TRAVEL: Raja Ampat, Night Dive (Day 5/6, 10-27)

The days run together, so busy we stay. We have crossed the dateline and it's a day ahead, adding to my pleasantly confused haze.  I have found I cannot eat spicy food or a lot of it without getting sick.  No desserts are served and so I manage with rice, chicken, and there's always soup.  Losing weight. Still cloudy and I've skipped another snorkel to catch a nap. 

RL* Wobbegong shark ,   his camouflage hides him so magnificently.

Nudibranchs - who knew?  Look at these fabulous creatures.  They look soft like chenille and tiny stuffed animals, and the colors!      

RL*

RL*

RL*

RL* Juvenile Oriental sweetlips  - the juvenile has is black and white with spots and wriggles around comically like a puppy. It's actually a warning behavior; they are poisonous.

RL* Oriental Sweetlips  - the dominant sighting on the reef, along with rabbit fish and butterfly fish.

RL* - what is this?  Egads, it looks like The Fly come back to life, but Pete tells me it is not, it is a mantis crab.  It's eyes are placed close together for better vision

RL*

RL*

RL*

RL*

RL*

RL*

I think this is a crab eating a lobster, but it is not, it is actually a hermit crab that has placed 3 anemones on itself for protection,

RL*

As the sun set, we entered the water around a jetty equipped with flashlights for a night dive.  I wasn't afraid of being in the water at night, but the jetty area was narrow and there were 11 of us diving.  Pete said it was mostly about getting kicked in the face with people's fins.  Whatever there was to see I didn't, not wanting to risk being kicked. These are Ron's photos: