Togean Islands

After leaving Scott and Matt behind in Tentena, Danna and I made our way to the Togean Islands. To get there, we had a 5 hour van ride, 2 night stay in Ampana and a 4 1/2 hour ferry ride to arrive at Poya Lisa. The set up of Poya Lisa was very similar to that of the homestays in Raja Ampat. The major differences were the amount of people and the price.

Poya Lisa is situated on it's own private island straight across from a small port town called Bomba. There is no cell service or WiFi to be found here or anywhere near it. If you're looking for a way to completely disconnect with the outside world, this is a great place to do so. There are bungalows on a cliff edge overlooking the sea and they contain some amazing sunset views. There are also other bungalows on a small beach and this is what Danna and I stayed in. There is a communal eating area where you could always find someone to share a conversation with. The island also contained a rambunctious little puppy named Sammy. The poor little guy was always getting scolded in multiple languages at every meal.

There was a revolving door of people coming and going. Because we stayed for six nights, we met a lot of different and interesting people. We took a snorkeling trip 4 out of the 5 days we were there. Two of the trips were day trips where we snorkeled, lunched on a beautiful little beach, napped and snorkeled again before heading back for sunset. The other two trips were half day trips to different locations. On two of these days, we were lucky enough to see some dolphins. They were quite small but very acrobatic. I was more than amazed by the double flips they showed off with.

The snorkeling here was just as fantastic as what it was in Raja Ampat but for different reasons. The fish were not as numerous but the clarity was phenomenal. Off the drop offs, I was able to see farther than what I've ever been able to. It was awesome to see the sunlight sparkling so far below from so high up.