Alam Kotok

Today was my second attempt at visiting Pulau Seribu - Indonesia's "Thousand Islands" (there's actually only a hundred or so). Our destination was Alam Kotok island, where we were promised some peace and quiet, as there are no roads, cars, or motorbikes! After our speedboat cruised through a pretty intense storm, we arrived at the beautiful, sunny, and delightful Kotok. Upon arrival we received a palm frond crown and welcome drink, and got right to exploring this incredible island.

The water was a beautiful aqua. Mangroves and coconut trees lined the sandy and coral-covered shore. The jungle was thick but had well groomed paths that allowed us to explore to our hearts content. There were hammocks, bungalows, decks, and plenty of sand for relaxing, and we tried them all. We went lizard hunting (more on that tomorrow!) and enjoyed the company of a cat, who we lovingly nicknamed Snoop Cat.

After enjoying a delicious buffet lunch, the departure boat came and took away every other single tourist on the island. As a result, we were treated to . In the evening we ventured to the west side of the island to visit the tree house and attempt to watch the sunset. Unfortunately the clouds foiled our plans, but we enjoyed a little solitude while the tide rolled out. For dinner our pre-dinner drink we ordered up a "Black Coconut" which had Kahlua and coconut milk - yum! We had grilled fish and chicken for dinner, and then feeling full, we returned to our Bungalow and called it a night.

We had to admit that we didn't sleep great, considering the noisy bugs, random thumps on our front porch, and a strange scratching noise that sounded eerily close, but our time on Kotok Island was exactly what the doctor ordered!