05 Sep - 15 Sep 2011 Tanjung Karang

Southeast Asia
Republic of Indonesia
Central Sulawesi
Donggala
Tanjung Karang
Prince John Dive Resort +6245771710 kontakt@prince-john-dive-resort.com
Comfortable and clean stilt bungalow (see price list), with a spacious private verandah, Western toilet and Indonesian mandi, in an unbeatable location overlooking the dive-resort’s pristine coral reefs; wifi included.

Click below for an interactive road map of the Prince John Dive Resort in Tanjung Karang, which we would highly recommend, and for directions:
S 00° 38.89' E 119° 44.32'


Arriving from an exciting and successful u/w photo excursion to the western shore of the Gulf of Tomini and enjoying the second half of our stay at the Prince John Dive Resort +6245771710: (i) hanging out on the resort’s picture-perfect beach and recharging our batteries, (ii) being spoiled by the most attentive and helpful service team (many thanks to Evi, Arnati, Firah, Ahso, Ari and all the others) and, again and again, (iii) talking shop (facilitated by even more ice-cold Bintangs for INR 35,000.- or US$ 3.85 per 0.62-litre bottle) about international travelling, scubadiving and u/w photography with the other inmates of the Prince John Dive Resort, mostly enthusiastic snorkelers and experienced scuba divers from all over Europe and Australia.



Climbing up the 1907 CE, shaky 21-m high skeletal tower of the Tanjung Karang Lighthouse (located on a prominent cape on the west side of the entrance into the narrow Gulf of Palu), enjoying sweeping views over the gulf and ascertaining the (diesel-generator driven) light characteristic: GpFl.(4)W25s.
“There are times when the ocean is not the ocean - not blue, not even water, but some violent explosion of energy and danger: ferocity on a scale only gods can summon. It hurls itself at the island, sending spray right over the top of the lighthouse, biting pieces off the cliff. And the sound is a roaring of a beast whose anger knows no limits. Those are the nights the light is needed most...”


Having a close encounter with a shoal of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) which surfes majestically through the water, only 30 m off the dive resort’s beach.




DM Konni: Freelancing as bilingual dive master and accompanying the international guests of the Prince John Dive Resort +6245771710 to their favourite u/w playgrounds, beautiful coral gardens/walls and exciting wrecks; many thanks to divers Arlyn, Christine, Constanze, Heike, Jana, Silke, Andreas, Arthur, Dominik, Joop, Martin, Peter, Thomas and Tobias.



DM Konni: Nightdiving thus tiptoeing on my fins to the sleeping u/w creatures in the Gulf of Palu and whispering through my regulator only the sweetest dreams into the little ones’ salty gills (once a granny always a granny): “Blub-blub-blub…”


 Dieting on a delicious local fruit basket: (i) sweet custard apples (sugar apples), (ii) healthy soursops aka sirsak, whose flavour can be described as a combination of strawberry and pineapple with sour citrus flavour notes contrasting with an underlying creamy flavour reminiscent of vanilla, (iii) fig-shaped snake fruits aka salak, named after their reddish-brown scaly skin, (iv) langsats which taste like a “perfect” grapefruit without any hint of bitterness, and (v) the loved/hated durians which helped us to polarise between “them" and "us.”



Saying our goodbyes, hitting the exciting, rough-and-tumble Indonesian road again and continuing with our usual life as independent travellers, thus disentangling ourselves from the prevalent German virtues (between angst and zeitgeist) of the previous four weeks in the well-organised Prince John Dive Resort +6245771710; many thanks to PADI IDC Staff Instructor Alex for his cool professionalism and warm hospitality, ganz wunderbar!



Stopping two ojeks and riding pillion, backpacks tied to the motorbikes’ tanks and daypacks on our own backs, from Tanjung Karang to Donggala’s bus/taxi terminal (INR 5,000.- or US$ 0.55 per person or ojek, respectively) and thereafter taking a battered shared taxi (INR 25,000.- or US$ 2.75 per person) straight to our next hotel in Palu.


2011 Map Konni & Matt

 Visit the Konni & Matt Online Albums and order high-res travel photos
Konni & Matt Travel Photos


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