Great week at Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat near Taveuni

OMG - what an AWESOME week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!     

Definitely one of the best weeks on my trip – and I’ve had lots of good ones

http://www.dolphinbaydivers.com/

I spent one week at Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat and had a fabulous time there! I flew to Taveuni last Thursday and after a 20-minute bus ride and a 30-minute boat ride arrived at Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat in a small bay on Vanua Levu in the Somosomo Strait. They have 4 tents and 4 bures and I ended up staying in one of the bures. It was lovely – there’s NO electricity in the bures and so you use gas lanterns. It really feels like paradise there

I had a great week with the owners Viola (from Germany) and Roland (from Switzerland), Stephan, an old friend of Viola’s, and Bianka, his mum, and various other guests who either left just after I arrived or arrived shortly before I left. Everybody was so nice, the atmosphere very relaxed, the dinners a lot of fun, the food really good, and the SCUBA DIVING simply PHANTASTIC!!!  I saw so much on every single dive: small fish, big fish, lots of white-tip reef sharks, one (unfortunately injured) leopard shark, one grey reef shark, turtles once in a while, lots of nudibranches, anemonefish, garden eels, triggerfish, trumpetfish, boxfish, cute pipefish, pufferfish, porcupinefish, fire dartfish, shrimps, a few banded seasnakes and moray eels, etc. I saw so much it was amazing! I went scuba diving every day, except Sunday (no diving on Sundays); usually we did two dives in the morning. I went diving first with Jone (divemaster from Fiji), then with Roland, then with Geri-Sue (divemaster from California) and then with Jone again. They were all really good and Jone is quite charming I must admit   We did the great WHITE WALL, the PURPLE WALL, Rainbow Passage, Jerry’s Jelly (twice), the LEDGE, Jacks’ Place, Cabbage Patch, Sam’s Place and Annie’s Bommies – all dive sites on the Rainbow Reef in the Somosomo Strait and all great

http://www.divetheworldfiji.com/taveuni-diving-sites.htm

Furthermore, we did two amazing trips – one to Kioa island where  people from Polynesia (from Tuvalu originally) live and one to the Viani school where the children performed various “meke” for us. A Fijian “meke” is the name for a traditional dance of the indigenous people of Fiji; it is a combination of dancing and repetitive rhythmic chanting/singing telling stories of everyday life in the village. Both trips were absolutely touching and amazing!!!

I had a truly wonderful week – thanks to Viola, Roland, Jone, Geri-Sue, Stephan, Bianka, Apex, and the wonderful staff at Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat :)  THANKS A LOT FOR EVERYTHING!!!

PS: And Rainer back in Dornbirn – thanks for recommending this place!  And Gabriele – thanks for recommending Rainer!

Flying to Taveuni for 1 week

Yesterday was one of those days that went by quickly although nothing exciting happened: Back in Nadi, I simply did my laundry, went to the supermarket & ATM, wrote a recommendation letter for a former student, started replying to your emails (sorry, I seem to be backlogged all the time) and ended up chatting with Sonja – a good friend who is traveling in Central America with her boyfriend Christian - on the internet instead. …one of those days that one doesn’t necessarily think of when thinking about traveling, but which are definitley part of traveling if you travel for an extended period of time.

Today I packed my backpack, put some stuff in storage and checked out. Now I’m quickly updating my blog and at 2 pm I’m flying to TAVEUNI, an island in the northeast of the main island here in Fiji. I’ll be staying there for a week to pretty much only go scuba diving   Where I’ll be staying there is not much else to do and that’s why I’m going there: to dive at Somosomo Strait and the Rainbow Reef, hopefully including the famous GREAT WHITE WALL…

http://www.divetheworldfiji.com/taveuni-diving-sites.htm

http://www.taveuniislandfiji.com/guide/rainbow-reef-fiji.cfm

I’ll be staying at Dolphin Bay Divers Retreat and am not sure if I’ll have internet access there…

http://www.dolphinbaydivers.com/

I’ll get back to you by the end of next week before leaving Fiji and heading to New York City (via LA) on March 29.

The Blue Lagoon, village & school visit, and scuba diving in the YASAWA ISLANDS

I spent the last 7 days ISLAND HOPPING in the YASAWA ISLANDS which was great

On Wednesday I went to the northernmost resort that can be reached by the Yasawa Flyer, to Oarsman’s Bay Resort. It was very quiet there, but the few people I met were very nice.

On Thursday I went snorkeling in the BLUE LAGOON (yes, the one from the movie), and I was the only one there! At first it felt a little strange, but then I really enjoyed it. The snorkeling (snorkelling for the British) there was amazing! I saw 3 cute trumpetfish, a brown boxfish and lots of other reeffish  

In the evening we drank “KAVA” with some of the staff. Here on Fiji the people seem to drink it a lot – it helps to relax. Apparently “kava” is one of the reason for the very relaxed way of the Fijians. I was thinking someone should introduce this drink to people living in New York City

On Friday I went to visit a VILLAGE (Nacula village on Nacula island) and a SCHOOL. You are only allowed to visit villages here in Fiji if you are “invited” and so we went there with a local guide. It was very interesting and the children at the school were lovely. They sang for us and were so well behaved and simply adorable!

