Entries about sunsets and sunrises

It is a very cool experience to watch your expired air bubbles snake their way up the walls and between corals and clams on the wreck of the El Capitan. Even more cool to surface inside the wreck in a large pocket of trapped C02! Warning: DO NOT BREATHE!

The 3000-tonne freighter, launched in 1917 was built to transport merchandise during WWII. While it was moored in Ilanin Bay, Subic, awaiting a refit, an enemy Japanese Submarine approached and fired upon the El Capitan causing irrepairable damage. Over two full days in 1946, the El Capitan died a slow death, where I find her today on her port side in an average of 18m of water.

It is a site where I have seen more marine life than anywhere else in Subic.

Jayson found the most delicate looking ghost pipe fish lurking near some similarly fragile soft orange coral and a blue ribbon eel gaping from his cave beneath some coral starkly resembling a vintage gramophone.

Ghost Pipe Fish

Blue Ribbon Eel

I could hear a high-pitched squeaking of what I thought was my ears being squeezed but turned out to be the singing of the Dolphins next door at Ocean Adventure!!!

Just as an aside, remember to bring a torch with you for the wreck penetration; it's an easy swim-through amid shafts of light that beam down through gaping holes in the starboard side, but a little extra light can show you some hidden treasures in the way of abundant marine life.

When I last spoke to Brian last over some oh-so-good Filipino breakfast loganissa, I mentioned the restaurant was not quite complete without a REAL parrot to complete the vintage Pirate-esque feel he has going on at Vasco's.

This is the closet thing Vasco's currently has to a real parrot

I was devastated to find out that not too long ago, there were TWO parrots and a white cockatoo!

Brian went on the explain that tragically he had to get rid of the birds after he was visited by 'The Health Inspector.' She came, she saw, she handed down three violations, of which Brian questions:

1. 1 The restaurant needed to be fumigated

1. 2 There was no fire escapes or emergency exit signs

1. 3 No birds are allowed in the restaurant

The solution to the fire escape situation was to hang life jackets from every door and window with the word "EXIT" scribbled on each of them.
The unfortunate truth is that Brian had to remove the parrots from the restaurant, who up until that point had mastered sneaking away with bottles of local Tanduay Rum and getting drunk and rowdy like some customers. But for the sparrows and swallows, the solution is below:

The solution

The Girls at Swell Cafe

Due to the 36 degree heat, we had not only Swell, but the entire Waterfront to ourselves!

The Waterfront

Waterfront Sunset

One Too Many

A Few Too Many

Two beautiful dives this afternoon has got me to crack the big five zero on my log book! Only ten to go and I can begin my dive master....

Jayson has been gradually tweaking my equipment to make diving as comfortable as possible. I've switched between regular air tanks and nitrox, having regular fins to now using some super awesome heavy duty chaps that let me fly through the water. But the best new toy I've been given at Vasco's is an unusual BCD with a rounded, donut-shaped bladder that apparently lets the air circulate in a different manner, to create equal buoyancy (or something like that) but boy! is it so much more comfortable to carry!

My new BCD with the Donut-shaped bladder

Now that I've tried this I don't think I will switch back.

I met another diver on the boat today named Steve. It's his second time diving in Subic, and what I HOPED was that he would be able to give Vasco's and the diving here in Subic a bit of a wrap up, as I assumed he had such a ball last time it had drawn him back. That's not exactly what I got. Thanks to the quality of Filipino internet and some technical difficulties from Traveler's Point, my video won't load but you can watch it on YouTube here:
Fun Diving with Steve and Vasco's

Today was my last day of fun diving before I get stuck into my Rescue Diver course tomorrow at 10am! We spent a lazy summer afternoon in the clearest blue water just off Grande Island at a dive site called Barges, ironically, because the US Navy used to site to scuttle about 6 of their old barges! A stone fish the size of my forearm had perched himself atop a precarious-looking larger stone whilst Jayson terrorised a poor sea cucumber which shot horrendous long white tentacles out at him, and the most delicate little fish I've ever seen which was apparently a lion fish minus the evil spines! The customary schooling trevally floated past us in a silent, glittering haze that temporarily blocked the sun whilst two fragile litttle cuttlefish bobbed past on my ascent. Today was the most relaxed diving I have had in Subic; the sun has not stopped shining, and a gentle breeze has been sailing through the resort. This is the view I am currently stuck view. Sometimes I find it difficult to put up with.

You will be relieved to know, just as I was, that the mystery of my missing coffee sachets has finally reached it's zenith, after being salvaged from under a pile of dirty forgotten laundry in my room.

I joined the family for an amazing dive this afternoon. Brian, his beautiful partner Rose and son Connar, plus Gianne! We took the slow boat out under the beating sun, pigged out of amazing Filipino noodles and Gianne got so excited she jumped in and forgot to put her fins on. Brian's attitude during this debarcle where Gianne nearly drowned, and he sat at the front of the boat in the sun was a simple "Why are we rushing... we're in paradise!"

Connar and Rose on their 'Surface Interval'

By the end of the dive, Gianne would have put at least three clown fish in therapy.

Gianne sporting her 'Cadbury Top Deck' tan after one afternoon in a rash vest

Brian was kind enough to take me for a driving tour this morning, trying to give me a better idea of the size of Subic and what's available. The answer is... everything!!! Subic is so much bigger than I realised. Lush, thick jungle harboring a military style training camp for tourists wanting to relive the experiences of soldiers in training Vietnam, duty-free shopping courtesy of the freeport zoning, nightlife for the super-keen, girly bars if you're that way inclined, theme parks for young and old including Ocean Adventure (Philippines answer to Sea World) which I had the pleasure of visiting on Easter Sunday, amazing restaurants and eateries INCLUDING KFC!!! and best of all... an American Naval Base next door full of buff young special ops with buzz cuts and big arms. Well hello sailor!