Bali - Nusa Penida

Hello everyone,

I know there has been a long blog break recently, but I had a lot to explore and several stops in Bali. The longest stop I had so far was on the island of Nusa Penida. This island is the closest island to Bali and is especially known for the 'Manta Point'. A cleaning station for manta rays, which is not very deep and therefore a popular destination for snorkelers and divers.

Since I overestimated my time in Bali a bit and somehow ended up staying here longer, and I don't spend my time like other people on beaches, I thought if I'm already here, I might as well find out how much the Advanced Open Water Diver course costs and where the best dive sites on the island are. After deciding on a dive school, I went from Sidemen to the port in Padang Bai. From here, I booked one of the fast ferries to Nusa Penida.

After an excessively expensive ride with the owner of my last homestay in Sidemen, where we also tried to find the spare part for the broken fan (unsuccessful, of course), I arrived in the port town of Padangbai 4 hours before the scheduled departure of the ferry. The fan and the ride cost me a total of 300,000 Rupiah, which is about 18 €. That's not a lot by our standards, but compared to the other offers, it wasn't the best decision. So far so good - sometimes I also make the wrong decisions.

Upon arrival in Padangbai, I treated myself to a coffee and did some reading.

Then it was time to check in for the ferry, and I waited another 30 minutes there. After some really disorganized calls and indications that the ferry is now departing and that I still have to do another check-in despite my first check-in, I managed to catch the ferry in a rather sweaty manner. Since it was a cloudy day and I had just put on some sunblock, I decided to sit on the roof of the ferry. Let's just say it wasn't the smartest idea in several ways.

-- > I assumed that the ferry would depart on time. Wrong thought, because it was 30 minutes late. --> Including the delay, I was broiling in the shade for 1.5 hours. --> Somehow, my sweat managed to dissolve the white color of the benches I was sitting on, which then stuck to my shorts and shirt in a cartoon-like fashion. --> Unfortunately, I only noticed this when I took off my pants in the evening and wondered why the hell there were white bars on them. Ah well, just another typical day for me!

The advantage of my involuntarily long stay on the ferry deck: I was able to watch a classic Balinese cockfight from a distance and discreetly observe the locals as they placed bets and released the poor animals against each other. I have no idea how they determine which rooster won in the end, and I really don't want to know, as it looked very brutal even from a distance, and I felt sorry for the animals. The fights and bets are completely legal here in Bali and have a long tradition. I would never have watched the fights on my own, but this way I inadvertently witnessed them.

After a stopover on Nusa Lembongan, I finally landed on Nusa Penida and made my way on foot to the dive shop and my accommodation.

After exploring the accommodation a bit and not being quite happy with the selection (that happens on a trip sometimes), I went to the beach and enjoyed the evening.

The next morning, it was time for the first two dives for my Advanced Open Water Diver course. These included underwater photography and a so-called drift dive. In this drift dive, the underwater current is so strong that the diver doesn't need to swim but drifts along the reef, with the reef moving past like in a movie. For this drift dive, good buoyancy control underwater is crucial, so that the diver can float along effortlessly.

After the first dives, I went for some food and spontaneously received a piece of cake, as it was Valentine's Day, and the boss gave the team a cake. The cake looked much better than it actually tasted - well, don't look a gift horse in the mouth, right? ;)

The next day, we went for two more dives: Perfect Buoyancy and a fun dive at the famous Manta Point.

What an experience! It was simply unbelievable, and these creatures are just graceful and impressive!

The next day, on the last two dives (Navigation & Deep Dive), I went as deep as 30 meters for the first time. And because I'm such a lucky person, on the first dive (Deep Dive), we even saw 3 Mola Mola or Sunfish. Unfortunately, I don't have my own videos or photos of this, as I was not allowed to carry a camera during the course dives. Fortunately, I asked the nice Australian girls if they could send me the video of one of the Mola Molas.

One of these giants even came much closer to me and inspected what kind of strange creatures were swimming in the water, leaving behind those strange bubbles. These creatures are simply WOW! And the eyes are so big, describing them as 'googly eyes' is the best way to put it.

In the next dive (Navigation), we even saw a thresher shark, and I have to say that I'm just a damn lucky person.

After completing the diving course, I took a day off and spent a day at the pool or in a beach club.

Since I didn't have anything better to do on the island, as the best attractions are various beaches, I decided to do 3 more dives. And now I will introduce you to some of my new marine friends:

Threespot Angelfish

I'm telling you, these were experiences that I will never forget in my life, and every single cent and every single minute of this week underwater was simply fantastic! Maybe a career as a dive instructor is an option. Who knows, who knows!

Thanks a lot to Susi and the whole team from Blue Corner Dive - you made these experiences possible!

Wet greetings to all of you!

PS: Anyone who wants to go on a diving vacation, please let me know. ;)