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It's been one week since leaving Sorong, Indonesia. Our travels included four hours to Jakarta, five plus hours to Taipei, Taiwan, 10 plus hours to Seattle, Washington. Once we arrived in Washington, after picking up our luggage, we had to clear US Customs and Immigration. Fortunately we were able to take advantage of this time at SeaTac to complete our Global Entry interviews. Mission accomplished...for the next five years, we are classified as "Trusted Travelers" which means we get TSA Pre-check status when traveling and expedited Customs entry back into the country. Because our original Alaska Airlines flight from Seattle to Austin was changed to the next day, we checked into the Best Western Airport Hotel for the night and got a wonderful full night of sleep before our last flight leg home to Texas. That flight was four hours and, trust me, I was ready to stop traveling. After 24 hours, not including layovers, I was done...physically and mentally. Karen had the misfortune of having to travel with Mr. Pissy back to Texas. She still loves me, thankfully. We were picked up by Ed and Mary Compton from the RVICS village to give us a ride back home. Thank you both for being so available and generous! We arrived in Smithville just in time to join the "village people" at Dairy Queen for dinner. Honestly, the double burger, onion rings and Coke Zero tasted marvelous after two days of airplane food. When we got home we double checked all systems in the RV and prepared for snow that night. Yep, you read that right. The next morning we woke up to an inch of snow. The temperature before sunrise got down to 19ºF, but we didn't have any problems with our water pipes or keeping warm through the night. After unpacking our diving gear and doing laundry, we attempted to get back on a normal sleeping schedule. In the middle of the day I needed a nap because I couldn't stay awake. In the middle of the night I would wake up at 2 or 3 AM and couldn't get back to sleep. When I finally did fall asleep I wouldn't wake up again until 10 or 11 AM. We're both stuggling with getting back to a regular sleep schedule after the 14 hour time zone change. We are counting our blessings; we're safely home from a long journey, tired but in good health, and everything is good back in Texas after two plus weeks away. Best of all, we returned with wonderful memories of great times with friends, old and new, spent in places some can only dream about ever visiting. We're once again in awe of God's creation under the sea. We are blessed to experience the wonder and majesty of His creative imagination and we're privileged to see it with our own eyes up close and personal. WOW!

We returned from our Christmas visit in Denver to prepare for our long awaited scuba diving trip to Indonesia on New Years Eve. We left the kid's home in Thornton, Colorado on Christmas Day after spending the morning watching the grandkids open their presents. We got on the road following breakfast and drove to Amarillo for the night. We had Christmas dinner of turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy, stuffing and green beans at the Iron Skillet restaurant. Certainly not fancy but good old fashioned hearty, comfort food. On Thursday, December 26 we were back on the highway heading south for Smithville with a planned stop in Bastrop to pick up our new Mac laptop computers. Arrived home to the RV around 10PM and retired for the evening. On Friday, December 27 after unloading the truck from one trip, we began the process of preparing to repack our luggage all over again. We needed to get this done over the three remaining days we had to prepare. After unpacking cold weather clothes, doing the laundry and opening mail we systematically started the process of packing clothing for the tropical weather as well as selecting the needed diving gear, drone, underwater camera equipment and our Starlink Mini satellite antenna. All of these needed to be sorted and packed to meet the size and weight restrictions for the multiple airline carriers we would be using. New Year's Eve arrived and we loaded up our neighbor Nancy Harlow's Toyota at 3 PM for the trip to Austin International airport. Nancy graciously offered to drive us from the village so we didn't need to park and pay for airport parking for the twenty days we would be away. She was a real blessing to us for offering. We arrived early at the airport expecting delays checking in at the ticket counter with luggage and the TSA line. Neither was an issue. We got to our boarding gate two and a half hours early for our first flight leg to Seattle departing at 7:08 PM. This was a 4 hour 45 minute flight that turned out to be full and included some crying and unrulely children in front and behind us in our section of the plane. Fortunately I was prepared with industrial quality ear plugs for just such an occasion; a real lifesaver for me but I felt bad for the other passengers around me. The next leg of the journey was a 13 hour flight departing at 12:10 AM New Years Day. Our flight was on EVA airlines to Taipei, Taiwan. We had flown on EVA to the Phillipines in the past and knew we would have a good experience. Karen and I had an empty middle seat on this long flight with leg room, a nice reclining seat, pillows, blankets and even an complimentary eye mask, toothbrush and toothpaste. We ordered specialty meals for this flight. Karen had a vegetarian entree and I choose the seafood entree. The flight was uneventful. Long flights like this are always challenging requiring getting up often to use the facilities and stretching. The service was wonderful and made this long journey relaxing. We arrived in Taipei after losing a day crossing the International Date Line on January 2 at 5:20 AM. We both were able to