Komodo Island - The Lost World Was Found

Komodo Island - The Lost World Was Found

By Kevin Alexandra


It's a remarkable place - a hothouse for evolution and home to an incredible array of marine life. Of the 500 or so coral species found in the Indo-Pacific, Komodo has 260. It harbours more than 1,000 species of fish and 70 species of sponge. Acre for acre, it is one of the most diverse coral reef environments in the world.
My journey began on the 42m Kararu, a traditional rigged sailing vessel which serves as an extremely spacious liveaboard. It operates from Bali, 160 miles to the west, but the journey to and from Komodo is punctuated by dive sites which are fascinating in their own right, and serve as a build-up to the world-class diving at Komodo and its neighbouring island, Rinca. My host was the boat's co-owner, Tony Rhodes, a Brit with an easy manner and a knack for spotting near-microscopic animals.
On an early dive at a site called Mentjang Wall, we were finning along in mid-water when Tony suddenly swooped down to the reef. I followed, squinting at the scrappy patch of coral to which he was pointing. At first nothing, then I could make out a tiny brownish nudibranch (of the Flabellinidae family). He had seen it from 10m away! Suspicious, I wondered if he had sneakily placed it there when I wasn't looking, possibly inspired by Donald Pleasence's similar trick in The Great Escape.
As I was to discover, his spotting skills were quite genuine. While there are plenty of sizeable creatures to marvel at in Indonesia, the area does tend to attract divers with a penchant for the diminutive. These are rich seas, and there is a perpetual battle for space on the reefs. After just a few days, your eyes become familiar with the environment, so that semi-camouflaged critters begin to reveal themselves. Professional dive guides become finely attuned to this sort of diving.
Komodo National Park comprises the seas around the islands of Komodo, Rinca and Padar, and some smaller islands. It's a two-wetsuit trip: on the northern side of the islands, the water is warm, and most people dive comfortably with the thinnest of skins. Cool, nutrient-rich upwellings prevail on the southern side, where 5mm suits, hoods and gloves are the order of the day.
These islands act like a dam, holding back the warmer Pacific waters, which are then forced through various straits, creating a pressure void along the park's southern side. This allows cold water from the Sumba Sea to rise up, effectively replacing the water removed by the currents at the surface. With the cold water comes a bloom in phytoplankton, forming the basis of Komodo's super-charged food chain. It is a very, very special place indeed.
The results of these crazy upwellings are best experienced at Horseshoe Bay on Rinca's southern side. These are the most crowded reefs I have ever seen, but the payoff is low visibility caused by all those nutrients suspended in the water. Horseshoe Bay's famous site is a pinnacle known as Cannibal Rock (named after a monstrous Komodo dragon seen eating one of its own kind nearby), where dense swathes of black, yellow and red crinoids jostle for space.
It's a great place to test buoyancy skills, because crinoids stick to neoprene like glue; any contact whatsoever and you've got yourself a hitchhiker. Once, after taking head-on photographs of an implacable lizardfish, I looked down to find I had picked up two featherstars complete with clingfish and crinoid shrimps - a whole ecosystem! I guiltily set them back on the reef.
Just outside Horseshoe Bay is a fascinating site known as the Great Yellow Wall of Texas, renowned for its soft corals. Visibility here was reminiscent of British shore-diving standards, and the coral polyps were all retracted, so I hardly saw the reef in all its glory. Still, I could appreciate the sheer intensity of the place. Nestling among the crinoid forest were some fascinating animals, including brightly coloured sea apples, a spectacular member of the sea slug family. Tiny hawkfish nestled between the fronds of soft corals, while gobies darted around their tiny territories.
Night dives were even more atmospheric. The currents sweeping over Cannibal Rock were too much to cope with after dark, so we searched for night creatures in the shallows. At first glance, the sandy expanses were devoid of life, but a closer inspection revealed a wealth of nocturnal drama. Octopus each the size of a child's fist moved over the sand, extending their tentacles into tiny holes as they hunted for suitably small prey. Every now and then, they would retract their foraging limbs in pain, having received a nip from some hidden sand-dweller.
Inshore sites often serve as nurseries. I saw lots of tiny fish, including juvenile oriental sweetlips (flapping wildly like some out-of-control bumblebee) and a rockmover wrasse complete with protruding unicorn's horn. Photographers found the night dives to be the most productive of all, and some would sacrifice an afternoon dive to be alert for the evening.
The best night dive took place beyond Horseshoe Bay on a sandy slope near Banta Island. The site has a particularly cheesy name - 'It's a Small World' - which nevertheless hints at the macro wonders which have made it their home. I dropped in and descended 10m to what looked to be a lunar landscape, devoid of life. The gritty sand billowed briefly into the water column as I landed on the sea bed and looked down to see a skeletal face leering back with utter contempt.
It was a stargazer, a voracious lunge-predator whose stealth is rivalled only by its monumental ugliness. It buries itself in sand right up to its eyes, then waits for a suitable morsel to happen along. Ambush predators don't like being seen, and this one looked up at me with undisguised disgust as I gently fanned the sand away from its fearsome features. Eventually, the indignity of being exposed in this way proved too much; it launched itself off the sand and sped off into the darkness.
I enjoy watching other divers at night. Despite the best intentions of the buddy system, there is something about the combination of shallow, current-free sites and diving by torchlight which internalizes the diving experience. Divers retreat into themselves, their attention focused chiefly on the thin column illuminated by their lights. I hovered behind a professional videographer, Roger Munns of Scubazoo (the film-making outfit based in Southeast Asia) fame, who had found a handsome red frogfish - okay, 'handsome' isn't a word often associated with frogfish, but we're talking 'eye of the beholder' here, okay?
As he trained his video lights on the frogfish, the brightness attracted a small food chain. Driven by some inexplicable urge, tiny worms massed around the lights in writhing density. They in turn attracted the attention of some cardinalfish, which foolishly took the frogfish to be a lump of coral. They were soon disabused of this notion as the predator extended its jaws and sucked a hapless cardinalfish into its maw.
This super-gulp is too fast to see. Later, watching Roger's footage on an iBook laptop, we studied the lunge frame by frame. You see the frogfish give a dainty little leap, and there is a slight blur around its mouth as it takes the fish, but the movement itself is too fast even for a professional-quality video recording in slow motion mode. Viewed at normal speed, the frogfish twitches slightly and the cardinalfish simply disappears.
In addition to illustrating the efficiency of the frogfish's feeding mechanism, this episode revealed to me the depth of the cardinalfish's stupidity. The 'not exactly quick on the uptake' survivors kept returning to the lights, and the frogfish enjoyed a further six courses while the cardinalfish doubtless wondered where all their companions had gone. By the time I had sidled in to photograph the frogfish, it was noticeably bulkier and appeared to have a case of the hiccups.
Providing a contrast to Komodo's macro dives is a great manta site off the island of Langkoi, a busy little channel where the graceful rays can be seen feeding on plankton-loaded water. Langkoi's mantas are among the biggest I have ever seen, some even approaching the legendary 6m mark.
It was a pleasure to dispense with the hood and gloves when our boat Kararu returned to the balmy sites of the north. Here, I was presented with dizzyingly clear water and some classically beautiful reefs. There were plenty of reef fish, but I saw little in the blue, despite the preternatural clarity of the water. Occasionally, schools of barracuda, jacks or bannerfish would appear, but there were no sharks or tuna. This is the case across much of these islands, where shark-finning has decimated reef shark populations over the past decade. Illegal shark fishing and even dynamite bombing still takes place in Komodo National Park, despite its protected status.
Still, conservation efforts at Komodo - reinforced by the presence of tourism - have succeeded in preserving vast tracts of reef. These reefs have an additional importance which transcends the pleasure they give divers. The coral here is especially resilient to the effects of coral bleaching caused by factors such as global warming and El Niño. This is due to the upwelling effect of cooling water from the depths of the Sumba Sea.
Marine biologists believe that as coral reef systems continue to be lost, it is places such as Komodo that will replenish and re-colonize devastated habitats elsewhere in Indonesia and the wider Indo-Pacific. The same currents which make life so difficult (if entertaining) for divers, carry coral larvae beyond the national park to places where reef space is available. In this sense, Komodo is a mother among coral reefs, and one we should all cherish.
o Simon Rogerson dived with Kararu Dive Voyages. Charters are available for trips of different duration, but the standard Komodo tour takes 11 days. Trips to the remote reefs of Alor and Rajah Empat are also available. For further information, contact UK agents Divequest on 01254 826322 or check out Kararu's website, http://www.kararu.com.
The world's easiest wreck dive?

