-
Eastern Indonesia: The Red and Wilson’s Birds of Paradise
My primary reason for heading to eastern Indonesia was to have the opportunity to view species in the family Paradisaeidae – i.e, the Birds of Paradise. These birds have always had a near-mythical status to me. I have studied and admired them from books and videos but actually seeing one has long seemed out of…
-
Eastern Indonesia: Waigeo
Waigeo is a largely unspoiled island that is just north of the northwestern tip of New Guinea. It’s the largest island of the Raja Ampat archipelago, and is the only island in the group with any roads at all. It also has a small town and some small homestays / beach resorts. These resorts aren’t…
-
Eastern Indonesia: West Papua (New Guinea)
Back to blogging! The next stop on the tour was Sorong, a city in the Indonesian province of West Papua, which is on far west side of the island of New Guinea. I’ve always been fascinated with this island due to its diverse people, landscapes, and wildlife. It is home to some of the most…
-
Eastern Indonesia: Halmahera
The next stop on the tour was the island of Halmahera, which was formerly called Gilolo. Getting to Halmahera is a bit of a process. There aren’t any major airports on the island itself, so first you have to fly to the city of Ternate, on the island of the same name. Ternate is a…
-
Eastern Indonesia: Sulawesi Part II
After Lore Lindu, we headed back to the city of Palu and stayed a night there before heading to Manado. The hotel in Palu (Sultan Raja) was quite nice. I left a hat behind there and the hotel staff actually contacted the tour leader about it and had it sent to the last hotel we…
-
Eastern Indonesia: Sulawesi Part I
It’s been a couple of weeks since I returned from my latest adventure: a trip to eastern Indonesia. Specifically, it covered the islands of Sulawesi, Halmahera, New Guinea, and Waigeo. What made me want to visit that area of the world in particular? The bird life is one of the big reasons, particularly the Birds…