Mola-mola and Manta Magic!

The five intrepid Bali Female Divers had a magical day of diving on Nusa Penida island in Bali yesterday.

It was my first time seeing the mola-mola, and we saw 6 of these funky fantastical creatures... and had them all to ourselves!  So lucky!

Sari Flying with the Mola!

Mola a la Macro!

Sunfish Silhouette

Is it a bird... is it a plane... ???

Up Close and Personal

Even though I had seen pictures, and heard stories, I wasn't prepared for the encounter, and was happily blown away!  These are the largest bony fish in the ocean, and probably also the wackiest!  From their profile, side-on, it's obvious where they got their common name, oceanic sunfish (or moon fish, as in french (poisson lune) or spanish (pez luna))!

Wacky creature

But they all-but disappear if you catch them directly head- or tail-on!?

Where'd he go?

We also held a little underwater flag-raising ceremony for Indonesian Independence Day (17 August)!  Thanks to Sari for organizing this fabulous day, and to her and the other ladies for making it so much fun!

Two weeks ago I joined Martin on another magical dive on Nusa Penida (where he is currently working as a super-awesome (constantly smiling) dive guide) - to see the always-magical Manta Rays.  Sorry, I don't have as many photos, because we made mostly video that day...

I love it inside the ocean!!!

What's in a name?

Origins of the names Papua New Guinea and Irian Jaya

I thought I had written about it before, on one of our first visits to Papua, but I see I may have made a mistake...

Actually the roots of the name are multi-faceted:

In 1511, The Portuguese (Jorge de Meneses) called the island "Ilhas dos Papuas" (Island of the Fuzzy Hairs) from the Malay word 'papuwah' or "puah-puah" for a frizzled quality, like wool, because of the inhabitants' fuzzy hair.

Not many years later, the Spanish (Ynigo Ortiz de Reyes) provided the 'New Guinea', as the black skin of the inhabitants reminded them of Guinea, Africa.

The Indonesian half of the island of Papua New Guinea was given the name Irian Jaya when it became part of Indonesia in 1963 (although the name had been proposed since 1945).  'Irian' is actually from the Biak language (one of the local languages in the region), and means "hot land rising from the sea".  'Jaya' means "victorious" in Indonesian.

The province's name was changed back to West Papua on February 7 2007.

The Asian Mini-Van

I have a few of my own pictures of the amazing amount of produce, wares, and people that Indonesians squash onto a motorcycle... and have previously blogged a little bit about it in a few previous posts, including a little bit here, but this spoof pic really cracked me up!

It's actually not so far off - I routinely see mini scooters with all 5 members of the family on-board (Mom, Dad, babe-in-arms, and two young kids) driving around Bali!

Thai Trip - Boomin' Bangkok 2 - Movies n' Malls and MODERN!

As I was saying... Bangkok felt shiny and modern in a lot of areas (a lot of areas still held some traditional charm, and were not too far away from what I used to imagine 'Siam' was like).  The most stark modernity was to be had downtown at the Siam Paragon mall.

Siam Paragon, Bangkok, Thailand

The Siam Paragon also houses the first truly luxury movie theatre I have ever seen... Completely private deluxe seats which adjust all the way into lying position, Thai silk blankets and pillows... complete with service right to your seat - in case you forgot to get popcorn or a drink, or have a sudden craving after the movie begins!  You pay for this luxury, of course... about the same as the price of a normal movie ticket at home!?  600-700THB compared to 180 for the regular theatre (which is still pretty comfy)!

When we were there, the Siam Paragon was also hosting a fabulous food event - specialty foods from all the regions around Thailand were on expo... so we got to taste a few more without even leaving Bangkok!  Yumm...

Thai Trip - Many forms of Buddha

After traveling around a few areas in Thailand, I became more aware that the Buddha is represented in many forms, and I was sure that his position in the statues must be representative.  I guess I used to have a vague notion of these different forms, and assumed it had to do with different religions, and different forms were no doubt manifestations of various cultures' influence on a religion... as it turns out, it is not nearly so simple (as anything to do with culture or religion goes, I guess)!

