i've left Anda and am on way to Leyte, another island to the East. after much research, i chose this area because it seems to be the ‘road less traveled’ …less touristy.
on the map below, you will see Anda, then in NE corner, Ubay … pronounced ‘oh boy’. Pat and i always laughed because i can never get the pronounciation correct on anything Philippino !
the boats leave from Ubay and travel across the sea to a town called Bato. from there i take public transport to Maasin, then another to Padre Burgos and Peter’s Dive Resort.
to get across the sea, there are 2 choices: large RoRo (roll on, roll off) cargo Ferrys that also transport passengers to Leyte. and, there are also bancas, those are the boats with the ‘logs’ that are strapped along side the boat to keep it from tipping over. they are a bit scary to me :( and you are usually sitting on a wooden back-less bench; not the most comfortable way to spend 3 hours at sea. the little ones are open and you and your ’stuff’ usually gets a bit wet; but the larger ones are enclosed so you don’t get wet … but you’re in a ‘coffin’ :)
i prefer the large sturdy Ferry; but it didn’t leave until 1pm, getting me to Bato 5pm, then another 2 hours to my destination. i don’t like traveling in the dark. The bancas, however, travel in the mornings because the seas are calmer. a couple at 1peace that just came over on a banca, told me they are large, have are plastic chairs with backs, and places to lay down, and it was quite comfortable. so i decided to try the banca.
my friend whose name i can’t recall, drove me to Guindulman at 6:30am. here i get to experience another form of transport in the Philippines … the V-Van … and i don’t know why they are called that. V-Vans are regular vans, air conditioned, and direct … so more of a ‘luxury’ transport; and way cheaper than a taxi. ... or so i heard ...
so again, my ‘Western World Mentality’ is not in sync with reality. they are vans, ...but not always air conditioned, and if they are A/C, it doesn’t reach to the back of the van, and … they pack people in there just like they do on the jeepneys and buses !
so, in i go, with both of my bags on my lap; and maybe on part of the lap of the person sitting next to me ;( after a few stops, there is room to put my large bag on the floor; and we are in Ubay in less than an hour.
transitions on public transport is hectic…. guys are there with more vans, or tricycles trying to get your business, promising to take you where you don’t really know where you are going. before you know it, you and your bags are loaded and you are off, bewildered and wondering what just happened, and where you are going. but, alas, they’ve done this a million times and do know where to take you …. trust the ‘system’, no matter how ‘broken’ it seems.
we arrive at the pier in Ubay, bags and i are unloaded, and am left haggling over the price of the transport, knowing i'm getting ‘screwed’ … but the boat is leaving, and hell, it’s only the difference between 30 and 50cents ! i turn and look at the already-packed-to-capacity banca, and relunctantly walk the ‘plank’ …. yes that's what it is… a narrow wooden plank to board the banca. i get inside the ‘coffin’, look around, and alas … it’s my worst nightmare … EXACTLY what i wanted to avoid. a coffin packed with people sitting on hard wooden benches. i climbed back out and asked if there was another boat leaving a little later, but of course was told this is the only one today … true or not, i was committed. i sit down, sigh, take several deep breaths, and tell myself to relax and enjoy the ‘adventure’ ….. and hope to hell that everyone i know, dead and alive, ...are saying a prayer for me.
i can’t remember if i mentioned this or not. whenever you are in public transport here, you can’t help but notice that almost everyone (certainly all the women) make the ‘sign of the cross’ as they sit down. i deliberately made the ‘sign of the cross’ as i settled in.
i took out my camera and took this photo … ok, so it doesn’t look so much like a coffin … but they do roll heavy plastic down over the sides, to keep the sun and rain out …. then it’s darker, and more like a coffin :)
in the distance is Leyte … you can also see that there is a toilet on the banca :)
i emerged myself in my audio book for a couple of hours, ….until the boat slowed and stopped. there was a door i could look out, and i could see land ! ....but, we were still too far away to be there. lots of commotion and talking in a language i did not understand. i’m looking at the life vests trying to decide which one i was going to grab.
