Ambon- Maluku Divers -Indonesia

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.

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.

Our bedroom.

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!

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.

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...

1st Day

1st Dive- Batu Badiri

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.

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.

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!

Nudibranch Nembrotha Sp.

warty frogfish

2nd Dive- Jetty Right

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.

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.

Blue ribbon eel

White eye moray eel

3rd Dive- Rhino City

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.

Star gazer

Ornate ghost pipefish

2nd Day

1st Dive- Amahusu

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)!

Juvenile Sweetlips

A Lion fish.

2nd Dive- Kaca Lengkung

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.

After these exciting dives, we went back to our beautiful resort to have some delicious lunch!

Pigmy Seahorse

Porcupine puffer fish

3rd Dive- Twilight Zone

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.

Blenny in a bottle.

Rigid shrimpfish

My beautiful harlequin shrimp

3rd Day

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.

1st Dive- Tower

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.

White leaf lion fish

Porcelain crab

2nd Dive- Laha

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!

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!

LAST DIVE : ( 3rd Dive- Twilight Zone: Mandarin Dive!

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!

Mating mandarin fish

Hermit crab

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! :)

Wai Village- Ambon- Indonesia

Wai 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.

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.

The villagers use the river for their daily activities

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.

The man baiting the eel with an egg.

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.

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!

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!

Photos in Mabul and Sipadan

My mum

The beautiful reef in Sipadan.

A Nudibranch.

An Emperor Shrimp found on a Sea Star.

Billabong resort.

Local children going to school.

The beautiful reef in Sipadan.

A group of Bat fishes.

Me and my family (without my dad) before a dive

A silhouette of me.

Crocodile fish

White Tip Shark

Diving in Sipadan

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.

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.

Cute kittens at Billabong

Paradise 2

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.

Bat fish

Anemone clown fish

Paradise 2-> Paradise 1
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.

Barracuda Point-Sipadan
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.
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!

So close to a Sea Turtle!

Never been so close with shark !

Photos on Mount Kinabalu

Me and my sister, before we climbed Mt. Kinabalu.

The Great Mt. Kinabalu.

Me with the background of a sunset in Laban Rata.

My mum going down Mt. Kinabalu.

South Peak of Mt. Kinabalu.

Me and my sister going to Laban Rata.

Laban Rata.

Me and my mum at our stop point/highest point.

Climbing the Great Mt. Kinabalu

October 17th, 2010

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!

Me and my sister before the climb, at Kinabalu Park.

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.

A beautiful waterfall at the beginning of the climb.

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.

Untreated water at the huts.

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.

Me and my sister sitting on rocks. (My sister was actually half asleep :D )

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.

Me with the background of Laban Rata and Mt. Kinabalu.

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.

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...

Me at our stop point.

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 real mountain.

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!

My mum going down Mt Kinabalu using a rope.

A few hours later, me and my family decided to check out off our room and get going...

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.

Later on, my dad and my mum, with the guide came and we set off back to the park, for lunch!

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!

(See more pictures of Mount Kinabalu, on "Pictures of Mount Kinabalu.)

(Read my story Sipadan, to continue this journey.)