Komodo Island

 This is Thursday, March 2nd here on the Island Princess and we are at anchor off the coast of Komodo Island. This is one of the homes of the Komoto Dragon. 

We have not booked a shore excursion here and so we will be enjoying the amenities of the ship.

Mainly this is a national park and a small village is here. Visitors are restricted and you can only go ashore if you have an excursion. The excursions last about 2 hours. They tell you that the walk is over an hour, is over rough terrain at times. The tour will include 25 tourists, a naturalist and 2 rangers. One ranger leads and one follows. These guides each carry a weapon. (I thought the weapon was a gun but have since learned that the weapon is a forked stick.)You must be able to keep up with the group and there are no rest stops. Ken and I felt that this could be a problem for us so we decided not to take this excursion.

Our arrival at Komodo was bright and sunny with temperatures in the eighties and high humidity.

Since we will not be recounting personal experiences I have decided to give you some facts and figures.

Komodo is one of 17,508 islands that compose the Republic of Indonesia and Komodo is almost dead center in the Lesser Sunda Archipelago.The terrain is very hilly and you can see many islands everywhere you look. There is a dispute about the number of islands. The CIA counts 17,000 islands. The NIAS reports 18,307 islands with only 922 permanently inhabited. Indonesia only has names for 8,844 islands in the world's largest archipelago.More than 90% of the planet's earthquakes occur in Indonesia with 81% being big ones.

Komodo is the home of the largest lizard on earth. The park has been proclaimed one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature.It was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991

Komotos can reach 10 feet in length and weigh up to 300 pounds

Komodos are venomous.

They can sprint at 15 mph. They swim and can dive 15 feet and they can climb trees.

Komodos will eat up to 80% of their body weight at a feeding if they have a large kill. They eat carrion, which they can smell 10 miles away. Their sense of smell is the reason that women experiencing menses are told to inform their guide so he can stay close to them. They also dig pits or hide in bushes to pounce on their prey, attacking from underneath.

The redeeming fact is that they eat only 12 times a year.

Dragons may live about 30 years in the wild.

One of the most frequently asked questions by tourists is why the early peoples didn't just obliterate the dangerous Komodo dragons. Reason? Ancient taboos. The original Bajau and Bugis believe ( and many still do) that Komodos are the reincarnation of their ancestors

All of that information plus our age and physical limitations had a great influence on our decision to stay on board. I would have liked to shop at the market which features local crafts and is housed in the ranger station, however you are not allowed on the island unless you are on an approved excursion.

Because we will not be taking our own pictures I have acquired a few from Mr Google.