Pesona Alam Bawah Laut Pulau Menjangan

Pesona Indonesia memang tidak pernah ada matinya, apalagi pesona alam bawah lautnya. Luas laut di Indonesia yang jauh melebihi luas daratannya membuat negara Indonesia unik dan kaya akan keanekaragaman lautnya. Ada banyak sekali pulau-pulau kecil nan indah yang tersebar di seantero nusantara. Salah satunya adalah Pulau Menjangan.

Pulau Menjangan adalah sebuah pulau kecil yang terletak di Bali bagian barat, dekat dengan Pelabuhan Gilimanuk. Untuk menuju ke sana, Anda bisa mengendarai mobil atau menggunakan angkutan umum seperti bus atau bemo yang cukup sering beroperasai dari Singaraja menuju Pelabuhan Gilimanuk ataupun sebaliknya. Dari Gilimanuk, perjalanan dapat ditempuh hanya sekitar 15 menit, sedangkan dari Singaraja, perjalanan dapat memakan waktu sekitar 90 menit sampai 2 jam.

Untuk menyeberang ke Pulau Menjangan, cara termudah dan mungkin terbaik adalah dari Labuhan Lalang. Anda dapat bertanya kepada penduduk lokal ataupun supir bemo dan bus bahwa Anda ingin pergi ke Pulau Menjangan, dan Anda akan langsung dibawa menuju Labuhan Lalang. Di Labuhan Lalang, Anda dapat bertanya kepada petugas yang menjaga dermaga dan mengatur penyewaan perahu, alat-alat snorkeling atau diving, dan juga tour guide.

Waktu yang terbaik untuk pergi menyeberang ke Pulau Menjangan adalah di pagi hari. Jika bisa, sampailah di Labuhan Lalang di pagi hari yang dimana kemungkinan banyak orang lain juga akan datang ke sana dan ingin menyeberang. Nah, pada saat inilah Anda dapat menghemat kantong Anda dengan mengajak group lain untuk menyewa perahu bersama-sama.

Pesona alam bawah laut di Pulau Menjangan masih relatif sehat dimana masih banyak terumbu karang yang kondisinya masih sangat bagus dan tidak rusak. Berbagai snorkeling dan diving spot juga menawarkan berbagai pengalaman yang berbeda dimana Anda bisa menyaksikan secara langsung keanekaragaman bentuk dan warna terumbu karang ataupun ikan-ikan yang ada di sekitar Pulau Menjangan. Sulit dipungkiri bahwa keindahan alam bawah laut di Pulau Menjangan merupakan salah satu yang terbaik yang ada di Indonesia.

Memang Bali bagian barat bukanlah bagian dari Bali yang paling sering dikunjungi oleh wisatawan lokal maupun mancanegara, namun Bali bagian barat khususnya Pulau Menjangan memiliki potensi yang luar biasa untuk dikembangkan dan berhak untuk mendapat sorotan yang lebih luas di mata dunia pariwisata Indonesia. Jika Anda menginginkan liburan di Bali yang memberikan Anda ketenangan dan jauh dari hiruk pikuk Bali bagian Selatan, di sinilah tempatnya. Anda dapat bersantai maupun berolahraga air dengan nyaman dan puas.

Semoga kita dapat mempertahankan kealamian dan keindahan alam bawah laut Indonesia yang luar biasa ini. Jangan sampai Anda ketinggalan dan tidak melihat secara langsung kekayaan yang Indonesia miliki di Pulau Menjangan ini.

Ditulis Oleh:

Ferry Wijaya

Photography: Railroads at Gubeng Station

Railroads at Gubeng Station

Place: Gubeng Train Station, Surabaya

Date Taken: December 22, 2013

Taken with: Olympus TG-2

Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Specifications: ISO 125; 4,5 mm; f/2; 1/60

Description:

- edited using scenes in camera

- rail roads at Gubeng Station in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia

- taken in Sunny Condition

- brick pavements

People are Awesome

Every second in this video is AWESOME.....

Note: Not my travel video....

Photography: Underwater Menjangan Island

Place Taken: Menjangan Island, Bali

Date Taken: December 24, 2013 at 1 p.m.

