Raving about Raja Ampat

Sensory overload. In spades. The snorkel tour through the Raja Ampat Islands was everything we’d hoped for, and more. We had a couple of days in Kuala Lumpur and saw a little of the city. There was a great park just across the street from our hotel behind the KL Convention Center. It had a large wading pool/wet area (free for kids - adults only to supervise) and a huge selection of playground equipment with lots of areas for kids to expend energy.
The park also gave us our first views of the Petronas Towers, KL’s signature building, an impressive sight. We also had a good look at the Towers from the infinity pool at our hotel. Later we had lunch at the revolving restaurant atop the Menara KL Tower which provided great views of downtown KL - like seeing Toronto from the CN Tower. KL isn’t a great city for walking since sidewalks are constantly closed for construction sites. I’ve never seen so many building cranes in one city before.
Then we were off to Indonesia. We flew into Makassar for an overnight stay and then on to Sorong. We got a chance to eat lunch in a local bakery in Makassar while on a stroll to the waterfront area. We were somewhat of a curiosity as the only Westerners in the place. Language is a problem and we’re not always sure what it is we’re ordering. So far it’s worked out.
We met up with the American contingent at the airport in Makassar the next day as we waited for our flight to Sorong. They had just flown in from Jakarta. Once we arrived in Sorong, things went smoothly. We were met by Din, the hostess for the boat we were chartering. She’s a young lady, originally from Germany, who’s been organizing things for the Shakti (the boat) for the past four or five years. She had everything under control and we were quickly off to the harbour where the Shakti was anchored.
Under Din’s direction, the crew quickly ferried us and our luggage out to the Shakti where we met the skipper, Dave - a transplanted Scot. Cabins assignments were made and, while we unpacked, Dave raised the anchor and our adventure began.