I still cannot wipe the smile off my face from our wonderful trip this past weekend to Manado. We arrived late Thursday night and were picked up by the good people at the Highland Resort and Spa. The resort is just outside of Manado nestled in the hills of Tomahon. The cabin was cute, all made of coconut wood and we woke up in the morning to gorgeous views of volcanoes and the small village below.
One of the guys who picked us up, Charles, offered to hike with us, which is normally something we decline, but since he was quite a nice guy and this was “no guide fee, great service at the Highland resort” we decided to take him up on it. We hiked up a nice small volcano – Gunung Mahawu – which even though it was late in the morning, was pretty clear and had great views. We could see Manado, Gunung Lokon (the larger active volcano we were told not to climb since it has been a bit bubbly lately) and even Bunaken – the small island we headed to next for a few days of snorkeling.
Charles took us up and over the volcano and then led us into town to his local favorite lunch spot. Could not tell you the name, it was a hole in the wall that fed us our new favorite food – Tinatuan or Bubur Manado. Bubur is usually not something we are into as it typically means porridge of some sort, but this was more of a soup made of pumpkin, cassava, corn and some leavy greens that had a hint of citrus. (A version we had a couple days later had some rice in it as well.) It was phenomenal and you could see after a long morning or day in the fields why people would eat it. Filling but not too heavy and full of flavor.
We also hit the local market in the morning (before the hike) where we were presented with all the local delights including the specialties of bat and dog. The bats were speared and frightening the dogs just hard to look at (especially the cages of live dogs awaiting their immanent trip to the fire pit.) There was no part of any animal spared and the place was hopping since it was the day before Idul Fitri.
From there we headed to Manado to catch the boat to Bunaken. Manado was pretty dead due to the holiday so outside of a great sunset from the pool at the hotel, there is not much to talk about. Bunaken on the other hand was AMAZING. Since it is a small volcanic island the reef simply surrounds the whole thing. The snorkeling is like swimming inside a tropical aquarium. The first day we jut put in right from the resort and saw some amazing things – bright blue starfish, Nemo and various other things we have seen only in Chinese restaurant tanks. Incredible color and variety. The second day we joined the group of divers staying at our place (a lively group from Germany, Austria, England and Ireland who dive together every year, using their 3 weeks of European holiday) and headed to the other side of the island for some equally exciting snorkeling. In the last 20 minutes of our second snorkel I spotted a turtle hanging out on the reef wall. We followed him into the middle of the sea as he swam around, a couple times popping his head up for some air. It was incredible. In the blue water he looked like he was flying and at some points he was no more than a couple feet from either of us. It was a total rush.
It was a beautiful and relaxing trip and of course it has been hard to get back into the work week - the sign of a good holiday! Only 4 weeks left of work here in Indo so this was really just a prelude of what is to come.
One of the guys who picked us up, Charles, offered to hike with us, which is normally something we decline, but since he was quite a nice guy and this was “no guide fee, great service at the Highland resort” we decided to take him up on it. We hiked up a nice small volcano – Gunung Mahawu – which even though it was late in the morning, was pretty clear and had great views. We could see Manado, Gunung Lokon (the larger active volcano we were told not to climb since it has been a bit bubbly lately) and even Bunaken – the small island we headed to next for a few days of snorkeling.
Charles took us up and over the volcano and then led us into town to his local favorite lunch spot. Could not tell you the name, it was a hole in the wall that fed us our new favorite food – Tinatuan or Bubur Manado. Bubur is usually not something we are into as it typically means porridge of some sort, but this was more of a soup made of pumpkin, cassava, corn and some leavy greens that had a hint of citrus. (A version we had a couple days later had some rice in it as well.) It was phenomenal and you could see after a long morning or day in the fields why people would eat it. Filling but not too heavy and full of flavor.
We also hit the local market in the morning (before the hike) where we were presented with all the local delights including the specialties of bat and dog. The bats were speared and frightening the dogs just hard to look at (especially the cages of live dogs awaiting their immanent trip to the fire pit.) There was no part of any animal spared and the place was hopping since it was the day before Idul Fitri.
From there we headed to Manado to catch the boat to Bunaken. Manado was pretty dead due to the holiday so outside of a great sunset from the pool at the hotel, there is not much to talk about. Bunaken on the other hand was AMAZING. Since it is a small volcanic island the reef simply surrounds the whole thing. The snorkeling is like swimming inside a tropical aquarium. The first day we jut put in right from the resort and saw some amazing things – bright blue starfish, Nemo and various other things we have seen only in Chinese restaurant tanks. Incredible color and variety. The second day we joined the group of divers staying at our place (a lively group from Germany, Austria, England and Ireland who dive together every year, using their 3 weeks of European holiday) and headed to the other side of the island for some equally exciting snorkeling. In the last 20 minutes of our second snorkel I spotted a turtle hanging out on the reef wall. We followed him into the middle of the sea as he swam around, a couple times popping his head up for some air. It was incredible. In the blue water he looked like he was flying and at some points he was no more than a couple feet from either of us. It was a total rush.
It was a beautiful and relaxing trip and of course it has been hard to get back into the work week - the sign of a good holiday! Only 4 weeks left of work here in Indo so this was really just a prelude of what is to come.
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