Taken with: Olympus TG-2

Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Specifications: ISO 100; 4.5mm; f/2.8; 1/400

Decriptions:

- Menjangan Island is located in Western Bali

- The island is very beautiful and the corals and fishes are amazing

- Snorkeling trip would cost around IDR 300.000 per person

- It' one of the best places I have been for snorkeling

Gili Islands - Public Boat Schedules

Public Boat Schedules (Prices and schedules are subject to change; You might have to confirm again at the public boat office on the island)

This the the public boat schedules that you can take from one island to the other in Gili islands.

The Gili islands include three gilis (islands) named Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno, and Gili Air.

This public boat schedules is extremely helpful if you wanna do island hopping in Gili islands.... The price is very affordable compared to chartering a boat.

However, chartering a boat could be a cheaper and more convenient option if you go in a big group.

With these public boats, I found myself not being able to go from Gili Trawangan to Gili Meno and Gili Air on the same day due to the timing of the boat.

Note:
1. A trip from Gili Trawangan to Gili Meno as stated on the schedule also goes to Gili Air
2. A trip from Gili Air to Gili Trawangan (at 3:00 pm) also makes a short stop at Gili Meno

~~~Enjoy you trip to the Gili Islands, Lombok, Indonesia~~~

Hotel Review: Welcome Inn Gili Trawangan

Hotel Review: Welcome Inn Gili Trawangan

I recently stayed at Welcome Inn in Gili Trawangan from December 27-29, 2013...

It's a basic accommodation with only 4 rooms with its own bathroom. The limited number of rooms makes Welcome Inn such a basic accommodation.

Room & Facility: 7/10

It is just a basic accommodation, so don't expect any great facilities. Their facility only includes bedroom with 2 beds, some towels, shower, a balcony, an air conditioner (AC), and a cupboard. Room is quite clean but could be a bit cleaner. If you are only looking for basic place to stay overnight with cheap price, then this could be for you.

Value for Money: 8/10

Well, since it's a basic place to stay, I was charged about IDR 600.000 during the high/peak season. I think they charge about 50% of the price I paid when it's a low season.

Location: 9/10

Welcome Inn is quite well located in the island of Gili Trawangan. It'e only one block from the main road. It's also close to the main strip of Gili Trawangan where activities take place. However, it's quite close to a local market that sometimes I feel uncomfortable walking back to the hotel because I had to go through a "dirty" part of the island.

Staff: 8/10

Staff is quite helpful. During my stay, I only saw one lady who attend to all our needs including making us breakfast and cleaning up our room.

In conclusion, I would recommend Welcome Inn to you who are looking for basic accommodation on the island and don't want to walk too far into the island.

Kecak and Fire Dance at Uluwatu, Bali

Kecak and Fire Dance at Uluwatu, Bali

Video Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Camera Used: Olympus TG-2

Date Taken: December 26, 2013

Snorkeling Tips: How to Prevent Mask Fogging During Snorkeling

Prevent Snorkel Mask Fogging In Four Steps

1. Clean your mask often, and then don’t touch it inside. Clean it with toothpaste, and a toothbrush, not your finger. Apply a small amount of non-abrasive toothpaste, and scrub it in hot water. Rinse it completely in hot water. Do this often.
2. Use anti-fog every time you snorkel. The best is a very mild solution of baby shampoo and water, or an anti-fog product. Spray it in your mask, swish it around and dump it out. DO NOT RUB IT AROUND WITH YOUR FINGERS! Your fingers are oily and dirty. Also, don’t rinse it out with fresh water. You want the mild soap coating on the glass. It helps prevent moisture attachment. That is why you want it to be a very mild solution without perfumes so it does not burn or irritate your eyes.
3. Get as little water in the mask as possible. Shake out any anti-fog or other water drops before using it. Try to have a relatively dry face. Once the mask is on with a good seal, try to keep from removing it and allowing moisture to enter. Try not to clear the mask by breathing inside of it unless you must (that adds moisture). We enter the water with a dry mask, over a dry face, and do not take that mask off at all during the snorkel, if possible. And it works.
