Week 47: Diving Sipadan and Mabul

I’m a spoiled scuba diver. I started diving last October in the Philippines when I realized that my motorcycle habit wasn’t going to be fulfilled and was instantly fascinated with the underwater world. Over the last year, I’ve done around 80+ dives (not too shabby for a recreational diver!). While I’ve enjoyed almost every dive, the first 40 or so tend to be the most memorable since they took place in the Philippines.

The Philippines pretty much had it all as far as I was concerned. Great macro and muck diving in the Dauin area. Fantastic wall dives at Siquijor. Beautiful soft corals and schools of fish at Apo Island. Turtles at Moalboal and sharks at Malapascua. It’s a package that was hard to beat. Traveling through Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia, I never came across a place with the diversity that the Visayas offered. Sure, there were some amazing hi-lights along the way like the whale shark in Thailand and manta rays in Indonesia, but never matching the sheer range of corals, creatures, and dive opportunities. Until Sipadan…

Week 47: Diving Sipadan and Mabul photo
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Posted by: Shim

Week 46: The Perhentian Islands

July 27, 2009 - Filed under Scuba Diving, Weekly Report

Monday was a travel day. It took us almost 11 hours to get from Penang to the Perhentian Islands off the east coast of Malaysia. One taxi, two planes, a mini-bus and one very bumpy speed boat, and we finally arrived.

Week 46: The Perhentian Islands photo
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Posted by: Kelly

Foto Friday: Underwater Self-Portrait

June 11, 2009 - Filed under Foto Friday

Foto Friday: Underwater Self Portrait photo

Posted by: Kelly

Week 40: Last week in Bali

June 7, 2009 - Filed under Weekly Report

We’re rounding out our time in Bali, with only a couple of days left. This week we managed to meet up with a few friends from Vancouver. We had a beach day with Aimee in Kuta, and dinner with Sam and Adam in Sanur. It’s been great to see some familiar faces and has made me excited about seeing everyone in August. Until then however, I’m still enjoying things in Asia.

On Tuesday I headed up to Ubud, about 20km north of Denpasar, and only about an hour away from where we’ve been staying. Ubud is a cute little town surrounded by lush green rice paddies and one of Bali’s major arts and culture centers. Mike opted to stay back in Sanur as my plans were a little too girly for him. Read More…

Posted by: Kelly

Foto Friday: Manta Ray

June 4, 2009 - Filed under Foto Friday, Underwater Photography

Foto Friday: Manta Ray photo

Manta Point, Nusa Penida, Bali

Posted by: Kelly

Week 39: 9 months in Asia and the things we (will) miss.

May 31, 2009 - Filed under Weekly Report

We’ve just crossed the 9 month marker of our 1 year journey. Having been through Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia, our time abroad is quickly coming to a close. In a few weeks we’ll be heading back to see more of Malaysia’s north coast around Penang and possibly the Perhentian islands for some diving, then on to Borneo for a few more weeks of diving and motorcycling before flying back to Hong Kong to return home to Canada in August.

Week 39: 9 months in Asia and the things we (will) miss. photo
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Posted by: Shim

Week 33: Last week on Koh Tao

April 22, 2009 - Filed under Scuba Diving, Underwater Photography, Weekly Report

After 5 weeks on Koh Tao, we decided it was time to move on. We’ve had a great month relaxing, diving, and catching up with a few friends (Becca, Jacob and Patrick who we met in the Philippines, as well as Kenny and Ben, friends from Vancouver).

The highlight for this week was undoubtedly the Whale Shark. We had heard one had been spotted a couple of times over the last few weeks, and we’d been trying to arrange a trip to Sail Rock, almost since we arrived, but for some reason none of the dive shops could make it happen. Until last Friday…

Week 33: Last week on Koh Tao photo

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Posted by: Shim

Foto Friday: Whale Shark at Sail Rock, Koh Tao, Thailand

April 17, 2009 - Filed under Foto Friday, Underwater Photography

Foto Friday: Whale Shark at Sail Rock, Koh Tao, Thailand photo

See more whale shark pictures and other underwater shots here.

Posted by: Shim

Week 31: Life without internet

April 7, 2009 - Filed under Scuba Diving, Underwater Photography, Weekly Report

Our internet connection has been out for the last 5 days, which means the posting around here has been even lighter than normal. Luckily work’s been pretty slow for the most part, so we’ve been taking a little break from the online world.

Once again we’ve settled into a bit of a routine here, and while it’s nice for us to chillout and not be constantly on the go, it does make for some pretty boring posts. So in an effort to keep things interesting, and because I missed “Foto Friday“, I’ve decided to turn this into a picture post.

Week 31: Life without internet photo
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Posted by: Shim

Week 30: Settling in on Koh Tao

March 29, 2009 - Filed under Scuba Diving, Underwater Photography, Weekly Report

This week we got settled into our new apartment. It was a lot harder to find a monthly rental than we expected, especially one with internet. Most places that had internet didn’t do monthly rentals, and the few places we found that did do monthly rentals, didn’t have internet. We did however manage to find a place. It’s not perfect but so far we’re quite comfortable here.

It’s a one bedroom apartment, a couple blocks off the main strip of town, on Koh Tao. It’s right on the beach and we have a little balcony overlooking the water as well as a great rooftop patio, both of which make up for the fact that our kitchen only has a microwave. Luckily the food in Thailand is great, and most of it is quite cheap, so while we love to cook, we probably wont be doing much of it over the next month or so. Unless anyone’s got some great microwave recipes.

Week 30: Settling in on Koh Tao photo
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Posted by: Shim