Natural splendour, real musics, wines, wordpower
To say the least, the villagers of Marandan Weser (aka “Marandanweser”) treated our visit as a very welcome, important occasion.
They are Papuans, who are very actively keeping alive their particular culture…and conserving – and repairing – the superb natural environment which is integral to it.
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The name of “our” pinisi – Ombak Putih – translates into English as “white wave”.
13 October 2024 was our final full day in Raja Ampat.
Before that morning’s snorkelling at Yenbuba (aka “Yanbuba”) – which is surely among the world’s finest snorkelling sites – our hosts hoisted Ombak Putih’s sails, so we could see and photograph the vessel in its full glory.
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Photographers prize “the golden hour” – a non-precise term for something that occurs twice-daily on days when the sun is not entirely obscured by clouds.
Shortly after sunrise and shortly before sunset the sun nears the horizon, and “our” planet is bathed in flattering, “honeyed” light.
Raja Ampat’s karst-dotted seascape is exquisite during “golden hour”; I took the featured image from “our” pinisi at 5.44 pm on 10 October 2024.
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Karst, as defined in its Wikipedia entry:
a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground.
Much of Raja Ampat – including more than one thousand of its small islands, isles and islets – is karst.
The soluble nature of the relevant rock is often unmistakably evident.
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You are looking at a perfectly ordinary twilight – perfectly ordinary by Raja Ampat standards, at least.
Both photos were taken within a few seconds of each other, several hours after our visit to Aduwey; eventually, a series of multi-image posts will show what happened in its classroom.
Leave a CommentVisiting “westerners” are likely to experience a complex series of emotions and hunches whenever they first set foot in a “third world” school.
I and my beloved are “old hands” in this respect, having previously visited “Christian”, “Hindu”, “Muslim” and “secular” schools in various, “remote” parts of Africa, Asia and Madagascar.
Nonetheless, our visit to Aduwey village’s school proved very surprising, inspiring…and slightly disturbing.
(as future, multi-image posts will eventually explain/illustrate)
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As we walked from the jetty to the school in Aduwey village, it was easy to see that most inhabitants were not materially wealthy.
It was also readily apparent that they had self-respect, they enjoyed each other’s company, meticulously maintained their houses and paths, and fully appreciated the natural beauty of their particular part of the world.
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At 8.45 am on 09 October, we climbed onto the jetty at Aduwey – a village on Misool Island.
You are looking at a tiny piece of soft coral – severed, probably accidentally.
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I took this post’s photo 8.07 am on 09 0ctober 2024, as we were preparing to head to the pictured shore – that of Misool Island, one of Raja Ampat’s four “main” islands.
The other 1500+ islands, islets and atolls are all much smaller; most are rainforest-clad.
The waters around them are currently “our” planet’s’ most species-rich; their clarity is oft-astonishing.
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The mostly-uninhabited islands of the Guraici Archipelago offer something rarely found in north easternmost Indonesia: “white” beaches.
At 9.36 am on 06 October 2024 my feet and those of the pictured, very petite hermit crab shared one such, on an also-tiny island.
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