Sweet Ambon: Mixing Business with Pleasure

Last month I was on a business trip to Ambon and decide to mix pleasure with it. Foolish not to. I’ve read reviews about how good is the dive there but the violence in past years have drove the dive operators away. Last year a new one, Maluku Diver started operation. And they’re still the only one. But they got descent rooms and great food. Too bad the seasons are all messed up! The best diving season is supposed to start October, one of those current patterns bringing excellent visibility.

I’m not all that lucky. Bad vis in most sites around the resort at Latuhalat, though better ones in sites further away. Thank god we have critters (smaller marine animals for you non-divers). Night dives at the house reef were so rewarding – many nudibranch, crab, lobster, cuttlefish, ghost pipe and octopus. I saw two huge nudibranch, one orange, the other red. They’re not tiny as usual but more than 30cm in diameter. Big mama.... Oh, and guess what. We ran into a huge solitary bumphead parrotfish. I was too shocked and afraid being rammed at actually that I forgot to shoot my camera until it’s too late.

The next day we dove at Pulau Tiga - better visibility but not that many to see, except a lone bumphead and many many triggerfish. I’m certain that’s their spawning ground. Got separate from the group but I ended up with a couple of barracuda and tunas.

Now the last day dive is quite odd. After 1 dive at the wreck in Laha- nothing special – we did Twilight Zone. I don’t know what’s with the name but it is eerie there. We dove among rubbish. Ambon Bay is dirty but this site has all garbage you can think of – rubber tires, plastics, tin cans, etc etc. On top of all that, there are carcasses of fishes everywhere as this is the place where fishermen clean their catch and boats.

But the stuff there are excellent. Many pipefish, frog fish, leaf fish, too many eels... The guides said there are a couple Rhinopias frequently seen here. But not my lucky day.

All and all, the diving is good but not great. Bad vis means little chance of seeing pelagics. But I’m happy enough with the critters, more so when I look into the pictures. As a first under water photo trip, it ain’t bad at all!