLL1t8hTcyND5kO-dzQAyIks/s320/Salvador+dali+and+celey.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609502919783873074" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">This is my mum, around a metre or two away from the sponge, holding a torch while posing for the shot!<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"> </p><a style="font-family: arial;" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY2155CSFpBr9asnZ4poYMdq6gTROa7vdBAXPTbyUf28Vj441E5JKRn7m4Pn_Sxsro892qF7F0xD9A9WdEHqJddyfe6IyP0ie3azY3eg9i_9AO7Q126vV1GbYN1DQJjHr6OI27fdvqdd4/s1600/Gorontalo+giant+sponge+and+diver.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 245px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY2155CSFpBr9asnZ4poYMdq6gTROa7vdBAXPTbyUf28Vj441E5JKRn7m4Pn_Sxsro892qF7F0xD9A9WdEHqJddyfe6IyP0ie3azY3eg9i_9AO7Q126vV1GbYN1DQJjHr6OI27fdvqdd4/s320/Gorontalo+giant+sponge+and+diver.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609500381453235618" border="0" /></a> <div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is our guide, a few metres behind the sponge, posing for the shot too.</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Because of the way the picture is taken, the sponge looks as if it is over three metres when it's not even 2metres!</span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">2nd Dive- Traffic Circle</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">The following two dives, I must say was the best I had in Gorontalo. After all, it was the last day. Anyway, in Traffic Circle, I saw two Fire Dartfishes! This type of cutie is really interesting to watch because they are quick swimmers. But, what I admire about these fishes the most is the colour of their body. They have a white antennae, white body (top half though, including head) and the bottom half is red. Just when we were doing our three minute stop, there was a Turtle! I was very excited because I didn’t expect to see one! It had moss or green stuff on its shell, and the head was out. Unlike in Sipadan, this turtle was terrified of us, so I chased the creature for a few metres, and then I gave up.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvl6GW3fHiqDZGVyPMN9L3aU04MqMhfje35cn3hRuMhWM94tN_iVf7teRaILnM-4tApy-EC7a-oS7iMvp2yAXQgsOlFTH0MMIRjoGjHPXv42zrCSnHFzW8HdaqMqUUF0b6yGwmCP64jDo/s1600/Turtle.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvl6GW3fHiqDZGVyPMN9L3aU04MqMhfje35cn3hRuMhWM94tN_iVf7teRaILnM-4tApy-EC7a-oS7iMvp2yAXQgsOlFTH0MMIRjoGjHPXv42zrCSnHFzW8HdaqMqUUF0b6yGwmCP64jDo/s320/Turtle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609068054229324642" border="0" /></a></p> <div style="text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is the Turtle. The shell has green stuff that looks like moss.</span></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">3rd Dive- Sand Castle</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">This was the last dive and I have to say that I was quite upset. I actually love Gorontalo, though there aren’t many macro lives. There are still dive sites that my family and I haven’t discovered. So I look forward to going here again. Anyway, I really enjoyed the last dive so I wasn’t that disappointed. Sand Castle is muck diving. The sand is very soft so you have to be careful when diving. There are many hidden creatures in the sand. Lion fishes live here as well. They mostly stay near wood rocks or corals. It is unlikely for them to be wandering away from their homes. I saw a couple of Nudibranchs on the sand. There was a Helmut Gurnard as well. I couldn't get a good picture of it because it kept on swimming away from me! I also saw a Giant Shrimp Goby. However, I accidentally mucked the water; therefore I wasn’t able to get a good picture again. Anyway, our guide found a Shortnose Pipefish. I got a close look at it and it was really cute. The nose is short (from the name) and the head looks like a dragon’s, a black dragon. Sand Castle is known for the Nemos eggs. Anemone fishes live on the sand too. Different groups have separated anemones. However, it could be quite close. Hidden on the anemones are not just Nemos and other little fishes, but Anemone crabs! They look similar to Porcelain Crabs. At the time I was there, most of the Nemos had eggs. They were on some kind of object, e.g. wood, rock, coral. This reminds me when I nearly touched an egg in Lembeh, thinking that it was coral, and got bit by a Nemo. So every time there are Nemo eggs, I am careful to not go too near to the Nemos or Nemo eggs as they’re parents will be furious!</p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiIx9R0TvguTGkNC1qiV6s0IegAd8YSa_vbvdaoR49xUqWLYqfC5hy1j4crFldFltT9Q5AM9qRlQPtGo8CHygre4g6jeKNgpuSXkkhvSrsrlfkuScB14Oe7keCjiuZAxM2m90Bv2n44Qk/s1600/shortnose+pipefish_+not+so+good.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiIx9R0TvguTGkNC1qiV6s0IegAd8YSa_vbvdaoR49xUqWLYqfC5hy1j4crFldFltT9Q5AM9qRlQPtGo8CHygre4g6jeKNgpuSXkkhvSrsrlfkuScB14Oe7keCjiuZAxM2m90Bv2n44Qk/s320/shortnose+pipefish_+not+so+good.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609525209183806002" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is a Shortnose Pipefish. I love the head because it looks like a dragon's. The sand was very soft it disturbed some of my images.</span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5qn3wbgq6WfIyDqwycyrrMEzOZBB0XE2Jmu2bdDUoI2YwfsXhI6C7ALgeMyS9cW0DKIGrhSelLjVXE9zogp5kpG4zNaQtxuVr3Lr7nOcn55WtlaZn_NcrRV6bTRnH4rrYgc-X05yXZ-Q/s1600/Melati+nemo+eggs.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5qn3wbgq6WfIyDqwycyrrMEzOZBB0XE2Jmu2bdDUoI2YwfsXhI6C7ALgeMyS9cW0DKIGrhSelLjVXE9zogp5kpG4zNaQtxuVr3Lr7nOcn55WtlaZn_NcrRV6bTRnH4rrYgc-X05yXZ-Q/s320/Melati+nemo+eggs.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609062927711052034" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">These are Nemo eggs on a rock. You could make out the eyes of the fishes.</span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">After the excellent dives in Gorontalo, my family and I moved on to Togian Isalnds. We used a ferry that took us AGES! Actually it was 13 HOURS! Luckily, my parents were able to get two rooms – one for my parents, one for my sister and I – though they weren’t the captains, which they wanted to get as it was the biggest. My parents got the Captain of something (not the ferry) and my sister and I had a smaller room, though I’m not sure who it actually belongs to. We left off Gorontalo at 2100, and reached our destination at around 1000. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">Togian Island is an island located in the middle of Tomini Bay. The sea is very calm when it is raining, apparently there won’t be any wind. My family and I were very unlucky, not being able to go to the best dive sites in Togian. There is only one island where there are resorts, which is where we stayed. Togian Island is a remote island, so there are no shops except the ones from the resort. They get fuel for boats from the city on main land, and our resort gets fish from a nearby market.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">We stayed at Black Marlin. In total, there are three different resorts to choose from: Kadidiri Pardise Dive Resort, Black Marlin and Pondok Lestari Kadidiri. Kadidiri Paradise is very expensive, excellent rooms though I’ve heard from other guests that their service is not so good. However, Black Marlin is a bit cheaper, with good food, good rooms and excellent service. The people are friendly and me and my sister played pool with them on the last day! Pondok Lestari Kadidiri is the cheapest and apparently, they share the kamar mandi/ showering room. The resort is owned by a Bajo fisherman. Food, drinks, tea or coffee is available at all times and is free. If guests want to snorkel anywhere in Togian (but I think there is a limit), I’ve heard that it’s free. If you want, you can join him on a fishing trip which I believe is free. The order of these resorts are in the order of how I have listed them (on top), starting with Kadidiri Paradise which is on the left. </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><b><u>1st Day</u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">When we got to the resort, we had to wait for half an hour till our room is ready. We unpacked our clothes and diving equipment and decided that we wanted to have a dive in the afternoon, since we arrived around lunch time. We had a nap and got ready to dive!</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>1st Dive (only dive of the day)- Kota Wall</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">This dive was a bit of a slope. There wasn’t much that I was interested in, apart from the clearness of the water. However, we were diving near the sand and since the weather was a bit weird, sand particles came up, disturbing my photos. There was a strong current too. Underwater, there were many Sea Fans, big sponges and Nemos! They looked very cute. The anemones were swaying going along the direction of the current.</p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtqI3WnyD4g6CP01h921j0oyOXEUQUWr7aHzPDw6C7HuWEJks1L4NoYitSWoJ3h01CFaBP5ulAQjxt4wO2Ew4SaKHKubV7FMWYNyKNpJ0wqGWQXihQXYjDGnOhi9RdYE_Kv9MFoXhnQwc/s1600/melati+xmass+tree+4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 245px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtqI3WnyD4g6CP01h921j0oyOXEUQUWr7aHzPDw6C7HuWEJks1L4NoYitSWoJ3h01CFaBP5ulAQjxt4wO2Ew4SaKHKubV7FMWYNyKNpJ0wqGWQXihQXYjDGnOhi9RdYE_Kv9MFoXhnQwc/s320/melati+xmass+tree+4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609502917703747778" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">There were MANY Xmas Tree Worms in Togian. They hide in corals, popping their colourful respiratory structures out.</span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u><b>2nd Day</b></u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>1st Dive- Taipi Wall</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">Taipi Wall is located near Taipi Island. The dive is not exactly a wall, but more of a slope. Luckily, four creatures caught my attention. One is a Crocodile fish! I was close by to our guide. As I was swimming past the fish, not realising it, the guide suddenly stopped me! I was thinking- what’s happening? The guide pointed downwards, showing a green face, camouflaged against the coral, with a beard. Good thing, the Crocodile fish wasn’t scared at me, giving myself a chance to take pictures of it. The other fish that fascinated me was a dark blue Blenny, maybe a Fangblenny- though I’m not sure. The head kept on popping in and out. The mouth kept on opening and closing too, it was adorable! The last two was a pair of Bumphead Parrot fishes. They were really far away so we couldn’t take any pictures of it...</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOv1P46uYmVM7agXIqa15NmjPK8IUFj9ZIVM8ZoRyNh_9nDoXbOyCs0RbdIgNLHFeenwq9Vw2irHllE9ahayDt056o9kImhZV8MGpG4NDbMFkEFEY-s6AYXu9keGWt4PqMNVatpT_pMhk/s1600/Copy+of+Blenny+in+Coral.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 236px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOv1P46uYmVM7agXIqa15NmjPK8IUFj9ZIVM8ZoRyNh_9nDoXbOyCs0RbdIgNLHFeenwq9Vw2irHllE9ahayDt056o9kImhZV8MGpG4NDbMFkEFEY-s6AYXu9keGWt4PqMNVatpT_pMhk/s320/Copy+of+Blenny+in+Coral.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609514458453780914" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is the Blenny I mentioned.<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">(Please comment on the article if you know the specie of this fish.)</span></span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNwoaa3nsyGL2l9P3iWNnhnOH0tmRPeTSJKn6baKInz4knQqIcdgooD79IlnN6wyqiPt5QxDEWmguNuYX1UDxfDBzYHfcOgJ36OB2xxPK-iO3qCiaDEuv_OMjOY3Z7YgM8iHhrtTOXmds/s1600/melati+flathead+togian.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNwoaa3nsyGL2l9P3iWNnhnOH0tmRPeTSJKn6baKInz4knQqIcdgooD79IlnN6wyqiPt5QxDEWmguNuYX1UDxfDBzYHfcOgJ36OB2xxPK-iO3qCiaDEuv_OMjOY3Z7YgM8iHhrtTOXmds/s320/melati+flathead+togian.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609502930117950098" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is the 'not-so-scardey-cat' Crocodile fish. On this picture, the fish looks as if it's asleep.</span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>2nd Dive- House Reef</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">On the 24/3/11, the sea was really rough and we weren’t able to go away from Togian too far, so we swam in the House Reef. The House Reef was in front of the island, but we had to use the boat for some reason. Apparently, one group saw a Soft Coral Pigmy Sea Horse. They said that they saw it in the House Reef so we decided to find one. However, the staffs believe that the Sea Horses probably moved because of the strong current. Anyway, we tried to find some Sea Horses on the Soft Corals, but there weren’t any. (There were MANY Soft Corals.) Instead, on the soft coral we found a Soft Coral Shrimp! It was perfectly camouflaged to the coral, because I had to ask my mum (who found it) what she found! It was light pink with dark-pink stripes. Beside this unusual creature, we also saw a pair of Ringed Pipefishes, swimming on the sandy bottom. Last but not least, we saw a Scorpion fish, camouflaged with coral, ready to strike!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyRbpra48wedwsIGdVdeYv62VXBNA1KaC2LzqVqWSCX2w4pDgr-U3nj0LSYEwyMqp8wW55u4NpPExxLj3Zz9104-fYDP_cWgR6vlYMBjOTeRBFtR84K94n5tooj1aPhZ320cVGRj8JsJU/s1600/pipefish+%2528not+a+good+pic%2529.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyRbpra48wedwsIGdVdeYv62VXBNA1KaC2LzqVqWSCX2w4pDgr-U3nj0LSYEwyMqp8wW55u4NpPExxLj3Zz9104-fYDP_cWgR6vlYMBjOTeRBFtR84K94n5tooj1aPhZ320cVGRj8JsJU/s320/pipefish+%2528not+a+good+pic%2529.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609514476996297138" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;">This is a Ringed a Pipefish. However, it is not a very good picture of it. The current was quite strong, I couldn't balance myself well enough.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>3rd Dive- Taipi Island</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">Taipi Island is a tiny island located around a kilometre away from Togian. Taipi Wall is a bit further away from Taipi Island, in fact you can’t really tell- apart from our guides and the boat drivers! I was excited to see a lovely creature; it was the Yellowmargin Moray Eel. Its elegant body and the yellowness just brings the creature seem so majestic, even though it is just a regular eel! Again, there was a strong current, so we just followed it.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgol5ZjzyErwjysA9rn94bnfdKBUHLRQj6gFrUdJIZ1gG2d3EXwv-rfqN7_7b1He6IjO0qzuYNBaj_lbKaNbzsln3tWFuJ_av0x8JQOa_8wq8jYW3-ZViUkoAMAc4XovYJ28CmppjQacQ/s1600/yellowmargin+moray+eel-+quick+fix-+kak+mayang%2527s+pic.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgol5ZjzyErwjysA9rn94bnfdKBUHLRQj6gFrUdJIZ1gG2d3EXwv-rfqN7_7b1He6IjO0qzuYNBaj_lbKaNbzsln3tWFuJ_av0x8JQOa_8wq8jYW3-ZViUkoAMAc4XovYJ28CmppjQacQ/s320/yellowmargin+moray+eel-+quick+fix-+kak+mayang%2527s+pic.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609525205277600802" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is the Yellowmargin Moray Eel. My dad said that he couldn't cope guiding both me and my sister (in case we kneel on something dangerous when taking photos)</span>, so he said that my sister and I should share cameras. This picture was taken by my sister.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center; font-family: arial;"><br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFyIUsopY083LsSOK17LH7mH2KlpEOTUAqPui-t9tgzPvJhwqQIcSN9o9hVBgH-Dbo2CpsSIVUtgZfh6pAZPYTDnWPGQ4VZYWnhLZZoIOpJMde4iAhuY32iFcly0OW2F03Lw669IMjKzo/s1600/nemo+not+done.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFyIUsopY083LsSOK17LH7mH2KlpEOTUAqPui-t9tgzPvJhwqQIcSN9o9hVBgH-Dbo2CpsSIVUtgZfh6pAZPYTDnWPGQ4VZYWnhLZZoIOpJMde4iAhuY32iFcly0OW2F03Lw669IMjKzo/s320/nemo+not+done.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609514459125073602" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">I think this Anemone fish is a Spinecheek Anemone fish. I'm not so sure because I can't really see the spine on the cheek.</span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><b><u>3rd Day (Last Day)</u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>1st Dive- Mini Canyon</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">In my opinion, Mini canyon was alright. Again, there was a current. But what made me say that Mini Canyon’s alright, is that we saw a pair of Napoleon Wrasses! It was huge. However, like the Bumphead Parrot fishes, we couldn’t get any footage of the amazing creature. Unlucky for us, good for the fishes!</p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDgcBf6honEsZHutJ571pmfUuTFSY8q44VvkPbGpkWdt4aETx-tmvoAyPfixVseZaJbeVH6YaNRCNWIXDSKIdiWZnatSP7dKmjvobe2G61jRaF_CfTWqyXdVfV_CCK6MIPaeisyZ41MQ/s1600/melati+porcelain+crab.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEDgcBf6honEsZHutJ571pmfUuTFSY8q44VvkPbGpkWdt4aETx-tmvoAyPfixVseZaJbeVH6YaNRCNWIXDSKIdiWZnatSP7dKmjvobe2G61jRaF_CfTWqyXdVfV_CCK6MIPaeisyZ41MQ/s320/melati+porcelain+crab.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609502932851783218" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">This is an Anemone Crab in Togian.</span><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>2nd Dive- New Reef</u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">First of all, New Reef is NOT a new reef. It must be splendid if it wasn’t for the horrible current! I couldn’t get much decent pictures. I wasn’t able to hold on very long, the current kept dragging me. Unluckily (again), there wasn’t any extraordinary creatures or plants, except of course, some wide Sea Fans, beautiful Sponges and many fishes! As I explained before, fishes love to exercise, therefore, we saw many fishes swimming about. It was like a blue festival! After the tiring the dive, we had to struggle even more to get on the boat. The wave was quite big, we had to use a rope - to pull our self – to get to the boat, where we take our equipments off and go into the boat on the ladder.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;"><u>3rd Dive- Nursery Rock </u></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; font-family: arial;">Like I always feel on every last dives, I felt disappointed and upset. We weren’t able to go to Una-Una, where tornadoes of Barracudas live. We weren’t able to see the underwater volcano, where we could smell stinky sulphur and feel the warmth of the bubbles. There is also a plane wreck from one of the world Wars which we weren’t able to see too. Our resort apparently, did not have enough fuel to go there and get back. Anyway, Nursery Rock was probably one of my favourite dive sites in Togian. According to the guides, they said that a group saw an Eagle Ray, with a wing span of over 4 metres, which we wanted to see! We tried to find it but I don’t think it wanted to meet us... Anyway, the diving in Nursery Rock was more of a muck dive, but there were quite numerous amounts of corals. We saw a few Flounders, which we chased about! There was also a couple of Nudibranchs. There was a very strong current again which could’ve led us to exhaustion. Luckily, we had an excellent guide because if we didn’t go down, below the current, we could’ve been swept to Taipi Island, which a group did! There were three groups on the boat and when our group was out into the boat, one group was still missing. We searched and searched when we finally saw an orange thing bobbing up and down, which was that thing you inflate to tell boat divers that there are divers below. Nursery Rock and Taipi Island is at least 100 meters away!!! Nursery Rock was certainly interesting! I can’t wait to come back here again (if we do) and go to Una-Una, the plane wreck and the volcano! I certainly miss Togian! </p><div style="text-align: center;"><a style="font-family: arial;" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXJjFUmevnK0xHY5v855Q-fIkoFILom4O-IATrym3ZnqwRISOu5qOwmGT-Ngp_eKpS11DAAd_upWSqK2txlfOD6MPqPENjxe4l-DStyKmL9VK856qIk4B8xQPBDMUd2NSpvZnQmype0ac/s1600/melaty+nudis.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXJjFUmevnK0xHY5v855Q-fIkoFILom4O-IATrym3ZnqwRISOu5qOwmGT-Ngp_eKpS11DAAd_upWSqK2txlfOD6MPqPENjxe4l-DStyKmL9VK856qIk4B8xQPBDMUd2NSpvZnQmype0ac/s320/melaty+nudis.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5609502946131719090" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic; font-family:arial;" >These two Nudibranchs were the ones from Togian.</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">*Most of the pictures were taken by me, but some was taken by my dad or by my sister.</span><br /></div></div><p></p><p></p>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-53299817643498422082011-01-05T18:15:00.017+08:002011-01-08T11:27:54.296+08:00Other Photos from Ambon- Indonesia<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large; color: rgb(255, 0, 0); "><u><b>TOPSITE</b></u></span></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilC7wPJ3023mg2T36RkcaUhgGRG_tfITcOTXejmIdSL5AahIgW21pOs-DhzhMiXggWMmmpWzJwVi1tRQhUhJ9KyjaZSbF1BJ4NJ-gs-ukgngHXyaiOxrgxmJT5uqczs6R2WJIjZTpDqMM/s1600/MD2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilC7wPJ3023mg2T36RkcaUhgGRG_tfITcOTXejmIdSL5AahIgW21pOs-DhzhMiXggWMmmpWzJwVi1tRQhUhJ9KyjaZSbF1BJ4NJ-gs-ukgngHXyaiOxrgxmJT5uqczs6R2WJIjZTpDqMM/s400/MD2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559638598797852546" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2o1wPMhtg4glDuRGtETKIKxsOf0NcNS-8q8zGjoFFt4PlzZHh0ZObfysLTwrqYiu2hvQ4zf4AHn_c96bU0n1zOaQR9bEa-QVeNY5Dqw0MQbEcc7wwwS5J1W58hk8u-uy5WUYrebhBfqs/s400/ambon+.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPAVyjAFjXRU6TEYnoEzTWu_O3DgmsixpobdpbvvBJf_3-zyZ5vxNKD3j-fqHI4Jv5g2AE3PGJK0-uqlgsPRpr9mOxslr-XGKxx5ogoB7G9raFP4tCuZ_OYsdBq8qspBD0kg1GPFYsCmI/s400/maluku+diver.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbtVsL2xbn3682k2oUBu_sFl1gJly71qAcyaxG6SpwJgXx8lWl1gp89dGYjpi_caDXNlCORDonWCnkyl_trQSYcvoEM2Op0M8Cq42cCLUazHak4RDDl5sUILLH6lwW3Q3LWAMzo1vpnJ8/s400/maluku+diver+boat.