October 23 - 28, 2022 - Raja Ampat, Papua, Indonesia - People, Places
My husband Philipp and I left Singapore on October 21, 2022 for a quest to Papua, the Western part of the island New Guinea which belongs to Indonesia (Papua New Guinea is the country on the Eastern side, it’s quite confusing to get the naming right).
In three weeks, we plan to visit some of the most fascinating wonders of nature. Most of the days, we lack an internet connection. Which is great. So these little Yuanfen stories will make it to you whenever it will be meant to be. Today, tomorrow or in the weeks to come.
Jakarta, October 21, 2022, 10pm:
The sweat dripped down my back and in a slow stream down the left corner of my nose under the mask.
The night Philpp and I arrived in Jakarta the capital of Indonesia for our connecting flight to Sorong in Papua, the airport train had stopped its service for the night.
We asked around and boarded a crowded free shuttle transport to Terminal 3, evidently the only foreigners and non-staff passenger on the bus.
Honeymoon trip: We are so ready.
The rest of the journey, including a domestic flight, a Grab drive and a ferry, went as smooth as transportation in Switzerland.
Arrival in paradise
On Sunday October 23, 2022 we boarded the Carpe Diem Phinisi Liveaboard in the harbour of Waisai.
Cécile and Agus were not only our dive guides, but together with the crew made sure we had the most amazing Raja Ampat Diving experience.
Our family for the trip was a wonderfully colorful one: Vlad, Michael, Omar and Amelie brought life experiences from Russia, Germany, Kirgistan, France, Peru, Spain, the USA and Singapore with them.
For 5 days, we had 2-4 dives daily and also managed to climb up a look-out to soak in the raw beauty of the iconic Piaynemo Limestone formations.
Visiting the wonders of the sea
The kingdom of Raja Ampat (Four kings in Bahasa) is home to:
around 75% of all corals you find in the world
fascinating species such as the Raja Epaulette „Walking“ Shark or Wobbegong sharks
Every dive is a unique experience.
Is the weight correct for a balanced boyancy in this particular water? Will I be cold? How strong will the current be? How will the conditions be of the underwater world we are going to explore?
After more than 70 dives on our five continents, I was grateful to see the healthy reefs and endless schools of fish surrounding us in Raja Ampat.
And there they were, our Yuanfen moments with the wonders of the sea.
On two (!) night dives we made wonderful encounters with the very shy epaulette „Walking“ sharks. Agus was definitely determined to push our luck and increase the changes of these Yuanfen moments. In the dark, he searched and searched and found them. And took control of our GoPro to film them. Good job.
We were on our way to Sandy Manta, a busy dive site to see Manta Rays, when our boat man pointed towards movement in the water. We stopped and after a short check, the decision was made to descend to this unnamed dive site. Which is now referred to as Manta Heaven. By our group at least.
More than 10 different Manta Rays visited us on that dive.
Yuanfen and encounters with nature
Being out in nature is probably the most humbling of all Yuanfen moments one can seek for.
You can plan as little or as much as possible, (for us, we did the planning of the after-diving itinerary on the day we left Singapore…) but bear in mind, some things cannot be forced.
These Yuanfen moments, encounters meant to be with people, birds, fishes, animals and the wonders of our planet, are shaped by the right time of the day, the right place, right light, right climate, right month of the year and many other things.
It is simply what it is.
Terima kasih Carpe Diem family and Yuanfen for these beautiful encounters. They were truly meant to be and will definitely stay in our memory!
What a paradise 😇 and with a ship like that! My dream too and on my bucket list the cook islands and south pacific! Thank you for sharing 🙏🏻✨ Divine!