Diving at Gili Trawangan

Day 5 — Shark Point & Coral Fun Garden

Already the morning of our fifth day since coming to Indonesia. I love this balcony. Even when it's humid, even when a squall is falling, if you just zone out here time slips by before you know it. It's hard to believe that in Japan I was buried in my thesis and part-time job. Today there were two open-water training dives, morning and afternoon. Training, but really it's like a free walk underwater while using what we'd learned from the videos and in the pool, so it's very enjoyable. In the morning we first enjoyed a dive at a spot called Shark Point, where sharks often appear. We took photos today too, but sadly they weren't on the CD-ROM we were given later. There weren't many small fish at Shark Point, and it felt a bit lonely. But it was quite deep, and we could go down to 20 m, beyond the Open Water limit. The water was a little cooler than near the surface, but even so we never felt cold at all.

At lunch we ordered fresh papaya and avocado juices. Being able to enjoy rich fresh juice for under 100 yen is a big attraction of this country, but the avocado juice was so thick that it was less like juice and more like protein cream. I can't say it tasted very good either. The papaya juice, on the other hand, had a tropical feel and tasted good. After this came the afternoon open-water training. The stage for our last open-water dive was Coral Fun Garden. Again we went beyond 20 m. Not only lots of tropical fish, but we also met a sea turtle and, though only one, a shark that swept past, and yet the photos that should have been taken weren't on the CD-ROM, just like the morning's, which was a real shame. If I ever go diving again, I definitely want to bring my own camera in a waterproof case.

After finishing all our open-water training, a walk along the main street. The horses that work hard on this island. Even when their owner leaves the cart on an errand, they wait obediently. Impressive.

To the next day