I got invited to go diving in Malapascua (it’s in the Philippines). Though this would put me in a tight spot financially, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity either. Malapascua is THE place to go diving to encounter thresher sharks. Thresher sharks are on my list (I didn’t see the one that was supposed to be in the Red Sea). And, the Philippines are on my Asia countries bucket list. So, how could I say no? And to say it was a trip of a lifetime is a bit of an understatement (at the moment). It will definitely be one of my most memorable trips and a core memory for sure!

This trip came about a week after my trip to Vietnam. (At this point, I’ve been on 3-ish trips since.) It was also moved up quite a few days. We were originally supposed to leave on the 13th, but ended up leaving on the 10th due to the limited direct flights from Bangkok to Cebu. That’s okay because Sunday is a better travel day for me (it’s my day off). I was on my way to Malapascua, Philippines for a private chartered dive tour. There was only going to be a total of 8 total people and 7 total divers.

We stayed at the Blanco Beach Resort and had early check in (we were arriving quite early). After landing early and then a 3 hour drive to the pier from the airport…and a ferry ride to the island (we were a bit tired). And later that same day, we’d go out for our check dive with Malapascua Thresher Divers. They had the best crew ever…and the shop was run by a local family.

On our check dive (first dive of the trip) and thresher sightings were made. They’re so cool. If the rest of the trip was going to be this way, I couldn’t wait. Because this was a private chartered trip, we got to run our own schedule and customize as we went. We didn’t have to wake up while it was still dark to head out. I forget now, but the dive sight was about 1-2 hours from shore.

Life under the sea was great. This was also my opportunity to work on my oxygen consumption because these folks could stay FOREVER under the water. Let’s just say, I’ve definitely improved…and it was so worth it. I also got to see much more than sharks. We found so many cool nudis and seahorses that were just “lying around”. Our dive guides were AMAZING at finding things.

We spent our nights getting dinner on the island. Most nights were spent eating at Angelina (pretty much the best eats on the island). One night we had seafood (freshly caught). Another night, it was all about the Filipino fare.

I had an entire room to myself (so much space). Because it was quite humid on the island, nothing ever really seemed to dry. Oh well, you do what do you and most of my time was spent in the water anyway.

The dive groups changed at will, but it was great and I got the chance to dive with different people (but really at times it was all one big group anyway). We saw mandarin gobies mating. We saw a ton of cool nudibranch. There were so many thresher sharks (big and small). And at times, there was time to mess around. I have so much ridiculous footage (it almost makes me want to get a nicer camera vs my GoPro. But my GoPro was pretty damn decent as well. I got so many good videos.

Photos my friends took with their much nicer cameras…

Photos from my GoPro…

The trip was pricey, but still so worth it. Trip of a lifetime!