get some sleep on the flight but not the best kind of solid sleep our bodies needed. Our layover was 3 hours and 40 minutes, so we stretched our legs and looked for a comfortable place to hang out. We charged our devices and used the airport wi-fi to catch up on messages from our fellow travelers enroute. I discovered a unique Taiwanese wheel cake pastry in the airport, a small stuffed pancake. The batter is poured into a hollow cast iron pan whose hollows form relatively thick “wheels" with a different variety of fillings. Mine were filled with sesame custard and peanut butter; delicious! I was fascinated to find an amazing LEGO store in the airport with model kits of cars and art pieces like the Mona Lisa and Starry, Starry Night. Our next departure was delayed almost an hour. At 9;45 AM we departed Taipei for the 5 hour and 20 minute flight to Jakarta, Indonesia.on our third leg of the trip on EVA airlines. Once we arrived in Jakarta we had to get our Visa, clear Customs and pick up our luggage. We had arranged to stay at the local Fairfield by Marriotts before our final flight to Sorong. Our original layover was about 11 hours, but was shortened by our later arrival to Jakarta, but we still took advantage of a hot shower and got horizontal for a four hour nap. At 8;45 PM we met Bill and Mathias, two of our group who arrived from Singapore in the lobby of the hotel. We took the airport shuttle back to the terminal and checked in to Garudia Airlines for the final leg of the journey by air. We visited the local ATM to get some local currency; the Indonesian rupiah. $100 US is 1,617,035.62 IDR. We ended up getting 7,500,00.00 IDR for the first week of our trip (about $463 US dollars). With the largest denomination being 100,000 rupiah, we have a wad of cash in our wallets. The flight was at 12:10 AM on January 3rd and would take another 4 hours to travel west to Sorong, Indonesia arriving at 6:15 AM. The total flying time amounted to 27 hours not including the layovers! But at last we arrived. Kind of...just more different traveling to do. This time by a ferry boat to Waisai on the island of Waigeo to the PapuArts AlterNative Resort. We boarded the ferry at 9 AM, departed the dock at 9:20 and took three hours to get to the island that will be our home for the next 6 days. This resort is rustic, includes 3 fresh, delicious meals a day and is in a beautiful setting with amazing snorkeling right off the pier! Drone views of PapuArts, our home in Raja Ampat before the dive live aboard trip. Karen sweeping sand off our front porch and our beach front view.

As our time on board was drawing to a close, we began cruising south. We would continue diving everyday, up to the last day, seeing and experiencing the most of what makes Raja Ampat such a mecca for serious scuba divers from around the world. Exploring the reef structures revealed more surprises in the coral shapes and textures. Fish and shell-less marine life varied from the sublime to the ornate. An amazing display of our Creator's imagination was present in every underwater setting. Jorunna funebris, commonly called the dotted or "Oreo" nudibranch, is a species of sea slug. It is a dorid nudibranch, which is a shell-less marine gastropod mollusc in the family Discodorididae, which feed on a variety of sponges. The robust ghost pipefish ( Solenostomus cyanopterus ), also known as the blue-finned ghost pipefish , Racek's ghost pipefish , robust-snouted ghost pipefish, or the squaretail ghost-pipefish , is a species of false pipefish belonging to the family Solenostomidae . Its appearance can vary greatly due to its ability to change colors over several hours, but the general body shape and fin shapes allow it to mimic a piece of seagrass. Our last night aboard, before heading back into port, was spent up on the sun deck. The ship's captain and members of the crew serenaded us with local music as we enjoyed an amazing buffet dinner, prepared by the onboard chef, that we enjoyed under the evening canopy. Some of our group's bolder members even climbed up the ratlines of the mast aloft for a more dramatic view below. Captain Arisman on guitar and Boat Engineer and lead vocal Saldi, provided the tunes. Chef Burhan and Chef's Helper Kipli put on an extensive spread and variety of delicious foods to enjoy during our outdoor buffet. Saturday January 18 morning eventually arrived and we got in two final morning dives before the three to four hour trip across the channel back to Sorong. The crew washed all our dive gear down with fresh water and hung up everything to dry for us. We used the travel time to re-pack our clothing, take one more short nap or hang out together and re-live the week. Once we dropped anchor in the Sorong harbor, the return to the marina commenced in earnest. A final farewell cheer was rendered by the crew and we returned the gesture from the dinghies as we motored away. One last look the lovely lady, Jelajahi Laut , a beautiful Phinisi-style boat constructed in 2021. For centuries, the Phinisi  yachts, also called Sulawesi Schooners, have been cruising throughout the Indonesian archipelago. The Phinisi reflects a rich maritime heritage that has been an integral part of Indonesia’s culture and history. Phinisis are made from tropical ironwood and teak. Their design includes a distinctive curved stern and bow. Phinisis are highly valued for their aesthetic qualities. The boats are often adorned with intricate carvings and brightly painted motifs, which reflect the individual style and personality of the owner. We arrived at the dock and waited for our luggage to come from the boat. While waiting, we met the four drivers who would take us to the Aston Hotel for our remaining days before flying home. One last look from the dock shows the numerous vessels tied up in this busy harbor.

