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RIUNG & SEVENTEEN ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK

Riung village, on the coast north of Bajawa, offers beautiful coral gardens in the Seventeen Island National Reserve, as well as thousands of flying foxes.

The National Park, Pulau Tujuhbelas (Seventeen Islands), in fact has more than 20 islands, but, in a gesture of patriotism, the number was declared to 17, to conform to Indonesia's Independence Day, August 17.

The biggest island is Pulau Ontoloe which is hilly, covered with short grass and a few trees, and fringed with mangroves. On the north coast of Ontoloe Island, the large fruit-eating bats called flying foxes mass in which the mangrove tress.

Riung is a small fishing village on the north coast of Ngada district, which gives access to the 17 Islands Marine Park. Some of the islands have beautifully white, sandy beaches, and offer great snorkelling with good reefs and interesting sea life. Boats can be arranged from every hotel in town, and there are several dive masters in Riung to take you on interesting dives. If snorkelling or diving is not your thing, fishing and swimming in the crystal-clear waters is another option. A visit to Flying Fox Island gives you the opportunity to see these animals as they fly when the sun sets. Another attraction further along Riung’s coast are the giant lizards, although it is quite rare to actually see one. These lizards are more brightly coloured than the Komodo Dragons.

The population of Riung is a mixture of Islamic Buginese and Catholics from the hinterlands. Corn and rice of catholic farmers are added to the fish of the Islamic fishers. The farmers export copra, coconuts, dried fish, tripang and tuna. The women weave typical sarongs of the Riung-area, with yellow and red flowers on a blue-black background. They are not very cheap to buy.

There are rumors that Komodo dragons are hiding in a cave near the Damu Bay, but Indonesian representatives of the WNF never confirmed it really were Komodo Dragons that were hiding there. A dragon, of unknown species, was found in the environment of the cave in 1991 and now lived in a cave of the KSDA. They will show you the captured dragon for a small fee. You can buy chicken eggs to feed the animal.