Sipadan Mabul Kapalai @ 3 Aug 2011 - 9 Aug 2011 - Part2

While waiting for our rooms to be ready, down we went for our first dive at Mandarin Valley. For the first dive, as i still have not prepared my underwater camera equipment, i went down empty handed. Ooppss.. i have put on the wrong weight! 4lbs x 3..so for the first dive its so hard to enjoy as i kept on sinking and first time using my fins! for the second dive, The Cleaning Station@Mabul, my boyancy became better as i have reduced the weight to 6lbs. For this second dive, its also my first time using strobe, and it made me super busy as i kept adjusting to get the correct lighting position. I did not enjoy the second dive still + the vision is quite bad. Anyway, i still able to see some new marine creatures, etc Peacock Mantis Strimp, scorpion fish,puffer and a BIG green turtle.. i just would like to ask it, how old are you? :p

For the third dive of the day, its my first buddy dive without a guide and the location is still Mandarin Valley as this is a dive site just in front of the resort. For this dive, P already got ready for his suprise+romantic wedding proposal. I helped him to get his things done till about 8m from surface, and thr i can and the suprise on SS face. A little 遗憾 here was, should go all da way to 16m from surface, and P a little bit too 紧张. I haven started to record, he already started the whole thing.. ALAMAK.. make the whole clip seems "no head". Both of them surfaced as SS seems too happy until dunno wat to do.. already forgot how to dive.. haha..
For me and YH, we continued our dive. I saw a lot of zebra lion fish which i missed in the second dive.we went deeper and deeper, and more different kinds of fishes appeared. when reached 21m at the tower, the area was quite dark and vision was yet improved, with my torch i suddendly saw two huge pair of eyes looking at me in the tower which was about 2-3m from me. its a giant grouper! its size should be bigger than me(when standing) and that time its really gave me a shock! i signal YH to see but we have communication problem. haha.. as my tank was almost empty, i quickly signal YH to surface. I not sure if grouper eats human but its better to leave early.. haha.. What a nice and scary experience!

For the next day, at first the plan was to dive at Siamil(i accidentally said it as Similan which makes it to be the joke of the trip!) but due to bad weather, the dive site was changed to Lobster Wall @ Mabul. Nothing much to see but it is my first time diving beside walls.. on the end of the dive, miss regulator snatcher has commited her crime on me when she wanted to show me a lionfish. left me blowing bubbles without my regulator.. haha.. U love nudi? then Mid Reef is a must to visit as thr are lots of them. This time i have a chance to look closer at a Peacock Mantis Strimp. I really looks more handsem then the real praying mantis.. haha.. At Paradise II, saw a very special fish.. seems like flying when it moves.. only got to know it is named Flying Gurnard.

Buddy sunset dive is what i'm looking to everyday.. haha.. its very fun and we need to navigate and decide everything by our own.


The third day.. Sipadan Island. ohh.. our dive guide changed to somebady named SanSan. at first we still think is a gal but i turn out to be a guy. haha.. Besides him, a dive guide name Michiyo also joined us. A slim japanese lady with a slender bodyline.. wheeweet!

Sipadan is not for macro. its mainly for big marine fishes. The first dive site was Barracuda Point. From the name already told you, should be a lot of barracudas.. once back-rolled, the vision was.. a large school of Bumpheads below me! previously at Tioman only saw 几只小猫. haha.. the vision was very clear and i got real close to these Bumpheads! i think i already can touch them. Superb!

the current is very strong and i need to hold on to rocks in order not to be swept out to da big sea. so scare i will accidentally hold on to a stonefish. haha..Also saw some small reef sharks. Sharks did not attrach my interest much when the school of Big Black Eye Fish and Barracuda joined us.. wat i can describe is mouth open wide wide and say WAH!

We continued our dive at WhiteTip Ave. Not much to see at this area. Again turtles, sharks and stonefish.

The last dive at Sipadan, we are back to Barracuda Point as weather gets bad. Its a thumb-up choice to get back here as the barracuda performed a good show to us.. Da Barracuda Tornado! A Magnificient View..

Da next few dives were nothing much to say as the marine life already keep repeating. Ohh.. ya.. my last dive with the dive guide, got to see the very cute Flamboyant Cuttlefish!

What about the food served? all of them is buffet style and normally is malay food. Most of the food served were not bad but i still prefer the BBQ from Tioman and Dayang.

The last morning before we left the resort, me and YH went snorkerling. What i can say it is a bad idea. Once we jumped in, less then 10mins im up again. Why? The snorkerling area was full with JellyFish! alamak.. make me so itchy!

With tired and draggy feet, we bade goodbye to Sipadan. Beautiful pictures were kept in mind(da big grouper) and we will start planning for our next dive site!

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