Raja Ampat- Birds of Paradise, coral gardens, manta rays & fantasy islands
~ 22 May 2012 (369 days ago)
Raja Ampat, the Four Kings, are islands on the north western end of West Papua. The 4 main islands Waigeo, Salawati, Batanta & Misool, form the 'core' but there are actually more, & during this trip Tiger Blue sailed the area around Waigeo, Gam, Kawe & Wayag, all to the north. I did 2 separate trips out to this area( beginning of February & end of February), the second included the island of Piai, the island sanctuary set up for Green Turtles, & the wonderfully surprising Straits of Kabui.
I cannot even begin to explain just how beautiful & remote this part of the world is. Not only remote but devoid of people. In Sorong, the port of entry into the area, there is a thriving economy & a visi... more
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Cendrawasih Bay, West Papua-Whale Sharks, Territorial Tribesmen, Birds of Paradise & otherwise empty seas.
~ 15 Mar 2012 (437 days ago)
Tiger Blue in Cendrawasih Bay, West Papua, Indonesia
In 'The Malay Archipelago' published in 1869, Alfred Russell Wallace describes the Papuan personality. "He is implosive, & demonstrative in speech & action. His emotions & passions express themselves in shouts & laughter, in yells & frantic leapings. Women & children take their share in every discussion, & seem little alarmed at the sight of strangers & Europeans." He goes on to say "If the tide of colonization should be turned to New Guinea, there can be little doubt of the early distinction of the Papuan race. A warlike & energetic people, who will not submit to national slavery or to domestic servitude, must disappear before the white man as surely as do the wolf & the tiger... more
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ILLUSTRATIVE ACCOUNT OF CAPTAIN COLE'S SPLENDID ACHIEVEMENT IN THE CAPTURE OF THE ISLAND OF BANDA
~ 23 Aug 2010 (1007 days ago)
The Island of Amboyna having been captured by a naval force, under the orders of Captain Tukcker, Rear-Admiral Drury commanding in those Seas, anxious to place in perfect security so valueble a Possession, directed Captain Cole to receive on board His Majesty's Ship Caroline, a detachment of 130 men, and to proceed with them to reinforce the garrison of that place.
The confidence which had been invariebly reposed by that officer in Capt. Cole, induced him to solicit of the Admiral a discretionary power for an attempt on Banda Neira, notwithstanding the smallness of the force under his orders; to which Admiral Drudy readily acceded, at the same time cautioning Captain cole of the very considerable strenght of Banda, an Island known to be... more
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The Ikat Weaving Process- Sumba, Flores, Alor
~ 16 Apr 2010 (1136 days ago)
The ikat making process is fascinating, even more so when you can see it in Sumba, Flores and Alor. Indonesia, the land of ikats! 'Ikat' means 'tie' and it is in effect a tie dying process where you wrap threads to block out areas in order to create a pattern in the warp of the fabric. On proceeding with the weaving process, as the weft threads are woven in, the pattern then emerges as the fabric is made.
There are plain ikats where just the warp is tie dyed but there are also double ikats where the weft is tie dyed as well to make a much more detailed patterned fabric, and of course, a much more valuable one. The ancient double ikats, of which there are very few surviving are incredibly beautiful a... more
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Banda islands- Christmas 2009-Whole Family Wilkinson!
~ 21 Feb 2010 (1190 days ago)
Christmas 2009
Wilkinson Family trip to Banda
From diary notes
22nd December
15 of us gathered in Kuala Lumpur- Grannie, Sally and Peter with Holly and Sam from London, Bill and Anne with Ben, Lara and Ellie from Sydney, and the 5 of us from Penang. We flew Air Asia to Menado, Sulawesi- 3hours 50 min flight- where we arrived for dinner and quick to bed.
23rd December
Woke at 5am, coached to the airport and flew-1.5 hour flight- over spectacular terrain to Makassar, South Sulawesi, where we had a 3 hour wait. We hung out to J Co Doughnuts and had reflexology. KFC was ordered too! Then we flew onto Ambon- 1.5 hour flight.