i asked the older woman sitting next to me 'what’s going on?’ she pointed to a rope that ran the length of the boat down by our ankles; and said ‘broke’. hummmmmm…. i decided it was the steering. about that time, she said ‘fixed’ and the motor started up again. about 10min later, the same thing happened. Luckily they had someone that knew how to tie a better knot this time :) …we were on our way and soon getting off the boat.
on the Pier in Bato, again, a bit of a scurry, getting a tricycle, and taking me to the terminal to get transport to Maasin. You, and i, have to remember, this is an everyday occurence to most of these people. this is the way they travel. they live in a country with over 7,000 islands; so yes, travel will be by boat.
the last day in Anda, i woke up with a sore throat…. hoping it was from in hailing so much second-hand cigarette smoke. but knowing, it’s always the way ‘my cold’ starts :( at this point my chest was very congested and i needed something to break it up: expectorant, yes, that was it.
before i got in my next van in Maasin, i asked for a Pharmacy and they ‘pointed’. so i walked and found a rather large store: it was like a Walmart… stuff for the home, groceries, fast food, Rx, all in one place. i had several things on my list: the expectorant, body lotion, a load for my Globe phone card, salty snacks… and rum :) all accomplished in one place, feeling pretty good about the trip so far. back on the street, me and my bags into the way-back of the van on our way to Maasin. it wasn’t a bad ride, comfortable and all too short. out of that van, and into another one, up front with the driver this time. nice guy, good english, had grown kids in college … surprising and encouraging conversation with a 'van driver’. he dropped everyone else off and took me to Peter’s Dive Resort.
from the first email with this Resort, i was impressed with their responsiveness, and genuine caring attitude that came across in their emails. we had many emails back and forth about the ferries and transport getting there. i was very happy to be here. i checked into my room, …anyone want to join me here in paradise? i have a couple extra beds :)
i walked back to the ‘dining room’ and noticed a girl and 2 guys looking at fish photos from their recent dive trips. and comparing their new camers, Olympus TG-5, 2 upgrades from my TG-3. ok, now i know i’m in the right place ! i actually came out of my 'comfort zone' and approached them with a something clever i am sure. the girl was leaving the next day, but Phil from Alaska and Ben were diving in the morning. The manager, Dino, approached me and asked if i wanted to join the dive …. they were going to the ‘best’ Dive Site, Nipantao, and there will only be THREE of us. one of the things i don’t like about dive boats is that there are usually lots of people. when it’s time to get in the water, there is so much commotion, it’s hard for me to concentrate… and i need to be ‘present’ before i get in the water. so this sounded perfect, yes, i’d love to join the small group. the plan was to do 2 dives, then return, do another dive in the afternoon, and then a night dive.
i let them know that i had just started getting a cold… a condition that could be problematic when diving. it is absolutely fundamental that you be able to ‘clear your ears’ (like on an airplane), as you are descending through the water. with a cold or sinus issues, this is sometimes a problem. so i said i would do one dive slow and see how it went on the first dive. but, i had no intention of doing 4 dives the first day i was there !
then i got ready to get in the water to check out the snorkeling. aesthetically, the Resort is not in a beautiful tropical paradise setting. but, it is right on the water, and the beach is rocks and old broken coral. they also have a nice pool with great paintings
but i don’t make my choices based on any of those. they have a ‘house reef’ here, which is the main reason for my staying here (plus, it is off the beaten path). it was about 4pm, and all i had to do was just walk in the water :)
the reef is shallow and close to shore, has lots of coral heads, and goes on and on. today visibility wasn’t that great and i didn’t get many photos; but i am pleased at the possibilities.
new new fish of the day is another LionFish. A Zebra LionFish, named for the stripes radiating out from the pectoral fins.
