24 Dives in 30 days – I now have gills.

I was lucky enough to spend the whole April partly submerged under water. My uncle, who usually visits from Canada once a year is a Scuba Diving addict and can’t seem to breathe properly on land – especially in Manila. I’m lucky enough to be the Remora on his back when he travels.  

Siquijor & Oslob

As soon as my uncle touched down in Manila, we prepared to leave for the Mystical Island of Siquijor. Known as being virtually untouched, we truly fell in love with the Island the moment we stepped foot on their quaint beachfront port. We had a total of 6 dives here. We even went as far as Oslob in Cebu to dive with the majestic Whale Sharks. I swam with them before in Donsol but diving with them is different. Watching them from below is an exciting experience. This is another experience I can cross off my list of “Things to do before I die” - and the list is pretty long.

In one of the sites called Takot Shoal, I saw my first school of squid and a mother milkfish (huge). This was the perfect trip to kick start my summer.

Tubbataha Reef 

After a few days of work responsibilities and accountabilities, we were off to Tubbataha reef.

Tubbataha was amazing. You can see the reflection of the sky on the water. It was that calm. Not a ripple. Tubbataha is on every bucket list of any scuba diver. It is also ranked top 5 at a recent Diving Tourism Congress in Japan. And it definitely didn’t disappoint. Our first dive of the day showed us Nurse, White Tip and Black Tip Sharks, Manta Rays, Marbled Sting Rays and Dog Tooth Tuna. And as we were getting up on the boat, we even saw Porn! I mean Hawksbill Sea Turtles mating. Had a total of 14 dives on this trip… Every dive had at least 2 or 3 sharks, rays and turtles. Visibility was clear and weather always sunny. I can die and go to heaven (praying its Heaven) already. I’d die a very happy diver. 

Anilao

Again, once dry, I feel a need for the deep blue. For Mother’s Day, I decided to give my mom a Diving trip as a gift. She loves it and I couldn’t think of any other way to make her happy. Anilao was our closest choice.

We went to the favorites – Twin Rocks, Koala, Mainit and Sepok. Finally saw a baby Octopus for the first time. Also had Barracudas, Tuna and cuttlefish a few minutes from the resort. 

Every dive is truly special. You just have to keep your eyes open and keep looking. 

As a child, I dreamt of becoming a Mermaid… How I loved the water and the creatures under the sea. I’ve been one lucky mermaid to be able to see all these beautiful sites in 30 days.

I’m one lucky mermaid with gills and content on land - for now. 

*All photos in this entry were taken by the original merman JB “Tara na!” LIM. We miss you already.