Here are some of my pictures of these various positions with their meanings (as I have understood them from the Thai, and subsequent readings... since I couldn't always understand everything everyone was trying to communicate to me - one of the greatest frustrations/adjustments to Thailand, actually... I have been taking for granted how easily I can communicate with people in Indonesia now!):

Touching the earth: aka. "calling the earth to witness".  This form is supposed to represent the Buddha renouncing 'worldly desire'.  It is the one I saw MOST around Thailand... I guess that's appropriate since life is full of temptations, and their renunciation is the central moral precept of Buddhism.

 

Absence of fear: either one or both arms are shown bent at the elbow and the wrist, with the palm facing outwards and the fingers pointing upwards. It shows the Buddha either displaying fearlessness in the face of adversity, or enjoining others to do so.

Teaching:  The gesture represents intellectual debate or discussion and teaching; it indicates communication and explanation of the Dharma (or Buddha's teachings).  This is when the tips of the thumb and index finger touch, forming a circle... Sometimes the middle finger and thumb touch - a gesture of great compassion; and sometimes the thumb and ring finger touch, expressing good fortune.

Charity: the right palm open, signifying that the Buddha is granting or receiving charitable offerings.

Setting the wheel in motion: both hands held in front of the chest.  I thought it would have something to do with love, or feeling 'touched' (and maybe in a sense that's true)... This pose refers very specifically to the Buddha's first sermon, when he "set the wheel (of his life's work) in motion."

Meditation: the hands are shown lying flat in the seated Buddha's lap, palms upward.  It shows that the Buddha is disciplining his mind through mental concentration, a necessary step to achieving enlightenment.

Reclining: The reclining posture may represent the Buddha resting or sleeping, but more usually represents the Buddha's final state of enlightenment before his death.

Then there's the fat laughing buddha, whom I only saw ONCE in Thailand... unfortunately I was on my own, so didn't have a chance to ask anyone why.

Thailand Trip - Boomin' Bangkok!

Bangkok was so modern!  It reminded me of Singapore, actually... a lot less regimented, and a lot less clean, but very efficient, and shiny (in places).

I guess it was the public transportation that impressed me most - coming from Indonesia, where public transport is a nightmare, Bangkok (and Thailand in general, in the areas where I travelled), was bliss!

There are a variety of systems, EVERYTHING connects, the cost isn't prohibitive, it is used by everyone, and it's fairly fast, clean and efficient!  There are the sky train (BTS), subway (MRT), busses, trains and planes (and all manner of each)...  Then there are (super-cheap) boats and ferries floating along the cities' extensive system of canals (Bangkok = the Venice of Asia!?)...

And then, of course, there are the colourful, boisterous, brash and brazen, belching tuk-tuks careening around the city centre!  For character... and short distances!  And only for the brave!

Thai Trip - Ayutthaya

I went 'templing' in Ayutthaya.

"To Temple" is a new verb, created by Cecilia and I on our first trip to Bali... it's meaning is obvious, I think.

Ayutthaya was described to me as the 'mini Angkor Wat', and since I wasn't going to get there this trip, I decided I would like to see a little more of the history and culture of Buddhism in Thailand, so I went on a very accessible day trip from Bangkok.  After a two-hour train ride, I arrived and chartered a tuk-tuk for 31/2 hours to take me around to some of the sights.  Apparently the city and its temples can be very enjoyable by bike, or boat, but with my time constraints, I opted for this speedier, louder, more brash, method of transport!

(Even the tuk-tuk driver's daughter-in-law got into trying to read the GPS to look for the caches!)

I was unsuccessful in my attempt to find any geocaches in Ayutthaya (I think they have all gone missing), but, as is the true point for me, the search brought me to some beautiful spots around the various temples and ruins of the ancient city!

(Don't even ASK about the chickens... I did, and couldn't get a straight answer out of anyone!  (Except the correction that they were roosters, thank you very much)... but honestly, they popped up everywhere around Ayutthaya... and not just alone or in pairs - there were ARMIES of roosters!?  Perhaps the beloved king was born in the year of the Rooster?  Perhaps the rooster is the true 'ultimate reincarnation form'?  The mystery remains unsolved, so if anyone can enlighten me... ???


And as you can see, the intensive 'templing' (and puzzling over roosters) had me totally exhausted for the train trip back to Bangkok...