tools that make a trip

Recently, the family embarked on a trip to the US.  The trip was a “gift” of sorts for Ira… who had turned 18 and graduated from high school.  Compared to the 2002 trip, this one was going to be high-tech.  We were bringing my netbook to keep in touch with family – through email and facebook.  We were going to rent a GPS, as an option to our rentals – so Len and I wouldn’t have to deal/argue about maps and directions.

The following are essential tools to enhance any trip abroad:
a) a laptop / netbook (with wifi capabilities)
b) wifi connectivity
c) a gps – essential for driving around
d) a small compact camera (that also takes video)

Let me explain.

Maybe keeping in touch with family is not a priority – but researching for places to go, sights to visit, restaurants to eat in, making reservations, etc. IS. In 2002, I had so many print outs, that I must have brought a whole tree with me.  Facebook kept us in touch with family and friends… we received suggestions through which enhanced the trip.

There were countless times when we had just “ran out of ideas.”  Having the netbook around “saved” the day.  Of course, having wifi was required.  In hotels that didn’t offer free connectivity, I often purchased “pay as you go” plans that gave us that connectivity.  This kept the trip from going “stale” and wasting the day away.  We always had things to do, places to explore, restaurants to try.  Of course, you could always visit an internet cafe (which would achieve the same end).  Having the netbook though definitely saved us some time.

A GPS afforded us to be independent… free to change destinations at a moments notice… kept us on track even if we had missed a turn or took the wrong exit (so easy to do) – something that would have rattled us back in 2002… something that would have started an argument at the very least – now, no more.  So, for those driving… unless you’re really familiar with the ins and outs, I strongly suggest that you rent a GPS or at least borrow one.

Who goes on a trip without a camera?  Not me.  Whenever I travel with the family, a camera is always handy.  The problem is, my camera is a DSLR… its big, bulky and heavy.  Sure, I’d be able to take wonderful shots with it… but my shoulder would have complained to no end.  With the compact camera we brought along, it was with us ALL the time PLUS any of us could use it… and it took videos too I might add.

Top of The Rock – NYC

I truly had fun on this trip… so did Len and Ira… thanks to these essential tools…

i’ll miss the sea

In the weeks ahead, I’ll be travelling with my family… just the three of us.  I treasure adventures like this… the bonding, the fun, the memories.  We shall cheer Britney… ponder the words of Lincoln… traverse museums… jog through malls… enjoy exquisite cuisine.  Something not everyone can do.  Truly, a special time for us.

‘Till the end of summer… I’ll miss the sea.  Sure, we shall cross oceans… see another on the other side of the world… but I will still miss Anilao.  The ultimate playground – colors to dazzle.  Where every dive is always different.

bandido

The concrete jungle we intend to conquer… and we shall prevail… but I’ll still miss the sea…

inside a giant clam

banish the clouds from my mind

1 – Go to “Wikipedia. “Hit “Random Article”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 – Go to “Random quotations”
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 – Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 – Use Photoshop or similar to put it all together and upload…

g10: the first time

The first time our G10 got wet…

the bucket list

The Bucket List is a list of things you want to do before you “kick the bucket”.

Place an X by all the things you’ve done and remove the X from the ones you have not, then send it to your friends.

Things you have done during your lifetime:
(  ) Gone on a blind date
(X) Skipped school
(X) Watched someone die
(  ) Been to Canada
(X) Been to Mexico
(X) Been to Florida
(X) Been to Hawaii
(X) Been on a plane
(  ) Been on a helicopter
(X) Been lost
(X) Gone to Washington, DC
(X) Swam in the ocean
(  ) Cried yourself to sleep
(X) Played cops and robbers
(  ) Recently colored with crayons
(X) Sang Karaoke
(X) Paid for a meal with coins only
(  ) Been to the top of the St. Louis Arch
(X) Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t.
(X) Made prank phone calls
(  ) Been down Bourbon Street in New Orleans
(X) Been outside the 50 United States
(X) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose
(  ) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
(X) Danced in the rain-naked
(  ) Written a letter to Santa Claus
(  ) Been kissed under the mistletoe
(  ) Watched the sunrise with someone
(X) Blown bubbles
(X) Gone ice-skating
(X) Gone to the movies
(  ) Been deep sea fishing
(  ) Been in a hot air balloon
(  ) Been sky diving
(  ) Gone snowmobiling
(  ) Lived in more than one country
(X) Lay down outside at night and admired the stars while listening to the crickets
(X) Seen a falling star and made a wish
(  ) Enjoyed the beauty of Old Faithful Geyser
(X) Seen the Statue of Liberty
(  ) Gone to the top of Seattle Space Needle
(  ) Been on a cruise
(X) Traveled by train
(  ) Traveled by motorcycle
(X) Been horse back riding
(  ) Ridden on a San Francisco CABLE CAR
(X) Been to Disneyland OR Disney World
(X) Truly believe in the power of prayer
(X) Been in a rain forest
(X) Seen whales in the ocean
(  ) Been to Niagara Falls
(  ) Ridden on an elephant
(  ) Swam with dolphins
(  ) Been to the Olympics
(X) Walked on the Great Wall of China
(  ) Saw and heard a glacier calf
(  ) Been spinnaker flying
(  ) Been water-skiing
(  ) Been snow-skiing
(  ) Been to Westminster Abbey
(X) Been to the Louvre
(  ) Swam in the Mediterranean
(  ) Been to a Major League Baseball game
(  ) Been to a National Football League game

random songs in my life: everybody hurts

RULES:
1. Put your MP3 player, iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc. on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Tag at least 10 friends (make me #11 so I can see your results).
5. Everyone tagged has to do the same thing.
6. Have Fun!

