Moalboal
My reason for going to Moalboal was to dive and try out the new camera. So, after
the usual housekeeping, I meandered into town to draw more money as diving
was an expensive business. Besides that it felt as if the entire day was spent
eating.
The following day was the first of numerous superb dives. Nearby, Pescador Island
made for convenient and exciting diving. However, taking pictures underwater
turned out more difficult than envisaged. Apart from a flat battery, I had lots to
learn. The second dive was off the beach and even more impressive. The sardine
run was occurring at the time, and we saw genuinely unique formations of
thousands and thousands of sardines. Regrettably, by then, the camera battery
was flat again.
The underwater world is unique and incredibly rewarding. When underwater,
there’s an unbelievable feeling of peace and calm; completely surreal. Being in the
Tañon Strait, the dives around Moalboal were frequently along near-vertical walls.
The strait drops to around six hundred metres (I’ve been told), yet currents were
non-existent. Visibility wasn’t crystal clear, but the water temperature was a
comfortable 28ºC.
The following day, I set off to the whale shark diving area in the company of other
travellers. Getting there took a tricycle ride and two busses, arriving at the dive
site around 11h00. Diving with as many as nine or ten whale sharks nearby was a
unique experience. They lazily floated about in search of food, sucking in each
morsel. With their giant mouths wide open, it seemed they could easily suck one
right in. The dive offered an excellent opportunity to play with the GoPro. The
evening was spent at a restaurant having a few beers and sharing photos with the
other divers.