Celebrating my birthday in Sipadan, Malaysia

School of yellow snappers we saw at the Kapalai house reef

Another long spell of non-blogging for me. First of all, I STILL don’t have Internet at home. That’s factor number one. Secondly, I’ve been doing a lot more writing for work recently. This sometimes has the effect of making me feel like writing IS work; thus, I associate blogging with something not so pleasant. (As you can see, I am not crazy about my job.)

At any rate, I realized I hadn’t been blogging in a while after my new-found friend Caren messaged me with the observation “You don’t blog anymore, do you?” It made me realize that I hadn’t written here for more than a month, and again, a lot has happened since my last post.

First of all, a big THANKS to everyone who greeted me on my birthday (August 19, for those who forgot!). I had a really fabulous time. One of my best celebrations, I have to say. That’s because I spent it scuba diving in Sipadan, Malaysia, with one of my best friends, Anjou.

We stayed in an oil rig, and it had an elevator that brought you right into the water. It was a pretty interesting place to live for a few days. Even if the accommodations and facilities were less than stellar, it scored bonus points for its coolness factor. I mean, how many chances do you get to live in a fixed structure in the middle of the sea?

Also, the food was just amazing. Apparently, the cook in the rig had already been featured in four different food magazines in Malaysia. Every meal was delightful. Lunch and dinner were something to look forward to. (Breakfast was too early for me to appreciate.)

We had fantastic dives, and saw practically everything one could hope to see. Lots of giant turtles, big cuttlefish, sharks, and other interesting-looking creatures that one only sees in books or magazines.

I have a few more underwater pictures on my multiply site- you can look at it here.

It was a bit depressing, though, in the sense that I knew that the Philippines once had all that bounty in the sea, probably even more. However, over-fishing and lack of concern for marine life have resulted in a damaged underwater environment in our country. If only more people could appreciate the beauty of our own seas and realize that we are killing it slowly but surely. (Insert big, deep sigh.)

Aside from this trip, though, not much has happened. It was pretty much the highlight of the past month. I haven’t spent my birthday in the Philippines for the past four years. On the minus side, I don’t get to spend it with a lot of my friends and family. On the plus side, I manage to escape the mandatory birthday treat that everyone (including every Tom, Dick, and Harry in the office) seems to expect.