Sunrise in the North Papua islands This is a 360º aerial drone view of the good ship Jelajahi Laut at anchor on the morning of day three. Mikumba Diving really came through for us as we escaped to a whole new world and experienced the best of Indonesia underwater as we traveled on board the Boat Jelajahi Laut. After only two days we all were amazed at the service and quality of the crew. The diving conditions regarding the visibility could have been better but that is out of anyone's control. On the count of three it is over the side and into the deep for at least three dives per day! Here are some additional photography highlights from our diving adventures during the week: Pygmy Seahorse Some of the smallest creatures in this aquatic world have amazing camouflage abilities. Hidden in this coral structure called Muricella, our dive guide pointed out a solitary Pygmy Seahorse. This is a Bargibant’s pygmy (Hippocampus bargibanti). This species only lives in and around Muricella gorgonian fans. The seahorse is are covered in tiny bumps that mimic the gorgonian’s polyps, which is actually how they were accidentally discovered by researcher Georges Bargibant around 1970. One of the many challenges of underwater photography is positioning yourself at the proper distance to focus and light the subject with a correct exposure while holding still in the current or surge to capture your subject. Using my Olympus TG4 camera's microscope mode and Sea & Sea electronic underwater strobe system, I captured this image. I found this in my researching Wikipedia, "One of the most incredible things about pygmy seahorses is their mating and parenting behavior. Firstly, they are thought to be monogamous, and it is actually the males that carry the eggs which are transferred from the female during mating. The eggs are fertilized in a pouch on the underside of his belly that can carry around 10-20 eggs at a time. The gestation period is about 2 weeks, after which the minute babies hatch out of his pouch. There aren’t many super dads like this in nature!" Pygmy seahorses thrive in Raja Ampat thanks to the plentiful food and pristine habitats. It takes sharp eyes and determination to see them but it’s incredible when you do! Finding Nemo The Clownfish was made known to many by the popular animated movie with the same name. These brightly colored Anemonefish are just one of a number of species we observed diving in Raja Ampat. Nemo didn't like me hanging around to close to his home. The darting around movement in and out of the Anemone makes getting a good image of the fish a challenge. Again from Wikipedia: "Anemonefish and sea anemones have a symbiotic, mutualistic relationship, each providing many benefits to the other. The individual species are generally highly host specific. The sea anemone protects the anemonefish from predators, as well as providing food through the scraps left from the anemone's meals and occasional dead anemone tentacles, and functions as a safe nest site. In return, the anemonefish defends the anemone from its predators and parasites. The anemone also picks up nutrients from the anemonefish's excrement. The nitrogen excreted from anemonefish increases the number of algae incorporated into the tissue of their hosts, which aids the anemone in tissue growth and regeneration The activity of the anemonefish results in greater water circulation around the sea anemone and it has been suggested that their bright coloring might lure small fish to the anemone, which then catches them. Studies on anemonefish have found that they alter the flow of water around sea anemone tentacles by certain behaviors and movements such as "wedging" and "switching". Aeration of the host anemone tentacles allows for benefits to the metabolism of both partners, mainly by increasing anemone body size and both anemonefish and anemone respiration." The Wobbegong Wobbegongs are bottom-dwelling sharks, spending much of their time resting on the sea floor. Most species have a maximum length of about 4 feet, but two of the largest, the Spotted Wobbegong (Orectolobus Maculatus) and Banded Wobbegong (Orectolobus Halei), can reach about 9 feet in length. The word Wobbegong is believed to come from an Australian Aboriginal language, meaning "shaggy beard", referring to the growths around the mouth of the shark of the western Pacific. Do you see me??? From Wikipedia, "Wobbegongs are well camouflaged with a symmetrical pattern of bold markings which resembles a carpet. Because of this striking pattern, wobbegongs and their close relatives are often referred to as carpet sharks. The camouflage is improved by the presence of small weed-like whisker lobes surrounding the wobbegong's jaw, which help to camouflage it and act as sensory barbs. Wobbegongs make use of their camouflage to hide among rocks and catch smaller fish which swim too close, typical of ambush predators. Wobbegongs also have a powerful jaw with needle-like teeth that assist in catching reef fish and other sharks for food." Wobbegongs are generally not considered dangerous to humans, but have attacked swimmers, snorkelers, and scuba divers who inadvertently come close to them. We respectfully kept our distance during diving encounters. In the eight days and seven nights we were on board we had a wonderful time doing what we all love to do under the sea. By the end of our trip, some in our group including Karen, visited and dove 23 different dive sites, took a hike to a picturesque island top for scenic views, floated down a spring-fed blue river and took an easy hike to a beautiful waterfall and lagoon. I completed all but one night dive, a total of 22 dives on this trip,and skipped the hikes but instead flew my DJI Mini 2 drone to capture some aerial views of where we visited. A close up view of a non-native species in Indonesian waters; this image of the white-whiskered Johnigong was captured during our diving excursions!

