So are diamond peels. And spiders. But really,
"fear" of the ocean isn't about the ocean itself,
but about the many unknowns of what lies
beneath. Sure we love the beach -- we're islanders!
But beyond 5 feet into the sloping sand can be
the ultimate mind fuck. We understand.
But know this – a Saturday morning cartoon
franchise once coined that knowing is half
the battle.
So trust us, once you get your first look into what
really lies there, the bottom of the ocean is honestly,
nothing but corals and sand, and it's the same across
the board, wherever you go. Go diving for a bit and
you won't mind falling off a boat.
If you think that the blue ocean can go
down to hundreds -- no thousands of feet,
well you're right -- but that's way out there,
James Cameron style. Recreational
diving depths average about 30-40 feet
before you reach rock bottom.
That's ridiculous. They'll just probably bite. But eat?
No way. Just kidding. Really. The first thing you learn
in SCUBA school is that there's no such thing as a
"man eating fish." Sure, reef sharks are predators
but they don't go for people. In fact, they're scared
of people. Ask any diver: once you get comfortable
in the water and you start seeing sharks, it's you who
will be swimming after them.
In the same way that cats can be classified
as your domestic couch kitty and your apex
predator lions and tigers, sharks are quite
similar. The reef sharks we find around the
Philippines are your kittens.
Truth is, buying a bike can be more expensive.
And to some extent, the sign up fee for a marathon
can be more expensive than a day of diving + lunch.
Let's break it down, folks: A introduction to SCUBA
diving session will set you back around P2,500.00 ..
that basically gets you into the water letting you dive
till your tank runs out. There's supervision and all that.
It gets more interesting when you get certified into
your. Open Water license as that will cost you around
PHP 15,000 -- the price of a mid ranged smartphone.
But that certification is (cue radio stinger) FOR LIFE!
As for gear, rent everything except the wetsuit
(divers love to pee on their wetsuits). Or use board
shorts and a rash guard. Or surfer pants. Renting a
complete set of dive gear will set you back a mere
PHP 500.00. After getting certified for your open water
course, SCUBA diving in nearby Anilao is set to a price
tag of about PHP 1,200.00 to PHP 1,500.00. That's two
dives and a lunch buffet at the resort. That's like what,
a cocktail in Resorts World?
Press Release: a lot of divers aren't good swimmers. Who said anything about swimming? When you have more than 20 lbs of gear on you, you'll sink. No need to get all Michael Phelps. And that's the point of SCUBA: to go down into the depths of the unknown.
Once you get acquainted with your equipment, you'll realize that it's your fins that power your movement and your hands will be worth zilch. Controlling how you go up or down? That jacket you have on (it's called a Buoyancy Control Device) inflates and deflates to let you achieve optimal buoyancy.
Your diver friends might have given this impression in
the same way that "Boracay is Manila in bikinis.
"Well Anilao as "Manila in wetsuits" is partially true for
the weekends simply because it's the closest place relative
to the city if you live in Luzon. But the back and forth of
Anilao isn't about convenience -- actually the convenience
is a bonus. Anilao has been hailed as the world's capital
for macro life.
It has more coral species than the entire United States.
In short, Anilao is a biodiversity hotspot and is definitely
one of the best places to go SCUBA diving in the world,
and also one of the most affordable too. Anilao is the
Great Wall, the Leaning Tower and the Louvre of diving
put together. And it's here in the Philippines.
Yeah you probably read the news reports and
they sound tragic: man dies while SCUBA diving,
body found a day later. Well here you go: like
any hobby, there are always small risks -- diving
included, which is why there are always
precautions to take.
Never dive alone, don't be a jackass underwater,
don't be a hero, always be conservative ...
if diving was life threatening, it would have been
banned as a hobby and deemed illegal.
Did you know you can lose about 500 calories in a 45 minute dive? It's the buffet that kills you afterwards.
Ask the converts: many recreational divers
turned to SCUBA to conquer a fear or get over
an ex. No cellphones, no traffic, no one to pester you
about work. Trust us, if you're looking for a real escape,
SCUBA Diving is the best way to separate
yourself from the world.
There's nothing more zen than floating in a vacuum with
only the sound of your breathing to help you contemplate
if your life still has meaning.
And guess what? You might find it beneath
the surface.