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Maluku Diver Boat - Sitting in the boat Mayang, Emily Aiken, Jennifer Widom, Alex Aiken, Tim Aiken, Me, my mum - and standing - Marcel the resort manager</span></div><div><br /><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE3Se3AUZeNxO6ESSoRb8Qxzn6xzV35ikEmqgDPKH2O14EaHY5VWMO3kh92Mr7ggfU5ya4E0VtWiePpS9LtxpxruENQZIhpYqhBMelw4aX534p6VgF8Xp-Ng4WfUQPUxUxjCtiD-Lqw_Y/s400/tuna.jpg" /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEz8X9sfzT6u_ckJsjA7jhdlJBiKOomjQ5KRgGTsBtjc_Tcv_eRVl4bOUjo5n9EqpaQ_uBkzMmeBJbSJTqWECdrCUktlpXH6vKz89aQCJpwFduIm_hyphenhyphen1DWyOPMCMeuia4EPUnEkgHdshU/s400/tuna+fresh+fron+smoke+kitchen.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" >UNDERWATER</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" >All photos below are taken by myself with Canon G9 and Epoque strobe</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3T9nul1pj11d7RVib-rNhsvfqiIMm_A12ycVF96xTceAe_wmBz46tM0OmWp41Pu5YrpwGWt2c71Fv_Zs9lJIFeJ-nPCr7JBEPWDNRpHWB553By0DUldZvyR-qohzB-sl3Zg5CvpiX1qQ/s400/Nudibranch.jpg" /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwI0o0sQMejlPKTEfEO4gxO3WsyjbBpUDv7VngmgdwwMj9giDChcoqdcXE4ikHzRZ42sbQ5PA1o-zMxBRt1WnZqVAwp09JqSD1TUiHyXHUGLvovgEPfRt8RNrbzrIEbhVF7Dh4D0VInM4/s400/Seahorse+2.jpg" /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim9-zZ96hGSuGziMIXIl0WFK2gszm8VZby6NAph7XTTIKx_Rz9YAXYDhI7mbGWo9sy4vEOjfGdbuKPI-ydaI-_IuqSzphi5QBGwQFVq4Z7cKT1qOV8NCFfvCWKZwCSdpEIg4MNU2X74wo/s400/Squid.jpg" /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif24gwdhASfVTb3vhJrHaTAsStxZp3lFzLhni_dzm6CbekkxtrCnGzPhvcWE-p7pHY2zmOrktuNFa7Qo2N81jHSwDMLhwPkPRjLKE1376V9a7RR08SG_TrxWlzt41oGIsuTQPNzpn1eT0/s400/LIONFISH+3.jpg" /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJyut5sbfqFCcafV3Q6ANswjYuLTHAxuOcMVUfvYHOAoDRen2Xe10AdRAyiWXDAqsOzkZuAoP_i7RZsDT25CHSOJJX3IGCnsyJwUBKj6rz8oIpStp3bv8tbmU6aUc3kzhBoAv2oiXvMVo/s400/White+eye+Moray+eel+3.jpg" /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4t0qTFf-3IWegcK58n9WdFhNFwnQYrCtchixGrBqj_vrOwOhxWXrLtavuFa1FmOUU_z2o9qX3QexFnuXm8K4emzXxyLBEDcLq46d4eMX_DMIbyqlxy7fpiWO1IBfup9wwACjlkC-M80g/s400/Stargazer+2.jpg" /></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVSQWSIXiO390jXl5OJOBxM4L30AHfvrr57sbXtcWKQOFVyK6fzwIKTXcZPmzeYexlFv95zD7g_HGHvumeXz9IqydY857vtV6grK-ZnyTEt-yg6wgBXSQweHCVDHftXO30yL5VwYEfIo4/s400/STONEFISH.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFT025trZpDtxDf-q0uB4uJzoxUcJoJqcG1erKwwNdR-2mjaV0jAqxiIYOVTlymxa0LNQ_KglVgfXamdzJXqZmUuvH0GkDRif929KN1_QIF4ktU2W7T7Uo0ryLp-N5cO75YxBDo_j5ceQ/s400/SPIDER+CRAB.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVXYM3P1euGH7og_D1ypSdFs8LYzUwy-YDUggvj06154TxLJ292DxzmntuHa5kFLg9iYFKL4d_YTLxahrdbVV2Ob3R3wuPHLiPJAaLJK3SHKSkvaBayIxw8GvBBgluBMYawod4NBeIVKQ/s400/NUDI+FLABELINA.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFXZvT75kQvVsmzJ6liggYK60e3Xxg-62XZXbP4hR379AGcXhtX6vvzCqevx5KAkddt_uLRAaHMJDeGO3HHBSK9p1fMR2Q3pQs7eVgS66iCQzZTuq4XqN-_3nQwjV1oZ9cLg8_EVBi4yE/s400/FROGFISH+5.jpg" /></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-7461952540034138962011-01-03T11:34:00.044+08:002011-01-08T02:23:18.971+08:00Ambon- Maluku Divers -Indonesia<div>Me and my Family went to Ambon... for our new year holiday. At Ambon, we stayed at Maluku Divers which is around ten mins from Pattymura Airport. We were lucky to be able to stay at Maluku Divers because it was supposed to be full. one of the guests cancelled so we got their room. We dived with Maluku Divers for three exciting days.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1ZXV58znuYmd5M-BbQfnBUWo-fk7h4TtTiQoqZEnmFsfz8xqBcUxQ46VBgV2vKRePkzU0zDjZktjDGSdbQUEnPYQ3IFiM4rhQPI6w_APNI64qQwUqBJcs-GaiAhXvxDfIGWHxLJKQQTM/s320/MD.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div>The beach at where we stayed were full of rocks. Unlike in Tulamben (Bali), the size of the rocks were small, so I could still see the sand. The rooms at Maluku Divers were bungalows. Our bungalow included a huge bathroom, two study desks, one bed side table and three beds for me and my family.</div><div><div><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho38HAMGrIfsK6DykBY0SqgyYHF75HVMQzSh7kAQMhd3GSKpCtGvrVx8GkJ7PnNYzEY-SM-jKZvRRdVA3NL2FuEt67JGPdZQHrTGTmGSs2uhKo1KFjBl-F6FyDrCdx-azW1MgQnjRJHM4/s320/maluku+diver+room.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Our bedroom.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;">The diving in Ambon is amazing! In Ambon, the water is full of rubbish especially in Twilight Zone. But the visibility is clear enough considering the amount of rubbish there are. There were some interesting rubbish worth of seeing though!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">My dad bought a new camera for my sister, so now I can use which is my sister's G9. He taught me how to use the G9, about the settings and all those stuff. I'm happy to be able to use a camera because when I dive, I could actually do something useful, instead of searching for animals. I am very proud, now all the underwater pictures in this report are taken by myself.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The special underwater creature that can only be found in Ambon, is the Ambon Frogfish (... ). The fish has a muscular-looking body, with faint orange and White lines. Unfortunately, we didn't see the Ambon Frogfish, but we saw other amazing creatures...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b>1st Day</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">1st Dive- Batu Badiri</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">In the middle of this dive, my camera was out of battery so practically it was dead. I couldn't take pictures of anything and I was really annoyed with myself for not changing the battery.</div><div style="text-align: left;">Although, there weren't as much interesting creatures. There were only this Warty Frogfish, Crocodile Fish, a Nudi and Garden Eels. The rest of the fishes I saw were the usual ones, such as Trigger Fishes, Antheas, Moray Eels and much more.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">After the first dive, me, my family and our guide went back to the resort to change our tanks. Luckily, it isn't the guests who change the tanks, it is the workers- phew!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWn8enH0LbixVg-5APhdSOTzKet3raP02Ur7mUEszQLkVXTUIgkia1FB75TJWsqq6adzkqZsHFI4_EhxAl5y8EulkJspnlhUzQ0ffw5Ss41Uxjc_VGFRNTO20XP97BTXdjaN-DuJgIRHI/s320/Nembrotha+Sp.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Nudibranch Nembrotha Sp.</div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAAH0gJvLf4O_AldDpT87ICVbS5hATwg7NIqn3Ek4pnbSZIlS6d3Rb_b3ADe3bAjdfdaKTxDYoo2MvrGI2FKZ2nP1uNsxj8B297Rx2T_WdIBLQ1qDesa_GdnB1q3axpd6Ba1ogza6bRKQ/s320/Warty+frogfish+2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">warty frogfish</div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">2nd Dive- Jetty Right</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">There two sides of the jetty, left and right. Me and my family went diving on the right side. There were more interesting animals than the dive before, and I changed the battery of the camera so I was able to take pictures of the animals I saw. There were Sea Cucumbers, Bat fishes, many Moray Eels, Sexy Shrimps, Anemone fishes and my favourite- Nudis! There aren't much Nudis in Ambon, but most of them look very interesting, unlike in Lembeh; many Nudibranchs, but more are plain looking and ugly.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Once we finished our second dive we went back to our resort to have lunch. The lunch and dinner in Maluku Divers is a 3 course dish, appetizer (soup), main course and dessert. The food made are Indonesian, but the recipe is twisted so foreigners will enjoy them too.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXBL5qnjM7LxsDZhyVYTtPVF7Ngpbi_63ywnTxiWr1Z2LRspW4qDjLex04TjPniGkW_CpL-frV-s_YU99eZZlyf42LFvOTRm_lHZaH5JzEbpHEKo-Ew5lPRhSwrHePQL9EJ1kDKMynqPI/s320/Blue+ribbon+eel.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Blue ribbon eel</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP73XLlKvO1cJAAVCJ36DZzQJ9J6UnfKXPR9zE72rzajpD08X78IOAzH7VV91YHTw_PFUAUx8t4WbpjWYFeBee4Ow4uJIbSOQ0rJU5_xwZvAlRLds3dqA0WziNEV0dmhoxhul-zK2_IOM/s320/White+eye+Moray+eel.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">White eye moray eel</div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">3rd Dive- Rhino City</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">The diving in Rhino City is a slope with some corals, just like most of the other dive sites in Ambon. Me and my family saw the most amazing creatures here, out of all the dive sites we went to in Ambon. There were Sea Cucumbers, Nemos, White Eyed Moray Eels, different type of Shrimps, Leaf Scorpion fish and other types of Scorpion fish. I saw a Banded Sea Snake slithered/swam by near me. I took some pictures of the Banded Sea Snake. I took pictures of a Sea Horse, a well camouflaged Cuttlefish, a couple Dwarf Lion fish, common Lion fishes, Ornate Ghost Pipe fish and a yellow Star Gazer! The Star Gazer was hiding in the sand, and at the beginning, we could only see its back. I then blew the sand away with my hand to see what it was. Then, surprisingly there was this ugly face with tiny eyes staring at the sky, and a happy mouth turned so upside down that I nearly could've made out a letter 'n' from it.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOXqFvnlrjk6JSQKqbPkOSG7YTu2uquHQJ2ZmCMWoy_t_zfXb4UVn78cjxCQpm75W1cXALdo01d02QOkfrkE9DEzQV8O1opKo1CEakfK7kCsvIbXU4AW6BxU7b7T_UAZQOFEzKvgU7iho/s320/Stargazer.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Star gazer</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGMABtjPM5Q1S23sal9wHc9whB1vGiOrIpPAIekst76Kp8r24gDYHCK8aqu4ZweARh1J2aGIF5f6GgtSFNQlK9qAhIJQlHtH3HtriFZDEzjLjJbnsDf90HuqB_49z_qwanQaNCHf71pe4/s320/ornate+ghost+pipefish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Ornate ghost pipefish</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>2nd Day</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: left;">1st Dive- Amahusu</div><div style="text-align: left;">This dive site was at the other side of Ambon. The island is in the shape of an 'n' and Maluku Divers is at the right side of the left line of Ambon. There were Puffer fishes, Nemos,Sexy Shrimps, Lion fishes, Pipe fishes, loads of Rigid Shrimp fish, FLABELLINA, Nudis, a Leaf Scorpion fish and a Juvenile Sweetlip- wobbling and wiggling around, doing the salsa (fast forward mode)!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_bNn93zHGoIrhwqj2eT4j8St_YoDAXyM5HgjStp3xsc49PqIL1iGf1Fr2aWorQuWwv8d8oB5VREbqhwf9-MftjuObzop-SLGOuEWW-lhkym6IRZ7JbCSwWjzNrsTnA7jqT_6eKW-eFEA/s320/Juvenile+fish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Juvenile Sweetlips</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1ScqPzI2tvTe_ZhwxZG-1JPT0FoPrDhD-8wjDg8IMfK3e9hEiGIqLM3_3X79hTVCKNkGyklgoZrCfOVCC5vDlnJylTM5O4vHdpzRppV5shoZQc4lvYZ9YTTh_a1m1G1x2M4_leIBT7nw/s320/lionfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A Lion fish.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">2nd Dive- Kaca Lengkung</div><div style="text-align: left;">This dive site was just a minute away from Amahusu. The guides told us that Kaca Lengkung is known for its Pigmy Seahorses clinging onto the coral, I hoped we could find one, and we did! At the beginning of the dive, the guide found what looked like an Octopus hiding in a coral. I couldn't take a picture of it because we could hardly see his whole body. Apart from the Seahorse and Octopus, we saw Nemos, Nudis, a Porcelain Crab on anemones and Sexy Shrimps.</div><div style="text-align: left;">After these exciting dives, we went back to our beautiful resort to have some delicious lunch!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicNpfdLoydAyy0klV_8porpBtv0LhEF40LwKb4Q4fRM0_r5zNYgfMMxNQ6C5N_KVWFKHobk2Rn7n5lm_CbjPa3dPCB-Er_QPBePTR-iBLAiP38t98Sc-s-K6RYRwPGqcaV0f-j1aUdUPE/s320/Pigmy+seahorse.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Pigmy Seahorse</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTdLlCclRGyNdcR6w0Vvo4Scj4GWM2HIov3kwZj6ofUEfDfKX-1ms5we5tfap0LmWeF0XpwJwnFtCO4WouFhIzbW36KRr32iNbM2uW3oxDDGvpY1mBf3D6_hB1lrcFivCHWRjlGyXBbZI/s320/Porcupine.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Porcupine puffer fish</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">3rd Dive- Twilight Zone</div><div style="text-align: left;">This dive site is near the village and a port so there are many rubbish. the visibility is clear though, I saw many creatures and interesting rubbish. There was a Demon Stinger, 2 Ribbon Eels, Nudis, 2 GIANT (I literally mean GIANT) Eels hiding in a big coral, a Wasp fish, around 50 Rigid Shrimp fish (not exaggerating) and some more Moray Eels. Moving to the end, when we were under a fishing boat (turning on its engine, which was really LOUD), there was a slope where it was covered with trash! The weirdest one of all was this Barbie doll with no arms and legs- not a single arm! There was this Blenny that got out of its bottle, a Sponge Frongfish, Spot-fin Lionfish and a HARLEQUIN SHRIMP! I have never seen a Harlequin Shrimp before and I have always wanted to, and I now have! I took some good pictures of it (I think), as it is shown.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm9OcwZvERwxUoEOHQbIV5F-IzogL25uPeiIoPYhcRsqAY0LFxoqCdZHzT65bMi8Hjo6lMFj9qUDG-PN3OCJwRGIIDldnfi83ZP3OGIo3Sv5_ihafIxDJjk5wO-WJjaTwL9w_H0u1mlgg/s320/Bleny+in+the+bottle.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Blenny in a bottle.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPRV6ZfhMrQ89xOtso3_rYl2ZKFQ0BhH-JVA0mspSNreYv-ln_Glv7m9UQxQT8g0faBAJ7fqu5oI_bKlslE9ZA0IbDdWA7svgZ46SVz5irQws2UlSp6xrJ9IicwfHW-RzHiEHQcE5Y6Es/s320/Rigid+shrimpfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Rigid shrimpfish</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqfW5g-aPV19J8W1udAGnYfaNppO2eVY6GaKdiQUaOEnXsaLLd8bFFc6c7qD4jG0vHuxNdGzlEbcKfdlvTm9GgYnrkqMacimyHnmPaFYQ4IGz7MEy0BECxep5-jUg8pirYXym4f1F8ZuA/s320/Harlequin+shrimp.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">My beautiful harlequin shrimp</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">3rd Day</div><div style="text-align: left;">I can't believe that it was the last day diving. Me and family were having so much fun! We had a Mandarin dive at Twilight Zone to swipe our depression of having to leave my favourite resort, Maluku Divers.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">1st Dive- Tower</div><div style="text-align: left;">In this dive site, we certainly did not see a tower, or a sunk tower either, but we did see many gorgeous creatures. There were pretty Nudis, a normal sized Mantis Shrimpa and this huge Mantis Shrimp, a Leaf Scorpion fish, Starry Moray Eel, White Eyed Moray Eels, Lion fish, Sea Cucumbers, Nemos with Porcelain Crabs, this really weird Sea Shell, Sexy Shrimps, Emperor Shrimps and cleaning shrimps. There were a couple of Ribbon Eels as well and a Flounder which I took photos of.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvyOgAruSSP4tdolvq8-2ZrG5cLEK0XxnnqqhJJom1hI8-GxmWXj1eiinyZt_2zj8zV0Enwm1ri3twYQUO9Hsj3sxnJVAuuyRl3HO8M3aNGf9BMeFt8W_nVh940NsLRCw3Bensc0yfgHc/s320/White+leaf+scorpionfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">White leaf lion fish</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Gisv2qWFGRDQVzBAWCo6WAxyM_ByI1Xz4_mmeHjuQPGvoSwuPQ7WHoYiijVI95KVljc3HBZsWT9s8WDZJyGMRgEKHlaLhzojeO5qbr2bGAiUeuMhQ65TW4FKq7qzt2Jmzt1GBW2VNOM/s320/porcelain+crab.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Porcelain crab</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">2nd Dive- Laha</div><div style="text-align: left;">Laha was one of the popular dive site in Ambon. There weren't much of interesting creatures, but I still enjoyed it because the sight was beautiful. We saw a cool Stone fish, pipefish, amazing Nudis and Lion fishes. There were also a variety of Moray Eels, there were the Starry Moray Eel and the White Eyed Moray Eels! I took some good pictures of the Lion fish and some of the best Ribbon Eel picture I did in Ambon!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVo3Shv1RwBoC77YIunrvGudqock6wdjpnQ_pmOqL-rIrpizLXrnlom2jDSO1iWDGcCAr_pKS3P2lR2tEsC5PyHZbZFxpSQfGeUGvWQAE9W3c6qgQYHtV0Hoi1O2rcGC82MNhF7bHpcF0/s320/nudibranch+3.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4uol0AUplUPKYL-aLUYI5lth2HhWsIMM_yc7m-r1HWu81kvVAOU2dMiW7Rx2YmUlIuop1pmfmKg6zHbk74e9zGb7NpiD3f1ESNjVfxqPZ1y2dqcDdi-Nrr9tTTfoW-pb0XQHHjYjiF9Y/s320/pipefish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Then we went back to our resort to fill our hungry stomach. We were asked what type of dive we wanted, a Mandarin dive or a normal dive. I quickly answered Mandarin Dive because I love Mandarin fishes. Their mouth are so cute- as if they're kissing the water!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">LAST DIVE : ( 3rd Dive- Twilight Zone: Mandarin Dive!</div><div style="text-align: left;">I enjoyed Twilight Zone, and I was happy to be able to come back to this dive site. I saw a Mandarin fish in the previous dive, but none were mating. We got on the boat at around 5.30 pm. At the beginning of the dive, the guide found some Zebra Crabs and Coleman's Shrimps.I saw some Moray Eels and some more at the rubble. The rubble is where the Mandarin fishes hide. There were also some other creatures as well, such as crabs and Moray Eels, other fishes and Sea Urchins! When I took pictures of the Mandarin fishes, there were some Sea Urchins. Luckily neither me, my family, the guide and the other guests that came with us (another family) didn't get injured by a Sea Urchin. Apparently, non of my sister, my dad or the other family got a photo of a Mandarin fish mating- except me! I was very proud of myself for getting some good pictures of the Mandarin fish, but I don't boast. I had help from the guide though, and it was really useful. I'm going to enter in a photo competition and send in one of my Mandarin Photos- I hope I win, wish me luck!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXmFA2DqTF0BIJ-x4HI6JoAr_Y_Nk51rcG0x0mnNQkLZ96UgQKNZLOPqiGY2aPBmLKIRkxjbRorDQMLkKgF4e1rgNfZWvATSzSX0PW1E1FcguO8NrXVc6PO2ddMdqtYJkaE191iO1-HSQ/s320/Mandarin+fish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Mating mandarin fish</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRnu66ceGd56IEN7xJre21Z-IDitE7FTOdouoeYK_uuTd6ih3aUrAWARgGWRnQGprj_dYaC2phD4n9ByG0fh89QS0JQbWHP3yD1fyXMW76_exhjLXKw2IsAHdm_9a9Jw9wTGVVWisZUIo/s320/Hermit+crab.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Hermit crab</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">I really had a fantastic time diving in Ambon. I want to go back there again for a longer period of time, and stay at Maluku divers, which was excellent! I would recommend this to everybody who goes to Ambon beacuse this place is awesome. Foreigner guests get to taste Indonesian food which is twisted a bit to suit them. For me, the food was perfect, not too spicy. Their pumpkin soup is tasty and creamy. This is funny because I don't really like pumpkin soup, in fact I hate it (not the one in Maluku divers)! The workers are friendly and funny, and they are helpful when guests are in need of them because of a problem. Some can speak English quite well, and it is fun to talk with them and their village. You never quite know when a worker's village is major tourist attraction! :)</div></div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-18755125030354560212011-01-02T13:16:00.027+08:002011-01-08T02:11:01.246+08:00Wai Village- Ambon- IndonesiaWai Village is located at East side of Ambon. This village is known for it's harmless eels, swimming in a small, fresh and clear water river.<div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeojpBfB9Vgux4fKP49288R-4ok-QKCzqL7tWxZvb6_2-pjmqU2bbvf2FQQR4iw1jBhRi64EjfDCFbF0Hi85ACbr_kPAcEmvrhWECPtZiKFRqwo2mwL8km-eXukuZlNV5q839miz45lNY/s320/wai.jpg" /></div>Before the river turned into a tourist attraction, it is used for bathing, washing clothes and drinking. Even now villagers still use this river for living.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU77jOrlSaEc2cnXMof8qDwr1tm_LHDHKpgMQ-ucT3goYxzo539HJAoxIT4-ZuAb8JhsFovVHxEApjESWsVUuK7ZsPnQeRDD_x_fv43EX5pt1XwCsn4sqELBvCNfberrGByRBiYSgRbsA/s320/wai+1.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The villagers use the river for their daily activities</div><div><br />Not only visitors can take pictures from above the water, but they can jump in the water and meet the eels face to face. There is a man who will look out for the eels and will bait them to come out of their hiding hole. The man baits the eels with egg that has a small hole,enough for the smell to come out, without the yolk following.<div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf6CTr490jgA0FP8S_bBQWfuXSxFLhAQjh3LlYrlpVLu8W1ub833HefM7L578ljjlQ5ghUH-mRZTxGE5DghjDQy24IEt4FIyfDaG94XimdjIs3t3mc7mKRfAPobfpXVWl49BdrjNgQolE/s320/mamel+1.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The man baiting the eel with an egg.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibd80E8-qkD10yD5bw18NXwkdeJZG3O-RnYVzL79RS03lj62tEgsABs0mJKfPqIn7Unq7Ll7Le9cygszaqJPJodYHrZVCS_E7F2BUjaWUNML1ZNg70gxgMDHr-ysJ5wB_yhCUwLO6HeYI/s320/wai+eel.jpg" /></div><div><br />I was brave enough and able to hold some of these eels. They felt slimy and slippery! However, the eels are scared of me; or they just doesn't like me holding them. Anyway, my sister took some good photos of the eels (as they are shown) and me holding them too. She made some videos to add in her collection of photos and videos.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfqjR-sg7Gtzxe0-BP0tg42zwD7bBwie_ItFpKDz2crujK1qWGVAeW19nX51QXDt3P0ERxeozmkkPKTEJH1guggu8bcgPe1u7TzYjOofrAn9-2E-uHRMmhtKZB3OsLRk0fWscIBFKOMX8/s320/mamel+3.jpg" /></div></div><div><br />These eels has been "trained" to not bite the visitors. Although, the eels lower down the river (they are braver to come close with humans) are a bit more fierce than the ones up the river. I Found this out by learning it the hard way. My sister told me to touch the eels for her photo. I couldn't see the eels because we were standing in the river where water was going down a slope. I went for it then one of the eels bit me! It didn't hurt as much because they are teeth less, but their jaws are strong. My dad told me that the eel went for me because it thought that my finger was a little fish! After all, they eat fish too. Eels don't have good eye sight so the eel (who bite me) probably thought my finger was a fish!