Our diving sites on day two would include Eagle Rock, just south of the equator, Black Rock and Figure Eight located just north of the Equator. Site#3 EAGLE ROCKS (Batu Elang) Location: 3 small islets S of Kawe Island GPS: S 00 08.219 E 130 07.416 (general location of 3 rocks) Photography: Wide angle and macro Dive Site Overview: During our dive briefing we were provided with, for first time in my diving experience, a reef hook and instructions for it's use. There are several dive sites around the Eagle Rock complex with strong currents and in the event that the currents were too strong to swim against we would be prepared and equipped. On this dive we would practice deploying our reef hooks and their recovery. We got in the water at 0727 and dove this site for 48 minutes with a maximum depth of 68 feet. The water tmperature was 84ºF and as it turned out, the current this day was manageable which helped us in doing the deployment and recovery of a reef hook in a controlled manner. While exploring this site we observed an abundance of soft and hard corals. When lit up with a light the colors were amazing! Suzy Wheat referred to one of them as "Aorta coral" due to it unique shape similar to an aorta, although I doubt a human aorta is purple and yellow in color. The variety of shapes, textures and sizes of the coral made for a wonderful visual experience as we looked for other creatures hidden in this aquatic world. Our guide found us a Leaf Scorpionfish on this dive. According to Wikipedia, "Taenianotus triacanthus is about 10 cm (3.9 in) long fully grown. Their color varies from green, red, pink, brown, ocher and yellowish to a ghostly white. The fish is almost as flat as a leaf and resembles a leaf in many other ways. The head and mouth are large. Through their eyes is a dark line. The large dorsal fin starts just behind the eyes and has 12 spines and eight to 11 soft rays. The anal fin has three spines and five or six soft rays. The venom of the leaf scorpionfish is considerably weaker than that of the lionfish and stonefish. The skin often has blotches that enhance a camouflage effect. This fish has appendages around the mouth, and sometimes real algae and hydroids grow on its skin". After our dive ended we were picked up by one of the two tender dinghies and we returned back to the dive boat for breakfast. During breakfast, the boat traveled to the next dive site and crossed the equator. It is a longstanding maritime tradition to initiate sailors who are crossing the equator for the first time. Those who have not yet crossed are known as “pollywogs.” After crossing the equator they become “shellbacks,” or trusted subjects of Neptune, the Roman god of water. Although there was no offical ceremony, Karen and I are now officially "Shellbacks"! Site#4 BLACK ROCK Location: W of Kawe Island GPS: N 00 01.300 E 130 08.450 Photography: Wide angle and macro Dive Site Overview: Described as an extensive and often very fishy site worth multiple dives. Begin at S-point, swim along sloping plateau, reef right (W-side of rocks) to N-point where the slope ends and Tubastrea-clad pinnacles begin. Look for mantas in the blue. We geared back up and re-entered the water at 1038 and dove this site for 57 minutes with a maximum depth of 71 feet. The water tmperature was now 86ºF and this is where we encountered our first reef manta rays. Manta rays are truly amazing creatures to behold. They are, in my opinion, the angels of the ocean. They move effortessly though the water and exhibit poetic movements. It's a ballet performed by these curious but shy giants of the deep. Every encounter I have ever had always leaves me in awe and wonder of their beauty and grace. We were fortunate enough to be visited by not one but two of these animals. They usually will only swim by a few times before leaving but these two individuals seemed very curious and just continued to circle us. I even think the first one waved to me in the second video. What do you think? The word “manta” means “blanket” or “cloak” in Spanish, and it’s quite accurately descriptive of these large, flat, diamond-shaped cold-blooded fish with eyes on the sides of their heads. Ending our second dive of the morning at 1135 we were once again recovered by one of the two tender dinghies and we returned back to the dive boat for lunch before our last dive of the day that afternoon. Site#5 FIGURE EIGHT ROCK Location: W Wayag GPS: N 00 10.379 E 130 00.373 Photography: Wide and Macro Dive Site Overview: Although connected underwater, from the surface this site appears to be two separate islands. It can be dived on a single tank by a non-photographer, but could easily be dived as two distinct sites by photographers or divers willing to spend more time looking for critters. We once again geared back up, re-entered the water this time at 1439 (2:39 PM) and dove this site for 50 minutes with a maximum depth of 80 feet. With the water temperature now 84ºF my 0.5 mm diving skin was more enough to keep me warm on these repetitive dives. This venue was known for the really small creatures known as Nudibranchs. Nudibranchs are a group of soft-bodied marine gastropod molluscs that shed their shells after their larval stage. They are noted for their often extraordinary colors and striking forms, and they have been given colorful nicknames to match, such as "clown", "marigold", "splendid", "dancer", "dragon", and "sea rabbit". Currently, about 3,000 valid species of nudibranchs are known. This last dive of the day ended at 1529 (3:29 PM) and after returning to the boat to shower and get a snack we prepared to visit a special place in Palau Wayag. An hour later we were back on the dinghies for the 30 minute boat ride to Shark Beach. Shark Beach is where you can swim or snorkel with baby sharks. I'm not kidding!. I thought about it but wanted to get some drone video and couldn't do both. I got to dive with Bull Sharks in Fiji last year, so I flew the drone and Karen swam with the baby sharks. Everyone returned with all their fingers and toes. This is where we spent the second day of our live aboard dive trip. A long, wonderful day of diving ended with an amazing dinner on board the Jelajahi Laut with much more to come.

