Day 53 - Thursday March 7, 2024, Komodo, Indonesia

Arrival 10:00 All Aboard 16:30 Departure 17:00

The only way to leave the ship today is on a ship tour or a private organized tour of Komodo Island. We choose the ship tour.

It is home to the largest lizard on Earth and can only be found in the wilds of Indonesia especially Komodo. Its population is roughly 1,600 roaming the island.

We are greeted by a park ranger from Komodo National Park who provides details on the walk and what we may see. He reiterates that everyone should stay on the path and stay together. The walk took about 90 minutes. Leaving the meeting area, we are provided with bottles of water. It is extremely hot and humid and I am amazed by the number of people who did not bring with water with them.

In 1986 the United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) declared Komodo National Park a World Heritage Site and a Man and Biosphere Reserve. It is home to 72 species of birds as well.

It is not long before we can see many people around a water hole. Yes, we found our first Komodo Dragon. A male and female were just lying there somewhat dazed. The ranger told us not to go past this imaginary line drawn in the dirt. I am not sure what would happen if the dragons started to advance. There is the adage you only need to beat one person.

Continuing through the park we did not find another dragon until we reached the end of our walk. Here we found two others. They had been marked with the initials AG and AA. I'm guessing this is to obtain a count of the dragons in the park.

Everyone is on board and Insignia is beginning to depart for Bali (Celukan, Bawang), Indonesia 310 nautical miles away.