</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5DhVnZ_NDSPQI0eYrBEV8NBy_TulsTgwxDer4wu7LGg5rgB_Fti6wNvzMV-9hns8QAPgqA5g5wab1UNldWV0RmDBj-O10A26Em2jCrSjaocKeZ0HpbE4qGly6rWHJb_x6wGYIXTWdZWI/s320/wai+eel+1.jpg" /></div><br />I enjoyed swimming with the eels and holding them. I would want to gone back to Wai Village or maybe even Larike Village (another village that has friendly fresh water eels that visitors can touch) for a longer period of time. If I come back again, I would definitely bring goggles. So I could see the eels and not get bitten- again!</div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-77628822144438547802010-11-30T21:43:00.002+08:002011-01-08T17:45:16.185+08:00Photos in Mabul and Sipadan<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzLXxnSJJM06nAnW1QLCsNbv-Y0ryT6ijefBIh3kwpCTOKL2N_oKriEnq5wjAgLTJW7rFUG3CFXgpxvehNZl07FfinUmpLEGincdA770ACbRU_8flt1unqxyRTC-NUtB2096woo4rvVAk/s1600/celey.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzLXxnSJJM06nAnW1QLCsNbv-Y0ryT6ijefBIh3kwpCTOKL2N_oKriEnq5wjAgLTJW7rFUG3CFXgpxvehNZl07FfinUmpLEGincdA770ACbRU_8flt1unqxyRTC-NUtB2096woo4rvVAk/s400/celey.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559748631147345938" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">My mum</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOt1KrixrMef9r7gtKrMbX3ER3UOMvFVhibmFnvu6PWxbS3Ql_LogvIj8aCzuXlzEVNxbN6ONqVh767CunkhNP7ulOPn7evhTSTFVzAtUTRhV5L5W1YLyttGm6RLOxeUhwCvmAxv0hhNc/s1600/Coralnfish.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOt1KrixrMef9r7gtKrMbX3ER3UOMvFVhibmFnvu6PWxbS3Ql_LogvIj8aCzuXlzEVNxbN6ONqVh767CunkhNP7ulOPn7evhTSTFVzAtUTRhV5L5W1YLyttGm6RLOxeUhwCvmAxv0hhNc/s400/Coralnfish.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559748628001742994" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The beautiful reef in Sipadan.</div></div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPbPBfuN4vLG-_HWji-iwqz5ZwHKJuFbgHggg37u5adZwKopt6y247TesGZJaMeqYK3iFyHvq0_Po3SzwSD7d59iVFkNLHV7cmnGzijMCKdCCzMGAX421FkaN-HT1aue1VOLndYntHX7s/s1600/nudi+h+bullocki.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPbPBfuN4vLG-_HWji-iwqz5ZwHKJuFbgHggg37u5adZwKopt6y247TesGZJaMeqYK3iFyHvq0_Po3SzwSD7d59iVFkNLHV7cmnGzijMCKdCCzMGAX421FkaN-HT1aue1VOLndYntHX7s/s400/nudi+h+bullocki.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559747646080494402" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A Nudibranch.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIvcqJcvXS4wi1T6HPSKthJw7wHSDh901X-BGaJCIilgPkyE6e6L-cs9LXaea81Ls8BK2H5rvLm0X9v1xBSE50bCGQrjVQK9FEmdJHzxURXGGpYvpaYeF93XF6KGc4W23j0kBBwKHOEaU/s1600/emperor+shrimp.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIvcqJcvXS4wi1T6HPSKthJw7wHSDh901X-BGaJCIilgPkyE6e6L-cs9LXaea81Ls8BK2H5rvLm0X9v1xBSE50bCGQrjVQK9FEmdJHzxURXGGpYvpaYeF93XF6KGc4W23j0kBBwKHOEaU/s400/emperor+shrimp.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559747639556625490" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">An Emperor Shrimp found on a Sea Star.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghysC1GOG2TjrVzrYy6NiKOjtlEZgcJKzLMubHRdzc_ekQNQUin6_6PZtCdp1Aggp5nTzvBi0KzLH4mlxqUXThFNH64SVIwr5dBKKmEQCuyxW7tPqU7FjVGyyhN4LgoZK1mHAwzx77e-g/s1600/Billabong+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghysC1GOG2TjrVzrYy6NiKOjtlEZgcJKzLMubHRdzc_ekQNQUin6_6PZtCdp1Aggp5nTzvBi0KzLH4mlxqUXThFNH64SVIwr5dBKKmEQCuyxW7tPqU7FjVGyyhN4LgoZK1mHAwzx77e-g/s400/Billabong+1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559747634097188930" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Billabong resort.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTyrugNFOtnNn6CBrQPfFnlTM6IwalgL1yjeN8rwVjzO9bqsyPKSIil4Q_ZHyE-sECBzZx_mh2pgRtkGylA_NlKsFCCNGGoeDn23oaiUYDRfpfj3rqlwRrajfnPnhWZKgnajqUPXddaI/s1600/Billabong+4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTyrugNFOtnNn6CBrQPfFnlTM6IwalgL1yjeN8rwVjzO9bqsyPKSIil4Q_ZHyE-sECBzZx_mh2pgRtkGylA_NlKsFCCNGGoeDn23oaiUYDRfpfj3rqlwRrajfnPnhWZKgnajqUPXddaI/s400/Billabong+4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559747629266022066" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Local children going to school.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO_om5aSrYPxnWPCVSuaEBubpECBfk8LLo1iFk6XWE0TduymJ_W6DBdFH1U7A6rf50ArwlQgyQqybDn3v-TIMRjaeo8KTLrU8ZjQFr7Cgrt4WAq7ygBrvIj5qPMeoSdl_0GdGCAVgyEWA/s1600/coralnanthias.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO_om5aSrYPxnWPCVSuaEBubpECBfk8LLo1iFk6XWE0TduymJ_W6DBdFH1U7A6rf50ArwlQgyQqybDn3v-TIMRjaeo8KTLrU8ZjQFr7Cgrt4WAq7ygBrvIj5qPMeoSdl_0GdGCAVgyEWA/s400/coralnanthias.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559747632217882370" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The beautiful reef in Sipadan.</div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicmNhv90hLkrB0a_7K1LRd6XsAfU6ejhTS88AID45k2tnV9Jw_NZry2Fzll4ndfcn-Ixow9s751WeBWk8BUSo39_KuHsm2ubHuhSziwyQf9o487PZz7v9cpU6NE_dZgA1D4zV1al5EtZU/s1600/Batfishmayang.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicmNhv90hLkrB0a_7K1LRd6XsAfU6ejhTS88AID45k2tnV9Jw_NZry2Fzll4ndfcn-Ixow9s751WeBWk8BUSo39_KuHsm2ubHuhSziwyQf9o487PZz7v9cpU6NE_dZgA1D4zV1al5EtZU/s400/Batfishmayang.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559745909901576850" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A group of Bat fishes.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5dC6lKEuIiz9Gsl0GzGZ5IL5_fBJTDJUWXQ1w-TO6SOiEheJxGyyzQLlAgZipkwrQyhx_EdFU8T50_Itu0j4QqMkyzQ83IS5Kcbwj8yN99P1hJPwZrnuaPZ4xHnAur9qtVXVO9jeZdIk/s1600/Boat+Billabong.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5dC6lKEuIiz9Gsl0GzGZ5IL5_fBJTDJUWXQ1w-TO6SOiEheJxGyyzQLlAgZipkwrQyhx_EdFU8T50_Itu0j4QqMkyzQ83IS5Kcbwj8yN99P1hJPwZrnuaPZ4xHnAur9qtVXVO9jeZdIk/s400/Boat+Billabong.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559745898259480370" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Me and my family (without my dad) before a dive</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibkYS21Nwy_E_sb1e8A_O25vLxL-SQtfzpVGXR6BqAzZM-ofoNykZR5g8Y9X_8yvmxnFrMEVs4qqLSuxgZLzmXw2uFo-zee3rgz6-QoLfOWu4IN0Jy8VM8nzotgPOyfaIJyGgm6IDD0uY/s1600/billabongsunset.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 302px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibkYS21Nwy_E_sb1e8A_O25vLxL-SQtfzpVGXR6BqAzZM-ofoNykZR5g8Y9X_8yvmxnFrMEVs4qqLSuxgZLzmXw2uFo-zee3rgz6-QoLfOWu4IN0Jy8VM8nzotgPOyfaIJyGgm6IDD0uY/s400/billabongsunset.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559745895708372930" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">A silhouette of me.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpufk5fMSUCgXSDlANK5UiGqWJ13-wZpGqM24Lx5cjhyphenhypheng2UJXG2KNUmw391d4GcZw1nMYpar_4Gc2wbIX52JZZef2nKYdyJpDbOW9CLWZpwnJaBkMsfXMLHdRfhmfZu9vUiOgI6dCPW14/s1600/crocodilefish.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 286px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpufk5fMSUCgXSDlANK5UiGqWJ13-wZpGqM24Lx5cjhyphenhypheng2UJXG2KNUmw391d4GcZw1nMYpar_4Gc2wbIX52JZZef2nKYdyJpDbOW9CLWZpwnJaBkMsfXMLHdRfhmfZu9vUiOgI6dCPW14/s400/crocodilefish.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559745894862119282" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Crocodile fish</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtG96ZyM8V5ykhOke2WvYSzqQ6NR0GuhTsTWZO23cYZwJa1E3dHXLT5hqFiqUrTilURfiOrZ5Pd2SzhHNiSi39I4ahIHNaYgUq-PHsa7tYgFOPT8wFrN7BQmfkZVDPGC6g6xDlzo66FY/s1600/Shark1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJtG96ZyM8V5ykhOke2WvYSzqQ6NR0GuhTsTWZO23cYZwJa1E3dHXLT5hqFiqUrTilURfiOrZ5Pd2SzhHNiSi39I4ahIHNaYgUq-PHsa7tYgFOPT8wFrN7BQmfkZVDPGC6g6xDlzo66FY/s400/Shark1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559745893664199634" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">White Tip Shark</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-74675348473130314512010-11-26T20:06:00.018+08:002011-01-08T18:04:13.249+08:00Diving in Sipadan<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><u><br /></u></span></div><div style="text-align: center;">After our tiring journey on Mt. Kinabalu, me and my family went Sipadan- which was also in Malaysia. Sipadan is a small island which used to belong to Indonesia. Then something happened and the island belonged to Malaysia. We took a boat ride from Tawau to Mabul Island. Once we reached our resort (Billabong), we ate lunch and enjoyed our surroundings. The first dive was in Paradise 2.</div><br />Billabong is only a budget resort, however the resort is clean and served standard halal food plus free Milo ( chocolate drink), tea & coffee. The location of resort not far from village and a perfect location to watch sun set every day.<div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Ig-Ds6dVJpFzsTCoRWzCVrtRuzTmvPccQ8veUJl9_mYzufpTfV9UP0JF5QC5TvVbEPcxriCce73DlvgJsniDkappqZeodxVAUHlCGmzzlEu9powZG1l6eoysiwxMziOo0Tqic-WU1go/s320/Billabongroom.jpg" /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitdRiMXzWBEtkGO0Too9us9YpvSs22oAm8vg8o6NvpnZhtbAgw7UUq0-bzt4CW5CoYlV1xbCjk151STLMbnhIF-LAC73svGBvnwCwsOIhyphenhyphenN7lSPBN5a2bb5rbJdK8GpkGINaWRorKYa1w/s320/Billabong+9.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Cute kittens at Billabong</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Paradise 2</b></div><div>This diving site is just off Billabong Resort. Me and my family saw one Nudibranch (they're really rare around Sipadan), a few Blennies and 4 Sea Turtles! I have never seen this much Sea Turtles when I dive. The max would probably one at a time. But these turtles are used to humans (I think so) that they are very brave. Me and my sister got close to one and she took a picture of me behind a turtle! Of course, Sipadan is famous for their amount of sea Turtles. where ever anyone dives, there'll be a turtle. We also saw Trigger fishes and Anemone fishes (no Nemo though). These fishes are quite common though, I see them every time when I go diving. In Paradise 2, there was a Crocodile fish and a numerous amount of Bat fishes- more than I've seen at one time.<div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAfoXSmNW5onwpba08L_OGIIWvsj-uGkfHa_EZzeY1FNB2Xy5duTxzOXiOyXti6LjwPdHZniRMmXXPalwcTEjZBTChLDCSF5BkkZfSL6rHLMkb1IBwtIsJygLZhS_ifppSkq20l-RyO_U/s320/Turtle3.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVnHXt9DUX1hMGa7mReW_wAzWV1muQM_SDTuDzc9Ep5cp93gHZ3HH6Q0A9phFDYTfecqu7YLsbVkXVJXUeuD2ozsPwiZ8RVExNyw8iqkNfVfJOJeTomrmVkPSYYycHEKY0QhudRk1dmi8/s320/Batfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Bat fish</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7b3oJMykDA-L1NXJGm9CYd1I8K5ikjcCLH0aoUCyC5Zu8uvZI5hV3N7xaDTZj_qZ26qfWTu3HVNhM9NzivZqQrxv1QvebdYkyeIwac4PljPKv3uIx4gnIC4Q-qq1xGHkzzxdAecZ6HNA/s320/nemomelati.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Anemone clown fish</div><br /><br />Paradise 2-> Paradise 1<br />This was half a night dive. Although, the main creature me, my family and some other people wanted to see was the Mandarin fishes. These amazing creatures are spectacular for the pattern on them. I have seen the Mandarin fish a couple times (in Lembeh- Indonesia). Compared to the Mandarin fishes I've seen before, these were small. We saw some Scorpion fishes, Anemone fishes, more Batfishes and a Nudibranch.<br /><br /></div><div><br />Barracuda Point-Sipadan<br />After the day we arrived, we went to the actual Sipadan Island. This was the best diving place I've ever been to. The corals were brightly coloured, the sun shining on them. The depth was not too deep (around 5m minimum) for the snorkelers to see. At Barracuda Point, there was supposed to be a huge group of Barracudas, but apparently they didn't show up. A friend of my dad, saw the Barracudas and took a video of them. There were hundreds swirling around like a hurricane. They were incredible. Me and my family were unfortunate to miss them. It was Sipadan though, and it's a happy island! Now, let's put aside the miserable things and move onto the creatures I saw.<br />There were Banner fishes, Bat fishes, Anemone fishes and the great Sea Turtles. To replace the missing Barracudas, the Jack fishes arrived, swimming around us. I love Barracuda Point because that was the first time I saw a shark- a beautiful White Tip Shark!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeROa_GM24bRKsd_ARbe_q78OeirTZN9XmEJPwqFv3GFAW4Z_MHP2uUc4ERV-VPnbDTVSHqs7P5LYlQR5XLIx5iPvw8StERm0kNAurpbHGSBQJLVkLtaqh_qcQ2QrkDgeWqd4Tg-HUAxU/s320/Turtle2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">So close to a Sea Turtle!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwqgHV5ctHLKNTXWJSWqXRP1-cOfJo7EWk69iTI_xjG4A-oVHD8ShPb0RhuJTdJZP9egmtV6woBeP7-e-rzojUpCPDEN3Nz2k4QePjTmnymR7ZdpNRPmLSINNYnME7YvpTCOWknyLuED0/s320/Sharkmyg.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Never been so close with shark !</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil2oK_UDwZlqFPC91qRXwxTFhEGsio2rFHVJH4gnUbdGPpuGxxDazJVw4OGhQmfLWxjHqzmsRHhc7Tsk1GbU0NaiIb5fue52jDnmmQ5tjfE0T5VVZLTofuhRF90nH2l2Ovk-pF9SUnEUs/s320/jackfishmelati.jpg" /></div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-10419136170378265902010-11-17T22:56:00.002+08:002011-01-09T15:57:51.629+08:00Photos on Mount Kinabalu<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><u><br /></u></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF8fB7MVE_X6pC3uLIFzR0QlUQCuyHEFtjD-ta5_PZHcaFuI6LFOtptd2YbbC5lmSiLqEsbZ-uxFvGdtMGd7KaNzFt58gna-M_DnJAMTNyB3DChoKcALJszCQxc7jhvandKrIHGF7z_ZE/s1600/Kinabalu+park.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 394px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF8fB7MVE_X6pC3uLIFzR0QlUQCuyHEFtjD-ta5_PZHcaFuI6LFOtptd2YbbC5lmSiLqEsbZ-uxFvGdtMGd7KaNzFt58gna-M_DnJAMTNyB3DChoKcALJszCQxc7jhvandKrIHGF7z_ZE/s400/Kinabalu+park.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5560090109133329362" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Me and my sister, before we climbed Mt. Kinabalu.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><u><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDkomqc-1M36k9QgDErizKGAhBFFjMOetD0jvYgYOPtxFXz-rIamV-r4AQBxk5x8EuBV537x4aQ4RfWqifsVfCoULMpIpIffJFatXn2uPxvruW1Mhyphenhyphenh46zsi2wO7f2oYSkH6FDHqrLtCY/s400/Kinabalu+km5.jpg" /></u></span></div><div style="text-align: center;">The Great Mt. Kinabalu.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipkJe-v7F5e90w5nUOISFlWvVJ7DxXzi6QD-x_IgcQ-Y23qEuJEw88MXHdaAlsl2ZTgFdHFB01puvFD9UkCHaVKUt3QJgAN9u7czTn7gwPWDXC9-hOzt2hwTETFJiFsU2LXJh5Vix1WRI/s400/Kinabalu+5.jpg" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguCWqJUlEE3-eUYbVfHPlSas2eSkfwdame108nZ7mxh52Vfvdpih5fO_QHq0LihbL5BXUT-T0HYV_YarI15FSQgEt0wNP9s_0fMMmzh6lOyEfeG53x4q1zaAZEmSsHFfWtBQ6UlKWGHT8/s1600/Kinabalu+5.jpg"></a>Me with the background of a sunset in Laban Rata.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiHTn2BqFfMYvyamlK748VPImkZwAr3zJeOXictyO-9cTW4IRnGOhDlGtfsG-O96aQxbQmJ9nDmqtN0HOqy-M_qNnU_vKkvgbAiACcZpnUOB5YYm3FICuNkyjt7bUg3sxzKv58cSH7VRM/s400/Kinabalu+12.jpg" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;">My mum going down Mt. Kinabalu.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjcyJVwjpPCkSM19eF6TpOjoqo3GgBHkZ-J-VL1mKbLx2rJM03aohcihSmOVOnReUSjgESUMqemAQ34yRzE-lem6I_CphM5p8HwG5ne5jGk-Z52SigGLWKw6TMh6NXt7qHPiQWB4eLoA/s400/kinabalusouthpeak.jpg" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_lxbUyS6EnNfaltrlTSRDTxrrxHGCzLJfWIZKrQb_miiT0HarD2bPFFbSoq_pXy6JzqTa_uOIkUAZZ1KC-OgaPvHLhROY4Ty15lQJMLg4MdZvGYDrf6EG8KgTSyvihp4QsCqhjoTbnLs/s1600/turun+gunung+1.jpg"></a>South Peak of Mt. Kinabalu.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9gypHj-AriZSBK2vWecG9pcifdSyE9r-5ZcbiEtHLq-xmjnIT1L7p2IwjqNcbFdcmKdqRxMdShEtX4dVk0u40YXhJ4ur4QjYd2AjeVq6iEivPcCnTRh6bVUA1mmmfAjP8FLIhshfAYo/s400/Kinabalu+2.jpg" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMeIf2NgQGvAbQ4tpvCfTRdRrvq8tyOmMeeMw-b-FQo9V2u6AScLN2pSfsp73dgApWtclcT-pFHuc__TxOC7Aihr98d-VpRftnP5KSYaau6ewLOHdwZhtRaXJG17wg_hjcG4ODktNCrnk/s1600/Kinabalu+2.jpg"></a>Me and my sister going to Laban Rata.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5mA2JkzpF2a8sgDZX7TdocFxyWfedcE4do-PlO6hl22wrGf2oryIMrn3ViFPwMMyR5ynYvELFUuc6HY7yamoW5QC362sOHPZFRgzKfQbq1zEP2idXj-IA60HfMaasXQLwW2I4SwePV9o/s400/Kinabalu+4.jpg" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtfgCv4H9aRJV2wwu3AjHlHCH8YvuiKWUJUj3T1W7ZzojN4meYsqVnNbo_Yuw2g4X5IvIDGoZ6zIFmSRdcvrg4w50VMFBePMwX52q6ECBQt4lLZ36RtC48FOMUZ9r9w53i9K0cFVb3Ae8/s1600/Kinabalu+4.jpg"></a>Laban Rata.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9oXlu2JG26y3UTN4Ac8cX-tdQs62iz9OYGhB4sxhX9UEWTlbRtQROzZgtyDuKQlqyEW-UHVZMwhYfdcJtP4By8Lz2Tl_SdinchkIcniwDJViUPPNYhJz9Gc-2pLy49e0LbjW0JeBp-aQ/s400/sunrise+3.jpg" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjSZIFublJbazTj4XWezJCtzHyfe66yOzhsIwlSBFbIahDf98XzF0F1z-93eiYqcl6L-vo664luX_NZ3eciGxduGTGrhwxy0lQFm10gDeEGNdM26SMhmTHrZaPVLUBmRlXwHNoCi-_N38/s1600/Kinabalu+7.jpg"></a>Me and my mum at our stop point/highest point.</div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-58281020638745017002010-11-16T20:13:00.025+08:002011-01-06T18:52:45.243+08:00Climbing the Great Mt. Kinabalu<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">October 17th, 2010</div><br />Me and my family had one week to spend on an exciting holiday. We went to KK (Kota Kinabalu) to climb Mount Kinabalu, extended by going to Sipadan, one of the best dive sites in the world! I know, a very busy week- and very tiring too!<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieuiiMycrfpZBTVLg_o039vAp5xlJJmgJmSXMlqLH3JFDAWwjT5NXUz7liNvMdDvRCpMelEnSZlbSObccBhskhhl1TJlQuYqu5UqGVNSezzqb5qvXOurnsxPPI7V_cPqmg_PqHswCFL14/s320/Kinabalu+park.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 315px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559022167414391938" /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">Me and my sister before the climb, at Kinabalu Park.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> We first hiked through the the forest, sitting on rocks to rest. At the first hundred metre, there was a beautiful waterfall. I felt relaxed watching the water falling into a stream. I felt a little chilly from the splashes of water as it is fresh and cold from the mountains. There was huts that we passed through, resting at each one. We saw Ground Squirrels chirping and running around the forest ground. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs2ICt_puHoOXmfjZZIerJG6X3G1NA0uZ0HKwxk1hA-d6AsET6WPWdNFm3iOXY_tn0gbykHpRT7QofwRopUwY0JToR9tOu4W2C5LUOmUCrtwXnoXVUAWxl4-ed44Y4zaoO0o5b0OP_KRA/s320/waterfall.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">A beautiful waterfall at the beginning of the climb.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> When we had breakfast, we were given each a set of meal (for lunch and snack) in a bag. We had apple ( for our healthy snack), a drumstick, rice and a bottle of fresh water. We all had lunch at Layang-Layang Hut, which was half way to Laban Rata (our resting place). The toilets were disgusting, but clean enough to be used.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqQKH6tJYRqm7iy6HDRzYTMOWT1tLdroXS48V3CdP0nMbT5TApdYewLiVtATjc9N-0p0a47DPmsebAq0rq7UMyWhIf34VH4oqgoZBvQ4f3hpr-AI1P5GV-q10nCg-mExLhCIN4pJ-Xh08/s320/untreated+water.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Untreated water at the huts.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> After the Layang-Layang Hut, the path began to be more challenging. We climbed orange rocks which reminds me of the desert- not that I've been to one.There were more of these orange rocks as we got higher.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYERiSX27J9DGCcFJqozWXLp5g0EdFAUioccXIn6ACTaAjocAeJOIE-PxRde3Kr9OCojMvxnjRUYXbbfPrMvu5Dc1aHitO3Tyu-M9McReU7Tr4r4_6zg11Iejev_svTfhMIWCb9xob3XM/s320/kelelahan.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Me and my sister sitting on rocks. (My sister was actually half asleep :D )</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> We reached Laban Rata in 7 exhausting hours. Me and my family shared a room with these Japanese tourists. In our room, there were4 bunk beds, making a total of 8 beds. The dining hall was at the bottom, with the reception. The sunset at Laban Rata was amazing, I couldn't believe my eyes! The sun was huge as if it was right in front of me. Whilst I stood on the balcony, I could see the slope of the mountain as well.</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLwAMnGZkRPLGtheJJA_Tpr9MKQNIVIyRgIelv08WTVH9hWzRDZjCF8-ABFQffmR4LnRvR-jsioUqWUi3QubPrUA5OjRmRO0yCA0HQDQTsRuKc0VGzdNT56BrJfiYKUKy3HCbq4CS-go/s1600/Laban+rata.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLwAMnGZkRPLGtheJJA_Tpr9MKQNIVIyRgIelv08WTVH9hWzRDZjCF8-ABFQffmR4LnRvR-jsioUqWUi3QubPrUA5OjRmRO0yCA0HQDQTsRuKc0VGzdNT56BrJfiYKUKy3HCbq4CS-go/s320/Laban+rata.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559014981419908418" border="0" /></a>Me with the background of Laban Rata and Mt. Kinabalu.</div><br /><br /><br />The next day, we all woke up at 2am, got dressed and ate breakfast. Once we finished (3.30am), we continued our climb. Me and my sister were very dizzy, so we stopped, sat and rested on rocks. This problem was caused by the high altitude.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> Unfortunately, the summit was closed at around 7.45am, and we were still far away from it. I was disappointed that we didn't reach the top after all the hard and exhausting work. Although, we stopped at a point where the view was amazing...</div><div style="text-align: center;"> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCWO8IJpMWHZv1GQfC8_NfuXX4rGQSBM832V3qsBL1hwPoNFm0e4cxjVtn5RQNGpTEOMCNMDi2sHgyJ4zOJCTnNMT_vRTH56gY0zjJQgSDcWIwixfwsTPUI_rf9WH9PQ4krPcnND0BaWE/s320/sunrise+2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Me at our stop point.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> The lights of the houses' were on, as if they were fireflies in a dark night. Lightning lit up the sky as well, though they were far away from us- phew! The houses were bright, looking like yellow dots from the mountain. I wish I could reach the top, but I was still impressed with myself, as well as disappointed. After all, that was my first time climbing a <i>real </i>mountain.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> Once we were satisfied with where we left off, we started to walk back to Laban Rata. I didn't feel well and I threw up a little. As I went down, I looked around my surroundings, trying to keep them in my memory; the trees swaying in the cold breeze, greenery all around, and me breathing fresh air. As soon as we got to Laban Rata, I took off my jacket and slept!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mFRGZUp0jzdBU3rtIMKA-rXrxqpu5OwGCQWoY0icMUzj2oxPFMdLCTjH8V3Ok2wePEShpIPkpPQmoVm2wCGsx8eqS9IE5uNMY-lt8MG2FTx9IPk06ERU0zw_VFi6xaLi19UYiQqNoj8/s320/Kinabalu+12.