 Mola-Mola Season has pretty much been and gone although (as always) there are still sightings around the Padangbai/Candidasa area - even a few in Tulamben.
ByAnnabel Thomas of Aquamarine Diving Bali Mola-Mola Season has pretty much been and gone although (as always) there are still sightings around the Padangbai/Candidasa area- even a few in Tulamben. However, each year with an ever-increasing number of Bali dive companies offering MM-spotting Trips, the need for the introduction of a Code of Conduct becomes more and more urgent/necessary. Here at AquaMarine, although we do well at finding them underwater and follow a strict Do Not Disturb Policy, we are not experts in MM behaviour when it comes to interference by divers - however it just has to be negative, doesn't it.... There have been whalesharks in Tulamben and on the north coast of Nusa Penida. Seraya has white Tiger shrimps which I think is pretty cool!Qatar Airways will begin flying to Bali in March 2007, and I hear that Bali’s own airline, Air Paradise, which suspended operations at the end of 2006, will start up again in March 2007. They will be resuming their services to (international) Korea, Japan and Australia, and (domestic) Jakarta and Surabaya.April and May are two of the best months for Manta rays on southwest Nusa Penida – why not contact your Bali operator and come over for a long weekend?  Restuning Sandini ‘One for the girls’
Restuning Sandini recently became the first female PADI OWSI in Bali. Restuning did her PADI Divemaster in January 2006, and went on to take the Instructor Development Course and Instructor Exam.Restuning runs a Bayu Cottages www.bayucottages.com in Amed (on Bali’s northeast coast) together with her husband. The hotel is idyllically located right on the sea and guests are able to take a wide variety of PADI programmes while enjoying the whole “Bali experience”.Minni Vansgaard, co-owner of Crystal Divers and the only permanent in-house Course Director in Bali, said “It is a fantastic achievement for Restuning. She has truly broken new ground in becoming the first female PADI Instructor in Bali. Restuning worked so hard, we wish her every success and are so proud of her. ”Restuning said, “ It is just amazing to do the thing you love. The training I received was second to none, has given me new confidence, and has opened up a whole new world of opportunities for me. It was not easy to be both Indonesian and female but I am so glad that I did this. It really is one for the girls.” East Bali Mooring Project
In 2004 mooring buoys were installed at many of Bali's dive sites. Unfortunately most of these did not last and are now gone or badly damaged. This means at some dive sites, due to currents and swells, the loose cables and sunken buoys are causing severe damage to the coral reefs. In addition, many dive boats have started to use anchors again, thus causing even more damage...David Ruland of the Water Worx Dive Center in Padangbai, on Bali’s east coast, is now organizing the repair/replacement of those moorings in order to preserve Bali's precious coral reefs.Every Bali dive operator has been asked to contribute an initial Rp1,000,000. With this it should be possible to repair/replace all damaged/missing moorings, possibly install some more and maintain the moorings for years to come.All dive operators use these moorings and everybody is responsible for maintaining them. Please check the following link to see if the Bali dive operator you use has donated. If not, why not?....www.waterworxbali.com/moorings/funds-and-expenses.shtml If any readers of ScubaGlobe Asia Pacific would like to donate, the details are:
Name Wolfgang Krutz
Bank BCA
Branch KCP
Radisson Sanur
A/c 6700 111 669
SWIFT CENAIDJA If you transfer money towards the mooring project, please send information by SMS to David at +6281338511056 so he can keep track of the incoming funds.If a dive operator encounters a damaged mooring, the damage is reported to David who organizes repairs. Spare parts and tools are available, and all dive operators are encouraged to actively support the project by helping to repair broken moorings.And as a personal aside, I very much like the lack of trumpet fanfare accompanying this project. I sincerely hope this repair/replacement mooring project will be both started and completed swiftly, with few additional expenses, and that the new improved design will make allowances for the 2m tide changes and up to 3m swells encountered on Bali’s east coast. This IS Indonesia: In the Pacific Ocean northwest of the Indonesian archipelago, the sea level is fifteen centimetres above average; in the Indian Ocean south of Indonesia, because of similar forces acting in an opposite direction, the sea level is fifteen centimetres below average, a thirty centimetre differential.(Diving Bali, Pickell and Siagian, Periplus, pg 130)Thank you for helping to make the East Bali Mooring Project a success! |
