Diving in Anilao

Anilao is in the municipality of Mabini, Batangas, the Philippines. It is located south of Manila, about 2.5hrs drive, on the large island of Luzon. Diving in Anilao is famous for its macro, nudibranch and critters; pelagic and large fish are not common. We didn't see any mantas nor sharks, not even turtles. Definitely a macro diver's paradise. 

Our dive resort was Planet Dive, a nice base for diving adventures, winner of Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence 2015. It had cosy rooms, aromatic Batangas coffee, good food, large tanks for rinsing equipment and outdoor chairs to laze around by the sea. Ooh the dinner was so good, bbq every night! Did I mention the beer was cheap too? 

Idyllic outdoor seating to laze around after a long day of diving

Having said that Anilao is a macro heaven, the equipment I had was hardly suitable. My new underwater housing that I ordered online arrived a few hours before I left my home for the airport, but when I was at Anilao I realised the housing didn't fit with my tray (different screw size). So I ended up shooting with just the housing, or attaching the Gopro to the tray which wasn't good for macro shots at all. Well it was still fun chasing after fish and shooting underwater video with the Gopro attached to an extension pole. 

Dive boats were the crampy boats with outriggers common in the Philippines

One of the first dive sites we went was aptly named "Bubbles", for the little bubbles that rise from beneath the seabed due to some natural geographical phenomenon. Don't ask me to explain. 

CY diving in "Bubbles"

The following photos were shot with my trusty and waterproof (down to 12m without housing) Panasonic Lumix. Don't ask me what shutter speed, aperture or ISO was used, my camera only had auto mode with in-built flash, sometimes aided with a dive torch. Though my equipment paled miserably in comparison with all the other underwater "bazookas" brought by fellow divers, I tried to make up for it by having good composition. You be the judge. At least, I try to capture the eyes.

Moray Eels are my all-time favourite subjects

Don't know what-the-fish

Elegant Crinoid Squat Lobster. I know right, what a long name 

My most successful shot of a seahorse to date

Small pufferfish

A pair of Colemani Shrimps at Secret Bay

I was shooting a crab when I accidentally came across this Flying Gurnard, a pleasant surprise

My most successful shot of a Glass Shrimp to date

Looks like 2 Chromodoris coming together to mate 

Another lonesome one

What nudi?

Saw quite a few of these Lionfish, usually hiding under rocks

Another all-time favourite subject, the Anemone Clown Fish

Another one 

Yet another, peeping out from the Anemone

A healthy reef

Not a pretty fish, but I like the cooperation of this little one who looked straight into the lens

Didn't quite know what this was even after the DM pointed it out, turns out it's a crab burrowed into a hole in the sandy seabed

Taking a break in-between dives while the tanks were replaced 

Golden Retriever taking a dip in the refreshing and clear seawater

Beach huts lined up along the emerald waters

Dive buddies: (from left) Khee Meng, Danny, CY

Beautiful sunset at Anilao 

Lunch at Johanna's Grill, saving the best for last 

Nachos with cheese

Favourite pork dish

Ribs, so soft and juicy

Pork knuckles, some say better than in Germany