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">My mum going down Mt Kinabalu using a rope.</div><div><br /></div><div>A few hours later, me and my family decided to check out off our room and get going...</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> Walking down the mountain was extremely easier- and took less effort! I was in front of my family, since I was going faster than them, but soon my sister caught up with me when I was waiting for my family under one of the huts. As me and my sister walked down the mountain, through the forest part, on flat ground, we told each other jokes etc. My dad and my mum, with the guides didn't catch up with us, so we reached the starting point first. We ate noodles, and had sprite for our drink. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Later on, my dad and my mum, with the guide came and we set off back to the park, for lunch!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> After we finished our meal, me and my family set back off on the road and had a rest at Dragon Inn for a night, then caught a flight that is going to Tawau!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />(See more pictures of Mount Kinabalu, on "Pictures of Mount Kinabalu.)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />(Read my story Sipadan, to continue this journey.) </div><div> </div><div> </div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-88210435475310467052010-06-13T09:54:00.033+08:002010-06-13T19:54:54.456+08:00Photo's in Anilao<div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggh8egvsfd00D_VAkzCpblASAp9H1CZdhneguowT_7-qK86SuAOFhQWikXStUc3hyphenhyphenO1IAvsXf0BHGP-0OiSOaRq2S6hP3sgn1u8BjsnqUJOBEiDvJqlYJHoPsSgqvXTg-kKxZVZJiByEU/s1600/nemo.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggh8egvsfd00D_VAkzCpblASAp9H1CZdhneguowT_7-qK86SuAOFhQWikXStUc3hyphenhyphenO1IAvsXf0BHGP-0OiSOaRq2S6hP3sgn1u8BjsnqUJOBEiDvJqlYJHoPsSgqvXTg-kKxZVZJiByEU/s200/nemo.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482081452142551394" border="0" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Nemo's Family Group</span></div><div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-0Hsy8Wtt_2jeLbMaAabQ9uFAB7UcFB4i9niAbTW89YAiMPq9HQQ6t0nVxl2YmSUIZBcGg_b4dHUC4HBsb64DCT9I_SUMWhPy6RSkStbr97EcCNRPyWnF0n8GDhi1yNRfA7HYULIMgu8/s1600/seahorse1.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-0Hsy8Wtt_2jeLbMaAabQ9uFAB7UcFB4i9niAbTW89YAiMPq9HQQ6t0nVxl2YmSUIZBcGg_b4dHUC4HBsb64DCT9I_SUMWhPy6RSkStbr97EcCNRPyWnF0n8GDhi1yNRfA7HYULIMgu8/s200/seahorse1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482081182265704194" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Cream-Coloured Seahorse</span></div><div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusbObWPx9wIeZUQJk1IMdi1JVFH23IHVX8OrzE2Kgz6kS_FNp5u7GxqWDIOO1qCY6C-sQ-02HL1VM3Az4hvHEohG-q0gt02hZwowiiGHb3N14P_CYd0j7acQFjEWDWUMi3SZUNNO3vAs/s1600/tinyblackfrogfish.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusbObWPx9wIeZUQJk1IMdi1JVFH23IHVX8OrzE2Kgz6kS_FNp5u7GxqWDIOO1qCY6C-sQ-02HL1VM3Az4hvHEohG-q0gt02hZwowiiGHb3N14P_CYd0j7acQFjEWDWUMi3SZUNNO3vAs/s200/tinyblackfrogfish.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482081018270432498" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Tiny Black Frog Fish</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ0PrrWr3SYDOVeL-Oqd5jV4A0GrrLd0kQwiHfvmcmlRzo3dHR4LgwL5cULPE258ZOERh3S5tYAfyheYFbQqb5cd6Z3dUvKBzcdW8nby71-hvFdMQv7uUm3q1lF9CMaj-7jhcGKBXj5g4/s1600/nudi+white.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ0PrrWr3SYDOVeL-Oqd5jV4A0GrrLd0kQwiHfvmcmlRzo3dHR4LgwL5cULPE258ZOERh3S5tYAfyheYFbQqb5cd6Z3dUvKBzcdW8nby71-hvFdMQv7uUm3q1lF9CMaj-7jhcGKBXj5g4/s200/nudi+white.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482080769462879522" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">White Nudi</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0PhfbxypGebCYBK_-4z8jg1ozuPZR7huy84L6ptjICZq8jq5y55lKoMGFqFRmr_Q61NH3jont4NZ_9hCwqKWDXG0uUHIOID6WACD71AR2jx_7OQaZJRAQnBGtUaj6dyqLE-4bbM3Ko00/s1600/whiteeyedmorayeels.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0PhfbxypGebCYBK_-4z8jg1ozuPZR7huy84L6ptjICZq8jq5y55lKoMGFqFRmr_Q61NH3jont4NZ_9hCwqKWDXG0uUHIOID6WACD71AR2jx_7OQaZJRAQnBGtUaj6dyqLE-4bbM3Ko00/s200/whiteeyedmorayeels.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482080673632809570" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Fighting Moray Eel</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4zmQ9xcmgg46ImaLM4zjvK0miG63KALyk45M7I93s5wisgVBbtKBzdkHgXP-k05bSv8BPp5eFfb8hHPhR0vHgIDLgl3RXNwlHlVDmqdLD8f1_5LEaRkrC8tdzJtg1tFvyT9S3yaFpoyo/s1600/seahorse.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 153px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4zmQ9xcmgg46ImaLM4zjvK0miG63KALyk45M7I93s5wisgVBbtKBzdkHgXP-k05bSv8BPp5eFfb8hHPhR0vHgIDLgl3RXNwlHlVDmqdLD8f1_5LEaRkrC8tdzJtg1tFvyT9S3yaFpoyo/s200/seahorse.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482080308345713890" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Patterned Seahorse</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAy6sOdsHpuUvY65k-Jbo7hIj5A1ruyz619ncqmspT2hHffb1ednh_Jtj6QEKaTWFQXYu8qqnWBvcmz2GsTE3QTOPU1kDp4CvhTR2PNQDbMH_R6athhvhMC55tGKq6maP2BQfC3Fm3NlY/s1600/nudi+gill.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAy6sOdsHpuUvY65k-Jbo7hIj5A1ruyz619ncqmspT2hHffb1ednh_Jtj6QEKaTWFQXYu8qqnWBvcmz2GsTE3QTOPU1kDp4CvhTR2PNQDbMH_R6athhvhMC55tGKq6maP2BQfC3Fm3NlY/s200/nudi+gill.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482078619423603314" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Nudi Gill</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk6Dp2u0z-4SGicHBAlFVSZsQNP7btyY_eHL7mI49On7u8_yOdfppJdkazGcpH6Tz3O-ErzJmEzxvZidl_FZq5VVy-6htFxyl_KE8gm-LuVsop0HshO9H-dCxwRh0gIiehTU2o0GLeFdo/s1600/lionfish.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk6Dp2u0z-4SGicHBAlFVSZsQNP7btyY_eHL7mI49On7u8_yOdfppJdkazGcpH6Tz3O-ErzJmEzxvZidl_FZq5VVy-6htFxyl_KE8gm-LuVsop0HshO9H-dCxwRh0gIiehTU2o0GLeFdo/s200/lionfish.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482075865747901282" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Lion Fish</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha8GblmIB_AUcztpA-eH5GUQDXvFJ46IPGTkJ7EqielqM7GEVT8Sek10etizza-S0j9Ry7bJvjl0bqfGCNfmm3mHU4tgKE8ltrRM_nBGyaSuQTCVCuKqownxHY9dlyCS9Q3mbUhsHJ_hs/s1600/melati2.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha8GblmIB_AUcztpA-eH5GUQDXvFJ46IPGTkJ7EqielqM7GEVT8Sek10etizza-S0j9Ry7bJvjl0bqfGCNfmm3mHU4tgKE8ltrRM_nBGyaSuQTCVCuKqownxHY9dlyCS9Q3mbUhsHJ_hs/s200/melati2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482075646935886210" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Me taking a photo of a fish</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTTWlNn6g4NLqOcKc1VlAN3PLUs4jJ7_5XBnQzcUDaYtB-rgH09PcGn6qQhjmTJEhEq1QStRllHwtBvlWCn0HJBd336r4Ywmc_g5zbycTDPob5ToYO_JPGp8vNPh0nmzl4vv3UCjmV0g/s1600/lizardfish.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTTWlNn6g4NLqOcKc1VlAN3PLUs4jJ7_5XBnQzcUDaYtB-rgH09PcGn6qQhjmTJEhEq1QStRllHwtBvlWCn0HJBd336r4Ywmc_g5zbycTDPob5ToYO_JPGp8vNPh0nmzl4vv3UCjmV0g/s200/lizardfish.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482075409012209458" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Lizard Fish</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhUwFJMllDHH4MreKIxHiv86oPGc9KkGjmzebdpfZfBLcUcYLqvl2sjf9rR_Y48IoCYuRE_VKfOpuXr1vKVMx7r5Onjee60tnUXJRdoGN84G77j5Xh1ISlQRNUbQxiOTD4jRWvuIDCYvE/s1600/flounder.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhUwFJMllDHH4MreKIxHiv86oPGc9KkGjmzebdpfZfBLcUcYLqvl2sjf9rR_Y48IoCYuRE_VKfOpuXr1vKVMx7r5Onjee60tnUXJRdoGN84G77j5Xh1ISlQRNUbQxiOTD4jRWvuIDCYvE/s200/flounder.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482074376421376994" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Flounder </span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5cDJmngZ-Xk8KSUhbH8PQ6Pk6_7mp5mftJBfjbnzMz4-4C-cvNCfz2-Tisf4AVKpMHNYv9tHpZP4oaP52i6RmRycmVNRKmRKKWw47dCA2t0XbT4qSleXMSxyZfv7LT3XZCim9mA0T_yY/s1600/canned+octopus.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5cDJmngZ-Xk8KSUhbH8PQ6Pk6_7mp5mftJBfjbnzMz4-4C-cvNCfz2-Tisf4AVKpMHNYv9tHpZP4oaP52i6RmRycmVNRKmRKKWw47dCA2t0XbT4qSleXMSxyZfv7LT3XZCim9mA0T_yY/s200/canned+octopus.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482073641930967138" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">'Tinned' Octopus </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">(I didn't see this because my dad took this at night dive.)</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq7HnXuNQSDw0OaYKT_9S3T2luDCqyYRs7eQB3ra-1yev0BGllhkrFONJEEN8fXpn-Fh6bzWVYIgDCRwTyzbN5vQTUjuTee4tLSqcAagU6DI1QL5YgkH0IjSavlC0N0Y6Y8Gq3p7EdVhw/s1600/bossnanthias.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq7HnXuNQSDw0OaYKT_9S3T2luDCqyYRs7eQB3ra-1yev0BGllhkrFONJEEN8fXpn-Fh6bzWVYIgDCRwTyzbN5vQTUjuTee4tLSqcAagU6DI1QL5YgkH0IjSavlC0N0Y6Y8Gq3p7EdVhw/s200/bossnanthias.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482072865797874578" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">My mum next to a Giant Sponge Barrel</span></div><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0qPXFTBgSsulEuvU0GR6pC0RmT924-M8yl9d54dWhHMShgs-I9tEmy6ztUOubPo3HCCqhpuDpaeMIwyJPsy7Bo1Ls7qWGsBnyYphPfk4pTDmdsFrgf18NTcMfLrYu6sD4_NqQe04_t0/s1600/blenyintheclamp.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV0qPXFTBgSsulEuvU0GR6pC0RmT924-M8yl9d54dWhHMShgs-I9tEmy6ztUOubPo3HCCqhpuDpaeMIwyJPsy7Bo1Ls7qWGsBnyYphPfk4pTDmdsFrgf18NTcMfLrYu6sD4_NqQe04_t0/s200/blenyintheclamp.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482071855662698482" border="0" /></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Blenny in a Shell</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7molxUqf59oEPJfm0SYA5CHCsawCsEZe5Byu84tAWnrVzIgPNhkiJK6qVttZvwOfBV_YsYKguZKguwO7LSLlIjpmO3MZ72q_h5vyq4WpACcapGrk5x4TnVyTVsp01HH9H9TA8B5GDgz4/s200/arthurplace.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482071501685496082" border="0" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Arthur's Place Resort </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">(My dad took a photo of this from the beach.)</span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-size:100%;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAj52Ec0sFvQkCjGcdGE9n7wMxvXrcjsQBvuEgTynFRU_LULKhqT7NajBWGGUPQ9T3pKRo-Trj7aO8dW5qppViA8rZzF02twnkm8mfuFUo1E5TgIP3LGe15_ueaaERgSYgTGrFlDR4nz0/s200/bluespottedstingray.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482072465401676274" border="0" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">Blue-Spotted Stingray</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:100%;">These pictures were either taken by may dad or my sister.<br />Please check my full story at Anilao-Philippines<br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-large;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=2274544047779650185&postID=927799299473483804"><br /></a></span></div><div><br /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-9277992994734838042010-06-10T16:48:00.060+08:002011-01-09T16:46:19.204+08:00Anilao-Philippines<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Me and my family had only one week to spend the holiday this time, and we spent it in Anilao-which is in Philippines! It took us two hours to get to Manila first, then three hours (by car) to Anilau. Together, it took us five hours to get to Anilau and back to Brunei. It was pretty long, but it was also worth it!</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" ><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" >In Anilao, we stayed at Arthur's Place and it was good!</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" >The foods tasted delicious; the atmosphere was beautiful; the people were very friendly; they took us to amazing dive sites and what I really liked about it here, was that the resort was very quiet in the weekdays!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgwyhDj06AK8SWLZvZxGVsK0R7cjcQ4Z6gkQUuh42xYbhKWNPzAq5BhSa5j6cwLE2JXSe_KKcPkYsvV70ow-zz8h9RybshMLlWsQSyH6SckEsbmmXvN1XLW_ASlPCmaIqcR2NZNLKhuDc/s320/ap.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Day 1</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We arrived at Arthur's Place around midnight on Friday. It was dark, so it was hard to see things. We all slept pretty well though!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" >Day 2</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" >On Saturday, we all had two amazing dives and it was really good for a start! In Anilau, you can never ever say it is boring!</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" ><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><b><span class="Apple-style-span" >Dive 1-Koala</span></b></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" >My dad had this old camera with an underwater casing. I was allowed to bring it for all the dives! It was fun! My pictures wasn't really good, like my sister's and my dad's, but I guess it's okay for a beginner like me.</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" >Anyway, me and my family saw a couple of Eels, loads of Nudis, some Trigger fish and one or two Blue-Spotted Stingray! We also saw Nemo & his family group, quite a lot of Lion fishes, a Flabellina and lots of Christmas Tree Worms!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnUdzaw8qYrb7Mtae6d8PHhGvwNgVYyu17rGL-aVGDnGMCenEr7Ytai1ZLNS7iPWPcqAeI220me3G87-1C9yhG4bCg517AdmWN-OXL1kpveodvK5obpaMDrRf05eiNN-Zl-NScuiDBZss/s320/Nembrotha+lineolata.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><b>Dive 2-Secret Bay</b></div><div style="text-align: left; ">We were supposed to go to Twin Rocks, but unfortunately the current was too strong!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">The Urchins were so pretty just like the Nudis we saw there! We also saw a really small juv. Box fish-so cute! There were some Lion fishes too; either</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Scorpion/Leaf/Wasp fish; a Crab that I don't really have a clue what it's called; Blenny in a shell and Shrimp in a broken bottle! We also saw a File fish, some Nudis (we also saw this giant Nudi!), one or two Octopus', Pipe fishes, Sexy Shrimps-I like to call it Wiggly Shrimps, Tube Worms, some more Crab and a few Trumpet fishes! So for exchange, we went to Secret Bay. The sand was 'black sand', it was pretty sandy with particles of rocks.</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Day 3</div><div style="text-align: left; ">On Sunday, we had three dives!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><b>Dive 1-Twin Rocks</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9kVTTqAOW-PeZT66kA3qhG4_Hk-WtI0Jy1Tt4T7QY9BgxqOg_Itgd1MaQwVWOJQqyVq1aRjKa1Mm52hYt00pfwz_60YOGkj-GPC4wgUVhnXG_4lrbNDdwtVz9Zkx3oKXRb4OWlu-RciY/s320/mela%2540twinrocks.jpg" /></b></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Our guide brought a slice of bread for that dive, but I wasn't allowed to feed the fishes because they were too ferocious! Anyway, we saw big groups of Jack fishes; Trigger fishes; loads of colourful fishes; Nemo & his family group; Trumpet fishes; a few Giant Clams; one or two Scorpion fishes; greedy fishes (inc. Bat fishes); groups of Barracudas; a juv. Sweetlip; a small wreck; Squirrel fishes; Mantis Shrimps; Flabellina; Lion fishes; Eels and other common fishes.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4oDoYeN2n1CM9lBZIenitqUOKWqedOhBKXsWlbC4fwCMWnAGaxOhlUfjos3z-nxW9ulrpKob6V9yrRGhFXzImQHzoTwC_3MrpAFj41C9nQtNmjSr73wOjD881ffX0x6_5z99iZrKQhyphenhypheno/s320/annoyingfish2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 2-Secret Bay</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We went to Secret Bay again because we liked it!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Me and my family saw Flounders, loads of Mantis Shrimps, two Octopus'-one free and the other one in a shell, a SEAHORSE (which I found)-first time seeing a 'normal-sized' Seahorse, Blenny in a shell,again, Shrimp in a bottle, again, Wiggly Shrimps in anemones, a Cow fish and a tiny Black Frog fish!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmqrlojRT2gdvj4C3wAo_gp67sSVrDjtppc4vWhNYu_pDkoAkBOaxWChe4iT7XCBy2Y1hUSaD7Rc43fyq1zvbaDoJdZian7Rx2wWZSsPVdvn5KbaOV_QaQS1pK_C16TU3FLotdoeLwFjc/s320/octointheshells1.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 3-Arthur's Rock</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Arthur's Rock is Arthur's Place House Reef and it was really nice! We didn't really see as much as in Twin Rocks, but I thought it was good enough for me and my family!</div><div style="text-align: left;">We saw a couple of Eels, a Box fish or two, Trumpet fishes, Nemo & his family group, some Nudis, Wiggly Shrimps, Mantis Shrims, a Cuttle fish, a few Sea Cucumber and a group of Cat fishes for last!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL3gNg1bO_2EdwRvDrXCJNvte8-wU1b1gzYSOxlppvw_it6V6Vcv-m4mrFeAbqvkcopfjr0wM4tsVDMPG_47EADRhuxDrUCebysyIBpfF6A28wb1mxvgscFXnpJ4OSzOG6QhFyL6Ndg9Q/s320/pinkanemonefish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Day 4</div><div style="text-align: left; ">On the 31st of May was my dad's birthday, so I wished that the dives on Sunday would be fabulous!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 1-Twin Rocks</div><div style="text-align: left; ">That day, my sister was sick(a bad start) and she didn't went diving. So my parents said that I could use my sister's camera!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">In Twin Rocks we saw a group of Cat fishes, big groups of Jack fishes, some Nudis, Octopus', Shrimps, Nemo & his family group, Bat fishes, Giant Clams, Trumpet fishes and we also saw this faded-black coloured fish eating a shrimp!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwoloARSQYHVhKuryQjD3yjz1Z6cDLkTxsYoogWwwVCpSglJRhy4GOi9JBaLVHylqTwV4akWtt12l4YcSIWdN904n4phtc9NM4FBgSVqwn5u_6NoEvSvULC4aE_HQigpkx5Ih3IOc3RuA/s320/softcoral.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis3K11OI8f7bjnb4yNyidJk9rpfDHTxPj3pv0rA7CO4hdYoW_LyKMEtz1OOuya3ZJ3zVIoVvhA9gwwIYGvSBuWONXgcJd7cbvY8xxiCASPB0IJDR_KV9d8vxKpcYLg3mQZ3wqNa0gbzKw/s320/ma+shrimp3.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 2-Mainit</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 2 on Sunday was a little bit better than the dive before.</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We saw a Box fish, some Lion fishes, Nudis (of course), Pipe fishes, juv. Sweetlips, Christmas Tree worms, Scorpion fishes and a Frog fish! I also saw this small (cute) white fish with an orange stripe over its head-like a bandana! I don't what the fish is called, but I thought that it was a cool fish!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleiBQom5lmCwYBgkzyVxNyZphDB8H5NW2IvNbdVIslZ8z4SYfV-yYOoF_K9mDLyKmGzAq5Twt3GNaYp8_htxRY-fHv0PdTXQWLK0KuP4Sy-s5B81tEku7A1UWoSNWSPYwzT8Jvt_8ySw/s320/wartyfrogfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 3-NDS (I don't know what it stands for)</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Fortunately and unfortunately, my sister felt better and she was able to dive on the third one- that means I can't use her camera!!!!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">In NDS, we saw Trigger fishes, Nudis, Lion fishes, a group of Barracuda, Stingray, Cat fishes and other common fishes.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipCVmI_lwcsICPIZx0qrMABQwHVnaId0j2MsktYjEM1WqtbOGiaF8wKz6b7utkJWfDLk5IfqpoJ9SL8VUxuZVLlh8lWlTl8VggqjhWBQbjD-LSApPDoFuHyS-0KOINhaucTwH_iFWFaqo/s320/nudi+risbecia+tryoni.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Day 5</div><div style="text-align: left; ">On Day 5, we only went for two dives because we were pretty tired!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 1-Kirby's Reef</div><div style="text-align: left; ">In Kirbys, the diving there is like going across this gigantic (rock) wall! 'The wall' has LOADS of healthy and beautiful corals-which meant lots of fishes! We had a brilliant time there, and it was just gorgeous! The wall was around 20-25m deep (too deep for me!) so we had to 'float around' at about 12m.</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Since there were quite a lot of 'uncovered' parts of the wall, there were lots of Scorpion fishes! They were like here, and there and everywhere! Of course, there were also lots and lots of Nudis! Most of them were these yellow squishy-looking ones.</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We also saw some Trumpet fishes, quite a few of Lion fishes, one or two Box fishes, Nemo's family group, and we also saw millions and millions (just exaggerating) of Eels! My dad and my mum saw two Eels fighting for a hole! Later then, we saw two Octopus' but one of them were hiding in a hole. When we were just swimming by, hiding on a blue coral was..... a BIG Blue Frog fish!!!!! I have to say, it was pretty amazing, but I think in Lembeh (Indonesia) me and my dad saw a BIGGER Yellow Frog fish-cool right? At the end, when we were doing our safety stop (3 minutes), under an anemone (with Clark's Anemone fish) I saw a crab! It was white with bit of orange (I think). I had a feeling it was a Porcelain Crab, but I wasn't sure!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9eejQDBGQfKFtq0usOg0kIFFMd5uA6bHFIa2ufqWjXMIxrozbfizsETI07Y_U5EBzfzBHXwqAb0TQvp1wTv_4LAShuxaVLS2xO6Jm2nIdeW1dS8D6E87JcuKX_GP61ImiEP-TEvWqJRc/s320/giantfrogfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 2-Bethlehem</div><div style="text-align: left; ">The dive site Bethlehen is near a village. The water wasn't that busy so it was okay to dive in. When we were waiting for our surface time (1 hour), me and my family saw this tree with these red leaves/flower all over them! It was so outstanding- just like our dive!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Underwater, we saw a juv. Sweetlips, Nemo's family, loads of shrimps, a group of Rigid Shrimp fish, some Nudis and a couple of baby Eels! They were swimming around in this anemone, so cute! What's so weird is that their colour is white! They're babies though! Anyway, we also saw a few sea Cucumbers, a BIG Puffer fish, a Trumpet fish, some Triggers, about two Porcupine fishes, an Octopus my sister couldn't take a photo of, quite a few of Scorpion fishes and we saw this HUGE Sponge Barrel! I bet I could fit in it! This huge Sponge Barrel was surrounded by beautiful corals- a good way of 'beautifying' a Sponge Barrel!