{"id":6861,"date":"2015-11-18T10:00:04","date_gmt":"2015-11-18T10:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.experiencetravelgroup.com\/blog\/?p=6861"},"modified":"2020-11-02T17:59:51","modified_gmt":"2020-11-02T17:59:51","slug":"alices-family-holiday-indonesia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.experiencetravelgroup.com\/blog\/alices-family-holiday-indonesia\/","title":{"rendered":"Alice’s Komodo Cruise Adventure"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alice and family enjoyed a summer adventure to Indonesia, exploring the best of Java and sailing around magical\u00a0islands west of Lombok. From komodo dragons, to manta rays, to stunning colourful reefs \u2013 here she shares her favourite moments.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

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This summer my husband and I and our two children, Anna (aged 13) and Felix (aged 10), went on holiday to Indonesia. We spent the first two weeks on Java and Bali, climbing active volcanoes, marvelling at temples both at sunrise and sunset, flying kites we had made ourselves (with help from the experts) and wobbling along the edges of paddy fields on mountain bikes as we marvelled at shades of green we never knew existed. We learnt how to cook mouth-watering satay, received blessings from a Buddhist monk under a waterfall and spent a while persuading Felix that he couldn\u2019t use his money to buy a pet mouse in a local\u00a0market.<\/p>\n

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At the end of all this adventure, culture and colour we were ready for a bit of R&R before we returned home. Instead of a luxury beach resort we decided to spend\u00a0a few days on a boat, cruising around the Komodo National Park. Not long after we climbed aboard Ikan Terbang and were introduced to our smiling crew (Pieter the captain, Mitha the cook and French owner, Fanny), we slipped out of Lubuan Bajo\u2019s busy harbour bound for the first of many quiet and beautiful anchorages.<\/p>\n

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By that first afternoon we knew we had made a good decision: there was plenty of time to relax on the boat, simply taking in the dramatic scenery as we motored along, sunbathing or playing games on the spacious deck. But there were also unique experiences to be had \u2013 the very first afternoon we went to a small fishing village on Rinca where the local children were fascinated by my digital camera and delighted in posing for us so that they could see themselves on the screen. Felix was envious of the freedom allowed to two toddlers playing unsupervised on the building site of a new stilt house, while a village mother was very keen for her tiny daughter to be introduced to my tall 13-year old.<\/p>\n

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Back on board and after an incredible sunset, we witnessed the nightly exit from the mangroves of flying foxes as they soared\u00a0over us to go hunting in the forests.\u00a0 As we floated in the inky sea the thousands of black silhouettes against the full moon \u2013 like squeaking Batman logos \u2013 were eerie and impressive.<\/p>\n

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