IF SOMEONE SAYS ‘ARE YOU OKAY’ YOU SAY?
Michelle (The Beatles)

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF
Outlaw Blues (Pat Benatar)

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
Secret Journey (The Police)

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
Why Should I Cry For You (Sting)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
Still Reminds Me (Anggun)

WHAT’S YOUR MOTTO?
Murder By Numbers (The Police)

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
Slide Rule (Billy Thunder)

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
Watching The River Run (Kenny Loggins)

WHAT IS 2 + 2?
When The Body Talks (Gary Valenciano)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
I Believe (Tears For Fears)

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
Treat Me Good (Bachelor Girl)

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
Trilogy (Loggins & Messina)

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
Message In A Bottle (The Police)

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
Yellow Submarine (The Beatles)

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
Prime Time TV (Basia)

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
Essarai (Cantoma – Buddha Bar VI)

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR?
Forever Blue (Swing Out Sister)

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
These Eyes (Gary Valenciano)

WHAT DO YOU WANT RIGHT NOW?
Home At Last (Steely Dan)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
Bring On The Night (The Police)

WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
Everybody Hurts (Paul Potts)

love it when it comes together

It all started with a simple message – February 14 at 1:17pm on Facebook – “Let’s dive 21-22… whadyasay???”  In 12 hours, quite a large group has been informed and agreed to join it… isn’t social networking great?

I love it when a plan comes together…

ocellaris revisited

‘Twas a cool night driving to Anilao.  Cooler than any other night.  We left around 7:30pm after an afternoon of chatting and DVD sharing.  Carlos had come early to beat the 10am-3pm window as his car was coded that day.

Traffic was light to our surprise… we reached Petron after 40 minutes from Santa Mesa.  We decided on Yellow Cab that night for dinner… something different… some other station.  Caltex (SLEX) is the last station on SLEX heading south.

There was a chill in the air as we walked towards the restaurant.  Upon ordering, we decided to eat al-fresco as it was too smoky inside… besides, we both wanted to light-up ourselves.    After an hour and a half of eating and chatting, it was time to move on.  It was decided early on that this will be an easy and relaxing weekend.

We were both testing new equipment.  Actually, Carlos more than I.  He had just obtained an Inon strobe for his Canon Powershot and I a new (and clear) viewfinder for my 10D housing.

We arrived in Ocellaris around 11pm… we learned that there were three other guests billeted but would be leaving Saturday afternoon.  So, we basically had the resort to ourselves.

I had not been to Ocellaris in about two years.  The last time wasn’t memorable as the food wasn’t that great and there were problems with the breathing gas for diving – we all got headaches after 10-15 minutes of diving… and there was this “taste.”  So much so that we had to obtain our breathing gas from another resort.

Well… this time is was all different.  It was obvious early on that there were ongoing renovations at the resort.  I first noticed that the lavatory and toilets were new.  There was hot water in the shower.  There are new cottages and they were fixing the fencing by the roadside.

The weather was very cool… I thought perfect for this resort as there is no A/C in the rooms.  I would have put the air temp at around 22-23C.  It was like having central air.

After preparing our camera’s, reading some manuals, discussing some pointers, planning our dives… it was time to retire.

The next morning, Polly and Edison (our boatmen) were already there as we came down for breakfast – okay, except for breakfast, the food in Ocellaris is EXCELLENT!  I have not eaten this well in Anilao to date.  Everything they served was very tasty.  Again, except breakfast… this is one meal where all the resorts need to re-evaluate their menus.  Below is what was served – those with an asterisk were quite good.

Breakfast – Saturday
ham
cheese omelet
fried rice

Lunch – Saturday
grilled pork ribs*
calabasa and string beans in gata*
fried fish*
fresh pineapple

Dinner – Saturday
cream of crab soup*
vegetable spring rolls*
chicken (in some sauce)*
tuna fillet*
sticky rice desert

Breakfast – Sunday
tocino
fried egg
fried rice
mango

Lunch – Sunday
inihaw na babuy*
fish fillet*
eggplant/tomato/onion salad in vinegar*
banana milkshake*

The diving was good.  The water was quite cold… hovering at 79-80F but it was the wind on the boat that made us shiver.  That wind made us decide not to cross to Maricaban… we figured we wouldn’t enjoy the ride.

