Highlights of Sulawesi
I’m not going to say highlights of Indonesia because I would have to go back twenty some years when I had an opportunity and the honor of biking with a dear friend through Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, and Flores Islands with a quick stop on Komodo Island to see the Komodo Dragons. I was in the process of biking the east coast of Australia and he was biking New Zealand and eventually met up in Brisbane, Australia. A few years before the bike ride I had wandered for six months through the South Pacific with some college mates touching down in Tahiti, Cook Islands, Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia. Both are different stories that I’ll probably write out one day but not without council from them. Sulawesi was this time around and I didn’t have time to do it properly so it looks like I’ll have to go back. J
When leaving Borneo there are two choices, ferry or plane. When I returned from Mobul to Samporna I spoke with some scuba diving instructors that suggested I fly to save time. They explained that the ferry can be slow and I could get stuck for a night half way verses fly and be there quickly. I took a taxi straight to the airport to fly but when I tried to buy a ticket the nice woman behind the counter told me to go Tawau city and get a tourist visa for three months no matter how long I planned to stay. That meant another taxi into town and I would probably miss the flight and have to stay the night. Off I went for Indonesia Immigration.
Every scuba diver I spoke with told me different great places to go but none of the traveling was easy for example, after you get your tourist visa fly from Tawau to Tarakan, ferry boat to Tenjund Salor, taxi to Tawgun Batu and then take a speed boat to Derawan and you’re there kind of directions. That’s all good and the directions are correct but I felt short on travel time and wanted in the water. I met a Russian guy, Alec, hurrying out of the Immigration Office with a new visa in his hand and he with excitement gave me a direct line to a dive sight that sounded a little more within my time restraints. Take two flights and a boat and you’re there with some of the best diving Sulawesi has to offer. Sold. Fly to Tarakan, fly to Manado and take one of numerous boats that take passengers to Bunaken Island.
I know of the more expensive places to stay that are mostly listed on the islands but there always a few that are cheaper. Again, word of mouth is particularly useful in out of the way places like northern Sulawesi. I stayed at Daniel’s Homestay and dove with the connecting dive company, Immanuel Divers. My bungalow was perfect and all I needed. The beach was within 50 meters at high tide and all meals were included in the price of the bungalow. There was a professional underwater photographer staying there and had been for quite some time. His pictures are all around the dining room and many have won contests or placed high.
I dove twice a day, one in the morning and one dive after lunch. These dives were more of a drift dive where you dive down 30 meters in the morning and drift along a coral cliff loaded with eels, fish, turtles, and colors you can only imagine until you are down there. Even the snorkelers near the surface were having some of the best they’d seen. Packs of dolphin swim a bit further out and can be viewed from a boat and if you’re lucky, you can swim with them.
After the first day of diving I wandered into a small fishing village on the island and noticed how peaceful everything was. And with the company of like minded people who were there for the diving we all told bits and pieces of our lives and enjoyed a few beers in the evening looking over pictures and getting to know each other which is always fascinating.
The dive crew on the boat was all local men and women and had a long history of diving and knowing the territory. It adds to the mental comfort ability and ease of the day. There was never a hurry and the sun shone brightly over head until you got into the night dives.
I should have gotten more money out of the ATM in Manado because in the end I had to either go get more or just keep going. I flew to Bali to meet a surf-crazed friend who had recently gotten married and lived in Sanur, Bali. My time was literally running out to get back to Thailand and catch my parting flight for South Korea so it was a short visit. I also wanted to dive there but the weather and storms continued to hit the beach and so I decided to get on with it. Tomorrow is another day and I know I’ll be back.
