Komodo by boat!

We all decided that the Komodo trip was a good idea! The next morning we packed and left at 9ish before driving in an air conned bus to the port! The others were in a larger bus so we felt fairly privledged! En route we listened to some old classics. Lighthouse family, spice girls the top gun theme tune, all the classics time forgot!
After numerous stops we arrived at the harbour to see our boat. It seemed rather small for 18 or so people plus crew. Very small in fact and I couldnt work out were all the sleeping cabins were. Of course they didnt exist. Anyhow we set out with high spirits witnessing some pretty amazing views as we went.
That evening we sailed till dark. We anchored then had some food. I will wrap up the food for the 4 days now by noting that all we had was rice, noodles , vegetables 2 scrawny old chickens that had been living on board for a while and eggs mixed in with everything, presumably from the said chickens. So the food wasnt great.
That evening we all found somewhere to sleep. I was late in choosing so was resigned to a spot on the upper deck, (actually the roof of the boat with a sheet over it) at the front. This was good for numerous reasons. Firstly I pee alot in the night and if I was at the back it would have been a nightmare crawling through the 3 foot high space over sleeping bodies and secondly as I could clearly see the stars as the canopy ended right over my head, so at night I layed back watched the stars while floating comfortably back and forth.
At around 4am I heard a thunderous noise as the engines started. We were on the go an as I was still really tired from Rinjani had no problems sleeping again. That morning we had banana pancakes for breakfast which was nice. We then snorkelled for a bit. The toilet on the boat wasn't so much as a toilet as a hole. Basically if the boat was stationary it wasn't the best idea to go to the loo unless there was someone in the water you didnt like. As there wasnt I swam ashore and aquainted myself with nature.
Feeling better after breakfast etc we all went for a walk on the island to the waterfall. It was cool. Ive seen better in Hawaii but for any European it was impressive.
We set sail for what was goin to be a long night. Our itinerary noted that we would sail all day and through the night for about 13 hours. After dinner I felt a little sick so lay down on my little matt overlooking the deck and adjacent to the night sky. It felt comfortable and although the boat was rocking alot I began to feel less sick. After a few hours of light sleeping the boat began to get considerably more rocky. Its hard to paint a picture of this boat but it is sufficeth to say it would not pass European regulations. The sides were low, there were ropes for hand rails. People were littered all over the deck and roof and as far as I was aware was unseaworthy except for sailing between local islands. As we were heading a fare distance we were now as I calculated out on open water chop and at the mercy of the elements. After a while of heavy rocking the boat hit or rather dropped into a wave side on and everyone slide in unison on their matts. This is when people began to get worried I could tell. I had been awake for a while and was already aware of the increasingly dangerous situation but for those sleepers recently awoke they began to realise what was goin on. The couple behind me seemed to cling together and the next morning James told me that Himself and Ciara had got out of their sleeping bags and put on clothes in case we capsized. I sat up and held onto the mast beside where I was sleeping. We could no longer see the lights of the fishing boats which usually look like a little village of the shore. I couldnt see any lights from land. There was some sort of sail hoisted at the front of the boat even though we have a motor and all the lights were off, i assumed the captain was using the stars. As the boat pumelled through the swell each splash made by its hull illuminated the side of the boat with the phosphorescent algi.
It is easy to look back and laugh at this experience as we all did but it was at this stage that I was genuinley worried. Our little boat was being smashed by the waves and in all honesty it seemed inevidable that we would capsize. There is no way we can make it through this I thought. I turned my phone on so that I could send a text or ring home just to let them know what was going on but of course there was no signal.
I really cant describe how I felt that night. Thousands of miles from home, in the middle of the Indian ocean on some rickety sciff plowing through huge swell in complete darkness bar the moon and although with new friends it would have been a very lonley way to go. At times like that I guess thats when faith etc comes into play. When you realise you are literally helpless over your fate it makes one wander what its all about.
