Diving in Nusa PenidaThere are so many
things to do in Nusa Penida. As the famous diving destination, there are some great diving locations in Nusa Penida Island, such as Penida Bay, Batu Meling, Batu Lumbung, Toyapakeh, Manta Point, Batu Abah and Malibu Point. The flow passing through the Lombok Strait is commonly heading to the south, while the tidal streams’ directions are commonly influenced by the seasons of monsoon.
During the southeast monsoons, the tidal flow tends south; during the northeast monsoons, the tidal flow tends north. In the area of the strait north of Nusa Penida, the pattern is relatively simple, with a flow, at peaktide, of about three-and-one-half knots. Tidal streams in Badung Strait are semi-diurnal, but the character of the stream is very complicated because its direction runs obliquely to the general south to north direction of Lombok Strait, and the channel has a curved shape.
Besides beautiful destinations, there are many other interesting tourism destinations to visit in Nusa Penida Island. You will find that there are many pure beaches as well, or you can go to the top of Puncak temu where you will be amazed with a spectacular scene from the height. Besides that, there are also some arts performances that you can watch.
A beach which is closest to the harbor is situated in
Toya Pakeh village. In this beach, there is a floating restaurant. The most important thing is you are allowed to dive in this beach and see very beautiful reef. Indeed, in this beach, reef is an important component that is still preserved from any damage.
Besides Toya Pakeh Beach, Nusa Penida has a very cozy beach. It is around 4 km from Toya Pakeh. This beach is situated in Sakti Village at
Banjar Penida. I guarantee you that this beach is different from the famous Kuta or Sanur. The beach which people call it Crystal Bay, is very quiet, far from crowd. The water is sparkling blue. The sand is black but it is covered by white sand. The beach is very clean because people at Banjar Penida keep it clean. And the beach is gated by escarpment.
Going up quite far away from the beaches, you will head to
Puncak temu, the top of elevated ground. This is a place where you will be able to enjoy beautiful scenery of Nusa Penida Island from the bird-eye view. You will also see some white shrines at this top with so many trees that seem protecting these shrines from the outside world. This is something that you will find interesting because most parts in Nusa Penida Island are commonly lacing of water and dry, while here in Puncak Temu, there are green fresh vegetables as the sign of the water existence.
On very south of Nusa Penida there are villages named
Sekartaji and Suana. In these villages, Nusa Penida Endemic Bird: little sulfur-crested cockatoo can be found. In all regions in Nusa Penida there is only four little sulfur-crested cockatoo left. One female and others are male. You are lucky if you can take a photograph of this bird since this bird is very energetic.
Nusa Penida does not only offer the amazing tourism destination but also unique dances. S
anghyang Dewa dance is one of them. This dance must be danced by little girl who has not got menstruation yet. People of Nusa Penida categorize it into sacred dance because it is danced on special day at the temple. That little girl is unconscious while she dances it.
ToyapakehThere are actually two sites in Toyapakeh nemaley as the Toyapakeh Wall and Toyapakeh. These twosites are rich with the underworld creatures, such as fish and corals. The wide variety of fish that you will see by diving in this location is amazing. You will sometimes see the large pelagic as well by creeping around the blue. Toyapakeh Wall is a must diving place that you shall not miss. This is the place where you will encounter the presence of the Mola-mola hanging out in season.
Malibu PointWhen you are taking a boat trip along the coast line of Nusa Penida Island, you will come to Manta Point where some huge animals are commonly seen. Manta Point is an open water area, so that diving is not possible to have in certain circumstances.
Malibu Point is a diving site with gray reefs, reef white tips, silver-tips and numerous sharks. While Penida Bay is another anchorage, and the rocky islands have an interesting forms; something like an old resting elephant. The bay is vulnerable to swell, creating-up-and-down-currents. Then, Manta Point is a limestone rock off Pandan cafe. The swell is relatively strong.
Crystal BayIf you are looking for a calmer bay, Crystal Bay will be a perfect spot for you. In Crystal Bay, you will also find many Antheases and batfish that will come in a certain periodic of
time, because there is a bat cave near to this bay.
This site consists of a fantastic little bay in shallow water that offers excellent opportunities for photos, before sliding down into deep drop offs. Superb coral is only matched by the equally superb marine life. This is another excellent place to locate the Mola Mola which gather to be cleaned on the slopes of the reef.
Nusa Penida Bird Sanctuary
Besides West Bali National Park, there is also a conservation park in Nusa Penida Island known as Nusa Penida
Bird Sanctuary. In this reservation, a hundred of nearly-extinct birds are protected, The Nusa Penida Bird Sanctuary is organized by Begawan Giri Foundation and also friend of National Park Foundation supported by the whole community of Nusa Penida Island.
In this island the birds is protected by the whole community of Nusa Penida, by addition of a decree on bird conservation in the awig-awig (traditional law) of Nusa Penida. The community enforces sanctions such as fines and sepekin banjar (ostracized) for anyone caught harming the birds. All 35 villages on Nusa Penida island have now signed bird protection laws and villages and Harbour Authorities are working together to fight the illicit trade. The role of community is not just end up there, at the sanctuary young people from the surrounding village are trained as staff in the clinic; bird handling and research procedures.
Up to May 2007 Nusa penida Bird Sanctuary has already released 49 Bali Starlings, and recently it is reported another ten offspring fly free. The success on the Bali Starling opens another conservation project. White Cockatoo, an indigenous species of Nusa Penida, now in danger, it is reported that only three white cockatoos roaming freely on the sky, clearly in worse situation than Bali Starling. Nusa Penida Bird Sanctuary now put her best effort to save this rare bird.
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Nusa Islands which are located 20 km away from Bali to the south-east coast consist of three islands named as Nusa Penida Island, Nusa Lembongan Island and Nusa Ceningan Island. Compared to the other two islands, Nusa Ceningan Island is the smallest one. Going to Nusa Ceningan Island can be traveled by using a boat departed from Sanur, or if you are already in Nusa Lembongan Island, you can just use the bridge that is connecting these two islands.
Similar to the other two islands, Nusa Ceningan Island’s climate is also dry and hot. The problem faced by the locals is also the same, which is always about the water supply. However, the nature of Nusa Ceningan Island is a spectacular one. Since the Nusa Ceningan Island is not a big island, you can explore every inch of this spectacular beauty within a short period of time. To heat up your day in Nusa Ceningan Island, you can start your journey from the eastern part of the island where you will find an amazing coral reef. In this location, you can spoil yourself by swimming, surfing and also snorkeling. This is a perfect place to enjoy the clear water and to see a great variety of underworld creatures, such as the corals and fish.
After you have enjoyed your time in the eastern part of Nusa Ceningan Island, you can continue your adventure to the southern part of the island, where you will find the Bakung Temple. In this old temple, you will be able to see the cockfighting which is the trademark of the Bakung Temple. And then, late in the evening, or during the sunset time, you need to go to the western part of Nusa Ceningan Island. In this part of the island, you will see the cave of the nesting swallows. During the sunset is a perfect time to see these swallows darting out and in to the cave. If you love surfing, then you need to head to the southwest coast of Nusa Ceningan Island, where the waves are perfect for surfing.
To many of beautiful places to visit in Nusa Ceningan Island, the most unique attraction will be the underworld life. You may not find too many octopi at the underworld of Nusa Ceningan Island’s sea, but you will find lots of seaweed farming all around the island. If you want to have a different adventure, you can rent a small canoe exploring the seaweed plantation in very clear water beneath.