We arrived at our first diving location in the late afternoon on Friday, January 1oth for an easy checkout dive with the diving staff aboard. This is standard operating procedure for most diving operators to evaluate the divers abilities with their gear and their diving techniques like air management and bouyancy control in the water. This is especially critical given the potentially challenging conditions we might encounter. Raja Ampat is known for strong current conditions at many of the dive sites, so strong swimming skills, good operating scuba equipment and the ability to stay calm in these diving conditions is critical to the safety of all divers. This was important because we had some relatively new scuba divers with us on this trip and we wanted them safe but we also wanted to be careful with the reef structures to do no harm or damage due to bad bouyancy control or fins position near the coral formations. Dive site#1 was called Saonek Kecil. The Saonek Kecil Island is a location close to the Waisai Harbour. I normally dive wearing a 0.5 mm wetsuit (or skin) in warm water (82º F to 86º F) using about 12 to 16 pounds of weight depending on the salinity of the water and whether the air tank is aluminum or steel. In this part of the world they use kilograms not pounds so some thinking had to go into determining the appropriate weight for diving in Raja Ampat. I started with 8 Kg or 17.6 pounds which I thought initially was too much. Later I adjusted to 6 Kg or 13.2 pounds which worked out better for my bouyancy control. With weight and wetsuit thickness dialed in after the first dive, we got back on board. Our second dive site was offshore the Sapokren Village near our PapuArts stay location. This was our first night dive on the trip and everyone was excited about seeing the underwater nightlife. This would be the first time using my new iPhone DiveVolk underwater housing with a Sealife 2500 lumen flood light. Karen was lovingly picked up by William and Maddie Severi while getting geared up for our dive. This was a good sign of the fun times ahead for our group as the joking and banter continued on the dive deck. With our torches (dive lights) attached and chemical glow sticks secured to our tanks we boarded the dinghies for a back flip entry into the abyss. The site did not disappoint us as we encountered a seahorse almost immediately as well as multiple cuttlefish during the dive. Raja Ampat is known for its Pygmy Seahorse but we encountered a more common seahorse on this dive. The Cuttlefish we encountered were on the smaller side but still quite colorful. Our last encounter was with a Leaf Scorpion Fish found by our guide Sahril. This diving location is referred to as a "Muck Dive" because of the sandy or muddy bottom contour. This was not the prettiest dive site but it was teaming with all kinds of creatures that generally only come out at night. We all returned safely to the speedboats and were ferried back to Jelajahi Laut to secure our diving equipment. Our next destination on day two would be enroute to the northern most Raja Ampat Islands. EAGLE ROCKS (Batu Elang) Location:  3 small islets south of Kawe Island GPS: S 00 08.219 E 130 07.416 (general location of 3 rocks) Photography: Wide angle and macro Dive Site#3 Preview: There are several dive sites around the Eagle Rock complex. Eagle Rock is also home to the largest population of manta rays that can be found in the northern part of Raja Ampat. Stay tuned for more scuba diving stories!

