Wake up at 3:00 am to get ready for our 5:45 am flight to Bali, where we landed a bit after 8 am. Much to our delight we had our BMKG friends waiting for us, and they had already got the boarding passes for the next leg of the trip at 11:15 am. There was just enough time for them to take us to breakfast in town, Denpasar, which reminded me what a handsome town it is. Truly, Bali is a paradise and has a well-earned reputation for friendliness and beauty.
The next jump brought us to Labuan Bajo, a charming coastal town on the west side of the island of Flores, where we landed at 1 pm. Ibu Maria, the head of the BMKG Meteorological Station met us at the arrival gate and took us out to lunch. We then stopped at the office, where we visited the operations room (looks like we will have some steady wind from the southwest and a good forecast for our sailing trip), and added Ibu Vicey and Pak Adit to our group. They were all curious to find out what kind of hotel I had booked through Booking, so we combined a sightseeing tour of the bay with an exploring expedition.
The bay at Labuan Bajo is spectacular. It is not very big, but the boats hang unto it like colorful brush strokes framed by small islands. It is a glorious place that calls for a good tourist crowd. As we came down from the mountain we wrapped our way down to the coastal road, which is dotted with charming tourist traps and places to eat. I am no longer the only bule (i.e., foreigner) in sight, and tourists walk from shop to shop with easy abandonment, or ride their scooters in the comparatively free streets of downtown.
The hotel exists, 5 km south of downtown (too far to walk) and at the end of a long dirt road that seems to head into nowhere. But it is clean and roomier than our last place, so we checked in, dropped our bags, and our merry little band went for a drive to Land's End at the north tip of the bay, where we found a suitable cafe on top of a cliff, and enjoy an easy conversation about life in paradise. Vicey (pronounced Feechee) speaks very good English, and I am beginning to tune my ear to Indonesian, so in half speech we had a good time looking at the early sunset. We were having a good time, but sadly thought we needed to get back to the hotel for an early night, since tomorrow we will start at 4 am, on a 3-day sailing trip to Padar Island and Komodo Island, where we expect to catch a glimpse of the enormous lizards.
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