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Just when we were diving about, we saw some pink Nudi Eggs! We saw 2 'groups' of it! The Nudi Eggs were neatly set by making them go on top of the other, until a certain height, and swirling around like a Spanish Dancer!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS1kIV0ZXwPNyGdfSUlWvz_6H__J5anQOboHU8bzgR4RuJHm1YpEeEwjdbP5WZDvHUbdo4twwFJ_si8GEXoyQbSEBISGth7T1Eau7tpVnFsV9X5kddjOvE2EQ84CDCQXQgOqe9NMa2NGk/s320/nudi+Hbulloki3.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-BpEqCzVHNgasqDeA3tt6qFuUpl9lmLqr5PKv8_d-TV7r2jap8prbEV48xXThEWALFFdg4oGb6vgUYglYnckVu4zzBzbs2tBl2jEcelzGIdAczvEle0lMpOu8jcxMsDDC0LaU2Yod3M/s320/melati3.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Day 6</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We had three dives on Day 6 and I was really excited! We went to this island and underwater was really cool!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 1- Sombrero Island: Coral Garden</div><div style="text-align: left; ">In this dive site, we didn't really see very interesting creatures, but we did saw this beautiful scenery!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg90XXU6ZZ-I7Z_Iu0Bv8GJCEhyphenhyphenyPdcNROCoRdVxIBhRmb9T1FGpTZPL9fj0OWapk31D-UqsHFQ8SU3PIrw69WwJrmJDk3WUzmxKd0WtbH4pMFMrIZmBA4VYLd_tcDq_jy1b3z1fBNx-CM/s320/seastar2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">There were loads of gorgeous corals (very healthy) which meant lots of fishes- and there were! We all couldn't believe what we saw in Coral Garden. It was like an underwater heaven! Lots and lots of fishes were around! Unfortunately, there were also quite a lot of Stinging Hydroid! Luckily, I didn't get stung, but my dad and my mum did! Anyway, we also saw lots of Nudis, and a couple of Puffer fishes-they remind me of my cat (Puffer)! Everywhere, and literally everywhere, there were these small red fishes! They make a really good photo, though my sister doesn't like them unless they are all swimming in the same way!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLxXh-RQtmBAjUHCvcIqY0PjesGMZ2lwbadMGFdD7r9YGDelT1b6uJswWUGrCxWTUFBKR_lfvrz23fGEq-IJ5IQmuPci0-v5BjlJosZTQJ7j_JTDAxVsAewpHEVg5aTIECQzILFhBr5v4/s320/reefscape4.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">My mum told me that she saw these Lizard fishes eating a small Red fish-awesome right! When my mum wrote that on my underwater writing pad, I was really excited to see if I can find a Lizard fish eating a Red fish. So then I waited every time I saw I Lizard fish, just 'sitting' on a rock or something. Apperently, they don't like me (or they're just not hungry-but I didn't really think so) because every single time, I just 'hovered' as still as I could, but they just don't do anything-even when I tried to get a small group of Red fishes close by! Soon I gave up, it was just so frustrating!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Just at the end of the dive, I saw this Scorpion fish clinging to this fan coral-weird! My dad got a photo of if it, but I bet it was really hard to get one, because there was a current!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxjaniUWXu_K39fUQJk8N0P40y7vwU01hxHZEmUySeVeFvKOTHPBCfPxBv-SzQCcRp-da_kB3MTmEWT6KK6kXVkPs_2YFgio2LdQz3v8OBTzj-SIL1OtgdvunI4F0bTSd8_bBR8ll3NYQ/s320/tassledlionfish2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Anyway, I really liked that dive site. I love how the small Red fishes really fit in with where they were, though it wasn't like they camouflaged themselves with the background! Sombrero Island: Coral Garden is no. 2 in may favourite dive sites in Anilau! So I would love to come there again some time!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 2-Layag-Layag</div><div style="text-align: left; ">The dive site Layag-Layag was close to Sombrero Island: Coral Garden, so I was expecting that Layag-Layag is a little bit like Sombrero Island: Coral Garden- and I was kinda of right!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">In Layag-Layag, we saw loads of Trigger fishes, some Shrimps and one or two Moray Eels. The sight there were beautiful, just like in Sombrero Island! There were also loads of these small fishes (like in Sombrero Island), but instead of it being fully red, it was slightly blueish! They make a good creature there!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-s-D8B2lVtXD5HhyphenhyphenELjBwoKxO8Brihlji0rSlyE8v98g930y-pPnQXAFgrfX715Jb4zfck1C7CvYpPZHv436jL8aPU5mBgF8AW56lplZnyfig1I9GuvEBbdYN1pWOnN1Nn4SuWKt04I/s320/cinderella%2526thetwo+stepsisters.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Again, my mum wrote on my pad, saying that she saw some Lizard fishes eating these small black and red-blueish fishes. And again I waited for some action, but nothing happened!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">In Layag-Layag, we also saw this pair of Nudis mating! Both Nudis looked really pretty!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 3-Twin Rocks</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Our guide decided to take us to Twin Rocks again. He probably know that we all like Twin Rocks!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">What we saw was basically the same creatures as before. But the following would be my favourite creatures in Twin rocks!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">My favourite were the groups of Jack fishes (I just think they're really cool), the group of Barracudas (Barracudas look awesome because of their sharp teeth), Bat fishes (they were every where and they weren't afraid to get close to humans), Nudis (I love the pattern on their backs), Giant Clams (the inside of their mouth is so pretty), Shrimps (their cool), Trigger fishes (I like it how they have this clear wiggly fin) and Nemo and his family (they're so cute).</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Day 7 LAST DAY:(</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Unfortunately, it was the last day! I will miss diving for a few months!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Dive 1- Basura</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We were supposed to dive in Cathedral (there's the Christian cross at the bottom), but the current was too strong. We didn't want to not dive at all, so instead we went to Basura. I didn't really like Basura because it was mostly rubbish. The diving was like in Secret Bay, just a little bit worse.</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Anyway, in Basura we saw lots of colourful Lion fishes, a few Scorpion fishes, some shrimps (including Wiggly Shrimps) on anemones and Clark's Anemone fish. We didn't really see much Nudis, so that was quite a shame. Although, there was no current at all, so that was good!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2djsi2hcyrigcsJ8AdqyUK7GVTSls90uHF82DL0ITN33lpqy2ggObeYATjJrtrb2ZGfaAZhmCRICXNwnrJJrcADJ0sHRzMRwKj2YSIJNwzGy4Rv2rPJD1NiIU8N_eDBIrWH__Ut6_4cs/s320/lionfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Breakfast:</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We had breakfast at this resort! I bet the resort cost a lot, because it has these birds and they have this pool with sharks and other fishes! Anyway, we had breakfast there and it cost 6x more than we had expected! Luckily, the cost of the breakfast includes swimming in the pool of sharks and the other fishes! It was so cool! The sharks were pretty small and they were called the Black Tip Reef Shark. I have never swam with sharks before except in Langkawi (Malaysia)!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">The water of the pool was green and murky, so it was very hard to see. It was raining hard so the water was pretty warm! In the pool, there were some big Groupers, of course Sharks, tiny fishes, Bat fishes and a few common fishes!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">We were going to dive at Eagle Point (the dive site in front of the expensive resort), but since the wind and the rain was really hard, the waves were big too! We had a few difficulties going on to the boat, but soon we managed to get on!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">When we reached back at the resort, our guide suggested us to go to Secret Bay for our last dive. He said that there would be no current and there would hardly be any waves, just some probably from boats!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Last Dive- Secret Bay</div><div style="text-align: left; ">I was a bit disappointed that we had to go to Secret Bay again for our last dive- but at least we could go diving!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">We started from shore, so it was a lot easier for me to put my BCD on!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">Just when we were around 2-4m deep, I found this 'group' of orange Nudi Eggs! It was under this big thin square-ish wood (good hiding place mother Nudi!). Later then, I saw this whole LOT of Nudis! The colour was grey-ish and the were at this blot area! It was the most disgusting underwater sight ever! I tried showing my dad, but he was already too far from me! I didn't want to spend one more second over there that time, so I left all the Nudis alone!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">I saw a Flounder, and I got time to look at it closely. What was strange about Flounders (now that I've found out), is that either their eyes or mouth is the wrong way round! It looked so weird!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">There were quite a lot of Lion fishes and only a few Scorpion fishes on the sand. I don't really like them as much as before anymore, so I didn't really care much about them! Also, there were lots of Mantis Shrimps!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">When I was going to my guide (quite quickly), I had to stop because I saw a Seahorse-again! I was really excited so I banged my tank with my stick! A few minutes later, our guide found another Seahorse! Instead, it was bigger and a little bit fatter! It had a pattern too that time, but the Seahorse was quite dirty!</div><div style="text-align: left; ">At Secret Bay, we also saw some Octopus'! We either saw 3 or 4 of them! All I know was that one of the Octopus' were swimming around, another one was squished in a shell and another was in a bottle! Amazing right?</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDDseNkREQY7HBRbWxWzdjZr-cEcYNF7x4VDcjbaFMcleASs1w27AjOgLo9L9RsQCjErIYK2LknkvHNWK5OR6n54dvVX4HY_qd_pZIaQzrjcPEuVrNMmYCelvO0F3UZb0pFthjgEw00hA/s320/nudi+egg1.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">Unfortunately, that was all for the last day! I was pretty amazed though! I love Anilao and I would love to come there again! There are still some dive sites in Asia me and my family hasn't to explored though, so it might be a while! If you go to Anilao, don't change your mind and go to Arthur's Place because it's both cheap and really good! So bye-bye Anilao, hope to go back there again sometime!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVxEGjg5JK5Fi1L0Nc4xtkewVDRbdLmtBeqG_uQ-ruWc87ilPR4DFKwotZvVsofxl71AYWtgqSiyA0Qi5uFeG5idMZUiEomVr2IlYCdxVA72JnmuBaI3aJ-9ATA9HKEB8Ug-pRBEFnyQ8/s320/grilledfish.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">My week has finished, and now, I am looking forward to my next journey!</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; ">The pictures were either taken by may sister or my dad.</div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b><br /></b></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-32742371361197829632010-02-13T15:52:00.012+08:002010-03-31T14:00:43.055+08:00Outward Bound Sabah-KK trip 2010<b><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><b>Outward Bound Sabah (OBS) P7 Panaga School</b></p></b></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">This year, I'm in P7 and our school trip is going to KK (Kota Kinabalu) in Sabah-Malaysia. Me and my friends had TONS of fun!!! In KK, we are staying there for 5 days, and 4 nights.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Hope you enjoy this 'adventure' too.</span></p></b></div></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><b><u>Day 1</u></b></p></b></span></div></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">We arrived in KK at the evening. And all of us were really excited!</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Since we were so energetic, we couldn't sleep at ALL! But soon we did.</span></p></b></div></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><b><u>Day 2</u></b></p></b></span></div></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">We woke up at around, 5:50 am, that morning. We had to change quickly so we won't be late for the morning exercises. We did some stretches then, we played some games- it was pretty weird.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Every morning we had to do that- for the week.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After the morning exercises, we raised the Panaga School flag. A boy named David, raised it.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Tuesday's activities were the Giant Ladder, the Flying Fox and Orienteering-Treasure Hunting!</span></p></b></div></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><b>The Giant Ladder </b></p></b></span></div></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">The Giant Ladder is a teamwork activity, in fact all of the activities here is all about teamwork. With the Giant Ladder, basically all you have to do is climb and pull.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">At the bottom of this obstacle, there are 3 more people helping the person who is climbing the obstacle. They are the; Belayer (I'm not sure how to spell that word), the Anchor and the Rope manager.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">The Belayer is someone to make sure that if the climber falls, he/she won't crash to the ground.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">The Anchor is someone to make sure that the Belayer won't fly!</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">The Rope manager is someone who is in charge of the ropes.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Later that afternoon, after the Giant Ladder, we did the Flying Fox, which was 'reasonably' long.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Just before the evening, we had a walk on the beach for 5 minutes, it was pretty relaxing.</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Tonight, we're going to do orienteering, and I'm really excited!</span></p></b></div></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><b>Orienteering </b></p></b></span></div></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">This is a really fun activity. We had to find this sign that is in a shape of a rectangle .</span></p></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Each group gets a map, of the camp, and they have to find these signs. Of course, since it's in the night, there is at least an instructor looking after us, to make sure, we're correct and we won't get lost. It was SERIOUSLY cool, scary and hard!</span></p></b></div></span><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><b><u>Day 3</u> </b></p></b></span></div></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">On Wednesday, we're doing Rock Climbing, Canoeing and that night, we're sleeping in the JUNGLE! Awesome right?!?</span></p></b></div></span><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><b>Rock Climbing <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">There are 2 sides of this rock climbing wall. The easier one and the harder one. Good thing because, me and my best friend, Amy T., got time to do both of the walls, and guess what? We reached the top, for both walls! The harder wall was LITERALLY hard. But still, we can’t believe we did both walls. Although, the first wall was pretty hard, but not so much. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">The walls might be hard to climb, but they’re extremely fun!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Basically, what made these walls harder than usual rock walls, are because, the ones in OBS, are made out of REAL rocks, not the one with plastic rocks.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> Anyway, the easier wall is easier, because of how the wall is made, and that at the beginning, there is a little window-like hole that really boosts you up.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">P.S. This wall is the HARDEST rock wall I’ve ever climbed. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Canoeing<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Before we do the actual canoeing, we had to do some basic stuff, also, our instructors introduced some us, who has never canoed before, about canoeing; such as, the difference between canoeing and kayaking etc. After the introduction, we get into the canoes two by two, and the instructors will flip us! Then, we had to do all these stuff.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After doing all of those things, we finally went on the canoes, and I went with Meghana, my friend. We canoed in the river, and just when we can’t see the OBS camp anymore, one person each canoe, stands up and sing a little song to the other people on the canoes. It was really fun and funny!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Camping; in the JUNGLE!<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">I think, this was a really cool experience because; well I slept in a jungle, on the floor-with my sleeping bag of course, in a mosquito net ONLY! If you want to ask me if it’s comfy or not, before you ask, try sleeping on the floor with a sleeping bag only, tonight, then, I think you might know your answer.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">This time, we get to choose who to sleep with, and I chose Yasmin Church and Allana Wilkinson, they’re also my friends. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">In the night there, the instructors made a bon-fire, it was cool! We sang songs near the fire, but the songs weren’t exactly camp fire songs. Anyway, we had marshmallows for dessert, in fact, some of us took sticks from the ground, wash them, and stick a marshmallow through them to make roasted marshmallows!!! They were GREAT! Of course, we put them in fire first, but not the bon-fire, because it’s too big.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">P.S. The toilets there, was a NIGHTMARE!!! Literally, it smells like a rotten mouse!!! UGHHHHHH…</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><u>Day 4<o:p></o:p></u></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">On Thursday, the plan was that we are going to the Wildlife Park. Cool right? Then, in the night, the other 2 groups (I’ll explain more about these groups later) are going to sleep in the jungle, while my group and one more group, will be doing the 4 wheel drive challenge) and the Night walk-with blind folds on!!!!!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Wildlife Park<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">This was one of the best parts of going to this KK trip, because I saw one animal that is somehow special to me- the Shetland Ponies! I really love them, although, I didn’t take pictures of them, because they were inside their little ‘house’! They’re sooooo adorable! In the Wildlife Park, I saw a Mouse Deer really close, a Clouded Leopard (I think this animal was pretty stressed), Orang-Utans, Proboscis Monkeys, Otters, these tiny monkeys (smaller than a growing kitten), different types of birds and MORE! But of course, I can’t really remember all of them. In this Wildlife Park, there is this place called the Aviary- which was AWESOME! This is where I saw the different type of birds and the Mouse Deer…. So CUTE!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After exploring this ‘park’, we went to the café for either an ice-cream, or a drink….REFRESHING. After that, we went to see an animal show. When the show ended, I get to touch a snake and an Orang-Utan, called Mogli (I think that’s his name). </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Also, some of us (including me) saw an Orang Utan called Masha (I think) driving a golf buggy, and she's only 6 months!!!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">4 Wheel Drive Challenge<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">This is like an obstacle race, but the obstacle is basically nature and games-in between. After this challenge, I was REALLY tired! But it’s all about teamwork...</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">In the beginning, both teams were given 4 or 5 tires and a plastic chair, the basic ‘materials’ for a four wheeled ‘car’. We had to bring those things through this challenge. (We started this challenge on the beach house)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">So at first, we had to go through the jungle (this one leads to the camping place), and for the first few minutes, we were blind folded, and only the first person, of each teams, didn’t have a blind fold on (because they were bringing the big tyre). After that, when we reached the camping place, we had to make an origami butterfly, which my team’s didn’t work, at ALL</span><span style="font-family:Wingdings;mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Wingdings;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">J</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">! Anyway, when the time finished, we moved on and this time, we went to the beach (still carrying the wheels and the plastic chair). On the beach, we did tons of exciting games. At first, we did a dry ‘cooperating’ game, then we did the wet ones, which was of course, a lot FUNNER than the other two games. Finally, we finished with the beach games, and we went back to the boat house. There, we had to play ONE more game, and this time, whoever wins this game, gets to shower FIRST! (We didn’t like being wet and sandy) We had to play a game where you only had 5 tubes and a marble. Each teams had to put the marble in this cup, and we were a few meters away from the cup. This activity wasn’t that hard, neither easy. In fact, it was half and half. Anyway, the ending was really close, but my team WON!