Scuba diving liberty

Yesterday be drove 3 hours across probably from ubud to amed. For 8 bucks, we rented a car, a suzuki katana, and I thought we were going to die about every 2 seconds. Yikes! Austin was super sweaty after the drive, and it had nothing to do with the weather.

We arrived in Amed, a beautiful, sleepy beach town. We keep going from one extreme to another, and this hotel is rockin! For 11 a night, we get a private bungalow, free breakfast, beach views, and jungle terrain. Totes romantic 

After shopping around yesterday for some cheap scuba diving, we set out on our diving adventure this morning: the shipwreck of USS Liberty! It was torpedoed by a Japanese sub during WWII and sunk near the coast. Then, in 1962, Mt. agung blew, moving the island farther out to sea, meters from the wreck. Wicked!

For $55 total, Austin and I dove the wreck with a guide. We literally walked down the pebble beach to the wreck.  Despite waves and silt, it was spectacular! I have never seen so many species of corral: cones, fans, brains, twirly ones, all colors, all sizes. Imagine finding memo reef style, but on a massive military ship. The bow rose up through the sea, and the largest eel I have ever seen ever ever lived within a gaping hole.

The ship was quite intact, everything encrusted with sea life and coral.

Lots of fish species, but mostly smaller ones that were super colorful.

We were at the bottom for about half an hour, but I could have Lil mermaided it up for days!