I woke at 0530 and grabbed breakfast at the hotel restaurant before heading to the airport. At 0700 the check-in for the 0815 flight hadn’t opened but I joined the queue anyway, and fortunately they switched from the previous flight to mine just as I got to the front.
It was raining cats and dogs, rats and mice, rabbits and hamsters. All flights were running late (but it might have been normal).
I’m bound for Nabire, where whalesharks can be quite commonly sighted and visitors have the chance to snorkel with them.
The nearly-full Wings Air flight left and arrived about 30 minutes late, taking about 90 minutes. It was a very low clearance over the traffic and airport “perimeter” fence below just before we touched down. Then I realised that many parts of the area was unfenced so it wasn’t really a perimeter fence. There was a dog running around the apron as I waited for my bag. As with many rural airports, a siren (like an air-raid warning in the movies) sounds before a flight lands or takes off.
I had booked the AA Hotel based on the guidebook’s recommendation, so I took an ojek there. It turned out to be an unmarked hotel which wasn’t as nice as suggested by the book. As it turned out, it was the Mona Lisa hotel, related to the AA which was located out of town. The Mona Lisa allowed me to rest for about an hour before having me driven to the AA.
The AA Hotel was near new set by a beach which was slightly mangrovey without being too muddy. It was still a construction zone while they build a restaurant block. There was a long pretty jetty leading out to the sea. Unfortunately I was the only guest which does not make it good (or economical) for going to see the whaleshark. After lunch, I tried having a rest but the aircon wasn’t cooling sufficiently. I thought it was the thermostat but it was actually the local power supply not being strong enough. The receptionist switched to generator for a while to give my room a chance to cool down.
As it turned out my 3n/2d stay was a waste of time:
- There were no other guests which meant that going to the whalesharks would have been prohibitive cost-wise.
- Some people told me it was the wrong time of month anyway for whalesharks.
- That left me with a lot of time to kill. The sea wasn’t really nice enough to swim in and the whole area is largely a construction site.
- There’s lots of stuff I could have done but the internet here was the worst so far in Papua. It was really bad 2G.
- To just lie in my room and chill was a good idea except that it was hot and stuffy with the A/C and power-supply issues.
- It was really a first-world problem in a third-world setting. At least the staff were nice and lots of chats with them help me pass the time.
But nothing is ever completely wasted. It gave me an insight into a Papuan family and how they work together to run several businesses. They certainly have vision and drive. They are quite successful and I never thought I’d see Papuan bosses with Indonesian workers!
The other thing I realise is that Papuan tribes do vary a lot. This family are from Serui south of Biak. Like Biakians, they’re not quite as dark and somewhat like the people of NTT and Timor Leste.
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- Sunset as viewed from the jetty of my accommodation.
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- Caged wildlife 🙁
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- My accommodation. The area is largely still under construction.
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- My accommodation. The area is largely still under construction.
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- My accommodation. The area is largely still under construction.
