Komodo: Island of Dragons
We were very lucky to visit this port of call, as not many people get to come here and say they’ve seen Komodo Dragons in the wild. There are such rigid restrictions here that you can’t even go ashore unless you are on a tour with one of the local park guides. The entirety of Komodo Island is a national park, and there’s really not much there at all as far as cars and buildings go. In fact I didn’t see either of these when we were there. When you arrive on shore, there is just a covered tent where the guides meet you to take you on a hike through their dragon-filled forest. The other crazy thing is that you’re not allowed on the island if you have any open wounds or if you’re a woman who has her period because the dragons have that keen of a sense of smell. Yikes!
The ship anchored off shore and we took tender boats in to meet our guides. They organized us into smaller groups and led is into the jungle in search of some dragons. During our hike, we saw several Komodo Dragons, and they sure are huge. They can measure up to 11 feel long and weigh up to 300 pounds, making them the largest lizard in the world. They can also run as fast as a dog and have the ability to bite a goat in half. As you can imagine, we stayed behind the guides during this trip!
After our hike, we had to head right back to the ship, which wasn’t bad because we could enjoy the stunning view of the island from out on the water. After leaving Komodo, we headed toward the Indonesian island of Lombok, which is Bali’s next door neighbor. More to come!
