Bohol

We went to Bohol to go diving, but then Derek got sick. So then he watched videos on the laptop and I sulked. You can't dive with a head cold, since you can't adjust your sinuses to the pressure and your head will explode or whatever. Thankfully Derek was up for snorkeling a few days in and we joined Sun Divers at a BBQ at a tiny island a 45 minute boat ride away. It was a beautiful island, and the BBQ was delicious and came with unlimited beer. I highly recommend doing this. The water is a lot colder in the Philippines then it is in Malaysia, I was surprised by that, which was welcome because it was a glaringly hot day.

This is a blurry crab, because why would the camera focus on what you are taking a photo of when it can focus and inch behind or an inch ahead of it?

Biggest hermit crab I've seen, size of a baseball. Totally didn't care we were there either, we poked him right in the face and he just went on filtering sand. I found another much cuter one that had a large patch of tube shaped seaweed bigger then it was growing off it's shell, but it was too bright and I couldn't see the screen so all my photos were of the space above the hermit crab. Arg.

The snorkeling position. I got a burn through my shirt it was so sunny out.

Derek trying to dive down and see something. He was a lobster the next day, all "I don't need sunscreen, pft" and now he's peeling giant disgusting flakes and I can't stop picking at him.

This is what it looked like around the island when you got further out. Like boulders of coral scattered among a grassy field. It was bizarre. Also, it looks like the jellyfish fields from Spongebob.

I love plumeria.

The next day, Derek still being snuffly AND now too burnt to get into a wetsuit, we went snorkeling near some resorts. It was nice, not as many fish as in Malaysia, but the coral was in excellent condition. These fat little sea cucumbers are everywhere.

These are striped catfish, tiny little guys that move as one unit. It's freaky to watch.

Some fish cruising along.

Derek thought this coral was pretty. Shortly after he got a leg cramp and I saw a large barracuda and we went home.

We went on one dive the next day. I didn't bring the camera, my buoyancy needs some work and I need my arms. They strapped 6 kg of lead to me and I was still struggling to stay underwater. I wish I had tried anyway though, we saw some cool things. We started above the same coral as above and then swam over and down a cliff, which is slightly terrifying and Derek might have panicked, but then his goggles fogged up and he couldn't see how scary it was anymore and he was fine. There was a large batfish, about a foot tall and an inch thick, that is used to being fed by divers so he came right up to us and then followed us like a puppy for the entire dive. My favourite thing was an enormous rectangular sea cucumber, as thick and long as my leg. I patted it and it felt like tofu.

We are currently in Sabang, where Derek is sick again, and we haven't done any diving. I'm thinking he's faking it.