Posts filed under 'Travel'
My buddy Tom, who I met while diving the Philippines, recently emailed me and told me he moved from the beautiful island of Bohol to Donsol, in the Bicol region of the Philippines. Tom is a jovial German guy who I had the pleasure of having as my guide while diving off of Alona Beach, to the islands of Balicasag and Panglao. He describes Donsol as “one of the world’s foremost locations to view whale sharks“, and the fact that he’s a PADI IDC Staff Instructor, I tend to take his word for it. He sent me some great photos, that I’ve included along with his contact info. I really had a great time diving with him off of Alona Beach, so I know he’ll take good care of anyone I send his way.
Continue Reading November 3rd, 2005
A handful of fat, seven foot white-tip sharks lay dormant at the foot of the rock pinnacle, digesting their last meal. An unfortunate adolescent hawksbill turtle was probably the latest fare for these menacing beasts. As I quietly approached the biggest one I thought of all the things I’d miss being able to do without my right arm, as I extended it out toward the shark’s nose and prepared to shoot it. The turned its gaze upon me, as if daring me to pull the trigger.
Continue Reading October 9th, 2005
I’ve just added a new underwater gallery of the Philippines. These photos, late in coming, compliment my earlier articles about diving the Visayas and acquiring a Night Diver specialty certification from PADI. The PI ranks top on my list of dive destinations offering great value for your money. To put things in perspective: a 2-tank boat dive off of the Hawaiian island of Maui can run you upwards of $120, whereas unlimited diving costs $50 per day from Moalboal, Cebu. Did I mention that this includes Nitrox and your own personal divemaster? That’s right, 4 divers on the boat = 4 divemasters to guide you to your laundry-list of photo subjects. This is key when your stay is over the period of a week and your guide knows exactly what you’ve seen and haven’t seen yet.
Continue Reading September 21st, 2005
This season’s Survivor takes place in Guatemala. It was great seeing contestants slog through the jungle and mud in an area I actually spent some time. I do have to admit though that it made all the previous episodes a lot less credible in terms of the harshness of the environment. What I mean is, they must have spent weeks on end finding animals, including crocodiles (that apparently live in every body of water, even puddles), monkeys, tarantulas, etc. With the camera angles and music they make the Guatemalan forest seem to be a terribly dangerous place with “deadly snakes around every corner”. In actuality it is quite a pleasant place to be, and you have to tip-toe around in order to see most animals because they usually run from humans (not to mention full film crews). Nonetheless, this season of Survivor looks to be a good one. Right off the bat they were puking, getting cramps and feeling a great deal of pain in general. I had started to lose my taste for the show over the past few seasons when they would get a gourmet meal after each challenge. Lets get back to what this show is all about: pain and suffering for average people with challenges that skirt the limits of will, all for the love of money.
Continue Reading September 16th, 2005
Divers are flabbergasted at the fact that they virtually have to push all the sharks and turtles out of the way to see anything else in the hotbed of biodiversity that is Sipadan Island. This tiny island off the coast of Borneo is world renowned for sightings of large pelagic species that come in mind-boggling numbers. Sipadan hit the world stage in 1984 when Jacques Cousteau chose it as the site for his film Ghost of the Sea Turtles. The same Turtle Cavern can still be visited today and houses tens of skeletons of sea turtles as well as a dolphin skeleton or two. Because the island is so small (taking only 20 minutes to walk full circle), and the fact that only 100 guests are allowed on any given night, Sipadan evokes an air of a Summer Camp for Divers. In this respect, it is like no other dive destination in the world.
Continue Reading July 26th, 2004
The Philippines may be the most underrated diving destination in Southeast Asia. With reasonable pricing, excellent service and reefs densely packed with life, the PI offers a terrific value for a destination so close to Thailand. Popular diving destinations include Puerto Galera and Boracay for beach action and topside entertainment in addition to diving. However, most serious divers head south either to the Sulu Sea or the Visayas in the central Philippines.
Continue Reading June 25th, 2004
Motoring around the Chocolate Hills on the Philippine island of Bohol, I searched far and wide for the rumored Bush Babies. Not the whining, alcoholic daughters of the current US President, but rather the animal currently recognized as the world’s smallest monkey. At a height of less than 5 inches (excluding tail), the Tarsier’s most prominent feature is its huge eyes. Each eye is larger than its entire brain, and nearly twice the size of a human’s.
Continue Reading June 24th, 2004
The city of Bangkok offers many sights to the tourist: Shopping malls, the Royal Palace, the Emerald Buddha…the list goes on. However, the experienced traveler will tell you that your trip is incomplete unless you sample the flavors of action Bangkok has to offer after dark. When the sun sets, the real party begins. Gone are the trappings of everyday life, and out comes the weird, the ugly and the unseen attractions that dare to show themselves only in the shadows of night. The diving is no different.
The veil of night brings out tentacled freaks, hermaphrodites, scavengers, sex-crazed lunatics and hunters who mercilessly prey on helpless adolescents. Yes, I’m still talking about diving.
Continue Reading June 17th, 2004
You rise at 5am to the sound of golden turkeys and parrots squabbling their morning gossip and wonder where you’ve woken up. The smells of the Guatemalan jungle pervades your bungalow and you realize that you’re about to experience the greatest site of Mayan ruins yet excavated. Tikal, a 16 square kilometer complex of over 3,000 separate Mayan constructions and 200 stone monuments awaits you…..
Continue Reading April 20th, 2004
We began our road trip to Northern Thailand starting from downtown Bangkok, in search of a rumored Wat shrouded in mystery. All we really knew was that this particular temple in the Land of Wats was designed by a renowned painter, perhaps the most famous artist alive in Thailand. We had a rough idea that the Wat was somewhere between the second largest city in Thailand, Chiang Mai – and the Northern city of Chiang Rai. Off we went…….
Continue Reading October 14th, 2003
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