We achieved what we set out to do… Carlos was extremely happy with his Inon purchase.  “I would have never been able to take these shots…” was his mantra the whole weekend.  My new viewfinder was nice and clear.  A successful weekend for the Catalan and the Tisoy…

Oh… forgot to mention, they offer Nitrox already… we were diving on EAN32 the whole weekend.

I would love to visit Ocellaris again before the weather becomes warm again…

‘Till the next dive…

3-2-1-anilao

This dive weekend was special.  It was planned with one thing in mind … it was going to be an “underwater photographers fun dive.”  Except for two divers, everybody was equipped with a camera.  It didn’t matter how skilled a photographer you were, it just mattered that you had a camera and took underwater pix.

Our instructor Dave didn’t bring his camera as he had to keep an eye on the two other non-photographers who were fairly new to diving.  Personally, I was hesitant in bringing my rig since I had been having problems with my eye-piece.  Nevertheless, I brought my rig in case things turned for the better.

Some arrived Friday night (Dave, Paz, John, Julie Ann, Manolo, and myself), while some arrived Friday morning (Jadie, Philip, Kay and Agnes), and the rest arrived Saturday night (Jingle, Aldene, Gina).

I’ll cut to the chase and talk about Sunday’s last dive… divers that went out were: Paz, John, Julie Ann, Jingle, Agnes, Philip, Kay, Dave, Elmer, and myself.  Elmer Mendoza, a long time friend and DM was requested to join us to provide another set of “spotter” eyes.  For the second dive, Twin Rocks was requested because Jingle had not seen the school of jacks there.  Aside from that, Twin rocks is always a nice photographer’s site.  Fairly shallow, hardly any current, quite colorful and the diversity of life is abundant.

I didn’t bring my camera for the Sunday dives because my eye-piece was really giving me problems … time to replace it.  Kay and Philip weren’t feeling well after the first dive and decided to miss the second dive… something they’ll regret later.

The dive started north of the barge, the visibility was terrible… it took approximately 12 minutes to fin towards the barge.  I was in front of the group, hoping to spot critters for the group to take – primarily cuttlefish.  I did find one but the group were busy with other subjects … and this one just didn’t want to stay in place.  I decided to fin towards the Twin Rocks… Elmer and Agnes were to my left approximately 20 feet but really couldn’t see them except for their tanks and bubbles shimmering in the light.  Dave was behind me but I couldn’t see him most of the time.

As I was approaching the Twins, at approximately 35fsw, I saw something dark swimming from my 1-o’clock position – the shallows.  I thought, this is a huge fish, maybe a wrasse.  As it headed in my direction, its body became clear… I had to check if I was really seeing what I was… I signalled to Elmer and pointed to the creature… at the same time, I signalled the others to come.  Elmer and Agnes saw it … there was no missing it since it passed in front of us, briskly swimming into deeper waters.  Dave, who was behind us about 20ft., saw a shadow move across but didn’t know what it was – the visibility was that bad.

So what was it???  Rhincodon typus – commonly known as Whale Shark. Yes, we saw a Whale in Anilao … at Twin Rocks!!!  The quick response of the group to my banging was remarkable, they were all there in about 5 seconds … but it was too late … the shark had gone into the deep.

“The whale shark, Rhincodon typus, is a slow filter feeding shark that is the largest living fish species. It can grow up to 12.2 m. (40 ft.) in length and can weigh up to 13.6 tonnes (15 short tons). This distinctively-marked shark is the only member of its genus Rhincodon and its family, Rhincodontidae (called Rhinodontes before 1984), which is grouped into the subclass ElasmobranchiiChondrichthyes.  The shark is found in tropical and warm oceans and lives in the open sea and can live for about 70 years.  The species is believed to have originated about 60 million years ago.” - Wikipedia

It was a fairly small animal, around 10-12 feet … very juvenile, but that wasn’t the point.  I’ve seen a whale shark before, another juvenile of about 17-20 feet at Tubbataha, but this was Anilao – Twin Rocks for goodness sakes!!!

Another person that saw the whale shark was Polli, our trusted and very knowledgeable boat captain.  Apparently, the whale shark made a u-turn and headed back into the shallows and surfaced.  It circled our boat before heading off into the deep.

There have been numerous reports in the recent past about sightings in the area, we’ve always wished that at least one of us would see one.  Apparently, it was only a matter of time.

3 fingers unto your forehead (underwater hand signal for whale shark) … 2 pinnacles (Twin Rocks) … 1 fish (the largest in the ocean) … Anilao = Whale Shark!!! – just ask Elmer, Agnes and myself.

What a way to cap the weekend!  So, what’s next – a manta?  There have been sightings in Anilao too …

international clean up 2008

Event:  International Clean-Up Day 2008

Date:  20-21 September 2008

Coordinator:  Concerned Divers of the Philippines & Diveshoppe

Resort:  Crystal Blue Resort

Sponsors:  Project Aware, Scubapro, Aquaventure Whitetip Dive Supply, Crystal Blue Resort, Nathan Floro, Carol Sy & Robert Arivara

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Photo journal available at: Diveshoppe’s International Clean-Up Pics

More on the clean-up at the Dive page.

Photo courtesy of Paz Santos