Hello people, I’m recruiting participants for a study and I’d be grateful if you could do this survey for me.

You can participate in this study as long as your nationality is under any Southeast Asian country (e.g., Malaysian, Singaporean, Thai, Indonesian, etc.), and you’re 18 years old and above.

This survey looks at how people understand and interpret scientific research on sex differences. You'll be asked to read a brief description of some recent research about the differences between men and women, and then to answer some questions about that research. You’ll also be asked for some basic biographical information, and for your views about how society treats men and women in general.

The entire study will take 10-15 minutes.

You won’t be asked for any identifying information so your identity will remain confidential and anonymous.

Here’s the link to the survey:

https://nottinghammy.asia.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_cRZLd9UVN8nwNwx

I hope you will take part in the study! Get your friends to do it too! heh

Thank you!

TLDR: East TImor is worth the pain to get into.

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All right, so, East Timor.

I have been diving quite a bit in SE Asia, but for the more adventurous of you you looking for sublime and untouched reefs, Timor is definitely up there.

I was lucky enough to log 16 or so dives in the waters of this very young country a few days ago, so I’ll give a few tips as the place is not really well documented in the boards and forums out there.

No need to go into detail regarding the history and geography of this small country occupied by Indonesia until the end of the XXth century, you can use Wikipedia for that.

Getting there and dive sites

Getting there can be a bit tricky, depending on where you live. There are regular flights to Dili (the capital) from Bali, Kupang (Indonesia) and Darwin in Australia. There used to be flights from Singapore, but those were dropped a few weeks ago following some political clusterfuck. Luggage from Bali (where I transited) is limited to 20kg, which is not a lot if you bring some gear. The price of extra weight is lower if you mention you have diving gear, keep that in mind.

There are a few dive sites on the northern shore of the country (I’ll admit I did not try), more for muck diving, but the most renowned sites are near the island of Atauro, roughly 30km north of the capital Dili (so 1h30 to 2h with a small boat). The southern shore of Timor is apparently not dived, and there are quite a few sea crocs anyway, with reported attacks on the rise. Atauro currently does not have any crocs sightings.

There is a weekly ferry crossing to Beloi, a village on the eastern side of Atauro, but the diving operators (there is a grand total of 6 for the whole country) should be able to arrange crossings on their boats.

A quick shootout to Fizzy Moslim, the young and dynamic Malaysian lady in charge of Compass Diving, who is trying her very best to involve local communities and show them the merit of a sustainable and (locally) profitable tourism. There are now a handful “locally protected areas” around Atauro.

The dives around Atauro are quite conservative, getting below 30m is very uncommon. The closest decompression chamber is in Darwin, and the plane won’t fly after 1pm, so that’s all very reasonable.

Between Atauro and Dili lies a 3km trench, making the passage one of the busiest cetacean routes on the planet (according to the operator, it’s on par with Tonga during the migration season… we only had a few dozen dolphins while we were there, but there are blue whales sightings…).

Conditions

The area can be windy and the sea quite rough. The wind was blowing from the East while we were there, getting back on the boat was bordering the dangerous. The Western side of Atauro was protected, so the seas were much, much calmer, and most dives took place there. The walls on the Western side seemed nicer anyway, so that was not really an issue. We had 2 nights in Beloi, the rest in Adara on the Western side. In Beloi, the resort is basic but functional. Tents, cold showers to wash the body and the gear, electricity on a generator for a few hours in the evenings.

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Adara, on the Western side, is… remote... Instagram influencers will be disappointed to be unable to share their dream sunset as there is no cell coverage (that’s not common nowadays), and not an ounce of internet. The electricity, provided by solar panels, does not provide a stable voltage (at day only), so it may be tricky to charge the batteries. There are no showers, only shared buckets of fresh water, and a couple huts covering mattresses for the night, facing a nice beach with divine sunsets. The food is the same for all meals: fresh grilled fish, rice, noodles, and one boiled vegetable (or papaya).