We returned to Sorong from PapuArts in Waisai, Waigeo Island on Thursday, January 9th to spend one night at the Aston Hotel before we boarded our dive boat. The hotel was very nicely appointed and included an extensive breakfast buffet with our room rate, We paid $1,572,000.00 Rupiah for the one night stay (the equivalent of $97 in US dollars). Friday morning, January 10 we were picked up at our hotel by Mikumba Diving and driven to our rallying point at the dock to meet the cruise directors, Eric and Cami from our dive boat, the Jelajahi Laut , which translates to "Explorer of the Sea". We shuttled our group from the dock to the vessel and were warmly greeted by the crew on board. Eric did his initial welcome briefing with us above the dive deck while the crew brought our gear aboard. This area would prove to be a favorite place to relax between our dives because of its shade protection from the sun and comfortable sea breeze. The boat can accommodate up to 12 guests total. We were fortunate to book the entire boat for this week with our group. A more comprehensive briefing took place in the main salon to cover safety issues and finished with a tour of our new home for the next week. Eric (standing) and Cami (seated to the right) were our cruise directors for this adventure on board Jelajahi Laut. This is the Sun Deck where the life rafts were stored and where I would place my Starlink antenna above our cabin during our stay on board. We had one of the two deluxe cabins with large picture windows off the port side and a private bathroom. This is our view outside our stern view balcony. The two boats in tow are our dive dinghies used to take us to and from our diving sites during the week. The dive deck is expansive with plenty of room for two tanks per diver with wet storage underneath each dive station. Oversized tanks (15 L) were available along with extra equipment and Nitrox. During our briefings the crew moved our luggage to our cabins then we removed our diving equipment to be rigged up on our assigned diving stations on the dive deck. Karen and I were assigned the "Turtle" cabin for stay on board. We were two decks above the dive deck on port side of the vessel's stern. Following the briefings and tour we enjoyed a wonderful lunch in the dining salon then relaxed enroute to the first dive site for our afternoon "checkout dive". Life aboard the  Jelajahi Laut is looking exceptional. Now, would the diving meet our expectations? Time would tell us soon enough.

According to Wikipedia, Raja Ampat, or the Four Kings, is an archipelago located off of the northwest tip of Bird's Head Peninsula (on the island of New Guinea), Southwest Papua province, Indonesia. It comprises over 1,500 small islands, cays, and shoals around the four main islands of Misool, Salawati, Batanta, and Waigeo, and the smaller island of Kofiau. The Raja Ampat archipelago straddles the equator and forms part of the Coral Triangle, an area of Southeast Asian seas containing the richest marine biodiversity on earth. The Coral Triangle itself is an approximate area west-southwest of the Philippines, east-northeast and southeast of the island of Borneo, and north, east and west of the island of New Guinea, including the seas in between. Thousands of species of marine organisms, from the tiniest cleaner shrimp and camouflaged pygmy seahorses to the majestic cetaceans and whale sharks, thrive in these waters. The high marine diversity in Raja Ampat is strongly influenced by its position between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, as coral and fish larvae are more easily shared between the two oceans. Raja Ampat's coral diversity, resilience, and role as a source for larval dispersal make it a global priority for marine protection. Its location results in it being a biogeographic crossroads between Indonesia, Micronesia and the Arafura Sea. According to Conservation International, marine surveys suggest that the marine life diversity in the Raja Ampat area is the highest recorded on Earth. Diversity is considerably greater than any other area sampled in the Coral Triangle composed of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and East Timor. The Coral Triangle is the heart of the world's coral reef biodiversity, making Raja Ampat quite possibly the richest coral reef ecosystem in the world. The oceanic natural resources around Raja Ampat give the area significant potential as a tourist area, drawing divers, researchers and others with an interest in the marine life there. This is why Raja Ampat is perhaps considered the crown jewel of scuba diving venues in the international diving community, and the reason we decided to journey here. The remoteness of the location obviously requires a serious travel commitment of time and treasure, but we expect we won't be disappointed.

PapuArts Alter-Native Stay is a traditionally built home stay / dive lodge but with a modern touch. Located in Raja Ampat, West Papua, also named Last Paradise on Earth, a true heaven for Nature Lovers, above as well as below the water. They offer the choice between 3 different Papuan room types. We chose the ocean view room looking out at the four ocean view rooms over the water on the dock. They advertise and offer an eco/sustainable place to stay in the middle of world's biggest marine biodiversity and equatorial jungle. We were attracted to the PapuArts Alter Native Stay as a transitional venue after a long traveling segment. After resting up, it offered all kind of options around the island of Waigeo and beyond. After getting our energy back we enjoyed snorkeling out to the nearby reef and relaxing in the hammock outside our hut. I set up my Starlink antenna and have access to the internet for communication, research and entertainment. Our accommodations include a small loft with another bed and sitting area, a private bathroom and a queen size bed with mosquito netting. We are living a more rustic lifestyle of Raja Ampat camping without locking doors, open windows and no air conditioning. We are enjoying three wonderful, home cooked meals a day prepared and served by the lodge staff. The biggest challenges involve mitigating the mosquitoes and humidity, but frankly these are minor issues. We've made new friends staying at the PapuArts during our visit here. We met Conner from Ireland on the ferry ride over. Rohan and Sarah from Scotland were at the lodge when we arrived. Later we met Elias and Paul, two cousins traveling together from Austria and Christopher AKA Tique from Sweden who arrived on our third day. Two members of the Raja Ampat Rascals are staying here as well, Keely Martin and Suzy Wheat decided to hang out here for a few days too before going to the liveaboard. In addition to snorkeling around the facility, as a group we have explored the local village and took a day-long trip to the "Blue River" site across the island. Most of the time is spent relaxing as well as sharing stories and experiences with fellow like-minded travelers and scuba divers. Elias doing a back flip into the "Blue River" Another beautiful sunset at PapuArts Alter-Native Stay

