Sea Surprise!

Anilao, Batangas is truly a diver’s paradise. It is a home away from home for the divers who live in Manila. It is a stone’s throw away from Manila, so it is easier to access than any other dive spots in the Philippines, if you live in the metro.  I find its location really convenient. Aside from being accessible, its water is clear, has countless dive spots and has a diverse range of underwater species. After a year of numerous dives in Batangas, never have I ever gotten bored. You could go diving again and again in the same dive spot, yet see a different kind of fish each time. I am not yet an expert in diving, but I must say that I really appreciate it more now. I used to be so afraid of swimming in the sea, whenever I go snorkeling but now,  I can’t believe that I actually dive and swim with the schools of fish 15-30 meters below the surface!

a great day to dive

Diving will never cease to amaze me. There is one particular diving day in Anilao that I will never forget. This was when we saw a pygmy seahorse, pawikan and a huge octopus all in a day.  The pygmy seahorse was as tiny as a fingernail. We had to use a magnifying lens to be able to see it clearly. 

Pygmy Seahorse

It completely camouflages with the fan corals, where it lived, which made it even harder to be seen.  

Try to find the Pygmy Seahorse.

The pawikan, on the other hand, was huge but I believe that there are a lot of bigger ones around the area. I tried to swim after the pawikan, but contrary to how slow it walks on land, it is quite a fast swimmer.

"Hey, dude!"

Needless to say, it slowly disappeared into the deep. It swam so gracefully, like as if to glide without any effort. 

gliding gracefully

I actually wanted to jump unto its back and ride it, but of course, I can’t! “Never touch anything.” is one of the golden rules in scuba diving. I still enjoyed just watching it. It felt so surreal.  

Nearing the end of the dive, we chanced upon this big octopus.

Spot the octopus!

I think its head was as big as ours. I was lucky to have caught it on camera. The way that it continuously camouflaged with whatever it touched was like magic.

Yes! It is the same octopus!

At first I thought that it was just a huge rock until it suddenly moved. Its tentacles glided seamlessly with the rocks while the fishes were swimming all around it, like as if to take a small bite off its head.

Of course, these three aren’t the only species that we saw underwater. The sea is like a vast museum of living creatures that you can’t even imagine without seeing it live. 

Just keep swimming.

If you think that you’ve seen it all, yet you haven’t tried scuba diving, then maybe you should give it a try.

Under The Sea

off to see the Thresher Sharks in Malapascua Island, Cebu

When I was younger, I used to be afraid of swimming in the ocean and riding small boats. As a child, I've always believed that there must be jellyfish, sharks, sea snakes and other unknown sea creatures just swimming all over the ocean, no matter how shallow or deep the waters are.  I'd always be afraid to sit on the side of the boat and dangle my feet on the water. My imagination would take me to places that not even scary children's storybooks could describe.  Not even The Little Mermaid movie could make me want to swim further than 5 feet away fom the shore. I've tried snorkelling but I'd always be hesitant at first and I'd never take my hands off the edge of the boat or the floater. I'd usually just wear my mask and snorkel, position myself into a deadman's float and let the boat or the guide hat holds the floater take me to whatever part of the sea. Don't get me wrong, I know how to swim. I'm not that good at it, but I can float and tread. Yet, I've always been afraid to swim further than where my comfort zone would allow me.

helmet diving in Boracay

I think the first real underwater experience that I truly enjoyed was when my friends and I went Helmet Diving in Boracay, a couple of years ago. Even during that time, I was a little skeptical, even a little hesitant. The guide assured me that it would only be about 15 feet deep, yet while he was taking me down to the bottom, I felt like I was being dragged down to 50 feet. Of course, it was just my imagination running wild again. However, as soon as my feet touched the bottom sand and I saw these colorful fish just swimming around, my worries started to fade. I felt like I was inside a huge aquarium. Then, I thought to myself, "So, this is how scuba diving feels like.". I was contented. I've always wanted to try scuba diving, but by getting to experience helmet diving, the inside urges to go scuba diving have already been satiated.

helmet diving with MJ and Myriel

Some of my friends had already been inviting me to go scuba diving, about two to three years ago. I never tried to go with them because I found the Php 15,000.00 scuba diving lessons with license fee sort of steep for my budget, especially that I wasn't really a sea lover. Finally, after some good persuasion and a little bit of pushing, I've finally gathered enough courage and decided to actually spend my money on scuba diving lessons. 

scuba lessons with Conrad and our Dive Master Mr. Freedom D. Dellosa

testing underwater

Scuba diving is far from helmet diving! I must say that it was the best investment that I've spent so far. I used to be afraid of drowning in water, of getting pulled down to the bottom of the sea by creatures that I've only imagined. After my scuba diving lessons, my per eption of easily drowning in the sea had been altered. I realized that my problem is not actually drowning and being pulled down to the bottomless pit that I've always imagined. My actual problem is how to descend in the water! At first try, no matter what I did, I just couldn't get myself to descend in the water. I've never imagined in my entire life that I'd actually be praying to God to help me go deep down in the water. I also realized that there weren't many sea creatures in the surface of the water. They are usually swimming near the bottom, where their homes and food are, with the exception of some jellyfish. Yup, they are seldom near the surface.  It was really a funny and ironic experience for me.

dive right in!

A couple of dives after, I'm finally learning the techniques. I admit that I'm still a novice when it comes to scuba diving, but I'm much better than when I first started. I almost lost interest during my first few dives, as I've always had sinus issues whenever I went diving. I'd always get nosebleeds and headaches. I'd always have trouble descending and controlling my buoyancy. It's a good thing that my innate competitive nature suddenly resurfaced and pushed me to not give up and try again until I finally get it...and so I did! 

practicing buoyancy

safety stop

Yup! I'm okay!

Never in my entire life did I imagine that I would actually learn to appreciate the sea and the creatures that live in it.