Whether faith plays a part or whether the seas calmed themselves after a while it seemed the waters flattened and we were back to usuall. I felt at ease and soon drifted to sleep knowing that we would be fine.
The next morning we all woke and laughed about what had happened though in the back of my mind I knew just how serious something like that could be.
We awoke in a bay near komodo. We climbed a hill nearby to witness some spectacular views over the islands. After breakfast we ploughed on heading for Komodo. We arrived soon after lunch. As we entered the bay and saw the gates to the park I felt great that we had made it in one piece. As I climbed of the boat and onto the wooden harbour it felt good to be on dry land again. Walking through the gates I couldnt help but hum the jurassic park theme tune in my head. This tune remained through most of the trip and even through the next day on rinca. This really is as close as one can get to walking with dinasours i think. We met our guide and began walking on foor through the prehistoric park. The fauna etc was all in tune with the Jurassic park type setting now all we needed were the dragons....and then, there it was. Reaching outstretched up a tree trying to grab a piece of goatmeat was my first glimpse of a Komodo dragon. Those reading this know I enjoy a good documentary and over the years ive watched many about the Komodo dragons. I was not dissapointed in every way it lived up to expections and more. Seeing this huge lizard in its natural habit was something I could never have expected of this trip and is something I will never forget.
The walk through the park was impressive and after I gorged on a club sandwhich chips and 3 fantas! Those who have travelled in less developed countries know that like a camel one must consume as much good food as possible when it is available! That evening we sailed briefly to a local bay were we retired for the night. In the mangrove swamps we noticed some large blackbirds nesting and flying around. It was strange however that when they landed the hung upside down! Yes they were not birds. Flying foxes or giant fruit bats! One of the crew took James and I out on the little canoe for a closer look and it was genuinley incredible. They were huge. About the size of a rats body but with wings like a bird, we were so close we could see the bone structure and features of the wing. That evening we played cards and relaxed all in high spirits.
The boat did not sail that night so I personally slept soundly. In the morning we began our voyage to Rinca island were some of the larger dragons live. It is worth noting I finished Orwells Burmese days. It was a great read however I was desperatley dissapointed with the ending, poor Flory.
We arrived at Rinca a few hours later. In Komodo we only saw one dragon but while sailing to Rinca we saw a huge one walking across the beach. Entering the park walking across the dry lake we saw another large dragon, i knew we were in for a treat. That day we saw numerous big dragons but the highlight was when we saw a buffalo the dragons had bit. They dont kill prey like water buffalo straight away, they bite them then the bacteria and poisens fester in their blood causing sceptis and death, I guess i empathised with the bufallo knowing how poorly he must have felt! He though had greater worry than I ever had. It takes around 3 days for the poisen to kill a buffalo and with a huge festering bulge on its backside it was imminent he would soon collapse. Waiting on guard were 4 large dragons ready to maul the beast. The buffalo looked helpless although one of his friends it seemed had stayed with him which I though was very humane! At one stage we seemed trapped between the bufallos angry friend and the 4 dragons although our guides soon managed to get us safe.
It strikes me that many of the practises in Indonesia are just not safe although i suppose this is expected in any south east asian country.
We finished up our trek and headed back to the boat. I genuinley felt a sense of contentment after witnessing such an amazing spectacle. I was impressed that the islands are relativley untouched with only a few intrepid travllers prepared to make the 4 day boat trip ( or wealthy familys with luxuary yaughts) being able to access the islands. Long may it remain i hope.
After we sailed to a desert island and snorkelled. Here I found some cool shells amongst the dead coral. Following which we sailed to the island of Flores. Arriving here felt like arriving in aport in the early 20th century. It is much less developed than Bali etc and has a nice feel to it. We will spend the next few days here. This is the place were the found that new species of human known as the hobbit so hopefully we will have an interesting time.
The last 4 days have been scary, exciting, relaxing and untterly memorable, truely this is another memory that will last longer than the feeble cost ever could.