We departed Smithville, TX on Wednesday December 18th for a roadtrip to Thornton, Colorado to visit the Teague Clan for the holidays. From Smithville to their home is a 14 hour drive, so we planned on three days to get there. Day one we departed around 9:30 AM and headed northwest through Austin towards the Panhandle region of Texas. We chose highways less traveled and passed through some small rural towns and villages arriving in Childress, TX for the night. The Panhandle is a narrow, straight region in the northernmost part of Texas. It's part of the same grassland that extends from the Great Plains of the Central United States. The Panhandle remains a top producer of fed beef, cotton and sorghum, as well as dairy, corn and wheat. Thursday, December 19th we continued heading northwest to the the town of Texline near the corner of the Panhandle with Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma. We crossed into New Mexico and continued through the northeast corner to the town of Raton. We picked up Interstate 25, US 85 and started north into Colorado. through Trinidad and ultimately Pueblo, Colorado for the second night. Pueblo is a city of 111,000 people and is located about 4,692 feet above sea level. The Historic Arkansas Riverwalk is an urban development, with boat rides, public art, restaurants and events. The project commemorates the river’s original location before it was diverted in the wake of a 1921 flood. El Pueblo History Museum has a recreated 1840s trading post and artifacts tracing the city’s past. To the west, Lake Pueblo State Park is a popular fishing, boating and camping spot. Pueblo has always been a major part of Colorado history. At Pueblo’s start it was just a small fort; however, it was instrumental in bringing the railroad to Colorado. We visited the Riverwalk area of the city to enjoy a short walk along the water then enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Angelo's before returning to the Hampton Inn for the night. The Riverwalk decorated for the Holidays Friday morning after breakfast at the hotel we departed for Erik's home in Thornton, CO by way of a circuitous route up through the Rocky Mountains. We drove past Colorado Springs and headed west to Woodland Park, CO just 7 miles from the Continental Divide at 8,481 feet of elevation. From there we headed up CO67 to a remote region near Deckers, an unincorporated community along the South Platte River in Douglas County, Colorado. We had to use 4-wheel drive to navigate the dirt road covered with ice up the 15% grade where we discovered the Sprucewood Inn along the way to Sedalia, CO for a quick lunch. This was a unique inn remotely located in the mountains above the Denver Metro area with some colorful characters who like the remoteness of the region away from the busy city life. The inn is frequented by bikers and fishermen alike. We finally arrived at the kids' place around 4:30 PM after inadvertently transiting through downtown Denver during rush hour on a Friday! Well, that was a mistake and definitely not a do-over. Finally arrived to see the grandkids next to their Christmas tree.

After three major RV trips including the ALCAN to Alaska we decided it was finally time to replace our trailer brakes. Since we purchased the rig in December 2021, we've driven 40,548 miles on the original brakes so we wouldn't just replace the brakes pads on all four wheels but the entire brake assembly as well as repack all the bearings. Getting our "ducks in a row" for the work. One of the four new brake assemblies all shiny and new! I researched on YouTube doing the work myself and quickly realized it was worth the money to pay some else to do the work. We hired My Mobile RV Tech, Donnie Klesel out of La Grange, Texas on a recommendation from folks in the Village to do the work. He arrived at our site in the Village on Wednesday, November 11 and had the work done in about three hours. When he removed the first brake drum assembly I got to see first hand the physical condition after 3 years on the road. We were definitely ready for new brakes. I was frankly expecting the wear to be much worse. The brake pads exhibited uneven wear depth with thinning on one end more than another. But all the pads still had some material left which I thought was amazing. The wheel bearings were last replaced and repacked about a year ago in South Carolina, so they needed to be redone. The old bearing grease looked dark but there was still plenty in the bearing/spindle assembly even after a year's travel and the ALCAN highway up and back. Before and After comparison. I'm convinced, after talking with Donnie, the brakes lasted this long because of our RAM 3500 diesel truck's exhaust braking feature. For those who are unfamiliar with what it does, here's a brief explanation: A Ram 3500 diesel exhaust brake works by electronically controlling the opening of the exhaust valves to restrict the flow of exhaust gases, creating backpressure that slows down the engine and thus the vehicle, essentially acting as a braking mechanism when you take your foot off the accelerator pedal; it's primarily used on downhill stretches to reduce strain on the regular brakes, especially when towing heavy loads. Is it good to keep your exhaust brake on? Running the exhaust brake all the time, except in very slick road conditions, is a very good idea and reduces wear on the service brakes. And, the mechanism that changes the turbo vane angles needs to be worked to keep any carbon buildup from accumulating and obstructing it. Yet another advantage of a diesel truck over the gasoline version for towing. With this RV maintenance job completed we are all ready for the road again come February 2025. Thank you Donnie for doing a great job and getting the work done so quickly!

