Introducing the Wicked Diving Komodo Live Aboard

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I am meeting so many Americans on this trip, I think to myself as I sit down in the Wicked Diving Shop in Labuan Bajo on Flores Island in Indonesia. I’m talking to a guy who introduces himself as Kevin, and when I ask where he is from there is a small laugh and a hesitation. I get it – sometimes when you have been gone so long, living here there and everywhere, the simplicity of getting asked where you are from feels like getting asked a question in a foreign language.

I learn that home for Kevin is originally Chicago, and we talk for a few minutes about our un-American lifestyles before diving right into things. I am worried about, well, everything, I explain to Kevin.

“It is good to be nervous, but there is no need for you to be,” he says.

He tells me the instructors that I will be diving with have at least 1,000 dives, and the lunar cycle sits at a half moon at the moment.

“Currents are strongest during the full moon, so you should be fine for right now,” he adds. “And if there is a site where the current is too strong – well, the instructors will turn your buddy group right around and not bring you through.”

I feel a little more at ease. There is something incredibly reassuring in the simplicity of Kevin telling me not to be nervous. Sometimes you just need someone else to tell you that things are going to be okay in order for you to feel like you can breathe.

I had never done a scuba diving liveaboard before, but given my love for diving and the incredible marine life in Indonesia, I knew that there was no better time to make it happen than with this trip.

And so, after four days cramped on a backpacker boat and a beautiful sunset from the Wicked Diving Shop, Roberto and I upgraded our sea-traveling lifestyle as we set out on a four day/three night adventure with the Wicked Diving Komodo Live Aboard.

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[ The Liveaboard ] 

What is a liveaboard, you ask?

Well, to put it bluntly: A liveaboard is a crack den for scuba diving junkies – a place where you do nothing but eat, sleep, breathe and live diving for days on end with a handful other addicts who are hooked on the same underwater rushes and thrills as you are.

The Wicked Diving Live Aboard looked like it sailed straight out of the Pirates of the Caribbean film. Named the Jaya SY, the ship is strikingly similar to the Black Pearl in its prowess and its sleek body. It just looked so damn good out on the water, like if she were someone in a bar you would use any excuse at all that you could gather just to strike up a conversation.

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The Jaya was handcrafted a little more than 10 years ago on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi from local hardwoods including teak and ironwood. I later learned that the captain of our ship, who like most of the Indonesian crew was from Sulawesi, helped to build the ship himself. The vessel is black with bright, fiery red accents running along the boat and six beautiful black sails that take to the sky like kings to the throne. She is one majestic sight.

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The accommodation on the Jaya is located on the lower level of the ship and is a slightly tight squeeze; I was definitely picturing somewhat bigger cabins, but then again – what could I expect on a ship that takes a total of 14 guests situated throughout six cabins? I would rather have a smaller, more personal ship than a massive yacht of a liveaboard that is inundated with people. Furthermore, we hardly spent any time in our cabins, so it did not affect the trip in any way.

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There are four double cabins and two triple cabins aboard the Jaya. And though the cabins were small, I was squealing with delight when I saw that we had beautifully fresh clean sheets, a big fluffy towel and environmentally-friendly soap to use when we showered. We also got a Wicked Diving sticker that I would have slapped on my surfboard (yes I did surf at one point in my life) if I still had one.

Additionally, in comparison to our Komodo trip, sleeping on the Jaya each night felt like sleeping on a cloud, so we were pretty satisfied on the accommodation end and slept well each night.

At the back of the ship is the kitchen, which is where the culinary magic happens. The Jaya has one head chef and his assistant, and the kind of meals they can turn out of this simple and modest workspace not only for the divers but for the boat crew is most definitely something to be applauded. I ate like a queen my four days on the ship, solidly gaining one kilo per hour on average whilst on the ship (which could have been additionally brought on by the nutella served at breakie and the daily flow of biscuits that were out in the open for me to devour).

Let it be noted that this man somehow made a cake without an oven or even a microwave (I have once before seen cake in a mug before made in a microwave).

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Meals are included in the overall cost of the liveaboard, and you eat at least four times a day: A small, continental-style breakfast to get you started before your dive, a massive breakfast for when you come back from your first dive of the day, delicious lunch and a fantastic dinner, plus well-earned snacks and cakes in between. You said it – my American palate was as giddy as a teenager.

Beyond the kitchen were the showers and toilets, which came with environmentally-friendly shampoo, conditioner and body wash that were an added touch to the environmentally conscientious lifestyle Wicked Diving tried to promote.

One thing I really liked about the boat that also encouraged a helping hand toward safekeeping the environment: The water bottles. Where as on my Komodo boat we each were given six plastic water bottles to consume throughout our four days, the Wicked Diving Liveaboard provided each of us with a thermos that we could refill with fresh water on the boat throughout the day. It may seem small, but again sometimes the little touches are among he most important ones.

There was a larger deck area – part of which was a welcomed and shaded refuge from the sun – where we would meet for our dive briefings, eat our meals, hang out between dives, sunbathe, fill out our dive log books and do just about everything in between.

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The front of the ship was where we kept all of our dive gear, from our masks and wetsuits to our tanks. This was where we geared up for that magic that we had all signed up for.

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There were three highly-qualified instructors aboard the Jaya: Dutch-born Pitt and British-born Steven and Martin. In addition, there were two divers training to be Dive Masters, or those who lead groups on dives: Canadian Ryan and one local DMT named Fauji who grew up on Komodo Island.

Though I can only speak directly for diving with Steve, there is no doubt that I would have trusted all of them to guide and navigate me through what can notoriously be treacherous and strong currents. They were all careful to make us aware of any dangers of each site without having us feel nervous or having us head off into the water with a lack of confidence. As a team they kept the experience fun, engaging, informative, silly and one ridden with the most incredible underwater finds that help you understand a little bit more as to why they so love and are so good at what they do.

We dived in groups of no more than four people plus the instructor/guide, and we were pretty evenly placed into groups according to experience level and diving abilities that I felt were matched up very well and made me all the more comfortable.

Each day saw us do at least three dives at spots that stretched as far as the Northern Tip of Komodo National Marine Park.

And from my very first dive on my very I learned that there is no better way to see the underwater world than with by doing a liveaboard.

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