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Mission: 7 summits in 365 days
August 12, 2009

Early morning drive to the airport, but our flight was cancelled after 2 hours of waiting. It's a flight to a small village farther inland. Off to a rocky start, the day turned out to be amazing. We rented a small catamaran to take us out to a tropical island. The ride was awesome, golden powerful sunrays shining down to glint like diamonds on the water. Reaching down to feel the surface yielded a touch of warmth. The water is so warm. Then we hit the island. It was incredible, something I think everybody dreams of. Less than a mile square, we swam around it, discovering no life. On our beach there was an abandoned Dutch resort, overgrown. A dock led out to a small sunhouse 20 meters offshore. After jumping off this a few times, we grabbed scuba masks and took a look under the surface. It immediately sprang to life. There was a whole coral reef virtually underfoot. We snorkeled for about 2 hours, seeing things I've only seen on TV and more. Moray eels, angelfish, scorpionfish, fish with colors brighter than a 1980's highschool classroom. We got attacked by clownfish and swam with a school of fish so big it was like being in a cloud.  Unfortunately our day of paradise had to end. Our palm island faded behind us and we had to look ahead again, to go climbing mountains. Dinner at another cafeteria deal, these places are quite interesting as Indonesians don't share western ideas of cuisine. They eat the same thing 3 times a day so they think we do, too. As for cleanliness, not much can be expected. It's just different than at home.