a purple anemone … does anyone see the red ‘heart-shape’ of the egg mass
there are many different kinds of Anemone, but this dark purple was an amazing color that i’d never seen before
this red coral was a bright spot on the reef as the sun was going down
time to go in; it was a short 1hr snorkel, but a good beginning
i spotted this Black Blotched Porcupine Fish in the shallows. i've seen him in Belize and Roatan, but the first one i've seen here
the 'town' was a short tricycle ride away, and there were no other 'restaurants' in the area. plus, there was no WiFi in the rooms, so everyone congregated in the restaurant. the WiFi always seems to be an issue, and here it is not very strong, and it was off and on a lot.
it was a good day/evening start to Peter's Dive Resort. there weren’t a lot of people there, it was very nice.
i slept good in my nice clean, light, airy, A/C room. 8am the next day, our gear was all assembled and in the boat.
the nicest dive boat i’ve been on. we traveled about 1.5hrs to the dive site, off an island in the background.
this was a drift dive along a wall, and then in some shallower areas. the ‘drift’ was faster than i prefer, i don’t have time to look at anything, just trying to keep away from the scenery, ....that i’m not seeing. but the shallower sandy parts were great. i tried my GoPro camera again; still with sad results… but Phil let me use a couple of his photos. so photo credits to go Phil. he has the Olympus TG-5, but also has an underwater housing for it, so he can take it diving. i probably should have spent my money on an underwater housing for my trusty Olympus, rather than the GoPro :(
photos compliments of Phil:
two nice fish-reef scenes with Anthias swimming freely: Purple Anthias
and Red Slender Anthias
a really great shot of a Black Spotted Snapper
this is a Scorpion Fish … you can distinguish his fin in about the middle of the photo, he is facing left
we saw a nudibranch, a white tipped shark hiding way under a ledge, and a big Titan TriggerFish eating, but no photos
after looking at the video from my GoPro, i realized it really was a beautiful dive. but, i was very deliberate in repeatedly clearing my ears and was a bit preoccupied about it the entire dive; so i probably could have enjoyed it more without that distraction
i discovered a new way to take still photos off my GoPro video with less than desirable results, but you can see one of my favorite fishes here … a Clown TriggerFish. he is big and so distinctive .. love it
another TriggerFish, a Pink Tail TriggerFish
i decided not to do the second dive, but wait and do the 3rd dive. instead, i snorkeled the shore near by. i liked it; it was a great snorkel spot… shallow waters going out to the deep, lots of rocks and corals for the many fishes to hide in. i even saw 2 new fishes, but only had my GoPro with me, so these are frames taken from the video and less than desirable. These are Meyers and Ornate ButterFly Fish.
and this Blue Spine UnicornFish was very busy swimming in and out of the rocks
there were many many more fish and i’d like to come back and snorkel this spot if possible.
back at the resort, we had 1.5 hrs to change, eat, and prepare for the next dive. i was going to do the 3rd dive with the group; but the seas picked up, and it started to rain. i declined, call me a ‘wuss’ if you want, but i’m retired and i don’t have to dive in less than great conditions. they went and i saw the photos, that was good enough for me. it continued to get worse and the night dive was cancelled.
the beautiful view can turn not so pretty, ...down right ugly, in a very short period of time :(
the next day it rained off and on all day. in between rains, i took a tricycle into the ‘town’ of Padre Burgos to get more medicine…. there isn’t much there. but there area 3 Pharmacies! and i did find these 3 kitties :)
Phil and Ben left the next day …. and a large group of Chinese arrived and took over the place. as a group, i dislike them very much. they are loud and inconsiderate. pretty much everyone i’ve met in my travels (including resort owners) feel the same way. i was very sad to have my nice peaceful resort dining room turn into a loud obnoxious place that i could not tolerate. it was impossible to talk with the person across the table from you or concentrate
the weather cleared the next day and they all went diving. i was not the least bit interested in getting on a boat with them. the manager, Dino 'felt my pain' and suggested i could do a ‘shore dive’. Klaus, the head Dive Instructor was there, and i was put in his care. in my opinion, it is a class Dive Shop that will take you on a personal dive! i’ve never encountered this before! i was very surprised, and accepted. i asked Klaus if we could stay shallow because of my ears; and also if we stayed below 15meters, i could use my Olympus ‘snorkel’ camera. he understood and agreed to make sure i didn’t go too deep. he got the gear ready and we literally walked into the water… well, ok, it is a bit tricky; but i un-gracefully made it.
