14° Bambooshark, Mantas & Co.

At 6 in the morning, the alarm clock rings, after a quick breakfast I zoom off to the dive base on the scooter. Squeezed into the wetsuit, gathered the equipment and finally on the boat. I have to get used to the waves again and fight a hint of nausea. Fortunately, our doctors have tablets with them. The first dive was incredibly beautiful and perfect to get back into it. At about 20m depth, we let ourselves be enchanted by the underwater world. After 45 minutes, we resurface and head to the most famous dive spot in Nusa Penida, the Manta Point. Thanks to Jan, who leaves his camera on board to increase our chances of encountering mantas, we get to observe 3 of them. The spot is a so-called cleaning station for the mantas, where special cleaner fish remove parasites and clean wounds. And unexpectedly, a bamboo shark swims calmly beneath us. A successful first day of diving! Back on land, we are stuck at the dive base for about 1.5 hours because it's raining heavily.

In the evening, we meet Nik & Geli for a farewell dinner. They will continue to Lombok & the Gili Islands.

Back at the accommodation, we are greeted by a huge, curious gecko. Since he hides behind a large painting, I creatively name him 'Leonardo'. He will be my roommate for the next few weeks.