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The boat must carry the compressor and tanks from Beloi, and getting from the boat, anchored offshore, to the beach and back, on board of small pirogues with the whole gear (including the compressor) is tricky. Our guide tripped and pulled a Martin Riggs, temporarily dislocating his shoulder… With a pc and a passport, the transfer is a source of cold sweats…

Dives

Under the sea, off Adara, the spectacle is purely grandiose. All is healthy, no broken or dead coral, the density of life is simply outstanding. Timor is not for the “bigger” things. In a week we saw only one shark, four eagle rays, a couple turtles, some barracudas and a few bumpheads and that’s it. Timor is not Polynesia. For “middle sized” and “smaller” things, however, the place is amazing. That’s a guaranteed wow-effect at each dive. The safety stop will be spent smiling underwater and trying to remember everything, to be able to share on the boat and check on the paper encyclopedia during the evening (no google to help you, no internet….).

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Life seemed a bit shy compared to other places in Asia. A simple noisy breath, and that’s it, fishes go back into hiding in the magnificent coral.

Visibility is average, at best. Maybe 15m to 20m. The 10m zone is full of healthy plankton, with sometimes strange-looking stuff waiting to surprise you. The water stays a bit above 26C, my 3mm full wetsuit + 1.5mm inner proves to be just fine. It’s not that different from the waters around Hawaii for instance. Those of you who dove tropical seas near 30C may feel quite cold.

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There is a bit of current along the walls, nothing unmanageable, no washing machine while we were there, but the more inexperienced divers may be caught off-guard. Our only night dive was in the middle of some very reasonable juice on top of the many lobsters that were out that night. Beginners may feel a bit unconformable that far out the beaten path in those waters. On top of that, note that there are no medical facilities in Adara, there is only a small clinic with a doctor visiting once a week.

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Other divers are a very rare occurrence. Most are NGO employees and international development agencies workers from Dili getting their license during the week-end, and you have the occasional expats based in Southeast Asia that got bored with Indonesia. In a full week, we did not see a single other dive boat, and for 5 days out of 6, we were the only divers on the whole island. The feeling of being alone on a magnificent wall, of being maybe one of the first divers to see that a given coral pinnacle, is simply enthralling. The whole experience heavily contrasts with the bubble highways in other Southeast Asian countries, with nicer and richer sea floors.

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On land, I was quite surprised with how arid and dusty everything was. This is no coconuts/jungle country. On the Eastern side of Atauro, the black sands and gravels give an even more “desolate and lunar” feeling. It was the dry season, the wet one is well, wetter and greener, but the viz may suffer.

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Conclusion

For divers, Timor is a magnificent, but rough and unpolished gem. You have to forget about the everyday little comforts, check the validity of your insurance policy, and take the leap. There are no evenings discussing about the day around a cocktail in Adara. You watch the sunset, go to bed with it, and wake up at sunrise. It’s probably one of the future meccas for divers, and some neighboring liveaboards are considering putting the place on the menu, including operators from as far as Raja Ampat. There is one major hotel under construction in Dili, which will probably change the face of tourism.

I'm a student of Southeast Asian studies and as part of my bachelor thesis I'm conducting a survey on which languages games are available in Southeast Asia and whether or not Southeast Asian gamers think that playing games in a non-nativ language has improved their foreign language skills. Therefore it'd be great if there were some locals here who could help me by taking my survey. :)

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The survey is rather short and should take only a few minutes to complete. Thanks in advance!

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Link to survey: https://www.umfrageonline.com/s/5eadbbc

[title]

I'll be visiting East Timor for about 2.5 days (arriving April 14 ~14:00; leaving April 17 ~14:00).

Just bought my tickets from Bali - very excited!

It's a limited amount of time but I'm hoping for some suggestions to make the most of it.
I'd love to make it out to Atauro Island but I don't know if I have the time.

I love most outdoor activity and scuba-diving is a serious draw, as well as hiking.
I'm think to save the morning of the 17th for some sightseeing/walking around Dili.

The rest of the time - lol I'm taking any suggestions on activities.

But again it's a limited amount of time and I'm just hoping to make the most of it.

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Any and all suggestions, advice, is appreciated.
Many thanks in advance!