this was perfect for me. it was like snorkeling, but i could breath ! Klaus went very slow and pointed things out to me that i never would have seen. Klaus, a German man, has spent so much time diving, he calculated it has totaled up to 2.5 years underwater ! he is a very interesting person; one of those who you think should write a book on their life.
the first thing i saw was this ‘bird on a wire’ …
of course it is not a bird, but a Scorpion Fish, and they usually are camouflaged against coral … this just looked very strange to me, sitting right out there in the open. i guess he feared no one !
the coral was pretty where we were, unfortunately the visibility was not good. the answer to that problem is, get close, then it’s ok. this is a tiny Blenny well camouflaged on a piece of coral.
i have no idea how he spotted all these tiny little shrimps ! they were no more than 1" and were hidden under some coral
i found this Radial FileFish all on my own :) he is very similar to his 'cousin', the Bristle Tailed FileFish, that i posted in the shallows of Cabilao
there are a lot of these ThreadFin Anthias, distinquished by the bright red stripe by it’s eye.
another amazing find by Klaus, a Nudibranch called Chelidonura varians ...
and another one ... Philinopsis gardineri .... there are so many Nudibranchs, and they all have scientific names .. i can't seem to find any 'cute' names for any of them :(
when you are diving, one of the factors determining the amount of air that you consume is related to how deep you are diving. if you are diving deep, you use up air faster, and have a shorter dive…. usually around 50min. however, if you are diving shallow, you get a longer dive. we were diving shallow; and we’d been down there a long time, over an hour! Dive Masters regularly ask how much air you have throughout the dive. this time, Klaus ‘hugged himself’ … the sign for ‘are you cold?’ actually i was not. we continued our dive.
this Bi-Color AngelFish is pretty hard to miss :)
we saw this fancy Nudibranch, a Red Gilled Nembrotha, on the wall current dive the other day, but i couldn't actually see it, nor did i get a photo of it. today was a different day: a slower dive and with my favorite camera. again, small, probably 1.5" long
we came across these Garden Eels ..... they stick their bodies out of the sand, and then pop back down when they see you. reminds me of some kind of game at the carnival :)
so i was starting to get cold and i was about to grab Klaus by the fin and ‘hug myself’ … when he pointed to something, and urged me forward. huh? i don’t see anything …. he got closer and pointed
it is a FrogFish and, ok, it’s pretty easy to see in the photo. but in reality, it was the exact same color as the coral it was sitting on. the camera does that sometimes. can you see his tiny eye ?
seeing a FrogFish is something very special. so i slowly closed in. he is even the same texture as the coral !
i saw my one and only FrogFish last year; and i also had a hard time seeing it. they are masters at disguising themselves. some fish can change color in a matter of seconds as they swim from sand to coral or grass. FrogFish can change their color also, but it takes them days, sometimes even weeks to do so. for that reason, you can understand why they don’t move much.
and, they don’t have to. they have a little appendage, like a fishing pole, that hangs down in front of their face, with a little ‘bait-thing’ on the end of it. i did not see this, nor do i see it in any of the photos. but, they just sit and wait until an unsuspecting ‘meal’ goes for the bait. although Frogfish move very slowly; ironically, they have the fastest-known prey-engulfment of any vertebrate ! they are carnivorous and they inhale their prey at lightening speed, and can take in prey as large as themselves.
so we're just watching him. i saw him lift his butt and 'poop', Klaus said he heard it, but i did not. and then he decided to leap off the coral !