No diver should visit Bali without diving the wreck of the Liberty, a First World War-era cargo ship which lies off the beach at the village of Tulamben on the nortwest coast. The Liberty grounded itself on this beach after being torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in 1942, and stayed there until 1963 when the Agung volcano exploded, pushing her into the water and splitting the hull in two.
Today, the wreckage sits on black volcanic sand at a diver-friendly 27m, providing a home for a prodigious amount of marine life. It pained me not to include the Liberty in DIVE's recent rundown of the world's best wrecks, but the truth is that this is a wreck dive for divers who don't like wrecks.
The structure of the wreck is undeniably impressive, but the resident marine life steals the show. There is a school of jacks which regularly form the classic spiral shoaling formation, and tame reef fish abound (they've been fed, and approach divers with feverish enthusiasm).
The wreck is coated in coral, and sought-after macro subjects such as the pygmy seahorse can be reliably found. It has to be one of the world's best shore dives, but what makes it so ludicrously easy is the presence of a local co-operative which charges a small amount for access to the shore, then carries your BC and cylinder to the entry point.
What makes all this slightly shameful is the fact that the co-operative is made up of local women, most of whom are slightly built and less than five feet tall! They can carry two sets of kit at a time for the ten-minute walk over the pebble beach! On their heads!
I couldn't bring myself to let them carry my gear, but my guide warned me that it would be seen as unforgivably patronizing not to let them do their job. So, I hobbled over the beach behind my petite kit-bearer praying to the Balinese gods that no one would recognize me.
I'm 28 years old, webmaster in cruises company and manage http://www.divingseasafari.com and http://www.seasafaricruises.com. I live in Bali, the paradise island in Indonesia. Your travelling nit complete before you go to Bali and Indonesia archipelago. Explore all in my sites.

