Location: Arborek Island, Raja Ampat
After days in transit and getting through immigration in Sorong, it was a sweet feeling awakening this morning to a beautiful anchorage in Raja Ampat itself! We sit next to Arborek island, with beautiful reefs, rumours of manta rays, and friendly villagers. A lie-in until 8 am was well deserved, but no more of the day was wasted, getting through marine biology class, some rescue diving exams, and EFR class. The water beckoned, and soon, we were out snorkeling by the piers and jetties of the island. The beauty of the reef grabbed attention as soon as we dipped below the waters surface – the corals were healthy and oozed vibrant colours, schools of batfish circled, parrotfish roamed, surgeonfish darted, clownfish hid in their safe anemone homes, ornate sweetlips posed, scorpionfish lurked, and so many more. Every nook and cranny showed a glimpse of another world within. The afternoon was filled with more snorkeling and more hang-out time on a lazy Sunday, respected as a day of no work in the village. Then there was free time to explore the island ashore, seeing the life of locals on their holy day, with cats to pet and football being played. The day finished with delicious fried chicken and eggplant katsu cooked by Josh and his chefs. Diving tomorrow!