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> That night, I was supposed to be doing the night walk, but I had a heat rash, which hurts A LOT!!! So I had to miss the fun</span><span style="font-family:Wingdings;mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Wingdings;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">L</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">, but I wasn’t the only one who missed it…...</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in; margin-left:.5in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.5in;line-height:normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><u>Day 5<o:p></o:p></u></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">I can’t believe it; it’s already the last day. I JUST got used to this place, and then we had to go</span><span style="font-family:Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Wingdings;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">L</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">But one</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b></b></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">challenge is still waiting for us… Raft Building (this challenge includes racing each teams).</span></p></b></span></b></span></b></div></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><b></b></span></p><b><p></p></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b></b></span></b></span></b></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><p></p></b></span></b></span><p></p></b></span><p></p></b></span></b></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b></b></span></b></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; display: inline !important; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b></b></span></b></span></b></span></p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><p></p></b></span></b></span><p></p></b></span><p></p></b></span></b></span><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in; margin-left:.5in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.5in;line-height:normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Raft Building<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Obviously, before we do the racing, we had to build a raft (look at the picture for more information). It </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">was pretty hard making it, but the hardest part was, tying the bamboos altogether. We had to make </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">sure it was really tight, because when we ride it, it might break apart. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After we built the raft, it was time for the race. Since not everybody in each team can go on the raft, the </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">instructors decided to make 3 rounds, so everybody in each team gets to row the boat. Also, when we </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">finished the rowing, we still needed to untie the ropes from the bamboo and the tyres. After that, we </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">had to clean the things we had used, and then we must put them back in the storage room. Whoever</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">finishes all of those things first, wins this last challenge! And my team came second</span><span style="font-family:Wingdings;mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Wingdings;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">JJ</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">!!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in; margin-left:.5in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.5in;line-height:normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">P.S. Rowing is A LOT harder than I’ve EVER thought in my ENTIRE life!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;line-height: normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After all of those hard works, we had a shower, and then we had lunch. Guess what we had for lunch?!? </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Burger King! There was a mixture of vegetarian burgers (only for vegetarians), chicken burgers and </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">cheese burgers, which I had. My best friend, Amy T. told me and my table, “I hate Burger King, but this is </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">the best food I’ve had so far, for this week!”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">And all of us agreed! </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:0in; margin-left:.5in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-indent:-.5in;line-height:normal"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"> </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Ceremony<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After our DELICIOUS lunch, we had to go to this special room, for our ceremony. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">In there, we first sang a song (I Have A Dream), then two students (from Panaga School, of course), </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Bradley Cox and Romay Suville , told us about their experience in OBS, like </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0.5in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-indent: -0.5in; line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">about our goals for this week (cooperation, resilience, respect etc). After that, we went outside, to </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">plant a tree. And I get to water the plant, only once though. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">After the ceremony, we had to say bye-bye to OBS</span><span style="font-family:Wingdings;mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Wingdings;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">L</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">. But at least we are going back to sleep on our comfy beds, and eat YUMMY foods! </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 55px; font-size: -webkit-xxx-large;"><u><br /></u></span></p></b><p></p> <span><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span><input id="gwProxy" type="hidden"><!--Session data--><input onclick="jsCall();" id="jsProxy" type="hidden"><div id="refHTML"></div><input id="gwProxy" type="hidden"><!--Session data--><input onclick="jsCall();" id="jsProxy" type="hidden"><div id="refHTML"></div><input id="gwProxy" type="hidden"><!--Session data--><input onclick="jsCall();" id="jsProxy" type="hidden"><div id="refHTML"></div><input id="gwProxy" type="hidden"><!--Session data--><input onclick="jsCall();" id="jsProxy" type="hidden"><div id="refHTML"></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-20988583562625067902009-12-30T15:27:00.005+08:002009-12-31T08:25:54.670+08:00Other pictures of critters I saw in Lembeh(2009)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6WHMcuv-jVzj8udYPtahVXHwQDIkuyot7dGR2TSRCLaO4yF5tfd2RO97AsMN4mfBt2706e5OrQfJiIoqTN47_Xox_0yqqemIayoQP_vR9IRm3UHHaJcwR09L2ra4A_EvxhVTMS2b30Ts/s1600-h/Bleny+in+the+bottle.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6WHMcuv-jVzj8udYPtahVXHwQDIkuyot7dGR2TSRCLaO4yF5tfd2RO97AsMN4mfBt2706e5OrQfJiIoqTN47_Xox_0yqqemIayoQP_vR9IRm3UHHaJcwR09L2ra4A_EvxhVTMS2b30Ts/s320/Bleny+in+the+bottle.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421188129147078050" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;"><br /></span><div><br /></div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'trebuchet ms';">Blenny hides in bottle</span></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgADoBKxgazEALGMlFuQyNvHUvLsg3PYVzoiHfPeasdYMHN7BTURr7DDKg52uORRCAGGWmEAKAXYYN9iDUVFPb5GCsIRMyNyBPI4o_CktyBbwPW9b1LKlTZIOx0WjamTni50xH_73e3dBk/s320/Snake+eel.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420928107305252706" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Snake Eel</span></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhheKg4UU-XBele97rPjl6MVMYynDcPet9ozBuTlTZb8JJiwNmdGW7NsvWrEmPc1ZZpszZJbTaRBvahn3ROX0X-6GfrIaJw5FHUMk-V0N5I_nClLGjvqProEHOGhifE4wsNmWcZ4cD1qRE/s320/flying+gunnard.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 307px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421188636218188626" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Flying Gurnard</span></span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-30759417113928535492009-12-27T16:06:00.032+08:002009-12-30T15:27:20.507+08:00Lembeh 09 - Diving TripFor our 2009 Christmas Holiday, we are going to Lembeh AGAIN, but this time, with my granny!!! Me and my sister were happy when our parents told us. I think, Lembeh is the BEST diving place I've ever been to. Why? Because Lembeh keeps the starnge and unique critters! <div>Since I'm a JOW diver now, I can explore the critters at 12m deep!!! :)</div><div>I was really excited to dive in Lembeh, again, and this time, I'm diving up to 12m :) YAY</div><div><br /></div><div>For this holiday, we are not staying at Two Fish Diver again, because it's full. Instead,we're going to KBR (Kungkungan Bay Resort). I have to say, this resort was the best one I've ever been to. I'm going to start my diving(13/12/09) after the day I came to KBR.</div><div><br /></div><div>My sister can dive up to 21m and she doesn't want to stay at 12m. So she's diving with my mum(with a guide), and I'm diving with my dad(with a guide too).</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Day 1 Dive 1-Makawide 2</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNix6WsvsH8uw1bSDNhLMyWhAOoZNvuQZODilFvUpzR6U_hkgFyGXdUai0vC-C2kBxvmAxZ5xe9KToLhGHPpLKuIf8Gqslh8fbfo5QJ2CpNkAHhSseqZ8-pWHnjJ49y-doDd5QWL1T0nU/s200/Cuttlefish.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420837582509820114" /><div>In Makawide 2, me and my dad saw a lot of stuff. First of all, we</div><div>saw tons of BCF (Bangai Cardinal Fish). Then, we saw 1 or 2 Flounder, and I think it's a Peacock Flounder. We also saw Nudis, different kinds. Not just that, we found 1 or 2 of juv. Catfish, they are cute, but they also have spiky 'whiskers'. On the way, we saw this fish that looks like either Scorpionfish, or Stonefish. And at the end of our dive, we saw this really cute Cuttlefish!</div><div>I saw a lot more critters, but they are common ones(excluding Clownfish). Also I think I saw an eel.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu16xdwUOn42Pmib1tyA88OjCBkWhGrtn_ICWgDEXE82zRXPuTSNz24RqzAc1FLM4z5QK81-OYMvmOg0Hlesca-5oBchlhOPoDH-DNN1hcrL-tGU34o-OIbSZkg22CtBYV0_wLElHblpA/s200/Emperor+shrimp%2B.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420837838525008978" />Dive 2-Tandu<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b> Rusa</b></span></span></b></span></div><div>This is a really cool dive site, because there is like so many critters. Me and my dad saw BCF (very common in Lembeh), Pufferfish, Snake Eel, but only the head popped out, Porcelain Crab, Clown Fish, Mantis Shrimp, a few Nudis, 2 tiny Emperor Shrimps on Sea Cucumber, Scorpion fish, Pipe fish, and loads more!!! Awesome dive :)</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 3-Nudi Falls</b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><b style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; "><div>Favourite of all. Best dive ever. Guess why? Because we saw groups BCF, 1 or 2 Flounders,</div><div> Scorpion fish, Clown fish, Porcupine fish, a few Wasp fish, a few Sexy Shrimp(this shrimp wiggles</div><div>its butt), a Sea Cucumber, this shrimp that camouflage it self on a greenish black Feather Star, <b>2 PIGMY SEA HORSE & an ELECTRIC CLAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! </b>I was crazy when I saw both of</div><div>the creatures.</div><div>And I was really amazed by how AWESOME it was. How lucky was I? HUH? :)</div><div style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></div></span></b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNGj2rkSA28qOUmpe2CbrKUZWqmY8_pbrn4Jhvw766Edd2kgy8vTO6in1a7vkut2bARQ2gRnQAKciYoqm3y2hall0dpfUFY-5mZE5tJ0JxFv_rBuhUo2rCrw-LSwni8YLA-Sk87mKK-w8/s200/Flabelina+.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420838076663040562" />Day 2 Dive 1-Nudi Retreat</b></span></div><div>Nudi Falls and Nudi Retreat are two of my favourite dive sites!</div><div>That's because it's all about Nudis, and I love Nudis! But it doesn't mean there's nothing else(apart from corals). We saw Clown Fish, Flabellina, BCF, wiggly wobbly juv Sweetlip, Scorpion fish, Puffer fish, Pipe fish, Leaf Scorpion fish, Mantis Shrimp and tons more!</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 2-Hair Ball 2</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimHRZGw76p8IuzyH9xWyas_R6g_Blko7QXj9So9GvTisruR7B7ys3LJUW0MXDtpv2mWZ4qtovjSXLFc8SsRIhI0kN6nmlc-8hQT9rj3Bam5DWkSNkWLzhIMPp2lLIc3xRzcylzAK2a0k/s200/Nudibranch+1%2B.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420630276860539682" /><div>At this dive site, I saw BCF, 1 or 2 Flounder, a few Nudis, Frog fish, Lion fish, Scorpion fish, this really HUGE shell, Clark's Anemone fish, and it's egg, and loads more!</div><div>About the Anemone fish eggs, I thought they were these round</div><div> and red corals, and I was going to find out by poking it, a bit. I</div><div> never knew that it was eggs, and the fishes are trying to guard it</div><div> and I thought that they were just little mean fishes. So when I lightly poked it, one of the big anemone fish, bit me on my hand!!!</div><div>Ouch! Never underestimate these little fish, just because they have little teeth, doesn't mean that it won't hurt if you get bitten, you know. Luckily it wasn't bleeding, PHEW!</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 3-Jahir 2</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi11EiYh_d7-JvvLTqf9B1vmaqMl4ukk9Mm6_QFiq9Q20_wxSRi31v2fhN0lUcbTPhsHB9t4PEMGm349PdwQN6MzYQ7FyuGdggyInFVC32OsrrQeO14jYYlK_LHzE8k9s_EQtVn0MNHc_0/s200/Frogfish+1.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420640604811856994" /><div>This was an interesting dive. We saw Nudis, BCF, Clown fish, a</div><div> Mantis Shrimp, quite a lot of Porcupine fish, Lion fish and this beautiful Flying Gurnard. Not just that, we saw this GIANT yellow Frog fish, and guess what it did, it extended it's mouth, which was so cool! We also saw either a female or juv Eel, that was fed by the </div><div>guide with live Anchovies I think. He fed the Eel by making the little fish go near to the Eel, then SWOOP! The Eel took one of the fish into its hole, with its mouth.</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline; "><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Day 3 Dive 1-California Dreaming</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhai7f03UgxTg58M8EOg7oEWefc_iUmFgJvuIgrzG5em1Rti3nE4t2-oOs-UNXFKMwOW2DzN58jpGqEkR1zGX11RiQgpK5KGK3iglqqOmVuOabBA4iRIOW-_bLAZkve_jIpYuIWQ9wbxqQ/s200/coral.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420832711236953154" /><div>From KBR to this dive site, using a boat, took 12 mins. People say</div><div> this is a beautiful dive site, and I hope they are right. And they were. The corals here was healthy, although there was a little bit of current, but it was gorgeous. We saw lots of BCF, a Mantis Shrimp, Nudi Eggs, tons of Nudis, juv Eel, Porcelain Crab, groups of Cat</div><div> fish, Clown fish, a few little crabs and a dozen more. I have to say, this was a 'colourful' dive! :)</div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAYXaiEGS-AA9FlBoxmABz8XbDaxO-HfOkyYOjdlTFtE04JLtdnLi0EbZejtEFv9UCpxsuUIdWmLK1jCg0Rw5Bd1OdQfGRh0Vs8qNyLsLoz6tzemzLZF2DHTcGtVmnoP1V-kC2KY4wPp4/s200/cowfish.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 98px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420829248962856002" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 2-Jahir 1</b></span></div><div>We didn't see much unique critters on this dive, but it was still fab!</div><div>:) Like usual, we saw BCF, 1 or 2 Wasp fish, groups of Cat fish, a Porcelain Crab that was bitten (no marks) by a Clark's Anemone</div><div> fish, Cow fish and more!</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 3-Tanjung Kubur</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH4P0szk_JAMNEwWvKQSy0FQfnEMhWqfqYjK_bsZocyfhYg_mvLGnLToiD2EAnoDhwBa_eekW7SZk605Td9ZpL-CSB5VBKjmGFtSoWhTPsHhNSf-edbvcA-HaEUqV81TMruyvew7eG0Rs/s200/Zebra+Moray+eel.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420845552126309266" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><b style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; ">Kubur means grave and there is a grave yard next to this dive site. When there's a grave yard next to something, it doesn't mean it'll be all scary, maybe a bit, but not near a dive site, because this site just hit the spot! I saw BCF(of course), Mantis Shrimp, 2 Scorpion fish, I think, an Eel, Clown fish, and guess what we saw under these dead corals stacked up??? A Mandarin fish!!!!!!!! I screamed when I saw it, because it's my first time seeing a Mandarin fish. Even though it just stopped for a second and then it dashed away, it was still AWESOME!!!</span></b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><b style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Dive 4-Mandarin Dive - Tanjung Kusu-Kusu</span></b></span></div><div>This is the first time for me, to dive 4 times in a day. And the fourth dive is a Mandarin dive, </div><div>which is evening!!!! At the Mandarin dive, apart from the obvious, we saw BCF, 1 or 2 Nudis, 2 Ghost Pipefish, this weird Cardinal fish and other common fish. </div><div>There is 2 big corals, and inside it is the Mandarin fish, sleeping. We have to wait patiently until it is the right time. It was awesome. We saw some of the Mandarin fish fighting and marrying, </div><div>that's when they go together up until the right moment, then SWOOP, they zoom down! :)</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil0XiMbFy62IYyAxjUc8yxgeno2Mnts9PRl010CwB8ctb9EqcGJCjJFiGeyEN2v0JyQ_QtW8gnfDM3jNUeGQ34cG2ky63JFqoKG92k3AnLdcS0XlN1VANJGhvgvlyqNdLkXI2pISwOg5E/s200/crocodilefish.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420631664160550370" /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Day 4 Dive 1- Kapal Indah</b></span></div><div>This is suppose to be a wreck dive, but the wreck is at 21m and</div><div>that's too deep for me, so I just stayed at 12-15m. At that area, we saw BCF, Mantis Shrimp, Nudis,Crocodile fish, which I found, 1 or 2 Scorpion fish, an Eel(I think) and just at the end of the dive, near a Feather Star, the guide found a Ghost Pipe fish!!!</div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXWyBE-eVd_LnHgxA5s2_ef_NiO-jBAFbq2TAsy32FEkg8f1u_IzN1w0ZFPCO6J6GtCEmmQlBnDcSV4kAfwilzYubuJM3_JC2tLtolr3biVxF4uMtk9Htl4fHyHzFq6FNSEAFo8Hikfa4/s200/Shrimps+on+starfish.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420838917262097730" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 2-Magic Crack</b></span></div><div>We were suppose to go to Nudi Retreat 2, but there's already 10 people diving. So we went to Magic Crack. This place sounds good, and it was good. When we're under, we saw BCF, this really cute fish in a bottle(!!!), Goby and Shrimp, groups of Cat fish, Lion fish, Scorpion fish, these little Shrimp on a Cushion Star, Flounder, a</div><div> few Nudis and other common fish.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 3-Hair Ball 2</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7YjYY8zdn494WRoGtGpgofaoeqBmpWKFNeMiAuFiZRLKmd_K9DuSG9sMLOCN1u9RL8Z5AcSHNt9u8VbRjR7LLSzCzrZ2HhaopD2UUOabqhnFk093d_sorOAlZCEUQEkb7s9cZGVbDKZo/s200/Octopus.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420840477961156786" /><div>I have no clue why this site is called Hair Ball, but let me tell you, I</div><div> haven't seen any hair balls in the ocean, EVER, especially when I'm diving. But I did see loads of groups of BCF, a few Puffer fish and Porcupine fish, an awesome Octopus, a family of Sexy Shrimps on Anemones, with Clown fish(of course), 1 or 2 groups of juv Cat fish and Flounder, Nudis, 2 Mantis Shrimps and other common fish.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Day 5</b></span></div><div>I can't believe it's already the last day:( Everytime I'm enjoying something, it somehow feels like it finished so quickly:( It's really </div><div>annoying. But luckily, today was an AWESOME day!</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3XlsCdJje4yZb6eieN9XTpoag8CAgRA_M6ZaHjt0AgMYhaH8cb6scIDdDTMCmdWcxt8id5hxnVqxmtL8hS8ykDj8iZRajl_41vv3DeSMQuX50D6M_EKDvNB3XiwnWuxVEIVHKKaYqEVA/s200/Nudibranch+2.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420842438349060258" /><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline; "><b>Dive 1-Batu Merah</b></span></div><div>Batu means stone, merah means red then Batu Merah means Red Stone, but I didn't see any. Although, I think people call this site Batu Merah, because the soil of the cliff next to the dive site, is red. </div><div>In Batu Merah, we saw BCF, Mantis Shrimp, Nudis, pink Nudi Eggs, X-mas Tree Worms, Giant Boring Clam, a curled up Thorn Sea Star, Sexy Shrimp, Clown fish and other common fish.</div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QHzlRfmCRTfNLaOxl6cY_tPeuHFVQ1q5rZuZWst7l-Odi3XgoZU_VbL5JkK8VWxXJCP6DIdjZaFwJMR9X8SGeI1D3sAtRtvIXdCDnP5y_JdmhVhzOxcrgQKepdtm_vlcGOtACsnKLno/s200/Reptilian+snake+Eel.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420634052396458738" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 2-Batu Kapal(Makawide)</b></span></div><div>This place seems interesting, and it was. In Batu Kapal, me and my dad, saw BCF, this really cute Fish, in a bottle, Flounders, Nudis, Sexy Shrimp on Anemone with Clown fish, Lion fish, Snake Eel, Wasp fish and Banded Sea Snake, which was swimming around. W e also saw this Eel with a reddish pinkish white-ish yellow head,</div><div> and I searched in this fish book, and I think it might be the Reptilian Snake Eel. We also saw tiny shrimps on Star fish.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Dive 3-T.K.3</b></span></div><div>Last day, last dive:( Although, I was 100% sure that the last dive would be the best, maybe</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaIq6wiK026G5O7mBevAmQUc3UroxNiLB9KVKvpfSfhE7gppdKKQk6wv_tzvd8kBzizVm91D9LVw_rL8J_MnC3cFcDwILSojHsQ7EZj5oNFexN7tDqsp3IHDtNi3IIktPcaLqpVsjfuMY/s200/Hairy+Frogfish.