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Borobudur Temple - The Greatest Buddhist Temple in 9th Century

Borobudur Temple - The Greatest Buddhist Temple in 9th Century

By Jon K Goff


Borobudur is the biggest temple in Indonesia. Borobudur temple is located in Magelang, Central Java, in addition of being a famous tourist attraction, this temple also becomes a center of worship for Buddhists in Indonesia, especially at every celebration of Waisak. Borobudur temple is also known as "Monastery in the hills" because it lies in the hills.
The temple was built around 800 BC or 9th century it has been established as one of the cultural heritage of UNESCO and it does not only makes proud for all people in Indonesia but also throughout the world. This Buddhist temple has 1460 relief panels and 504 Buddha effigies. Borobudur was built by Samaratungga, one king of Old Mataram Kingdom, Sailendra descendants. Gunadarma is the architect of record as someone who is successfully built this temple.
The base of Borobudur, called Kamadhatu, symbolizing human beings that are still bound by lust. Four levels mentioned above represents Rupadhatu, humans who have set themselves free from lust but still tied to appearance and shape. Borobudur temple as a whole has ten levels consisting of six levels of a square, circular level three circular and a main stupa as a peak. At every level there are several stupas. Altogether there are 72 domes besides the main stupa. In every stupa there is a statue of Buddha.
On the wall there is a wall relief of Borobudur temple which tells of a legendary story of Ramayana. In addition, there are relief panels describing the condition of society at that time. All relief panels in Borobudur temple reflect the teachings of the Buddha. Hence, this temple functions as educating media for people who want to learn Buddhism
With all the grandeur and mystery that is only natural that every person from around the world want to visit Borobudur. Borobudur is the excellence and evidence of human intelligence has ever made in Indonesia. It also became the cultural attractions and major in Indonesia instead of Bali and Jakarta.
John K Goff loves writing articles in many topics. Not only about traveling, he also writes articles about home equipment you can read on http://ultrasoundmedicalequipment.org/, which reviews and lists the best acuson ultrasound you may need.

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Javanese Dance - A Historical Color in Modern Life

Javanese Dance - A Historical Color in Modern Life

By Rendy Azhari Dalimunthe


Looking into temple reliefs at Prambanan and Borobudur, the two temples that have been became a silent witness of Javanese history, means that you are looking to a long history of Javanese dance. As shown by those two reliefs, it is easy to conclude that the dance has become an important part of Java's society. Even if you do not understand the philosophical meaning of a their dance, you could easily see the mystical boundary that surrounded Javanese's life since a hundred years ago.
Nowadays, dance is still featured in Javanese's modern life. It is become an important part of any ceremonies, festivals, and community's celebration, whether it's in villages, towns, or even in urban center. The Javanese dance now, it's not just an ordinary ritual performed by ordinary people. It is performed by professional dancer, which relatively young and able to improve, stylize, and combine the classical value with the modern touch. Fact has it that even modern Java's society is moving in a rapid acceleration due to globalization, the essence of classic dance is remain there and never forgotten.
The essences of Javanese dance are not only the great decoration and the elegant movement, but also the behavioral lesson lies behind, that make it able to transfer some desirable characters. Up to now, The Javanese dance is intended to encourage desirable qualities: elegant, self confidence, smooth nature, concentration, perseverance, grace, and also dignity. That's why, it is is often considered as an expressive dance, which serve as a medium of moral education, emotional expression, and tool to spread the Javanese culture.
Several key factors like beauty movement, magical gamelan music, and pendopo stage, which are stand alongside the Javanese Dance and make it enjoyable, are the true reflection of high cultural intelligence acquired by Javanese people, a part of world's community which is known as a society with a lot knowledge of art and cultural values.
As the co-founder of Visit Magelang, the one and only local tourism website in Magelang, Rendy Dalimunthe invites you to experience the beauty of Indonesian cities, especially the city of Magelang. For more information about hotels, restaurants, and holidays in Magelang., please go to Visit Magelang.

