Hi Everyone,

Actually this is the second blog on Lembeh--other one is somewhere in the Internet ether !!!

Anyway,enough about my calloused finger! I'm back in Kuala Lumpur,trying to figure out where to go next,'cos I'm getting a tad low on funds--the recession and weak pound has taken it's toll--well,that, and 90 dives since I started out!!

I'm still hoping to do the Similans liveaboard,but that may mean finding somewhere cheapish to hold up for a week or two--Thailand,I suspect?A week just lounging by the sea would be nice,or maybe Chaing Mai? Oh well,booked into my hotel for another couple of days,so no immediate rush.

Right! I did decide not to do any more diving on Bunaken,but suckered into a bit of snorkelling---mistake!!!---I managed to burn my back and now it's peeling in places--most annoying.....and itchy!.Then the lads working at OceanStar resort decided I should have a leaving party.I would NOT recommend drinking the local Palm wine mixed with Bintang beer---does nothing for your appreciation of the local countryside,or culture(at least for the next day,anyway!).

I was going to just head off on local transport to Lembeh,but was warned that getting to the Island(or at least a particular resort) was not easy--each resort is in it's own bay,with it's own boat transport,so you can't just get to the Island and then wander from resort to resort,until you find one that suits(the usual method) as no roads!!!

Anyway,I struck lucky, as I discovered the Dive resort just along from me had a sister resort on Lembeh,and was able to organise the trip with the very helpful receptionist.

A car picked me up from Manado,and drove me to Bitung Harbour,to be greeted by the sight of total confusion;boats pushing and shoving for a place on the jetty.Somehow my little boat managed to squeeze itself in,and I was on my way.

No diving on my arrival,though.....still recovering from the party!!

First dive,I descended near a large anemone,with a schoal of Bangai CardinalFish over it.Woohooo!! I thought....first dive and I find the rare fish,endemic only to Lembeh.Hummm!! Turns out that the little perishers are everywhere--almost background fish!! That said,they are very attractive....which is more than can be said for most of the strange critters I was to encounter during my week on the Island.

For an underwater photographer,this place is Heaven.....every dive,something new,strange and exotic.(a small sample in the Photo bit of this Blog--and,hopefully,in the video section).

There are a few coral dives,but most are onto black or grey sand,with a sparse covering of algae,eel grass,or rocks.The technique is usually get down and dirty,----skimming along just over the sand,picking through any lumps of rubbish with a metal rod.Doesn't sound appealing,but when you uncover some really unusual beasty,it's amazing how exciting it is.(Yes,I know,I am a sad person!!).

Main problem was my camera (Hmm? A bad workman blames his tools?),which is virtually completely automatic....no manual override,which may have made the difference in the quality of the close up stuff.Still,I know what they look like,so that's the important thing.As you'll see,some of the pictures are rather soft focus---I may be able to tighten them up a bit with PhotoShop when I get home,but I'm afraid you'll have to put up with the less than perfect originals.

Well,I'm going to give uploading some piccies now,so-

Cheerio for now,

Alec.

Update--at KL airport,waiting to fly to Phuket,hoping to meet up with Dive friend for a beer or two before heading for thr coast.I'm hoping they will be able to give me some clue as to the cost of staying at Khao Lak (the starting point for liveaboards to the Similan Islands),if it is too expensive,I'll head for the Blue Andaman Resort on Ko Lanta-to see my friend,the owner/manager,Mr E..