After a rough crossing on the boat over from Bali we were both a little anxious that we would be spending the next 5 days and 4 nights on another boat. It did not help that there would be 22 other passengers, 12 of them sleeping on the deck. Besides us, the group consisted of 8 French nationals, 6 Belgians, a couple from Wales, a couple from Switzerland, a Brazilian, and Australian, a Dutch woman and a rather loud American. It was strange with so many people in such a small area but it was only at meal times that it felt a little crowded. We all had our little groups, usually broken down by language, and it was even possible to find some alone time. We started with a 2 hour bus ride across Lombok and then got on a boat and were shown to our cabin. Our cabin was really just a closet with a thin mattress on a bunk and another one on the floor. Once we were settled we set sail for Komodo Island with Perama, which offers a Hunting Komodo Dragons by Camera tour.

Our first stop was the Perama Resort Island where we spent some time snorkeling and also played some volleyball on the beach. We had a barbeque and then the crew tried to get us to do karaoke, without much success. After an hour of trying to get us to participate, they finally gave in and we were back on board where we slept while the boat made its way slowly east. The next morning we were up early and did a hike overlooking a crater lake before going back to the boat for breakfast. We made another 2 stops for snorkeling where we saw some nice corals and a lot of fish.

On the second morning we woke up to views of Komodo Island and soon we were ashore where our quest was about to begin. It did not take us long to see our first dragon as it was right on the beach. There was a guy pulling a fish on a string and the dragon was chasing it as a couple took photographs. They were not happy to see a group of 24 come along and the woman kept shouting at us not to get in the picture. Frankly, we were hoping the dragon would get tired of chasing the fish on the string and go after the photographer. We then went on a 2 hour hike into the interior of the island. Throughout our hike, while we were looking for wildlife, all we heard was the American woman yakking away. A few people asked her to be quiet but that only made her talk more since she had to explain that she really didn't talk all that much. We did get to see one more dragon on the hike but it was clear that we were not the first people to see him as he had a GPS tracking device on his neck. We trekked back to the ranger station where we found another dragon stretched out behind the canteen warming himself in the sun. We got quite close, within a meter at times but we resisted reaching out and touching him.

That night we arrived in Labuan Bajo in Flores where we had a party on the boat. Most of the people were leaving except for us and a French/Moroccan guy, Reda and a Belgian man, Stephan and his Dutch traveling companion, Marleen. We were joined by 4 new people: a Kiwi living in America, a Lebanese/American, another Dutch man and a French guy. With only 9 people on board it was a lot quieter going back, especially since the American girl was gone and you could no longer hear her New York accent echoing from every part of the boat. On the way back we stopped at Rinca Island where you also can see Komodo dragons and we were soon treated to a group of 5 of so dragons lying around the ranger office. One dragon tried to make a snack of one of our group but was soon put in its place by our guide and his long dragon killing stick. We trekked around the island and saw a cobra, some monkeys, wild pigs as well as a buffalo that was being hunted by another dragon. The dragons are amazing creatures and can be over 2 meters in length. They only eat once a week but can go a month without food. They live to be about 50 years old but eventually they get too old to hunt and then starve to death or are eaten by other dragons (they also eat their young). We did not stick around to see if the buffalo hunt was successful as it can take days for a buffalo to die after it has been bitten by a dragon. Instead we trekked along stream beds and over some hills enjoying the views of Rinca.

We were then back on the boat and had just one more stop that day on our way back west. The next morning, bright and early, we were on another island this time hiking to a waterfall where I did my first cliff dive into the pool below. OK, it was just over 12 feet high and it was a jump, not a dive, but it was a big step for me as I had resisted all other attempts to hurl myself at the water from any height. I ended up jumping 3 times as Amie tried to get a photo but she only managed to capture a splash each time. After my third jump I was beginning to wonder if Amie was thinking more about my insurance policy than getting the photo so I decided to make do with just the splash photo. A few more hours by boat and we were back in Lombok and after another 2 hours on a bus, we finally were able to climb into a nice soft bed where we slept like babies.

The Perama cruise is pretty basic but you get a lot of for the price. The crew was very friendly, the food was not bad and we knew the chicken was fresh. As we were staying in a “cabin” we got a basket with a beer and Coke and a snack each day so we never went hungry. The return leg from Labuan Bajo is better for dragon sightings since you get to visit Rinca Island but the eastbound journey offers more snorkeling and beach time. The journey was good for most of the time but some people on the deck got pretty wet that first night. There were also rumors of a rat on board but I had no confirmed sightings even though the idea kept me awake at night as I lay on my mattress on the floor. We enjoyed the trip and were glad we did it, but were both happy to get back on dry land.