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The Dramatic of Kecak Dance in Bali

The Kecak dance is one of the most famous of Balinese dances. It is unusual because it has no musical accompaniment like many other Indonesian dances do, the rhythm of the dance is produced by the chanting 'monkey' chorus. Instead, a troupe of over 150 bare-chested men serve as the chorus, making a wondrous cacophony of synchronized "chak-achak-achak" clicking sounds while swaying their bodies and waving their hands .From that chanting noise of "Cak-cak-cak", then it gave the dance its name Kecak.
What makes the Kecak such a fascinating dance to watch are the fifty or so men in the checkered pants. They are both the choir and the props, providing the music for the story in a series of constant vocal chants that change with the mood of the actors. They don't sit still, either, they wave their arms to simulate fire, and reposition themselves around the stage to represent wind and fire, prison cells, and unseen hand of protection from the gods.
The dance is played in five acts and lasts roughly 45 minutes. It taken from the Hindu epic Ramayana, which tells the story of Prince Rama and his rescue of Princess Sita, who has been kidnapped by the evil King of Lanka, Rahwana and somehow with the help of the white monkey army, Rama rescues his wife and defeats the evil Rahwana.
Attending a Kecak recital is a must for any visitor to Bali. It is a wondrous experience, and a window into the musical and artistic culture that make the Balinese a special people.

Getting There
By Air:Numerous international carriers service Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport either directly or via Jakarta. Domestic airlines operate schedule flights from various cities within Indonesia.
By Land:Bali is connected to Java by a regular ferry service running between Gilimanuk and Banyuwangi. If you are taking the train or a night bus from Jakarta, Bandung or Yogyakarta, travels first to Surabaya for the connection to Banyuwangi. Buses can be boarded at Banyuwangi or Gilimanuk for the final leg to Denpasar.
By Sea:The state-run passengers line PELNI operates weekly sailing's between Bali and Jakarta, Ujung Pandang and Balikpapan. Regular ferries sail between Lombok and Bali.

Where To Stay
No need to worry where youll stay in Bali. There are many hotels range provided here, from the luxurious, middle range and budget hotels are spread around the island.

Dining Guide
There are a variety of restaurants in Bali offering a good choice of food to suit a variety of tastes at reasonable prices. Kuta and Jimbaran is a great place to eat especially Seafood and Western dishes are your best bets while in Ubud lots of sophisticated restaurants and many of the shopping centers in the area have places to eat and there are several fast food places for those fast food addicts.

Moving Around
Its so easy to move around in Bali, especially in the tourist area. You can rent a bike or motorcycle to move around the city. Theres also car rental. Public buses ply routes throughout Bali from Denpasar's Ubung Terminal.

Other Things To Do or See
There are a lot of things to do or see while youre in Bali. Beside its cultural and art, there are also numerous temples, ancient sites and of course, great restaurants around Ubud while in the roads around Kuta, Legian and Sanur are lined with shops and hawkers that sell about everything, offering a huge choice of places to eat and a lively nightlife.

Souvenir Tips
Handwoven fabrics are a great buy; a simple sarong is an inexpensive, portable and practical travel accessory,Ubud is the best place for you to buy paintings and other artworks,Browsing at the Sukawati Art Market and Galeria Nusa Dua offers a tempting range of Balinese goods in one place.

Travel Tips
Various hotels in Bali hold Kecak Dance performances and often deal providing dinner and tickets to the performance are offered at the main hotels in Bali. Ask your hotel for further information.
Weekly (in some places daily) performances of the Kecak abound around the island, but the most well-known Kecak Theater is in the town of Batubulan just north of the Balinese capital of Denpasar. The dance company provides transportation for a nominal fee to and from the resort.
Upon arrival, if your hotel has not arranged transportation from the airport, hire a taxi from the transport counter outside the arrival gate. Fares are listed by destination and must be paid in advance. Metered taxis are also available in Kuta, Sanur, Nusa Dua and Denpasar.