If we never got nervous, life would be pretty boring yea. Some of following reasons may be irrational, but I for sure was nervous in the 48 hours leading up to visiting the Island of Komodo, home of the cannibal dragon.

They’re Cannibals. When we humans are born, Mum struggles to let us out of sight. The first time she goes out for the night leaving us at Grandmas she’s worried.

Komodo Dragons? Poor baby Komodo is left having to grow up in the trees well away from the folks.

Komodo Dragons aren’t afraid to eat their own babies! They have also tried out human for mealtime.

Indonesia Shipwrecks Occur. It’s always awkward when I mention my lack of swimming ability…”But you’re surrounded by water growing up!”. Thailand has bus crashes, Indonesia has shipwrecks and I could possibly wash up on the island of Komodo dead.

Half the rules health & safety department’s enforce around the world are a joke. It’s one of many reasons Southeast Asia keeps me stimulated.

The level of safety on some of these Indonesian live aboard boats however is questionable. It’s something to be aware of, if you take the lowest price on the sketchiest boat, you could well end up in a shipwreck situation like Adventurous Kate or the 2014 situation.

My Komodo live aboard experience was stunning thankfully but I probably shouldn’t have reread Kate’s experience in the days before the trip.

This beauty wasn’t going to become a ship wreck

There Are No Cages. You may have seen Komodo Dragons at the zoo and not thought too much about them. It’s a whole new world when you visit them at Komodo National Park.

Many countries would install steel fences along the paths. But that would be boring right? And it’s exactly why they aren’t a major attraction at the zoo. What you have here are sticks that your guide uses if a dragon ever gets a little to close for comfort.

These aren’t high-powered laser force sticks with massive Tasers that stun the dragons. They’re literally sticks with a piece of metal on the end. It keeps you honest.

No cages here!

Fire Breathing. Okay, I know every fire-breathing dragon we saw on TV growing up wasn’t real. Regardless, there was this ever so slight doubt in the back of the mind. Did they actually have the potential to breathe fire & we only knew this after they scorched my beard to smithereens?

The association of dragons and fire was present in my mind before and definitely during the visit.

Camouflage! When dragons are hungry they ambush their prey. Surprisingly these beasts can get up to 20km/h in speed for short periods but to catch their prey they are happy to sit still for ages until a poor soul makes a mistake and gets to close.

When we were Komodo Dragon hunting we didn’t see the dragons until we got close to the kitchen. Suddenly we froze up.

Our guides were epic and can spot anything. But what if they happened to miss one along the path for whatever reason and boom, we walk to close and are gone.

A pretty solid camo effort

They Don’t Chew Their Food. A Komodo Dragon only eats once a month or so. When growing up they never listen to their mums (I wouldn’t trust mum if she might eat me too) and don’t chew their food so they spend a month digesting each meal. I’d rather a few bites to my vital organs shredded to pieces than have to die a slow death from within the dragons body.

Do You Trust Your Fellow Females? Personally I did having spent a few days getting to know my fellow travellers but you can’t blame someone if they sort of brush off the ‘Is anyone having their period at the moment?’ question.

Dragons use their smell when they are on the hunt, and blood is a sign of ‘easy prey’. While it’s very unlikely you get in a dangerous situation, with a bit more blood on the scene…you are increasing your chances of becoming a victim that little bit more.

“I trust them, I trust them, I trust them”

Visiting the island of Komodo National Park was epic. These animals are actual cannibals and while much of the nerves will self generated from reading facts about Komodo Dragons in advance, it was certainly satisfying to get back on dragon free land with all limbs in tact.