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Dec 3, 2005

Scuba Diving at Vistamar Resort, Anilao, Batangas

It was planned as a skin diving weekend for Mimsy's birthday. However, when we got there, the sun was inviting and Mimsy was gung-ho about making a scuba dive. Despite my initial apprehension (I've only done it once), she was able to convince me to take the plunge. With a dive master at hand, we rented the equipment and we were off to the deep end.

Abyss
Vistamar is one of the few places where scuba divers don't even have to rent out a boat to go to the dive spot. Just a few meters from the shore is a drop-off that goes down 140 feet. I got scared the first time I tried to scale it with my snorkle. It didn't seem like a slope but a vertical plunge. I couldn't see the bottom.

Threading the Slope
Being prudent, I asked the dive master to take us down no deeper than 50 feet. Since the drop-off went all the way down to 140, we traversed the steep slope instead. The ocean floor was nowhere to be seen...just a deep dark abyss beneath us.

Being at 50 feet felt no different from 20 feet, except for visibility. I had to keep track of the depth gauge. Marine life was abundant. Fishes were friendly, as we gave them morsels of grub.

Sea Wreck
The dive master told us he'll take us to a sea wreck. Wow! Visions of the Titanic filled my wild imaginings. When we got there, what I saw was a submerged dingy...so much for a deep sea wreck.

Bouyancy Issue
My biggest apprehension was bouyancy. During my discovery dive in March, I was either going down, hitting the corals, or ascending up to the surface. Keeping it steady was a challenge. I was afraid I might float up from 50 feet and get the bends.

This time however, I got the hang of it just by controlling how much air I put in my lungs. It was smooth cruising from then on.

Ending Thoughts
I'd been skin diving for as long as I can remember. I thought scuba diving would be a more challenging progression. Given the 2 scuba dives I've done, my analogy would be that skin diving is like mountain biking - it takes technical skill and you are essentially the engine. With one big inhalation, you plunge down and see how deep you go and how long you can stay down, being mindful of the ascent. Given the limited time down there, every scenery is golden.

Scuba diving on the other hand requires technical skill as well but the engine is provided by the air tank. It's not exactly a lung-power workout. It can turn catastrophic once the rules of the game are ignored, but cognizant of that, it's a leisurely recreation that opens up new worlds.

--- TheLoneRider

Reader Comments:

Areson Cuevas
(20 Dec, 2005) It would be really great to scuba dive again... ask, i mean kulitin talaga, our classmates if they're interested to go back to Anilao to dive. I miss the sea... the summer of next year would be the perfect time to arrange our next diving session 'coz this Christmas break is almost over and I think everyone is busy with his/her own Christmas escapades.