In Ambon we all got registered, met Wouter and then whisked off... more
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Ikat Paradise- Wild Adventure! Sumba- Flores- Alor
~ 08 Feb 2010 (1203 days ago)
Sumba- Flores- Alor - 2 families
Ikat Paradise-Wild Adventure!
September 19 - 26th 2009
Diary entries and notes. Rebecca Wilkinson
19th September- This trip started out with an adrenaline rush- and so setting the tone for the whole trip……Spent the night in Bali and an earthquake struck Bali just as we got up. The hotel shook, the pool splashed and we ran downstairs and out of the building. At 11 we left for the airport for our flight to Waingapu on Sumba. It was a steep bank towards the runway and speedy descent. Air thermals pushed as around a little bit but a short landing and we were happy to be out of the plane.
Wouter met us and we went off in 2 vans followed by a posse of souvenir sellers. They were right at the doo... more
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Komodo- April 09
~ 24 Apr 2009 (1493 days ago)
Leaping manta rays, swimming with wild dolphins, plenty of turtles, unbelievably clear waters, strong currents, spring tides and full moon! These were the highlights of another wonderful trip in the Komodo Islands.
This time round we flew straight into Labuan Bajo 
from Bali and we visited Rinca, the park headquarters where we saw very docile but very large sleeping Komodo dragons. It was hot, hot, hot but it was great seeing the islands so green. We normally come in August time when the islands are already brown and dry. The trees were with heavy foliage and lots of bird life. A dawn chorus drifted across the water each morning to accompany breakfast.
The southern end of Rinca was very remote but heavily wooded in comparison... more
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The Far Side Of The World- Raja Ampat
~ 17 Feb 2009 (1559 days ago)
The destination- Raja Ampat, Indonesia.
November 2008.
Where to begin? Firstly that I’d never dived before so I was snorkelling and never been to such an exotic part of the world. Phrases like “trip of a lifetime” often overused, are the only way to sum up an adventure like this one, crystal clear warm seas, stunning sunsets, marine life so abundant and varied that even as a novice I understood how special an area of the ocean Raja Ampat is.
I simply cant tell you about every meal and every adventure there are too many to go into detail, each day had it’s new experience each time in the ocean there were new creatures, and on land there were magnificent tree’s, birds, including hornbills and cockatoo’s, there were orchids and unusual pi... more
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Banda Island Trip-September 25th- October 4th 2008
~ 20 Oct 2008 (1679 days ago)
Family Wilkinson arrived a couple of days earlier into Ambon from Makassar- flying into Makassar direct from kuala Lumpur via Airasia. A very good flight! Then to Ambon, just 1 hour 20 minutes with Lion Air.
The runway at Ambon starts about 10 metres from the sea so landing is pretty exciting when you think you are going to end up in the sea. Because it was raining we had a van waiting for us and took an hour long drive round the bay of Ambon to the harbor. If it were dry it would have been 5 minutes in the van and a 10 minute speed boat ride to Tiger Blue in the habour. 
First impressions of Ambon. It is segregated, the Muslims on one side with all the mosques and the Christians on the other with their churches. Extremely l... more
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Wilkinson-Foster Bima-Komodo-Bali 14th-21st August 2008
~ 13 Oct 2008 (1686 days ago)
Check out the gallery for pictures.
14th August- Families Wilkinson and Foster flew into Bima-Sumbawa from Bali. This was to be the first time that the Fosters had seen Tiger Blue since the start of the project, and obviously our first time together on her with Wouter. We hoped to relax, enjoy her and get to know the crew together. We hopped into a couple of vans and headed to the harbour where the tender was waiting to whizz us along to Tiger Blue anchored in the bay. We were welcomed with cold fresh limes and the friendly crew. Great to see them again. Wouter mentioned that while fueling they had a crew member guarding each rope with a stick. Bima is well known for its rat problem and apparently they are as big as cats. Luckily we did ... more |
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