this never happens ... i don't know of anyone else that has seen a FrogFish move !
he lands on the ground, ok .. so, he's not very cute :(
i start the video, ....part way through i try to get ahead of him, so hang in there until the end ...
he is SO CLUMBSY ... it's sad to watch ... i felt so sorry for him. watching him is the way i feel with all my dive equipment on !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
as you will see, they are not made for swimming. they move by gulping water with its massive mouth; then by forcing the water through it’s gills, the FrogFish moves about the reef or bottom. The body moves very little as the FrogFish huffs and puffs its way through the water column. poor guy / girl :(
you may be able to view this better on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8j_lPP_jtgI
WoW .... now that was special and a fantastic ending to my Personal Shore Dive .... Klaus said we were down 107minutes .... THAT is a CRAZY long long dive !
the next day i did another Shore Dive with Klaus, but a bit further north. we had one of the guys take us in a truck and wait for us. the soft corals at this dive site were spectacular !
i think this is a Black Headed FileFish .... close relative to the Orange Tail FileFish seen at Alona Beach
i love the red tips on this Anemone ... they look like they are on fire ....home for another Nemo
the hard corals were pretty too
this is a Speckled Grouper .... a new fish for me :)
a Sea Urchin, ECHINOTHURIIDAE Asthenosoma varium ... one that i have never seen before ... and never one so beautiful ... the colors ..
and it looks like someone has decorated it with tiny 'beads'
watch the video and see it move ....... magical !
the Flower Cardinal Fish ... another new fish for me .. amazing blue lines from eye to eye !
Klaus pointed this out to me ... but i never got a chance to ask him what it was ... the FaceBook Marine ID wizards tell me it's a Calpurnus verrucosus ... a species of sea snail, family Ovulidae. Common name is Umbilical Egg Shell or Warty/Little Egg Cowry. it is like the Flamingo Tongues that i see in Belize: they are actually white shells, and the 'coloring' is a 'mantal' or skin that they pull around themselves. 'when they have their colorful mantle extended out over the shell, they can be easily mistaken for slugs. in this species, the black spotted folds of the mantle almost completely enclose the white shell. their defense strategy is that their bright colorful bodies retain noxious chemicals from their food that can protect the snail from fish predation.
i think it is so cute .. looks like a little nose and mouth ... sweet
more tiny delicate transparent cleaner shrimps on an anemone
Black Rayed Fryeria ... i've never seen the 'foot' part on one of these :)
i got my chance to go back out and snorkel Napantao again, even though it was with a boat-load full of people. but they were diving and i had the snorkeling to myself. i was able to get a few photos of the Striped SurgeonFish that eluded me a few days ago
their colors can change rapidly
and, one of that bright blue ParrotFish
this one at a 'cleaning station' .... see the smaller fishes eating the parasites from him? 
the Checkered Snapper isn't very colorful, but has a striking pattern
a very colorful Checker Board Wrasse
and what i have identified as a Yellow Margin Moral Eel
the One Spot RabbitFish are very striking ! i love it when fishes raise their dorsal fins :)
several of these Pacific Double Backed ButterFly Fish were swimming around
a pretty JellyFish swimming at the surface ...
i followed this Bridled Monocle Bream for a long time .... his colors were beautiful ! he is much prettier than the photos of his peers ... obviously trying to impress someone
all in all a great snorkel experience
WoW that is a lot of photos for this blog, but i was so fortunate to be able to experience so many dives and meet so many new ‘friends’ ….. above and below the water !
my friends had all left, and i needed to get away from the Chinese for a few days. Limasawa is a small island just south of here, that might have some good snorkeling.
there are few ‘resorts’ on the island, DakDak Resort had been mentioned by a few people on Trip Advisor, so i booked 2 nights on a hut on the beach.
that story continues in the next blog
there are few ‘resorts’ on the island, DakDak Resort had been mentioned by a few people on Trip Advisor, so i booked 2 nights on a hut on the beach.
that story continues in the next blog
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