Following our return from the Western Caribbean cruise we decided to spend an extra day in Houston with Bob and Gail Conrad before their departure on Tuesday, December 10 back to San Diego. We checked into the same Hilton Garden Inn and rested up for our tour of the Johnson Space Center (JSC) on Monday, December 9th. Being a "card carrying space nerd", I was looking forward to spending more time in another of my "happy places". Unlike the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, no rockets are launched from this NASA facility. JSC is where Mission Control is manned by space flight managers, technicians, and mission specialists. Here scientists provide support and monitor missions and the spacecrafts after they're launched. This is where the International Space Station (ISS) is monitored and managed from the ground and communication is ongoing with the ISS 24/7. The museum we visited is on the actual Johnson Space Center grounds and we got to include a visit to the Rocket Garden, home to one of the only three remaining Saturn V's, the actual Boeing 747 that transported all the Space Shuttles back to the Kennedy Space Center and numerous wonderful exhibits and displays. In addition we took two tours onto the JSC campus; one to the Mission Control Facility and the other to the Astronaut Training Facility. Most of the space shuttle landings were at Edwards Air Force Base in the Mojave Desert of California. A few weeks after the landing, this specially modified 747 would transport the shuttle, mounted piggy-back, and return it to the Kennedy Space Center for another future flight. NASA's Christopher C. Kraft Jr. Mission Control Center (MCC-H, initially called Integrated Mission Control Center, or IMCC), also known by its radio call sign, "Houston", is the facility at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, that manages flight control for the United States human space program, currently involving astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The center is in Building 30 at the Johnson Space Center and is named after Christopher C. Kraft Jr., a NASA engineer and manager who was instrumental in establishing the agency's Mission Control operation, and was the first Flight Director. We were allowed to visit the Mission Operations Control Room 2 (MOCR 2) that was used for all Gemini and Apollo (Saturn V) flights (except Gemini 3); it was located on the third floor. As the flight control room for Apollo 11, the first crewed Moon landing, MOCR 2 was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1985. It was last used in 1992 as the flight control room for STS-53 and was subsequently converted back almost entirely to its Apollo-era configuration and preserved for historical purposes. Together with several support wings, it is now listed in the National Register of Historic Places as the "Apollo Mission Control Center". In January 2018, the first set of consoles in MOCR 2 were removed and sent to the Kansas Cosmosphere for archival cleaning, refurbishment, and restoration to Apollo-era configuration, for eventual display back in the control room. On July 1, 2019, the newly restored Apollo-era Mission Control was reopened to the public after a two-year long effort to restore the room to its configuration as seen during the Apollo Moon landings. Period-appropriate accents were acquired, from cigarette packs and ashtrays to wallpaper and carpeting. The room is accessible via the tram tour at the nearby Space Center Houston visitors' center, but only from behind the glass in the restored Visitor's Gallery viewing room. As we sat in the visitor's viewing area, we relived the Apollo 11 descent of the LEM with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the moon's surface and landing on July 20, 1969. "Tranquility Base here...the Eagle has landed." Following our tour of MOCR 2 we visited the Astronaut Training Facility at NASA Johnson Space Center. The only way for the public to view this facility is through Space Center Houston’s Astronaut Training Facility NASA tram tour! Astronauts train within this full-size classroom in the heart of NASA Johnson Space Center. Since its inception in 1975, the Astronaut Training Facility has supported NASA’s missions. There have been several types of mockups within the facility and each served a different function for astronauts and engineers. Initially, the facility housed space shuttle training modules such as the full fuselage trainer and two crew compartment trainers. Although equipment in the building may change, the goal of this training facility has remained the same. It houses almost 200 training courses to help astronauts become familiar with the spacecraft, understand its various systems and prepare for emergencies that may occur during a mission. This facility houses a full-size and complete with all the modules International Space Station, a Boeing Starliner, Soyuz capsule, and NASA’s Orion spacecraft for the Artemis missions The Astronaut Training Facility has become the central hub for resolving issues during missions. If a problem were to occur aboard the ISS, JSC officials would come to the facility to work through the situation with engineers, then relay the step-by-step process to the astronauts in orbit. Space Center Houston offers this behind-the-scenes look at NASA Johnson Space Center on the NASA Tram Tour. As part of this tour, on a walkway positioned right above the training mockups, we observed the engineers, astronauts and equipment used for daily trainings. Karen really got into the spirit of the tour. Well, we all were "space nerds" for the day and celebrated our completion of the JSC mission with dinner at the Olive Garden restaurant before dropping Bob and Gail off at the hotel. We hugged and said our goodbyes with talk of a future cruise to be determined. We drove the two hours from Houston back to Smithville and got home about 10 PM. We left everything in the truck and cozied up in our own warm bed after a wonderful adventure of sightseeing and travel.