4. If all else fails and you are out on the water with a foggy mask, remove it, spit in it, shake the mask around to coat the glass (don’t rub it with your fingers), dump it out, and put it back on, this will generally fix the problem. If you don't have a lot of spit, dilute it with a small amount of salt water to coat the glass.

Source:

http://www.tropicalsnorkeling.com/prevent-snorkel-mask-fogging.html

My Snorkeling Video at Gili Air, Lombok, Indonesia

My Snorkeling trip at Gili Air, Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia.
A lot of awesome fishes even though the corals are in bad condition. I hope we can recover the conditions of under water life at Gili.

For more of my travel adventures, please visit:
www.ferrystraveladventures.blogspot.com

Any question regarding my trips are so very welcomed. It's a great pleasure for me to share my travel experiences with any of you. :)

I travel, I watch, I observe, I taste, I experience...... the world through my adventures.....

Underwater Photography: Corals at Pulau Menjangan, Bali

Corals at Pulau Menjangan, Bali, Indonesia

Taken at: Menjangan Island, West Bali, Indonesia

Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Taken with: Olympus TG-2

Date Taken: December 24, 2013

Description: 

Some beautiful corals you can find when snorkeling at at Pulau Menjangan, West Bali, Indonesia.

Photography: A Fish at Pulau Menjangan

Taken at: Menjangan Island, West Bali, Indonesia

Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Taken with: Olympus TG-2

Date Taken: December 24, 2013

Description: 

One of the many fishes you can see when snorkeling at at Pulau Menjangan, West Bali, Indonesia.

Underwater Photography: The Fish with Sexy Lips

The Fish with Sexy Lips

Taken at: Gili Air, Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Taken with: Olympus TG-2

Date Taken: December 30, 2013

Description: 

This fish kept coming at me and my camera while I was snorkeling off the Gili Air Island. So, I took this chance to take a shot of the sexy lips of the fish. Luckily, I got a quite good shot.

Photography: Ijen Crater Bluefire

Ijen Crater Bluefire

Place Taken: Ijen Crater, Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia

Date Taken: December 23, 2013 at 4 a.m.

Taken with: Olympus TG-2

Taken by: Ferry Wijaya

Specifications: ISO 1600; 7.9mm; f/2.9; 1/2

Decriptions:

- In order to take this picture, we had to do a 2 hour hike up to the top of Mount Ijen and down to the bottom of the crater

- There are only 2 places we can all see blue fire in the world. This is one of them, the other one is in Finland

Hotel Review: Artotel Surabaya

ARTOTEL SURABAYA

Website: http://artotelindonesia.com/detail.php?id=surabaya

"Earth without art is just EH"

What do I have to say about my experience at this hotel?
I stayed here for one night to accompany my friend who came over to Surabaya, the city I live in. The lobby is full of interesting contemporary artsy stuffs and they are pretty interesting. Being at a Christmas time, the decoration was awesome and we kept taking pictures of the decoration. Basically the lobby experience is so fine.

Hotel Quality: 8.5/10
The hotel quality is very good. It's a new hotel in the middle of the city.

Price: 9/10
Since it's a budget hotel, the price is affordable given the fact that it's in the middle of Surabaya city.
We spent about Rp 400.000 per night.

Quality of Stay: 9/10
Great sleep, pretty basic room (quite small but enough), bathroom is clean and looks new, breakfast is awesome with variety of Indonesian / East Javanese foods.

Location: 10/10
It's in the middle of the city so it's easy to go to any other parts of Surabaya.

Breakfast: 9/10
To me the breakfast is awesome since it gives us some good Indonesian breakfasts.... There are some basic Western foods also like omelette station and breads. The Western breakfast is also good. Basic fruits are also provided.

Hotel Staff: 10/10
The hotel staffs are very helpful in attending our needs. We forgot our room key inside the hotel room and the staff was quite nice and helpful. I asked for a scissors and the staff came by very quick to lend me a scissor and even helped me to cut open my new camera box. I think the staffs here are quite well trained.

Overall: 9.5/10
Overall, I had a great great stay here at the hotel and would come back again to stay at this hotel. I would recommend this hotel to anyone and when my friends are coming over to visit me.