In the afternoon I left on the Yasawa Flyer and went to the Octopus Resort on Waya Island. I liked it so much there that I ended up staying the remaining 4 nights. Again, I met a lot of very nice people and went scuba diving five times. Esava, the divemaster I went diving with, picked very nice places and on the last day we went to a deserted beach in between the two dives for our break. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t great, but I still had a really good time there!  On Monday I went snorkeling with Marni, Mark, and Joe – not the calmest sea, but we had fun. In the evening we had even more fun at the “International Crab Race“. I bought two crabs, #18 and #31, but neither of them won   It was hilarious, though! I could have easily stayed there longer!

Relaxing at the beach in Khao Lak

I’m back from the third liveaboard in the Similan Islands and Richelieu Rock this season – it was great, although I got a sinus infection the day we got on the boat and couldn’t do a lot of dives At first I wasn’t too happy, but then, hey, what you’re gonna do – be miserable the whole trip? Well, I decided if I can’t dive that much, it’s more of a boat trip with good food, great company, and phantastic sunsets And I did get to do a few dives after all: one at Koh Bon, one at Richelieu Rock (still my favorite dive site!), and one at the Boon Sung Wreck – my first wreck dive – loved it!!! The boat this time was pretty full: 24 divers - the usual Western European mix, one Australian, and one American who lives in Brussels. Really nice people No complaints! The crew was great, too – love them all: Vic (New Zealand), Leo (the Netherlands), Abraham (Mexico), Tik (Thailand), and Vickie (Thailand) as well as the captain, P Nok (cook), P Pa (cook’s assistant), and the other people working on the boat. I got to dive with Tik, my favorite divemaster, again and loved it! Tik rocks!

So now I’m back in Khao Lak and will spend a few days at the beach here – until I get my flight to New Zealand sorted. Changing my flight from Jan.29 to Feb.4 or 5 proves to be more difficult than expected - I’ll let you know the date as soon as I know it…

SCUBA DIVING – 3rd liveaboard in the Similan Islands: Jan. 23-27

I enjoyed my second liveabord in the Similan Islands on the Manta Queen so much that I decided to GO AGAIN – so I’ll be going on my THIRD LIVEABORD (Jan. 23-27) in the Similan Islands with Khao Lak Scuba Adventures on the Manta Queen this season – leaving tonight :)

On the last liveaboard (Jan. 18-22) everything was wonderful: the scuba diving, the crew, the people, the food, the boat, the weather. Even though we didn’t see any “big fish”, i.e. sharks, manta rays, and whalesharks, I had a truly wonderful time! I could get used to this lifestyle

PS: Due to this change of plan I’m trying to change my flight to New Zealand from Jan. 29 to Feb. 4; hope it works out.

PPS: I’m sorry I haven’t replied to many of your e-mails in a while – I’m totally backlogged! Sorry! I’ll try to catch up and respond before I leave Southeast Asia and head to New Zealand!

SCUBA-DIVING – PART II: liveaboard Jan.18-22

I’m so excited - I’m going scuba diving again with Khao Lak Scuba Adventures here on Thailand’s West coast

I’ll be on the boat Manta Queen from Jan. 18 – 22, 2009. I’ll be doing 4 dives a day the first 3 days and then 2 dives on the fourth day – at the Similan Islands, Koh Bon, Koh Tachai, and hopefully Richelieu Rock (my favorite) if the weather is good and the sea calm enough to go there – which wasn’t the case the last two trips from what I heard. I’m really looking forward to this second liveaboard and hope it’ll be as good as the one back at the beginning of November If you want to know more about the company, boat, dive sites, etc. check out their website:

www.khaolakscubaadventures.com

By the way, I uploaded some more pictures this week, but they’re still from back in November when I was traveling in Laos. My favorite pics are the ones from the Gibbon Experience – staying in a treehouse and zipping through the jungle for 3 days :)

Take care!

LIVEABOARD – DAY 4 and OBAMA is president-elect

Today we only had 2 dives, the first at Koh Tachai, and the second at Koh Bon. Koh means island, by the way. Both dive sites had a current (Stroemung) and I’m happy that I’m getting better at diving with currents; I feel I’m starting to get the hang of it On the last dive we saw a banded sea snake swimming past us  – quite amazing  And here is what wikipedia says about this snake:

“These snakes are very dangerous and can kill you if you get bitten, as they can deliver 10 – 15 mg of venom – of which 1.5 mg is sufficient to be fatal (the venom is about ten times more potent than the Rattlesnake. As they have small, undeveloped fangs, they are known to cause a rash on the attacked area, which consists of small little bumps. Fortunately, most members of this family are docile, and scuba divers commonly encounter this snake with no problem, though they can be curious and approach the diver.”

