Pulau Weh

Pulau Weh is an island at the North West tip of Sumatra, Indonesia. We were staying in a bungalow at Ibioh beach, which was an area not terribly affected by the tsunami because it is on the East-facing side of the island.
Unfortunately we don't have too many pictures from Pulau Weh since we spent the majority of our time 18m under the surface, but you can imagine how nice it was to be there.



This was the view from our hotel. The water is so clear and blue, and the reefs are amazing.













Where we stayed. Essentially all of the accommodation there is in the form of bungalows. It's cheap there, $7 per night, but there is no hot water, no western toilets, and no shower (just splash a bucket of cold water over your head...). Despite the difference in standards, we really enjoyed staying here and wish we could have stayed longer.







Here we are with our scuba instructor, Salim. Both of us took the course and obtained certification for the PADI Open Water Diver. This included 5 dives, and I don't think we could have picked a better place to do it. Each of our "training dives," where we had to demonstrate skills, took place around the most beautiful reefs we've ever seen (a great way to start your scuba career). We saw a couple of sharks, many barracuda, moray eels, a giant napoleon fish, and dozens of other gorgeous fish/aquatic life.




Heading out for a dive...