grammaire aka grammar is obviously not my thing!

so, this is just another personal documentation.
the piece has been published in sunday post edition,
the jakarta post, april 10, 2011 (peek it @ here).
but somehow i prefer the original version (complete with mistakes i made ),
plus the unpublished photos (upload still in progress ).
please, do enjoy.
*comments and critics are highly welcomed.

Finding Nemo in Nusa Lembongan

 
an underwater idyllic paradise
(*photo courtesy of Isao Soga)

A plan to go diving was already in my mind when I took a flight from Jakarta, landed in Bali, set off straight to Sanur and east-crossed the Badung Strait by public speedboat. It was Nusa Lembongan I headed to, an island neighboring Nusa Penida and Nusa Ceningan in the southern-east of Bali.


Yup, the island was well-known for its numerous dive spots. There are at least 7 dive spots stretch around the island, offering various attractive aquatic creatures and a wonderful underwater landscape. One of its spots is Manta Point, lies on the southern off-shore part of Nusa Penida, a world class diving spot to get acquaintance with the gigantic manta rays. And if you come in the right season, from Mei to September, there's a great probability you'll bump into the famously unique sunfish, also known as the mola-mola.


But it has been 4 years since my last diving (okei, i made mistake here. it should've been 'dive', and not 'diving'. noted. ) and I almost forgot everything I learned (so obviously it's not just a simple past tense. yup, my grammar is screwed ). Therefore, refreshing the lesson in the pool first before take a plunge into the sea is a must. A little bit nervous, I reluctantly fought the anxious feeling when I repracticed (is there a word such as 'repracticed'? ) the skill of controlling the buoyancy and mask clearing. Everything went well in the pool, but who knows what'll happen in the sea? (okeiii, i messed up the past, present and future tense! )


The next morning, along with a bunch of other divers on the boat with Lembongan Dive Adventure, we headed to Toya Pakeh, a dive spot lay between the Nusa Ceningan and Nusa Penida.


"The water's crystal clear," said Annastinna, a 40 year old Canadian, inspecting the water from the boat. She was right. Cluster of corals and anemones hazily swayed through the surge of water, as if calling for divers to explore.


Before we jumped into the water, Emo the divemaster (slash husband . okeii, i admit it.) briefed us about the dive, including the signals we use to communicate underwater. Feeling both exciting and edgy, I took my turn to do the back-roll entry. Thrilling, for I could hardly wait to embrace the under-sea-water experience again, and a little bit tense for fearing my diving device would go malfunction, or else, I forgot the skill I've refreshed earlier.


But the awkwardness was all gone once I sank myself down into the cold salty water, noticing the view around. The visibility was clear, and it was astonishingly wonderful!


Vast slope of various forms of corals rested below. A couple of majestic table corals popped amid sea of pale purple cabbage corals.


I gaped in awe as school of colorful fishes whizzed here and there, while anemones waved in dawdling motion. Three clarks anemonefishes (lat. Amphirion clarkii) -- yup, the star of Finding Nemo animation movie was here. Many of them! Probably his relatives -- hovered amongst tentacles of peachy anemones.


And you could easily found the gang here. A Dori-like blue surgeonfish and a flock of moorish idol fishes (lat. Zanclus cornutus) -- one of Nemo's tank inhabitants -- scurried around the corals. A blue starfish hung droopily on the corals. Fortunately, there was no hungry-but-pretend-to-be-a-herbivore shark near in sight (the editor changed it with: "hungry sharks masquerading as herbivores". yup, the edited version is waaaay better! ).

 
School of Oriental Sweetlips
(*photo courtesy of Isao Soga)

And there was a herd of funny black-and-white-and-yellow stripped skin Oriental Sweetlips, swung in an arrow formation. A big titan triggerfish with its glaringly colorful skin -- yes, its patent and contrast colorful skin was as if it wore a fully make-up -- swayed nonchalantly, confidence enough to move alone.


The scenery was so full, yet so quiet. The only sound I heard was the bubbling breath from my second stage mouthpiece. It was indeed an idyllic paradise.


The second dive took place in Mangrove Point, a spot just right in front of mangrove forest in the north-eastern part of Nusa Lembongan. The drift was stronger here. Since putting the hardest effort to kicking (another grammar mistake! you could never combine "to + -ing verb"! well, i've just realized that grammar isn't my thing ) against it was pointless, we threw ourselves joining in the stream, wandering into the miracle once again.


But time did flies! The 40 minutes dive felt like it was only 5 minutes, and the 200 bars of fresh air in our tanks was already hit the caution zone. Time to go up!

"It's amazing. I should one day be back here again," said Eva, a 28 year old Czech Republican who along with her Jamaican husband was in her last days of leaving Indonesia. "It turned out that 3 weeks of traveling around Indonesia isn't enough. I should have extended my vacation to 3 months!" she exclaimed.

 
*the anchorman, heads to the shore after diving
(photo courtesy of vyara)

She's got the point. My two weeks vacation on this very island alone felt like a blink of an eye. I swear I'll be back here soon, to hunt down the famous mola-mola, and the gigantic manta ray, of course!

###

How to get here:
Take a public boat or speedboat from Sanur beach. the public boat departs to Nusa Lembongan every 8 am and 10.30 am, while the speedboat departs at 9 am, 12.30 pm, 2.30 pm and 4 pm everyday. Meanwhile, there are 3 departures to Sanur from Nusa Lembongan jetty at 8 am, 10.30 am and 3 pm everyday. Of course, the schedule depends on the weather.


If you want to dive, there are several dive operators on Nusa Lembongan. Pick one that best suits you.


There are at least 7 dive spots around Nusa Lembongan. Here they are, along with creatures spotted recently:

1. Crystal Bay : mola-mola, manta ray, worty frog fish, turtle, nudis, eagle ray.

2. Manta Point manra, turtle, blue spotted stingray, nudibranch, sea snake, nurse shark.

3. SD : breaching mola-mola, turtle, clouded moray, triggerfish, lionfish, yellow edge moray, tuna, barracuda.

4. Toya Pakeh : giant trevally, batfish, nudibranch, mantis shrimp, ribbon eels.

5. Mangrove : puffer, angelfish, reef shark, moray eel, barracuda, triggerfish.

6. Pontoon : lionfish, crocodile fish, rigid shrimp fish.

7. Blue Corner : marble ray, eagle ray, barracuda, turtle, nudis, angelfish, batfish, sea snake, eel, reef shark.