Komodo, Indonesia

            Friday, 15 Mar 2019 – The ship anchored at the island of Komodo, Indonesia at 9:00 AM.  Initially, we had not scheduled an excursion for this port; however, later we decided to book one later to use some of our non-refundable cruise credits.  The only excursion available here was “Komodo Dragons.”  In fact, guests were not allowed ashore unless they were booked on one of the ship’s excursions or a private tour.  We were booked on the 9:30 AM departure for a ship’s excursion.

The Striped Shirt Ladies

We awoke at 6:45 AM, even earlier than our alarms chimed.  At breakfast, someone noticed that four women, including Sally, were all dressed in black-and-white striped blouses, and suggested they take a photo together.  After breakfast, we met in the Insignia Lounge at our 9:00 meeting time and soon boarded a ship’s tender for our short ride to the pier.

Komodo is one of the 17,508 islands that comprise the Republic of Indonesia; it has a surface area of 390 square kilometers and a human population of over two thousand.  The people of this island are descendants of former convicts who were exiled to the island.  The island is particularly notable as the habitat of the Komodo dragon, the largest lizard on earth.  It is a fierce and very rare species of reptile that looks like a prehistoric dinosaur.  Often measuring up to 11 feet in length and weighing in at over 300 pounds, this ominous-looking creature, with its sharp, saw-like teeth and menacing eyes, leaves a lasting impression on all who have had the opportunity to see it up close.  The Komodo dragons live on deer and wild pigs that inhabit the island and are surprisingly agile when covering short distances; they can climb trees and are good swimmers.  They can smell prey five miles away.  About 5,000 Komodo dragons survive today (about 2000 on Komodo Island), with only about 350 breeding females.

Komodo Dragon Statue

Our tour group 2, consisting of 18-20 passengers, was led by Rofinus, who was assisted by 2 or 3 rangers.  The job of the rangers was to help protect us from the dragons.  Our exploration of Komodo National Park commenced with a safety briefing and tour overview by the “head” guide.  Before departing the ship, we had already been warned to stay with our group at all times, not to carry or wear any RED items, and not to get close to, or feed the dragons.  As Komodo Dragons are easily attracted to blood, guests with any type of open wounds or bleeding were encouraged to stay onboard.  The have shark-like teeth and poisonous venom that can kill a person within hours of a bite.  Probably the most recent death occurred in 2009, when a 31-year old man was attacked by 2 dragons.  He was rescued by neighbors after hearing his screams; however he had already suffered fatal injuries, and was bleeding from bites to his hands, body, legs, and neck, and died shortly after the attack.

Live Komodo Dragons

As we followed Rofinus along the path, we soon saw 4 dragons resting along the side of a watering hole.  Soon they were joined by a 5th dragon.  The dragons were huge and scary-looking, spewing out their tongues that were forked like snakes.  As we continued along the path, we saw several other dragons, as well as a wild boar and a few deer.  Before reaching the pier, we were ushered through a long line of vendor stalls, selling all sorts of merchandise, including small wooden carvings of Komodo dragons.  Jesse thought the dragons were ugly and did not purchase any.

Afterwards, we boarded a tender for the return trip to the ship and were back on board by noon.  We then swam for 30 minutes before hurrying to lunch.  The afternoon was spent napping (Sally) and working on her genealogy book.  After dinner, we danced for a half hour before retiring for the night.