Savoring The Dive At Baling Hai

Is it weird to wonder, while scuba diving, why Sebastian from the movie The Little Mermaid looked so much more like a lobster instead of like a crab? While diving the Baling Hai site off of Boracay, Philippines, a lobster was one of the many things that I had to pleasure of seeing and I couldn’t help but be reminded of Sebastian, the lobster-looking crab, who had me singing in my head, “Just look at the world around you, right here on the ocean floor. Such wonderful things surround you, what more is you lookin’ for? Under the sea, under the sea, Darling it’s better, down where it’s wetter, take it from me…” With so many amazing sights to see in the ocean, but not much to listen to, I was left with my own thoughts and tunes to narrate my experience in the depths of the ocean.

After gearing up and doing a back-roll off of the side ledge of our boat, my dive buddy, Randy from Scotty’s Dive Center, guided us down the coral wall to an unforgettable underwater adventure. There is so much to see in the ocean. Most times, when looking one way to see something, we miss seeing something else. That’s why it’s best to dive with some one who can point things out, even when it’s to let me know that I missed a stingray. There was; however, so much that I was able to see, like a huge sponge, tons of different types of fish, and coral. The best part of the dive was seeing a school of fish completely still and sleeping, and now I can actually say I know what it’s like to sleep with the fishes.

Savoring The Experience of Diving in Hawaii

Have you ever had a dream about flying? Scuba diving has been the closest I have ever gotten to experience that weightless feeling of moving freely through space, not through air like in my dreams, but through water. Diving is one of my favorite things to do, and each dive is an amazing and unique experience that I will never forget. While in Hawaii, I had the opportunity to go scuba diving with Lacey, the really sweet and attentive dive instructor of Pearl Harbor Divers. Our first dive of the day was the YO-257 shipwreck located off Oahu on the south shore. Lacie guided me around and through the inside of the sunken ship, and we were able to see nudibranchs (sea slugs) and several different types of fish, starfish, urchins and two submarines that passed by. Our second dive was a short at a reef, where we encountered four different types of eel, a blow fish, an octopus in a crevice of the ocean floor, two giant turtles, and several other creatures that I wouldn’t be able to name, one (pictured) that Lacey, who dives every day, has never even seen before (nor have I of course). I was feeling cold on the second dive despite my full body wetsuit, but every turn there was something really cool to see; I am so glad that I withstood the cold. The experience was incredible, and I savored every moment.