Day 108, Year 3: Arrival in Labuan Bajo

Date: Hari Senin (Monday), Bulan Agustus 25, Pada Tahan 2008

Weather: Mostly No Wind with More Clouds Than Usual

Latitude: 08 degrees 31.019 minutes S

Longitude: 120 degrees 52.124 minutes E

Location: Labuan Bajo Eco-Village, Flores Island, Nusa Tengarra Province, Indonesia

We arrived in an anchorage about two kilometers from the town center of Labuan Bajo this afternoon. The ‘boat boys” were waiting for us when we arrived wanting to sell us solar (diesel), benzene (evidently this is unleaded petrol), pearls, komodo dragon carvings, and just about anything else you can think of. It is nice in one way to have people who will go get the things we need, but on the other hand it is a little wearing to always be descended upon as soon as you reach a destination. We ended

up hiring one of the boats to take us to the town of Labuan Bajo. It was late in the day, but we got to see the town and had dinner at the Hotel Gardena. Mark and I ordered the snapper hot plate and it was very, very good at a cost of $2 US. Not bad. Labuan Bajo is a crowded, dirty town. Lots of tourists come through here as this is a base for visiting the Komodo islands, but it is a shame that they only see this little segment of Flores. We found it so unremarkable that we have decided to

pull up anchor tomorrow and move on. We discovered tonight when we got back to the boat and paid for the diesel we ordered, plus the beer and Coke we had delivered, that we need more money. These millions of Rupiah just seem to slide right through our fingers.

We’ll talk to our traveling companions in the morning and inform them of our decision to move on. Not sure any of them will be with us tomorrow, but I’m sure they will be following in a couple of days. Within the next day or so, we should see our first Komodo dragons. Can’t wait.

080825 Day 108 Flores, Indonesia–Inca Village to Labuan Bajo

080825 Day 108 Flores, Indonesia–Trip to Labuan Bajo