Leaving my 'Happy Place' (Gili Air), and returning to Tulamben, Bali. The Ferry ride was horrible. It was a smaller boat, and it felt like i was in a tin can.... with no a/c, not even any air circulation. It was actually the first time i ever wondered about a boat sinking and not being able to get out. I put that thought out of my head immediately! When i asked about the a/c, they said there was a problem with the 'engine' ... as if that is supposed to make me feel better ? The seas were rough and we spent 2hrs slamming the waves. It was pretty bad.
See what you think
But everyone survived. Pena could not pick me up, but he sent his cousin, and he was right there when i got off the boat. Another very nice young man. Another 2hrs by car and i was welcomed back at Matahari by many of the staff and a few other travelers that i had made friends with.
The next morning i did 2 dives with Dive Concepts, across the street, where i had been diving before with Darcy. The first day was pretty good, and i enjoyed being back in the water again. It was just me and my 'eyes'. It's way more fun to dive with a friend :(
This is a Golden Shaun, which i never tire of seeing
A fierce little crab that gets points for being so colorful, even if 'prickly' ...
I've never seen this baby before, it's a Juvenile Map Puffer Fish, with that big tell-tale spot on it's side (like the adult).
a different SeaHorse than i've seen before.
a close up of the detail on this critter ! ... that's a lot of 'armor', looks like a gladiator ... WoW !!!
Unusual to see 3 Mexichromis Nudi's together like this ....
a cute little Goby on some coral, blending in nicely ... btw, i saw this myself :)
it's always fun to see something new ... and this is a real beauty .. and large, about the size of a quarter. May be Ceratosoma ? It reminds me of lace petty-coats that used to be worn under dresses.
i love watching how easily it glides over the rocks. This was in very shallow water, and the flashing light is due to the sun hitting the surface of the water and filtering down. I think it is mesmerizing and relaxing to watch.
On one of our dives, we came across an area of rocks that had SO MANY tiny reef fishes, you almost couldn't see through them.
This is a Leaf Scopion Fish, named because it kind of sways like a leaf in the water, which can make it very difficult to photograph.
I am trying to think to take photos at different angles.... this is a face-front view of different Leaf Fish, with lots of 'whiskers'. I see photographs that others have taken, and try to determine 'why' i like them... i'm learning !
Another Leaf ScorpionFish ... very different coloring ... and very well camouflaged ... I saw this fish several times before I actually figured out where the head and eye were :) ...i was looking at the other end :(
Another un-imagineably tiny FrogFish ... i still do not know how they see these babies
and .. it looks like he's crying .. well they look like tears
i don't think i will ever stop posting photos of Shaun ... just too cute not to share. This one is much more 'yellow' than others that i have seen.
and a normal green color one ...
I was very excited when he pointed out this beauty, which i think is Trinchesia sibogae. She looks like she is on fire ! Awesome!
There was a strong current right here ... you can see how it's blowing ...
Mexichromis Nudi
another Nudi, Hypselodoris
This is just a strange looking, kinda scary, colorful crab .. with big eyes
I think this is a RoughSnout Ghost PipeFish ???
Another SeaHorse ...
I pulled away to take this photo, to show how this SeaHorse mimics the coral it living on ...
Check out the green eyes on this Crab ... does anyone remember the song, "Green Eyed Lady" ?
This crab was living at the base of an Anemone and was quite animated. I took many photos of it and i could make a movie of his actions... but i don't know how to do that ... so here is only one :)
another 'you can't find me' crab
Skeleton Shrimp ... so comical looking ..
and a Sexy Shrimp, because it always has it's 'tail' wagging in the air :)
This Mantis Shrimp is all sparkly ... and quietly hiding
Unlike this Peacock Mantis Shrimp that is on the move ... fast ..
I think this is another Peacock Mantis Shrimp, although not the same color. It was SO busy ... doing some digging beneath either side of that large Anemone, back and forth. I watched for a long time, and it didn't seem to care that i was there. And, just kept on doing whatever it was doing. Watch how easily it moves those rocks out of the way.
This Aegires Nudi looks like it's about to do a summersault off the cliff ..
another Shaun :)
i've never seen TWO Moray Eels in the same place ... the one on the left is a White Eye Moral Eel ... not sure about the one on the right ...
a Snowflake Eel ... just it's head. These seemed to be quite common.
and a Long Horn CowFish
an unknown small fish that i spotted and watched for quite awhile, he moved so quickly ... later identified as a Cetoscarus ocellatus juvenile, aka, BiColor ParrotFish, or Spotted ParrotFish. I saw many many ParrotFish in Honduras and Belize; but not that many here in SE Asia. And now ... a Juvenile.
a couple more Nudi's ... Ceratosoma trilobatum
This was an Eel of some sort, that was swimming all around me, and under me ...not bothered by the fact that i was there. I've never seen one like this before.
and at this point i don't know what this is. At the time i took the photo, i thought it was a type of PipeFish, but later i was told it was a juvenile of something else, and now i can't recall what it was ... ugh .. :(
This is a pretty Sea Slugs. They are so fluid, and if they are moving, almost impossible to photograph. A video tells a better story.
More on my last days in Bali on the next post.
dp
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