From the far already the dark beaches of Dauin could be seen, whose dark colour has probably been given through the volcanic activity of mount Kanlaon. Even during one dive the warm sand could still be felt under water and a bubbling up observed.
By arriving at the shores of Dauin we were longingly looking back at the graceful Philippine Siren.
As we have already been doing 31 dives in 9 days in Malapascua and on the Siren we wanted to slow down a little and were planning for 4 dives in the next 2 days around Dauin. Our new divemaster and guide was the filipina Adelfa. We were told that 2 years ago she came from Davao to become a divemaster at Sea Explorers in Dauin. She was equally gifted with the ability to find things underwater as our prior guide Martin. She knew about the little makro creatures and how to comb through the seagras and weeds without injuring or frighten its inhabitants.
Two ghostpipefishes
Our diving highlights were ghostpipefishes (see left picture) in different colours and shapes which were quite common as these creatures prefer the sandy bottoms with seagras. One of our favourite divespots was Luca's Sancuary, where many different kinds of schools of fishes could be observed and beautiful corals could be admired. At our last dive we first saw a huge sepia floating like a spaceship in the water, suspiciously looking at our movements. While slowly finishing our dive we suddenly spotted between 2 barrel sponges a giant turtle resting with its companions, 2 remoras. We were struck by the beauty of the moment and after a while the turtle gracefully set off for the next destination and on its bottom the 2 remoras following her.In Dauin we also met a couple of interesting people. Thereof a guy called "Brüno" (Bruno) who stated in our first conversation that he is "ö trü frönch" (a true french) and an elderly french couple, of which according to Roberto the woman has the looks of auntie Livia (this is a Ceschi insider), though both in good shape and very sportive (at least 2 dives à day).
At one of our diving-free day we took a ride to Dumaguete to have a look at the city and get some fresh and tasty seafood for lunch. First we wanted to give a try with a motorbike but the only one's for rent were of a more sportive kind (offroading) and nothing for the city. Therefore we tried our luck with just strolling along the street until a Jeepney stopped by and we joined the approximately 30 passengers. By the end of our trip the Jeepney (originally made from US military jeeps left over from World War II and part of philippine culture) has been loaded by 40 to 45 people and every single space has been used efficiently. The trip was though interesting and adventurous. For Dauin Central the use of a Tricycle (like a thai TucTuc) was convenient.
In general the public transportation (Jeepney, Tricycle and Taxi) whether in Dumaguete, Cebu or Davao is very much regulated and we have never been cheated, as there is an official bureau for complaints if you feel not properly treated by a public transportation.
By the end of our diving trip we had 35 dives each, made in 11 days and a heart and mind full of the most beautiful joint impressions and experiences like the dusky sky after a sunsetdive below...
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