The Ocean Jet Ferry left at 7:30a. I had my ticket, so i checked in, got a terminal pass, and needed to check my bag. there is one thing that irritates me about traveling, as a white blonde tourist. it goes like this: i checked my bag and the guy showed me his calculator with ‘100’ on it. that’s an easy way to tell you how much you owe. i got suckered into this before and i was ready. i just shook my head disgustedly, and said ‘no’. he takes the calculator and shows me ’50’. i replied the same. he said ‘how much you pay’. i said ’10’, he said ok. WTF ! 100pesos is $2, so it’s not about the money, it’s the principle. although over time, it would be about the money.
It was an easy boat ride: i had the first seat, it wasn’t freezing in there, and arrived on time. I texted the resort before i left to ask for transport prices. from the pier i took a tricycle for 100pesos ($2) into town to catch a 40pesos (less than 50cents) Easy Ride. This is a broken down mini van, gutted with bench seats for 14 passengers, comfortably, although there could be more, plus chickens and who knows what else :) it is the way the locals travel, and it gets you there in about a half hour. i was the last one left at the end of the route in Dauin, and he took me right to the door of Aivy Maes Paradise Dive Resort, a bonus!
I mentioned that i was meeting Phil here. he did the leg-work on this resort and it was perfect. they use the term ‘resort’ loosely; it’s not what Americans think of as a resort. But this is a really nice place, right on the water, with a very happy helpful staff.
this is my bungalow, i prefer my own bathroom/shower; but those rooms are quite a bit more expensive, and not available. these shared bathroom/shower facilities, turned out to be fine. it was clean and the people using it were courteous. They also had a shared kitchen, well-equipped and clean… although i don’t cook :) Free coffee, tea, pastries in the morning, and free water. i appreciate that!
i met a cat or 2 on my way to the bathroom, and of course, gave them some love. when i returned to my room … this is what i found:
one cat in my room at the foot of my bed .. made me happy !
and another one on my porch, this one is pregnant :(
My porch, complete with 2 hammocks. Notice the sea is right there :)
There is also a very nice ‘common area’ right on the beach
i got my room set up and went for a snorkel. i don’t know why this place has never shown up on my ‘radar’ for shore-snorkeling, because it is very nice ! there are no weeds, nor algae, lots of small coral patches, and very large ones, ….. and it’s a Marine Sanctuary. So there are lots of fishes ! i was still trying to figure out my camera; but these are ok.
Emperor AngelFish, this one was smaller than i usually see them, but oh so colorful and bright !
Brush Tail Tang ... they always have a smile on their face
they are different color, depending upon how the light hits them
this is an Orange-Spined SurgeonFish. it has a beautiful face, but i wanted you to see the Orange Spines. SurgeonFish are aptly named. They have razor-sharp protrusions/spines on each side of their tail. These spines, ...are not for show ! no, they are not aggressive !
a Mimic SurgeonFish, 'Mimic', probably because he does not have any 'spines'
A ‘herd’ of BlueSpined UnicornFish swept by me. I was so impressed at how ‘clean’ the floor of the sea is this close to shore. it looks like someone just vacuumed it…. nice !
a top-down view of the beautiful corals, with always colorful brightly painted ParrotFishes.
This is an Orange-Lined TriggerFish, appropriately named
with lots of detail around his mouth
this is a BIG guy, a Titan TriggerFish. Known to be rather aggressive if defending his territory. He was rutting through the rubble looking for a snack, so i figured i was safe.
There are so many Sea Stars at Alona Beach, but i've only seen 2 here, and they are different. Not nearly as pretty !
I've seen quite a few LionFish, but not the same ones that are invading the Caribbean. These are Zebra LionFish, i think.
This one was a baby i found under a log in the water.
I was swimming 10feet over the top of this guy; but he wanted me to know that he saw me. This is their 'stay away from me' pose.
i got out of the water, because i was cold, the water is at 26C, that's 78.8F :( there were 3 ‘older’ local guys finishing up after their dives. they were trying to help me with my camera; but they just confused me further.
i introduced myself to the Dive Master and Dive Instructor and told them i wanted to do some diving: Zig and Gin … nice guys, and i scheduled for the next day.
Phil arrived, he has the same camera as i do, and takes great photos. he said he just used his camera ‘out of the box’. i had been reading the manual and playing around with the settings, probably my problem. so, i did a ‘reset’ on my camera and am going to try it out on our dive tomorrow.
These photos are awesome Donna. It gives the rest of us a feel for something we will probably never see in person and in the wild. Thanks! Beautiful fish and I love the shots of your resort. Nice place. Clean and simple.
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