Thresher Sharks and a small boat crash....

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Dear all,
Since I last wrote we left Moalboal which involved me riding side saddle on the back of a tricycle motorbike! We headed back to Cebu and then up to the island of Malapascua. It was another long bus journey up to the port of Maya. We got on the boat and once it had left the calm waters of the shore we realised that it was going to be a very choppy ride. As we got out into open sea the waves were about four foot high and we were on a small banca boat. The waves soaked us all and our bags and the boat men had to pump water out...but we got there in the end. It was worth it as the island was beautiful and our room was right on the beach facing the sea.

The next morning we set the alarm for five am....sounds mad I know, but that is the time to go diving if you want to see Thresher sharks. We crept about in the dark and arrived at the dive sight just as the sun was coming up. We got into the water and went down to 22 metres..and then we waited. After about five minutes we saw our first Thresher shark go by. In all we were diving for about fifty minutes and we saw four sharks and a devil ray. I would love to be able to say that I have some photos to show you but the sharks are so quick that sadly I don't. But if you look on google images you will see that it is their tail that makes them so special.

Thankfully we had seen the Thresher sharks and so didn't need to get up early the next morning. This time we went diving at a sensible time and dived in a tunnel that goes under Gato island. I have to admit that I was a bit scared but it was worth it as there was a huge white tip shark swimming at the end.

Malapascua is a very small island and once you have done some diving there isn't that much to do. So this morning we packed up our bags and got the boat back to Maya. This time the water was very calm but as we left the island our boat managed to collide with a smaller boat. Thankfully the other boat came off the worst and we were able to continue on our way.

In Maya we boarded a bus and headed back here to Cebu. This was our last long bus journey in the Philippines! Bus journeys can be quite uncomfortable as the buses are designed for very short people but I cant say that I have ever been bored on a bus. Most of the areas that we have been driving through are rural and I have seen some amazing villages, farms and animals. Today I saw some pig head stew being made on an open fire at the side of the road...sadly we didn't stop long enough for me to try any!!

So now we are back in Cebu for a few days before we fly up to Manila and then head to Palau and Micronesia. I hope that all is well in the UK,
Love and hugs,
Wendy
xxx

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