This white-tip shark swam about 2m away from me and I was holding my breath (first time up close to a shark does that to you) when I took a few quick snaps. Luckily this shot came out quite well.

The puffer fish below probably surprised me the most since i always thought it would be a diminutive creature and not the giant that you see below.
 

Zh enjoying the suspension in mid-water.

Pipefish above is almost invisible and cuttlefish below also doing a good join blending in. So far I’m pretty happy with the G11 since it’s able to react fast enough for my needs.

Good end to the first day, the moon was full and lit up the night sky.

The sea water was ultra-clear with the sun illuminating the sea bed for perfect photo taking opportunities.

Dive #2 was also quite low on vis (5m) which was unfortunate since there was a great many sea creatures to spot. This beautiful orange plate (Thanks Julian for identifying) really stood out from it’s surrounding. If Niger hadn’t pointed out the incredibly well camouflaged frog fish, I would definitely have missed it!

What a great way to start 2010, it was finally time to dive! Our first dive would be at Paradise, Mabul to get familiar with the basics for some of us who haven’t dived in awhile. After such a long absence, I actually had to get used to descending and took a couple of attempts before I managed to hit bottom. It’s definitely beneficial to dive regularly!

While the dive master, Niger, gave everyone the usual practice rounds of clearing masks, I decided to take the opportunity to test out the new Canon Powershot G11 with it’s underwater case which I just purchased specially for the trip (the Canon A90 was getting real old and a new upgraded was in order).

Caught sight of this curious sight where the fishes? hung around in a circle and just floated with the current.

Rather uneventful dive with murky visibility (approx 5m) even though the weather was perfect. The water was comfortable (would apply throughout the trip) and I had no issues in a 5mm full skinsuit.

Looking back, it’s hard to believe it took me 2.5 years to get back into diving. The trip was planned on a suggestion from J and the destination, Sipadan. We (J, Zh and myself) would be staying at Sipadan Water Vaillage Resort, Mabul Island, Borneo booked through Gill Divers.

After a rather long bus ride from Tawau Airport to Semporna (About 1.5 hours), we hopped on a speedboat for Mabul Island where we would stay for the duration of the trip. Divers are actually not allowed to stay on Sipadan itself and there is also a limit on the visitors per day.

Stepping off the speedboat, you’re immediately greeted by the friendly staff at the resort and also the huge huts built right on the beach of Mabul.  A quick briefing on the dive times and usual indemnity form signing later, we were introduced to our lodgings which were pretty nice for a dive resort.

The three islands Mabul, Kapalai and Sipadan would be our playground for the upcoming week.

Posted via web from Michael’s view

Planning to catch Up 3d in awhile and a walk via Imbiah’s 11th new attraction (after last week’s botanic garden visit, we’re in the nature mood!).

After setting off at, we hit immigration at around 5.15pm and both cars set off towards the village. The ride was uneventful via the rather well maintained country roads (mostly single lane) and we reached our destination at around 6.30pm. Parking (I think it was RM $4) is very convenient with a small bus that will take you to the village centre (5-10 min walk).

Ig recommended Ah Keong’s food as he had been here recently and we settled in to order a sumptious meal of fried bee hoon, stewed fish and crayfish. Crabs was unfortunately not available but the last dish of steamed prawns more than made up for it. Total bill was approx RM $225 which was pretty decent.

The other aim of the trip was to set off some fireworks. After some negotiation, we trooped off to find a corner to set off some explosive fun. Video below shows the highlights after some minor technical difficulties getting a good sequence (most of us were noobs at this).

More Photos

Kaohsiung Airport

About to board HSR to Kaohsiung