Well, fortunately, the snake we encountered was not curious and just swam past us in a very elegant manner…

Around noon we left Koh Bon and headed for Khao Lak. Getting closer to the mainland cell phones were working again and so we finally found out who the 44th president of the United States was going to be: OBAMA!!! I was delighted and I could barely believe that he really made it

As we arrived at the harbour around 15:30 it rained, well, actually it poured. I started to wonder when this year’s rainy season was going to end?! We got off the boat, got our shoes back, and drove back to the dive school in Khao Lak. Then I picked up Priska from her dive school, the Seadragon Dive Center, where she had just finished her “Open Water”. 3 days ago she had moved to the NANG THONG BAY RESORT at the beach and I was going to stay with her for the next couple of days – as sharing a room is cheaper. And you won’t believe what an amazing room we got for only 800 baht (a little more than $20, less than 20 euros), simply amazing!!! Especially as I had been staying in dorms (Schlafsaal) with shared, cold showers and outdoor basins before!

At 8 pm I take Priska to meet Davide, Sebastien, Antonio, Dirk and David and we go out for dinner (Jai restaurant) - a fun evening, but after dinner I’m all of a sudden so tired that I almost fall asleep at the table…

LIVEABOARD – DAY 3: RICHELIEU ROCK – the best!

So, it’s true: Richelieu ROCKS!!!

Today we did all 4 of our dives at Richelieu Rock and it was GREAT!!! There was a current each dive, but I consider it good practice. It’s unbelievable how much variety there is at this amazing dive site; you don’t know where to start looking: the different types of anemones and the various fish that live with them amaze me and then there is so much more to see. One of the most fascinating moments for me was when we saw 2 sepia (cuttlefish) swimming around us, not being bothered by our presence at all. I could have watched them forever, but there was more to see and so we moved on…

At the end of the 2nd dive I got stung by a jellyfish in the back/hollow(?) of my left knee (Kniekehle); so I got some vinegar from the cook and that helped!

Today’s nightdive was changed into a sunset dive and that was a truly lovely dive, we even saw an octopus

Unfortunately, Jenna got sick after the 3rd dive and so she got my bottom bed and I had to move to the guys’ 4-bed cabin with Sebastien and Davide for the last night And before I fell asleep, I thought once more: RICHELIEU ROCKS

LIVEABOARD – DAY 2: Similan Islands + SWIMMING with TURTLES!

Another great day, pretty much the same as yesterday:

Dive # 1: Shark Fin Reef

Dive # 2: Elephant Head Rock

Dive # 3: Three Trees: lots of stressed-out triggerfish  and later 2 leopard sharks

Then we leave the Similan Islands and head North.

Dive # 4: NIGHTDIVE – Koh Tachai

But the coolest thing about today was the break after lunch: The cook threw the leftovers from lunch into the water which normally only attracts fish, but this time also TWO TURTLES swam to our boat and then we all jumped into the water with our masks and snorkels and we were SIMMING WITH THE TURTLES! The smaller one was a little shy, but the bigger one kept coming back, swimming towards us repeatedly. I must admit I was a little scared at first because the turtle was quite big (you’ll see the pictures soon!) and it kept swimming towards me (I thought it was going to bump into me or bite me or something like that) and the other people snorkeling. But once I realized that it was a very friendly turtle I became more relaxed and started to touch it as it swam by. Later I became so fascinated by the turtle that I started feeding it a banana. It was one of the most amazing moments in my life, to watch this turtle so closely. It was almost unreal! I spent one hour in the water – until we had to get back on the boat for the next dive briefing. PICTURES WILL FOLLOW

By the way: Alles Gute zum Geburtstag, Mama!

LIVEABOARD – DAY 1: Similan Islands

WHAT A GREAT DAY!  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE SCUBA-DIVING ON LIVEABOARDS

7:00: wake-up call and small breakfast for those who want; I don’t I sleep until the 2nd wake-up call = briefing

7:30: briefing

8:17-9:02: DIVE # 1 – East of Eden

9:30: breakfast

11:00: briefing

11:44-12:28: DIVE # 2 – West of Eden

13:00: lunch

then sundeck or trip to the beach of one of the Similan Islands - sundeck for me

14:45 briefing

15:23-16:20: DIVE # 3 – Anita’s Reef

17:00: snack

18:30 briefing

19:14-19:49: DIVE # 4 (NIGHTDIVE with torches) – Honeymoon Beach

20:30: dinner

WHAT A DAY! The diving was really good!!! The instructors are competent and nice! The Thai staff is super-friendly and super-helpful! The food is delicious and plenty! The boat is comfortable! I’M LOVIN’ IT!