The Komodo dragons are considered as the largest living lizards on the earth. These dragons reach up to 3 meters (9.84 feet) length, and weighted up to 70 Kilograms (154.33 pound). These creatures are not fire breathing dragon as mythological dragons, also they are very quick mover and fast swimmers despite of their large size.

They can be found in the Komodo National Park in Indonesia.The park is consists of three major islands; Komodo, Pulau Rinca and Padar with other smaller islands.The National Park was established in these islands in 1980 and in 1986 was declared as UNISCO world heritage site.

Pantai Merah (pink beach) is a beach with pink sands is one of the famous destinations in the park. The pink color of the sands comes from the mixture of red and white sands. The red color of the sand came from the too much Foraminiferas, which are single-cell creature. Pulau Rinca Island has also other creatures than the dragons, in this island you can find wild pigs, monkeys and horses.

Also during nights you can see legions of bats are covering the sky. Because of the danger of Komodo dragons; tourists are not allowed to do the tour without local guides. The tour in the Islands can be done by foot, as no motor or road transportation methods on the islands. Also the travel can use chartered boats to go around the islands and to move from island to island within the park.

Komodo national park is also a popular distention of diving; it consists of very rich species of sponges, corals, sharks, dolphins, whales and marine reptiles. While diving; the diver should be careful about the sharp rocks on the reefs. Around 4000 inhabitants the total population are living in the villages with in the park area, most of them descent of Bugis ethnic group.

The population is predominantly following Islam as a religion with minorities of Christians and Hindu. The climate of the islands is tropical around the year with short rainy season from January to April. The maximum temperature is about 43 Celsius degrees (109.4 Fahrenheit degrees) during April to October, while the minimum is in August; about 18 Celsius degrees (64.4 Fahrenheit degrees).

To get in the park the travel can use air, land or sea ways based on traveler budget and his requirement. To get by air he can use either Labuan Bajo airport on the western of the park or Bima airport on the eastern side. Both airports have daily direct flights from Denpasar air, Bali. For land option both gateway cities are connected with Bali by daily scheduled buses.

Also if you would prefer to come by sea by inter-city ferries, you can use ferry service from any coastal city in Indonesia. Finally it is worth mentioning that on 11^th of November 2011, the park was considered as one of the Seven Wonders of Nature after four years of internet voting.

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About the author

Obai Radwan
I'm Palestinian citizen , living in Lisbon, Portugal I love traveling ,photographing ,and swimming! I've Bachelor's Degree in Mass communications from Cairo University follow me on Twitter @ubai1982