I'm so proud that Indonesia is the only inhabitant for the biggest lizard/dragon on Earth, Komodo. I really wanted to visit Komodo Island in Labuan Bajo, Flores, East Nusa Tenggara. After I resigned from my work, and before I moved to Sweden, I was planning for this trip. I thought I wouldn't make it since it was so hard to find the schedule with my friends - Most of them are working. However, I had a big ambition to visit this place, then I was looking for an open-trip to that location. Sadly, It was also hard to find the time. Luckily, suddenly, my friend called me and told me that he also wanted to go there. I was so happy at that point, yet we still had a problem since we needed to find the tour to explore the islands.
We couldn't find any trip! Ever since both of us were really wanted to go there, we tried to find another alternative which was using the private trip. We realized that it was going to be more expensive. We compared the quotation and itinerary from some travel agents. We felt that they were all expensive. Suddenly, I remembered that my friend, Sarah, went there by using the private trip. I texted her immediately, and she told me that she has family there who helped her to arrange the trip with more affordable price. She gave me her cousin number then I talked to him. After we compared and negotiated the price, My friend and I decided to go there with the help from him.
Day 1 - Arrival
We departed from Bali since both of us had our own holiday before we the Komodo trip. I flew by Nam Air while my friend took Garuda Indonesia. The time-gap was only 1 hour. I saw a big mountain from the sky, but I did not know the name.
After around 1 hour flight from Bali, we arrived at Komodo Airport in Labuan Bajo. By the time we landed, Arief or Kadal (his nickname/famous name) was already there. Then he accompanied us to our hotel with the local taxi. During the trip, he shared his story - He's a tattoo artist, was living in Jakarta but then decided to move to Labuan Bajo. I must say that he has a good network there, so no wonder that we got the best deal for us :). We stayed at Green Hill Boutique Hotel located in the city center and close to the harbor.
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| Green Hill Boutique Hotel, Labuan Bajo |
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We had dinner at Le Pirate and discussed the plan for tomorrow. The restaurant has a good ambiance as well as good food, but it was quite pricey since it was for tourists.
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| Le Pirate Restaurant, Labuan Bajo |
Day 2
Before leaving to the harbor, we dropped our luggage at the hotel lobby because we will stay there again after the live-on-boat trip. I was so excited, yet I was a bit scared since it was my first time to have a live-on-boat experience.
The view was fantastic, and we were lucky since the weather was lovely - sunny.
Our first stop was Pulau Kelor / Kelor Island.
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| Pulau Kelor / Kelor Island |
We stayed there around 1 hour. We climbed to the top of the island and had a beautiful view from the top, and afterward, we did snorkeling around the island. The under the sea view was also beautiful; Colorful coral and lot of fish.
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| Pulau Kelor from the top |
We continued the trip to Pulau Rinca where the Komodo lives. I was hoping that we could see the Komodo. I heard that it was the mating season for these animals. My friend who went the 2 weeks before told me that she just saw a few of small Komodo.
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| Pulau Rinca / Rinca Island - Entrance |
To enter the national park, see the Komodo and trekking in Pulau Rinca, we need to hire a ranger who will be our guide as well as to protect us if the Komodo attack us - definitely, we didn't want this to happen. We were waiting for the ranger about half an hour. By the time we got one, we had started to explore the island.
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| Our Ranger |
Not too far from the entrance, we arrived at a small village, and we were surprised, excited a bit panic yet when we saw some Komodos. However, I personally felt so happy that I could see these animals in their original habitat. We took some pics with the Komodo then we were tracking around the island.
Tracking in Pulau Rinca was like tracking at the savanna. It was a dry season, so all the grass was dry and turned into yellow
The track itself was not really challenging yet because of the hot weather and a long track (for me), I felt so tired. However, it was worthy because of the beautiful scenery
Finished with tracking in Pulau Rinca, we were heading to Pulau Padar and had our lunch on the boat. Pulau Padar is one of the main attractions and the iconic spot. Again, we had to track here. It was more challenging since it was higher than Pulau Kelor. But we kept walking and push ourselves to go up because the more we go to the top, the more beautiful the scenery. Not to mention, but the track was steep!
The famous spot in Pulau Padar...
Since it was almost sunset, we had a beautiful sight. However, We needed to go back to our boat before it got too dark.
The famous spot in Pulau Padar...
Tonight we would sleep around the Bat Cave, and yes, it was not on the ground but our boat instead. The color of the sky was magical, a perfect combination of violet, orange, blue and yellow.
Day 3
Alhamdulillah, we could sleep well last night. The tide was calm, and it was cold last night. We woke up around 7:00 am, and then we were heading to our first stop - Pink Beach. It is well-known as "pink beach" because of the tiny elements from the coral mixed with the sand. We climbed the hill to enjoy the beach from the top and did snorkeling too here.
From there, We continue our journey to see manta at manta point. We were so excited to see these creatures in the wild nature. The caption told us that they can not guarantee to see these animals because sometimes they are swimming to other places.
One of the crew was standing at the front to find the manta. We were waiting, and I could see that some other boats were also doing the same thing. Same with us, other travelers were also waiting and searching the manta. Sadly, at after one-hour waiting, we still could not find them. Hence we were snorkeling again there and hoping that the manta would appear - but they didn't. The tide was strong here, the caption told us not to get panic because the boat would come to us if we swam too far.
A bit disappointed, but it is what it is. We can't predict the wild, and it's in the ocean.
Moving forward, we sailed to Gili Lawa Darat. We were so tired and took a nap on the way there.
Reaching the Gili Lawa Darat, we were preparing our mental and energy to explore the area. We need to climb up again, and this one is higher and steeper than Pulau Padar.
We took some rests because it was so tiring. But the view was so beautiful. And the more you go up, the more beautiful the scenery is.
We would spend the night here on our boat, there were many boats around us. Kadal taught me how to fish traditionally, he caught some fish but zero for me :).
I was surprised when I saw on the sea since there was some green-light. We found out that there were some divers there. Also during the night, I tried to capture the stars with my camera, I changed some lens and followed the guidance from the internet. It was hard... especially when I was on the boat, and it kept moving following the tide.
Day 4
Early in the morning, as our last day, we were heading to Kanawa Island (Pulau Kanawa). It was perfect weather for snorkeling
I really love this island. The snorkeling area is perfect, you can see many beautiful fish and starfish. The beach is clean with white sand. Everything is perfect here for me.
Before back to the land, we were going to our last spot - Pulau Bidadari. It is a small island, and if I am not mistaken, there is a cottage there. We did snorkeling again there, and we saw a baby black-tip shark! I was so happy to see this fish again
Sadly, our boat trip was over. We were back to our hotel - the same hotel as before. But we had a different room with better view.
I felt boat-lag and dizzy after the trip. That was the effect of staying on the boat that always moves. Then we had our late lunch at Mediterraneo restaurant in front of our hotel. We ate pizza, and it was a big portion. The taste was ok but a bit pricey - tourist price.
Day 5
The following day, on our last day in Labuan Bajo, we had lunch at one of the iconic restaurant here.
The building is like a whale. I love the ambient in the restaurant and also the hospitality from the waitress. Also, the food was good. I ordered Tuna Rendang; while my friend ordered Fish & Chips. Next time if I come here again, I think I should come in the evening since they have live music (seems not every day) and also they have good lighting
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