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5420842976854565010" /><div> without Pigmy Sea Horse, and critters like that, but the only dive I really, really enjoyed.</div><div>In this dive we saw a lot of critters! More than the other dives:) We saw a Peacock Flounder, Leaf Scorpion fish, BCF, 2 File fish, Nudis, Ambon Scorpion fish, other types of Scorpion fish,a Crab that's carrying something-that looks like a coral, 2 Orang-Utan Crabs, Puffer fish, Mantis Shrimp, Hump-Back Scorpion fish, cute </div><div>fish in a bottle, Black Saddle Snake Eel, big Hernit Crab and a gazillion more!!!</div><div>See what I mean-the best always comes last:(</div><div>But nevermind about that now. I can't change anything. It was a good dive, and that's what I need!:)</div><div><br /></div><div>At the end of some of the dives, I tried to make bubble donuts(!!!) , it was fun :), but most bubbles didn't turned out like a donut!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-53378574840288096972009-12-25T17:43:00.018+08:002010-01-01T19:14:21.696+08:00Lembeh 09 - Flight DelayedWe were suppose to go back to Singapore, on Saturday and go back to Brunei on Sunday. But unfortunately, it was raining, and no flights can land except one, Merpati. That wasn't our flight though, it was Silk Air. Anyway, we had to stay in Manado for one more night. And guess where we're staying? The same hotel as yesterday, Quality Hotel! Me and my family were laughing when we heard where we were staying. At least it's free!!! <div><br /></div><div>Tomorrow, Our flight to Singapore was suppose to be at 2 o'clock, but there wasn't any Silk Air flight on Sunday, so we had to spend one more night in Manado. Instead of sleeping around in the room and watch TV, we explored the island and had a great time! So the following are the places of <b>where we went on Sunday:</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Danau Tondano (danau means lake in Indonesia)</div><div>Tomohon-Flower City</div><div>Kawang Koan-Peanut Farm</div><div>Lahendong-Power Plant</div><div>Desa Pulutan(desa means village in Indonesia)</div><div>Danau Linow</div><div>Bukit Kasih(bukit means hill in Indonesia)</div><div><br /></div><div><b>What we saw:</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Mt. Lokon - Active</div><div>Mt. Klabat</div><div>Sulphur-Heat from underground that goes through special rocks, which makes smelly smoke.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN16hpv892cdR9d4VOnTqTxdeIamO9qEv6YKFsaZ7cOf_RwahqL7nYLVGlgEqn-tJJ6Fw1c6gJiUSIcKJHDZlBdVlmjF5s5NN0umYRx8Zjuvs1o4JmAzW3jkP6wnz8Wu2eJnCotw11vtc/s320/Tomohon-flower+city+w+church+and+mt.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 222px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419816143870556626" /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Tomohon-Flower City</b></span></div><div>This is a beautiful place. It's up a mountain and</div><div> there are loads of gorgeous flowers. There was an amphitheater(but we didn't go there) and a church. We didn't stayed there too long though. But it was really cool. It was like heaven of flowers (except that they need to grow a lot more flowers). But still, it was amazing!</div><div>After going to this place, we were hungry, so we went to a lake called Danau Tondano...</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline; "><b>Desa Pulutan-Danau Tondano</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJS-C-TKn5rD_w_vQLoIHAK7bcnSU_B2vizVg7HRGpGhGm3aovoGk5m7sgWUB-aXfVeApoSob0j3zAZnMvuzbRmDh38liKnlk7BVsyI07Q7PCbHL5KjTGU5s7zqN6N1wrSjMi0rSs1LeY/s320/Mela+sama+fresh+water+udang+skin+mountain.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 226px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419816721518931378" /><div>This is a lake. There is a restaurant just at the </div><div>side. We had lunch there, and it was delicious! Me and my sister ate LOADS of fried fresh water crayfish, the other type of crayfish-like shrimps. We also ate fried fresh water fish. It was good too. After we finished eating the fresh water crayfish, we stacked the skin and made a mountain of</div><div>crayfish skin!!! It was funny! :)</div><div><br /></div><div>We were full, and it started to rain, again, so we continued exploring this island.</div><div>Next, wer're going to Danau Linow.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8y9SSwmQiKhwuW60Qh1Is8Go-CvozeRdaiPEFO47jfSZY9MPa0PaO8fLRZxIGowI7KaniT6-Y26cssUz08tlcOr8zvql6zeVzvAw0S2dhphXeFdLgMbZ-Oc-h3jqOIqf83oBH-ERd24/s320/Lake+Linow.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 290px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419820271442063442" /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Danau Linow</b></span></div><div>Danau Linow is known to be colourful. Not colourful like a rainbow, but it is said that the colour of the lake changes from blue to green and vice versa. But it didn't really change much. But it's stillcool though:) Near Danau Linow, there was sulpher and it was super-duper STINKY!!!</div><div>We didn't stay too long in Danau Linow, because the park was closed. And it was muddy!!!</div><div>BLECH :(</div><div><br /></div><div>After going to Danau Linow, we are going to Bukit Kasih. On the way to Bukit Kasih, we passed</div><div> through a village called Desa Pulutan(desa-village), and we passed a Peanut Farm called Kawang Koang, and my mum bought these delicious nuts!</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Bukit Kasih</b></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8tDlxM_fVUr3YJqb4DzkmbAWHQSMrNIXR72PyUbvLVOJdh8Flb5w7fYfUwBDHtfNzQgu4HNBvugZgBmAaUcKGKJPIg0gX3hVyleZhNK-pD0tElIUJDbPtsirUyklVNyWhRUj5Vi92_Y/s320/Bukit+Kasih.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 153px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419821871934499602" /><div>Bukit means hill and kasih means love, which means this place is </div><div>called Love Hill. This hill has a very weird name, but on it, is this tall statue thing that represents the religions. </div><div>Me and my sister needed the toilet, and since it was raining, we had to rent an umbrella. When we rent one, our parents said that we're allowed to go anywhere, as long as it's close by. After going to the toilet, we went to the statue thing and read what ever it said on the statue thing. After that we went to see this smoke thing, which was sulphur. It was quite cold outside, so we went over the sulphur to get warmer, but unfortunately, it was STINKY!!!!!!!! We couldn't stand much of the smell so we left that area. Me and my sister were hungry and we bought each a really, really warm corn! It tasted fresh and delicious! :)</div><div><br /></div><div>After Going to Bukit Kasih, unfortunately we are going back to our hotel:( On the way back, we passed through Lahendong, which was a geothermal power station! Awesome right!</div><div><br /></div><div>This journey begun because of rain and no flight :)</div><div>.</div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-84892463495085930912009-11-20T20:14:00.045+08:002009-12-24T13:25:11.521+08:00Junior Open Water Course-Bali-TulambenI'm 10 now, and I'm really excited to get my Junior OW Course. I have been waiting for around 2 years now, since my first bubble maker in the sea (Dec 2007).<br /><br /><div>I was really nervous on the first day of my pool session. I thought that I would fail, but I've done so many dives for my age (even though it was only around 2m), I can't let my parents get disappointed. So now I'm ready take the challenge....</div><br /><div>It wasn't only me who was taking the OW Course, there was Jen, Dudley and Martina(adults). It was really fun having this course with them.</div><div><br /></div><div><strong><u>Day 1</u></strong></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSrnVPbKSiUxI3uRd3mzAwvbPMZ_ZALcbV8sgVhLXU2oxAubwlLZRNDTBjO8OjQY3dIgR4ZYVufzlyf57oIcbaZTlubogXtqABEsdKhfDl72VLaJFnB-0Q-Q8Y984ukInw4UG_2n5-_0M/s320/Me,+Jen+%26+Martina.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 201px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418668829813861330" /><div><strong><u></u></strong>Today, the first thing Idid was going to Ricardo's (my instructor) place (resort), with my mum, walking. When we reached there, Ricardo explained a few stuff about the Junior/ OW course. After that, we watched a video. An OW course video. It was aro</div><div>und 35-45 mins.</div><div>When the video finished, Ricardo said that he and the others will meet me and my mum at our resort. Because we're going to do our first pool session (not my mum, she's already an OW diver).</div><div>Ricardo doesn't have a pool at his resort. At my resort, the pool is too small. So we had to walk to this other resort nearby.</div><br /><div><u>Pool Session</u></div><div>This is going to be the first session, and I'm exited and nervous!!!!</div><div>In this session, we just did the basic stuff like; putting our BCD (buoyancy control device), tank and regulator together, getting used to breathing underwater, mask clearing and stuff like that.</div><div> While we were doing the course, my mum was diving below us doing her own thing.</div><div><br /></div>When we finished, Ricardo said, later that day, we're going to have a fun dive at the USAT Liberty Shipwreck!!!! YAY!<div><br /><div><u>USAT Liberty Shipwreck</u></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq0d_RiqZrPrrWbvnJbXfki0NQy3s7yihCBJYXz_05qS1GxZRMUf2-jetkHvSIHOAgTPXC97QO7D01EhxPMDU0VQQo50FUmebKJVDUDgqRAWjCml8q0jemmNWGKyo64OC5GeDPEUk_Rhs/s320/fish+8.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418590473311173714" /><div>This is my first time diving near a shipwreck, I hope it's going to </div><div>be fun(it was fun!)!!! We saw the ruins of the ship, which was TOTALLY AwEsOmE(!!!), corals- soft and hard and tons of fishes!!!! Unfortunately, there wasn't any 'fascinating' ones. Although, there were big Sweetlips.</div><div>My family says that in the night, the Sweetlips and Parrot fishes are a lot BIGGER! (I wish I can go night diving!).</div><br /><div>If you want to know which kind of fishes I saw, just go to my other stories. But not all of the fishes, in my other stories, are exactly what I saw.</div><br /><div><strong><u>Day 2</u></strong></div><div>It was a fun day yesterday, but I hope today is better!!!</div><div>Like yesterday</div><div>, me and my mum went to Ricardo's place, first thing in the morning. We watched the OW course video (like yesterday) and the</div><div>n me and my mum went back to our resort, to get ready for my 2nd pool session.</div><div><br /></div><div><u>Pool Session</u></div><div>Today we did buoyancy. It wasn't that easy. One of the drill that we did was, laying down on your tummy and estimating how much air you need in your BCD. If you got it right, when you inhale, you'll go up and if you exhale, you'll go down. There were other drills that we did, but it's hard for me to explain.</div><div><br /></div><div><u>Coral Garden</u></div><div>That afternoon, we had another fun dive. This time, it's in Coral Garden!</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXFq5144HsoltV2kPs2CqzB241IcgDiJhEk1tZR3Nz6CO_ovu152LFvTYtbp9KVPBJGtZAbNf9HGvvIDRxEhpy5eYSrtF6ZTjfFwWTv0TdtypyIQrxy9OZZgFhCiitqvKAYkIm2Q9_GYc/s320/ribbon+eel.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 273px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418666580323715794" /><div>Down in this dive site, we saw this little aeroplane made out wires. Basically It's just the shape of an aeroplane. This 'aeroplane' is made and put there so more corals can grow, which means more fishes! It was really cool! There, we also saw an eel.We didn't stay at the area because or else we'll get bored, so we went around Coral Garden.</div><div>Like the other fun dive, we didn't see any 'fascinating' stuff, apart from the eel, but it was still a fun dive comparing to the pool session.</div><div>On the 3rd and 4th day, I didn't feel so well, so I stayed in the room. Although, on the morning of the 3rd day, I did go to Ricardo's place and watch the OW course video.</div><div><br /></div>I missed 2 days, which means I missed 2 pool sessions :(<br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Day 4-Drop Off</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"></span></span>That day, I felt a lot better. But I didn't watch the OW Course video and I missed the pool session :( My mum said to rest in the morning, just to make sure I'll be fit to do the afternoon/fun dive.<br />I did my afternoon/fun dive at the Drop Off, which means w<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ_J_EGBpINhx6Yupj9xoKPOl5x4R4_PE_BlFVZThisfh8A7pYYlcYwjlFtjISZ3IHDOXHQ-Q_1So4XlV73iN_X9QYv2vil7mhTiEmZTATXK3LrMKl0CN19PQYDaND1bg6feZu4l7Fe5k/s320/nudibranch+eegs.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418609251779829426" />e're using a boat to go to that dive site. It was really fun. Although the boat was really small.<br />We saw lots of things in this area. It was awesome. When we were diving there was a current. It was fairly strong. But I did, see quite a few intresting stuff. In the beginning, the others did the drill (underwater), from this morning, while I was swimming around them. After that, the exploring begins! Right in the beginning of us exploring, a current came. While drift diving, <strong>I </strong>saw Nudi Eggs*, a baby Lion Fish and others!!! Just before we went up, we saw this <strong>HUGE </strong>fish*. I can't remember what it was, but what I can tell you is that, it was <strong>TOTALLY </strong>AWESOME!!!</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Day 5</span></span></div><div>Ok! Today, my dad wants me to fin<span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;">ish my course. And luckily, I only have </span></span><u><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;">1</span></span></u><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;"> more Pool Session!!! But the others has already finished their course, so I'm doing this last session by myself (including Ricardo).</span></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Pool Session</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;">For this pool session, I did it at where I'm staying- at Joe's (the resort).</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;">The hardest drill that I did was hovering. You have to sit at the bottom of the pool, cross-legged. Fill your BCD with air/water, until about enough. If you got it right, when you inhale you'll go up. It was hard for me, because I kept on losing my balance. I did other drills, but it's hard for me to explain it. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">USAT Liberty Ship Wreck</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">No more pool session, YAY!!! But in this dive I did some drills first. Also, I learned how to use </span></span></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1ZVhJAyMUtwMQshcHMiuH005UYnJcLEmAds3iZaH0jthyphenhyphen8dCB7tN7XVM63c7hEzLQtAJjkxBvMCi2x252NhG_fSew2wfUuotnaxreyWTRydSDRr-KfyzRDa_2FIP-_0omUeTotzJYymY/s320/flounderrr.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418667164785414610" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">and underwater compass.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">In the beginning, as I wrote above, I did some drills first.Basically, I did everything I learned this morning. That includes taking off my mask and putting them on again!!! I was so scared when I did this, even at the pool session. In the sea, I had to go up, with my mask off, because I was scared, and I felt really, really nervous. But in the end, I did it!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">When I was using the compass(going straight and back), in the middle of the 'course', I accidentally tou</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span">ched the sand, and I saw something moved!!! Guess what it was; Yep, it was a Flounder, and I went crazy when I saw it, because it was my first time seeing a Flounder! However I didn't swim after the fish, and I continued what I was doing.</span></span></div><div><p>My mum went along too, she also used the compass, but instead of going straight and back, my mum was going in a square. It sure would have been much harder. After all I'm only taking my open water course at the moment, she's taking her advanced open water.</p><p>After this dive, I'm going to have the test! Yikes!!! I was really, really nervous. The test goes like this: there is a booklet(which has all of the 50-ish questions) and there is a sheet for ticking which answer is the one I think is right. To pass, the maximum number of incorrect questions I can get is 14.</p><p>And guess what??? I only got <b style="text-decoration: underline;">7</b> incorrect!!!! Which means I <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-large;">PASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY :) <span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:medium;">I was so happy when I saw the results!!! </span></span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">So now, I'm a </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-large;">Junior Open Water Diver!!!!</span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">After this, I can choose if I want to dive with my dad and my sister, or with my mum and Ricardo. My mum is having a course, so I'll have to wait for a bit if I join her. And also, she's going to the Drop-off and I've been there before. On the other side, my dad and my sister is going to Seraya Secret, and I haven't been there. So I chose to join my dad and my sister.</span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Seraya Secret</span></span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWnglpQXEkGrc7WSnk78kPojncGvBR7saFuM17WyWtdKURiGw1XZKnZDcNtvkbamNLq7VAg9mQhvKHKHWCS6K4Z4yuY91Mc-EUCa1WkVBVDmSrK2qXZNGCry5QtVSQF7-G_WPS60k1X8Q/s320/Nudibranch+7.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418628469465049538" /><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:medium;">Seraya Secret is far from the resort, so we used a mini bus to get there, also because quite a number of people from the resort wanted to dive at Seraya Secret too.</span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">When we reached thereI was excited. I'm a JOW Diver and now I can dive up to 12m!</span></p><p>In Seraya Secret, I saw more 'unique' stuff. There was this big semi-circular (3-D & made out of wire, i think) and around it, I saw Nudis*, either Stonefish or Scorpion fish, Lionfish and a few more! Also, I saw these little crabs on a Feather Star, and it was COOL! So far, that was the best dive in this holiday. </p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><b>Day 6 -Last Day</b></span></p><p>I can't believe it's all ready the last day:( Never mind, as long as I have a wonderful day, which I did, I don't mind (OK, maybe a bit). Also, that day, it was my first time diving <b>3 </b>times!!! :)</p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">USAT Liberty Ship Wre<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">ck</span></span></span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvCk_YV3QAZ70uZEOmaHOf8xJqJDkaXTFhEgDjxtRKmlbgtJ2soUCGAKKAYh26sTi9p75nPd_oZ02ZPDn3N9MqYNE7TnUGlpueN3548zUrAy6QjIMFXPA11wJzB_8dtXPAzeia9eUKsxg/s320/melati+with+jackfish.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418629698659653362" /><p>This dive was with Ricardo and my whole family! Yay, at last, I went diving with my mum, dad & sister.</p><p>Somehow, I think diving with my family brings most of the good stuff out!!! Because, we saw a humongous group of Jack Fish and another Flounder!!! Not only that, there was a Barracuda, and I got quite close to it, well the closest I've ever went!! While going around, guess what I saw, a coral shaped like a heart, and surprisingly, it was pink! Now this is the best dive so far! :)</p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><br /></span></p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Coral Garden</span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ8s0yxHS1e_swb3XXacPGgTSi6IVR_xnWLaTU-blJfKdKSCpqVHz-l1sRahdkbjuLc4Asrn9SCVvP9i5TNhdNSh30GvxLjrFwn_lMCOVM4toORbZO1fZTrR1IqlMDoqmYovW1Rn1cigY/s320/Leaf+Scorpion+fish.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 262px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418658609922504482" /><p>This dive, my mum, my sister and the guide, are going a little bit deeper, so they can go to the cleaning station :( The cleaning station, is where fishes and other 'normal' sized creatures are cleaned, by either cleaner shrimps, or cleaner fish. Not just that, humans can be cleaned too!!! But that's only on the teeth and/or face by cleaner shrimps! I can't go there because it's around 18-21m. :( But I didn't care much really(but maybe a bit).</p><p>While me and my dad was waiting, we went around and saw quite a few Nudis, 1 or 2 Eels*, shrimps and a lot more! </p><p>When my mum, my sister and the guide showed up, we swam, while looking around, to the man-made aeroplane. There, we saw 3 Leaf Scorpion Fish*, a few Nudis*, Lionfish and A LOT more!</p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">Cafe Garam</span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHuebbnPwEVunjL3QBsfZK5qfVFA7iFtw8SLeYb9BJtiIVZEASioHxLTZcq4hw-zHVTMXJXLxkeqC-IicwKc-3Txa6wmw1kR_TidDMGEGTVuY0a81Dx279ypcwwizhCBXPCYmx-EXNi84/s320/Ghost+Pipe+fish.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 117px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418663978847005842" /><p>No way! It's the last dive now :( I hope me and my family have a wonderful time at this dive site!</p><p>Cafe Garam is a resort. This resort makes salt(garam-in Indonesian), from the sea. It's really interesting how they make it. But unfortunately, I only saw them MAKING it.</p><p>I love this site because on the beach, it's sand, and not rocks, unlike sites around Coral Garden. Not just sand makes me love that place, but what's under the water...</p><p>Cafe Garam, actually grows their own coral. Well not exactly, but what I mean is that they put stuff(not man-made wire sculpture), like rubbish, in the water, and let corals grow. It was amazing. These 'stuff' they put in, was one of their projects.</p><p>Like in Coral Garden, my mum, my sister and the guide, went a little deeper for a while.</p><p>Diving with my dad only wasn't bad, in fact it was wonderful. We saw LOTS of Lion fish, those little crabs on Feather Stars, and a lot of Nudis*, but most of them are the same kind! We were looking around and just near a Feather Star, I found a Ghost Pipe fish*! I was so happy when I saw it! I've always wanted to see a Ghost Pipe fish. And when my mum, my sister and the guide showed up, the guide found another Ghost Pipe fish. Just when we went up, we saw a White-Eyed Moray Eel*! Awesome right? And then the dive ends :(</p><p>Luckily, this was a really good dive, so I wasn't that upset when we finished.</p><p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;">'Keys'</span> *-something awesome(to me)</p><p><br /></p><br /><p><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><p></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><p><strong><u></u></strong><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-36049977793969191952009-11-05T13:00:00.014+08:002009-11-07T13:45:47.269+08:00De Best Day/s of moi's LIFE!!!<div><div><u>Tennis</u><br /><div><div><div>This 'particular' day is my fave 'cause I have won 2 big trophies (champion for singles and doubles) and a racket (the racket is from the door prize).</div><br /><div>For singles, it was my first time in the finals, and I won it!!! YAY!!! :)</div><br /><div></div><div>For doubles, my partner was Nicole Tay.</div><div>It wasn't my first time to win in the doubles though. Before I have won once and my partner was Jasmine (she's really good). We won because both of us are good.</div><br /><div>With Nicole, we won by teamwork. Before the tournament, we already practised our tack-tics. It was really fun being her partner.</div><br /><div>I was really, really happy when I won both of the trophies!!! And then surprised when my name was called for the door prize!</div><br /><div></div><div>But this tournament was only for the Panaga Club members. That means, I need to work a lot harder if I want to win the Schlumberger Open (Panaga).</div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFvqb81_jbk3qArPOPtJGebGnTpRnq3btJl2x7jTV1keLjI5DqcqdD_RM4rWL4aZp_4_ltC4fzyt6GpbhPPa64usVJK_Md1PeMNGgxRTIsnrVZZscJvvf5krwMhWCz_6_j18YdxqGrAhs/s1600-h/all+singles+winner-my+group.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; HEIGHT: 282px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401225200653924802" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFvqb81_jbk3qArPOPtJGebGnTpRnq3btJl2x7jTV1keLjI5DqcqdD_RM4rWL4aZp_4_ltC4fzyt6GpbhPPa64usVJK_Md1PeMNGgxRTIsnrVZZscJvvf5krwMhWCz_6_j18YdxqGrAhs/s320/all+singles+winner-my+group.jpg" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-3LS5FAtZXuUEkSePO2Jxf3uXqG88a75WKMrzRv92KiDR_b8XRd6MhcioaIlVZf564tEsLp9zNhrXaZLoSkF3gooTa1M3oNe7vqgxiijSauV2dP-i1CsAWpXFfDBRNkjxu4G4Am3d5Aw/s1600-h/all+doubles+winner-my+group.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 333px; HEIGHT: 235px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401224030877731026" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-3LS5FAtZXuUEkSePO2Jxf3uXqG88a75WKMrzRv92KiDR_b8XRd6MhcioaIlVZf564tEsLp9zNhrXaZLoSkF3gooTa1M3oNe7vqgxiijSauV2dP-i1CsAWpXFfDBRNkjxu4G4Am3d5Aw/s320/all+doubles+winner-my+group.jpg" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1gZsr5IEbgPTPIgTvE0EWoAFD2Zw9DuatyTYVcBZBtRdtR_O_M6mlUs9sSxIYDqYv2BH-foFT1daEFh9MfKshbLReUydLpg8mzv2-6VfbIwlAZ-J_mN4k6HtkK85getJX95tpCxBZGNU/s1600-h/mela+menang+doubles.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 219px; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401228623855880914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1gZsr5IEbgPTPIgTvE0EWoAFD2Zw9DuatyTYVcBZBtRdtR_O_M6mlUs9sSxIYDqYv2BH-foFT1daEFh9MfKshbLReUydLpg8mzv2-6VfbIwlAZ-J_mN4k6HtkK85getJX95tpCxBZGNU/s320/mela+menang+doubles.jpg" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF6Fi1_VoTILiHu-RIbslbyVoMQpN56o7HMZJIttL-CEPQ4BxF7MWcIvkex-SoR2fJpKO5KzcTcuI9PyX7ZISq8WKdAb_Cm1tjPJ2V9k8WiZUaqeB3wDqRIP3Y9hoCWap16xsiPljdbJw/s1600-h/tennis+double.jpg"><img style="WIDTH: 320px; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401230829609399858" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF6Fi1_VoTILiHu-RIbslbyVoMQpN56o7HMZJIttL-CEPQ4BxF7MWcIvkex-SoR2fJpKO5KzcTcuI9PyX7ZISq8WKdAb_Cm1tjPJ2V9k8WiZUaqeB3wDqRIP3Y9hoCWap16xsiPljdbJw/s320/tennis+double.jpg" /></a><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 154px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5401232183084630498" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXwn7EqYHyfqoKw3Zx-y32Ss64Rju6pkyTR5n1eaxor8nJ0S8XTSIgtB7wyXlaV1xfQZ6idaVl3-ZRlk8mDbG8k2sh3LzC-G7jxgCiN_XredyOOzozP4Qnx3khD7UKilBZerTIEnU2LIg/s320/singles+winner.jpg" /></div></div> </div></div></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-73756452875693151922009-08-07T13:27:00.008+08:002009-08-08T15:38:59.083+08:00My Instructors<div><span style="font-size:78%;"><strong>*<u>Photos taken by my dad/sister</u>*</strong></span></div><br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:78%;"></span></strong> </div><br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:78%;"></span></strong> </div><br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:78%;"></span></strong> </div><br /><div><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px; display: block; height: 300px;" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5367101406427568850" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYuKCKW7wT7Ff7n3eOsqpQVTOPpIrOjzfrc7ugTjOUjk0eseIJXF_W3NJ6tbumKbPXwCAUyPSn5c7bkXTCU43TCPguXIPnc0GSx88wrVMI6ZOwPk1yAoygAOuCofkt_0ezaBcAoEMatRQ/s400/mela.jpg" border="0" /></div>I have had such a great experience, diving in Aceh with Rhi as my instructor.<br /><br /><div>Rhi is very nice, very kind, very helpful, very thoughtful & most of all, very gentle. </div><br />Thank You Rhi, for making these past dives to be one of the greatest moments of my life.<br /><br /><div>Rhi is now moving to Koh Lanta in Thailand, I wish her the best of luck!<br />till we meet again.....<br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><br /><br /><div> </div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-31024362947234327922009-08-05T07:51:00.003+08:002009-08-05T07:57:37.398+08:00Aceh dive trip<div>Another diving journey with my family. This time it’s in……<br /><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:180%;"><strong>Pulau Weh/Weh Island</strong></span><br /><br />INDONESIA<br /><br />We rode on a ferr<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuTNZsIHmC8OnSgozINrYBZVmTD9ZzpyxOKatSpTi4G_tw_Iof3JxMrkGFIXSy6NGJFsgoyOvAWVa82WwXJvvevuVk32PsGpAd-X0y28DSzhizNd0MVZObAI2aPfqQUnD6EjrZ77U94Kg/s1600-h/at+ferry.jpg"> </a>y from Banda Aceh to Weh Island on Sunday, 19/7/09. I was really excited that day. My dad says its going to be a 45 minute ride so he's going to buy VIP tickets for him & my family for the ferry journey.In the VIP section of the ferry, there was AC, a TV so everyone can watch, with a drink and a type of snack for each person. <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366261714581673106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlVz-WyO2VjGNCbXkN7aXGh3L7KQ6cFSG_KRZ5h64_UClioVYDONpCcB6nBYfiLEeQCc7cbNZV3fTw-0gor8IU5QrfTYk4nI01r4tl8EcALRmhpGlJ9bHWdSKgIeKUzwh9ERQbIEtuGoU/s200/at+ferry.jpg" />When we reached Weh Island, we met this guy. He said that he was the driver to take my family to the resort we're staying.The resort where we're going to stay till Saturday, was called Lumba Lumba. Lumba-lumba means dolphin so the resort actually means Dolphin. When we arrived at Lumba Lumba we sorted everything out and got ready for a walk on the beach.After a walk on the beach we went to have dinner. We have to wait for quite a long time before the food come out but I didn't really care. The next day I woke up and got breakfast. Lumba Lumba doesn't have a restaurant so we have to go to the restaurant next door. After breakfast, my family & I got ready for our first dive in 6 months.Today, I met my instructor. Her name is Rhi Dobbie. I have a feeling we're going to have a wonderful time together, & we did. Let's start at....</div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-6611908143177433462009-08-05T07:49:00.001+08:002009-08-05T09:28:00.845+08:00Fun Fun, First day of diving in P. Weh<div><br /><br /><div><strong>Day 1-Rubiah Sea Garden (RSG) SOUTH 20/7/09 -45 mins<br />Dive no. 1</strong><br /><br />We went to RSG by boat. While we were going to RSG, Rhi said that I'm going to do a back flip/back roll to get in the water, instead of doing a giant strike. Back flip is, when you sit at the edge of the boat with your equipment on, then, one hand holds your mask and regulator while your other hand holds your weight belt & then, in count of 3 you flip back. It might sound quite scary, but it's actually fun! When we reached RSG, my dad, my mum, my sister & some other people went in first.When it was mine & Rhi's turn, Rhi said that I should go in first. So here I go, doing a back flip, WHOOSH!!! In the water, I saw a Blackspotted Puffer, some Oriental Sweetlips, lots of Feather Starfish, quite a few Cleaner Wrasse & a few Moorish Idol. We also saw some of my favourite fish, there was the Longnose Butterflyfish, the Palette Surgeonfish/Dory, the Black Pyramid Butterflyfish & the False Clown Anemonefi<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSz0MbwbJS2a3kzri_8P_zEiKwguCe5EqSYqjpEV_CjKtblyhZ8iYV5QaISbxcxHVUWMQOfIc6vLxMsJDCHbVyyz6i04uozJc64mJ1lj6zyokaFI3wuYMNRSpzurqs9z5HR0r2DkjtYMk/s1600-h/fish+9.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366279841218594834" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSz0MbwbJS2a3kzri_8P_zEiKwguCe5EqSYqjpEV_CjKtblyhZ8iYV5QaISbxcxHVUWMQOfIc6vLxMsJDCHbVyyz6i04uozJc64mJ1lj6zyokaFI3wuYMNRSpzurqs9z5HR0r2DkjtYMk/s200/fish+9.jpg" /></a>sh. Rhi & I also <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh32jf4dFyWRpGwXbxhsmpILH7mi36vMmsg6x9NuicGVwIOZ459DeQXgWUGlG4yqHsT1QDvY-Sw0t-tp8iFRpiy_6A8ryiu5Hi3i-LFkyi547UWPKmXIMVk7OypVgLmIaEYmauxP0BYOTM/s1600-h/fish+9.jpg"></a>saw Red Tooth Triggerfish & quite big Titan Triggerfish! There were also some Sea Stars, they were the Crown-of-Thorns Sea Star & some common Sea Stars. </div><br /><br /><div>Did you know that you have to watch out for Titan Triggerfish because they're more firce than the other Triggerfish?<br /><br /><br /><strong>Day 1-Gapang Beach LEFT 20/7/09 -49 mins<br />Dive no. 2</strong><br /><br />Phew! What a lunch! I hope I won't sink for this dive :) For this dive, Rhi & I are going to the beach infront of Lumba Lumba. Since there are 4 sides of the beach (left, middle, right & far right), Rhi & I are going to try the left side first. On the left side, we saw some Blackspotted Puffer, a Black-Blotched Porcupinefish, a few Oriental Sweetlips, lots of Feather Stars, lots of different kinds<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzThNV_XMqzSftpVF-ZAlHYBbbb75K-PgdqEiB3Oa61DMBmGs4II4YpjHEw4dKEa9zbNt0pONONQOzoPhIOgMkhMzg5DFutAdWyTBzRbxmeM8VU8kY3o043ITpN5v6TCHYUyw6lpiBtN4/s1600-h/fish+10.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 205px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 162px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366283268552720578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzThNV_XMqzSftpVF-ZAlHYBbbb75K-PgdqEiB3Oa61DMBmGs4II4YpjHEw4dKEa9zbNt0pONONQOzoPhIOgMkhMzg5DFutAdWyTBzRbxmeM8VU8kY3o043ITpN5v6TCHYUyw6lpiBtN4/s200/fish+10.jpg" /></a> of Cleaner Wrasse, Trumpetfish & quite a few gruops of Razorfish. There was also some Clownfish; they were the False-Clownfish, Skunk Anemonefish & Clark's Anemonefish. This time, we saw some Orange-Lined Triggerfish instead of the other. When I saw the Orange-Lined Triggerfish, I was amazed by the colours, especially if you compared them with other Triggerfish. Rhi & I also saw lots of Clams, a VERY cute juv. Yellow Boxfish, another Crown-of-Thorns Starfish, more common Starfish & this fish, the Black-Saddled Toby which was adorable. At first, I thought the Black-Saddled Toby was a Puffer, but when I point at the fish, Rhi wrote on her waterproof board saying that it was a Toby!</div><div><strong>juv.-juvenile</strong></div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-5956452588722563732009-08-05T07:41:00.003+08:002009-08-05T09:49:28.366+08:002nd Day in P. Weh<div><strong>Day 2-Gapang Beach MIDDLE 21/7/09 -49 mins<br />Dive no. 1</strong></div><strong></strong><br /><br /><div><br />Today, Rhi & I are going for a turtle hunt!!!!Yay! I've never seen a turtle before so I'm really excited today. I really do hope we WILL find a turtle or two. While we were turtle hunting, we saw, a juv. Yellow Boxfish, quite a few Powder-Blue Surgeonfish, Long Nose Butterflyfish, lots of Bird Wrasse, Crescent Wrasse, a juv. Dotted Sweetlips, juv. Black Snapper, Lion Fish & this weird named fish called the Blue Blanquillo. After a while, Rhi bruoght me to the sand area for a bit. Before the dive, Rhi also said that we might find some rays, <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Nc1oN9LtAd-ZwsCVw7SlqSe10mAn22s4FhkLHUPK5I9bJ89BG0IiuxPCVquj9kKdkaLojLva40OMYDR3WQYPIcClRLTU7rvquiC6DDV9Exj-KCJRFCKoQeSj3l53UeKl-9iTAk1XifI/s1600-h/nemo.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366259895800787698" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6Nc1oN9LtAd-ZwsCVw7SlqSe10mAn22s4FhkLHUPK5I9bJ89BG0IiuxPCVquj9kKdkaLojLva40OMYDR3WQYPIcClRLTU7rvquiC6DDV9Exj-KCJRFCKoQeSj3l53UeKl-9iTAk1XifI/s200/nemo.jpg" /></a>so I think that's why we're going in the sandy area. A few minutes later, I saw the corals again. Colours...Woohoo! While we were swimming around the corals again, we saw Yellow Snappers, Red Tooth Triggerfish, Bristly Hermit Crab, a juv. Bicolor Parrotfish & Clark's Anemonefish. Unfortunately, today we can't find any ray:( , but there's still a lot of dive sites that I haven't done. So I didn't really mind that much. After that, we went back to shore. While we went back, we saw baby Triggerfish hiding in rocks, they were the baby Red Tooth Triggerfish, Yellowtail Triggerfish & the Picasso Triggerfish. </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><strong>Day 2-Selako Drift 21/7/09 -55 mins<br />Dive no. 2</strong></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Before this dive, Rhi told me that she can't be my instructor for the 2nd dive for today. Instead, someone else will take her place. The someone else will be Will Brown. He will be my instructor for this dive only, so I hope I will have a great time with him. Will & I did a drift dive in Selako Drift. A drift dive is when you follow/carried away by the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDvwnajKKu5VyR_QosVIS_SL-ih2IMxanPaftlnmjWX7RJlPbfvRAerCFvJLgBTA2qEECXjeWct6Z3pDz95DmkirNA2ZBTkjixEre_TogSFcmynAeMlVbNQ4Ey_7HR2RYxZEzoZJtdtOE/s1600-h/nemo.jpg"></a>current. While we were doing the drift dive, we saw a few Red Tooth Triggerfish, a Cushion Star ( I tried to draw it on Will's board but it turned out more like a squashed puffed star), a Painted Rock Lobster which was uder <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 134px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366289863955608050" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwwdpL3nBY30TLEqB2aS4QlVxpgz5i7AZ_k8U1kmjCgCB_8GVaT1DeU3seKI9V9hQX-l6McglsgctAh1ApgFXL5nQJTdD1rdrfmSiFgE2EgfFccuxdLxcjFhUHLRXCc1vRvkR9y_A3SOQ/s200/Moray+eel.jpg" />a coral, 1 or 2 Hermit Crabs, some Yellowstripe Snappers, Clark's Anemonefish, Maldives Anemonefish, some common Butterflyfish, some awesome Black-Backed Butterflyfish, 1 or 2 Emperor Angelfish, a few Striped Surgeonfish, a Moray Eel, Lined Butterflyfish, Threadfin Butterflyfish Orange-Lined Surgeonfish, lots of Cleaner Wrasse, a few Puffers & some other common fishes. </div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-35362704447041202872009-08-05T07:40:00.001+08:002009-08-05T10:18:47.579+08:00<div><br /><br /><div><strong>Day 3- RSG NORTH 22/7/09 -55 mins<br />Dive no. 1</strong><br /><br />Today Rhi is back to be my instructor. We are going to dive on the north side of RSG this time & I think it's g<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcu4oQ3Iz9C9nHCiIG4u6j-u-rhN2IccyskGA83wz0o2i9DSWaBFz5omefYIkBNkQRrd6j2dM6B-bn0m-1iyhEZZrFkrM-tlwCES3HFO-tY2vIiWFDyJkmeYfv5daRhJhjQO3rZVmcEP8/s1600-h/PC152320.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366298138896468418" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcu4oQ3Iz9C9nHCiIG4u6j-u-rhN2IccyskGA83wz0o2i9DSWaBFz5omefYIkBNkQRrd6j2dM6B-bn0m-1iyhEZZrFkrM-tlwCES3HFO-tY2vIiWFDyJkmeYfv5daRhJhjQO3rZVmcEP8/s200/PC152320.jpg" /></a>onna be great!!! On the north side of RSG, we saw some Anemonefishes, Singular Bannerfish, common Butterflyfishes, the Blue Blanquillo, Powder-Blue Surgeonfish, Trumpetfish, Bird Wrasse, a Blotched Porcupinefish, lots of Lizardfish, Goatfish, 1 or 2 Cushion Star, a coral crab- which was the Oshima's Porcelain Crab, some other common fishes & Triggerfishes; they were the Orange-Lined Triggerfish, Red Tooth Triggerfish & the Indian Triggerfish. When we were just going to the surface, guess what we saw??? Nudi Eggs!!! At first, I thought it was a pink tissue, but when I pointed it to Rhi, she wrote on her board & it said Nudi Eggs. I was so amazed that Nudi Eggs are beutiful.<br /><br /><br /><strong>Day 3- Gapang Beach RIGHT 22/7/09 -55 mins</strong><br /><strong>Dive no. 2</strong><br /><br />Since Rhi & I haven't seen a ray or a turtle in the past few days, for this dive, we<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0kwH4p7cAAxE7YrkHiq2tQH712xVXSl7M1KM_iRI0EKTQ1Ez1SbQL4VeFZaODgnxV6ReRhgURW-hnZR0FWaF3w5LCQTTWihPTf5nwXNX0mO5-mXDe4b4Jn7N72BR9B959gjqb4dk97KE/s1600-h/fish+11.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366296207901528066" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0kwH4p7cAAxE7YrkHiq2tQH712xVXSl7M1KM_iRI0EKTQ1Ez1SbQL4VeFZaODgnxV6ReRhgURW-hnZR0FWaF3w5LCQTTWihPTf5nwXNX0mO5-mXDe4b4Jn7N72BR9B959gjqb4dk97KE/s200/fish+11.jpg" /></a>'re going on a turtle & ray hunt! Yay! While we were on a turtle & ray hunt, we saw a Marbled Snake Eel, some Triggerfishes; they were the Orange-Lined Triggerfish, Picasso Triggerfish, the Red Tooth Triggerfish & the Indian Triggerfish, ther was the Lizardfish, Spotted Hawkfish, Bird Wrasse, Spotted Garden Eel, I also found a Mantis Shrimp (which was hiding under a coral), 1 or 2 Khul's Stingray (AWESOME) & an Anemone Crab. When we went back to shore, we also saw my sister (Mayang) doing her diving course with some other people & 1 or 2 Lion Fish.</div></div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-63632329995212534482009-08-05T07:38:00.001+08:002009-08-05T09:41:25.406+08:00Day 4 of Diving<div><strong>Day 4- RSG NORTH 23/7/09 -56 mins Dive no.1</strong><br /><br />Today, Rhi & I are going to the north of RSG again because we loved it.<br />Here, at RSG (again) we saw, a Giant Sweetlip, Freckled Hawkfish, Blackeye Thicklip, Bird Wrasse, Tassled Scorpionfish, Longnose Butterflyfish (my fav), the White Collar Butterflyfish, Singular Bannerfish, Meyer's Butterflyfish, Dory, Longnose Tang, Honeycomb Rabbitfish, Chocolate Grouper (YUM :) , Peacock Grouper (Ooo), Blacktip Grouper (Aaaa...), Bridled Monocle Bream, Puffers, Slingjaw Wrasse, Black-Saddled Tobies, Lizardfish, Speckled SandPerch,Clarks Anemonefish, Varacose Wart Slug, Skunk Anemonefish & some other common fishes.<br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 200px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366286585643890850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSCQPTMTu6tmoGoi5Mt9jC8Oibwny9auGuJePY-atHH8_vDpnukrBhe5_MxBN6ReXOAs9KqdOdlI04Cksu2eftrCCsmTmxc-ok7R8tLgbSF9i_DY_Cx7DdEIERChH70LtBSDrvX_DlhCY/s200/fish+4.jpg" /><br /><strong>Day 4- Gapang Beach FAR RIGHT 23/7/09 -61 mins<br />Dive no.2</strong><br /><strong></strong><br />Rhi told me that usually she see's turtle infront of her longhouse, which is near a little point of this island. She says that we have a greater chance to find a turtle there, so that's where we're diving this afternoon.<br />While we were turtle hunting (again), we saw, a juv. Bicolor Parrotfish, Freckled Hawkfish, Bird Wrasse, some common Butterflyfish, Singular Bannerfish, Longnose Tang, Chocolate Grouper, Crescent-Tail Bigeye, Black-Saddled Toby, Lizardfish, 2 Khul's Stingray, adult Boxfish, Puffers, Pink Damselfish, Yellow Margin Moray, a school of juv. Catfish (about 30 of them), Spotted Garden Eel, Network Pipefish, some other common fishes & guess what??? We also saw a Sea Moth, a Slender Sea Moth!!!!!!!!!!!! Rhi told me that they're usually at 15+ metres below. At first I thought it was a juv. fish, I asked Rhi what it was & she wrote on her board saying that it was a Sea Moth (which really looked like a tiny squashed bird).</div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2274544047779650185.post-25413633146359781902009-08-05T07:37:00.002+08:002009-08-05T10:37:02.830+08:00Last Diving Day in P. Weh<div><strong>Last Day of Diving-Gapang Beach RIGHT 24/7/09 -58 mins<br />Dive no.1</strong><br /><br />Unfortunately, divers can't go on boats on Friday mornings. That's because of the fishermen's tradition : ( But at least we saw a few cool stuff. As of course, they're everything! They were the Emperor Angel<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlwVdRbnYKLkML3-jP4-4RrpNXM1kg0w187KRXcztGp5ntG4pOmtFgctubPq2DJVaMgmxX3ZdluWXMpzXfvi62rLxMBT0NHFiJmI2FNtpHqYVy3TN7j0oZ_a0ckbXOe1y_-Nk3oP_pV0I/s1600-h/fish+3.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 150px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366302519138832962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlwVdRbnYKLkML3-jP4-4RrpNXM1kg0w187KRXcztGp5ntG4pOmtFgctubPq2DJVaMgmxX3ZdluWXMpzXfvi62rLxMBT0NHFiJmI2FNtpHqYVy3TN7j0oZ_a0ckbXOe1y_-Nk3oP_pV0I/s200/fish+3.jpg" /></a>fish, Crocodile Needlefish, Khul's Stingray, White Colar Butterflyfish, Immaculate Puffer, juv. Black Snapper, Semi-Adult Midnight Snapper, Picasso Triggerfish, Blackpatch Triggerfish, Titan Triggerfish, Indian Triggerfish, Razorfish, Peacock Grouper, Hexagon type Groupers, Goatfishes, Hermitcrabs, Crescent-Tail Bigeye, Tobies, Clark's Anemonefish, Red Tooth Triggerfish, some other common fishes & guess what? I found this Snake Eel swimming right under me. I pointed it at Rhi & she says that we're going to look in the fish book.<br />When we tried to find it in the book, there was nothing like the Snake Eel we saw, but Rhi thought that it was the Spotted Snake Eel, so I went with that.</div>Melati Aurora Devihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388971730060478686noreply@blogger.com0