Apo Reef 2

So our dive instructor gave us a bunch of photo and video from her camera. The video below is what I used to think were Angel fish, but discovered are actually Moorish Idols! Again, I'm still learning my sea creatures!

Our wonderful dive instructor, who sadly is leaving soon :-( We really will miss you Karin!

It's finally becoming second nature to say all's ok, not with thumbs up, which in diving means 'go to the surface' but rather as I'm doing in the picture below.

Lion fish are one of my favourite fish to photograph underwater :-) The spines are really poisonous though, so it's best not to get too close :-)

Lion Fish

On our last dive at Apo reef, we explored an old ship wreck. It honestly looked like something out of Pirates of the Caribbean. Tucked away in a mass of coral on the side of the ship, was this octopus!

Octopus

There are so many different types of starfish here! Everything from thin to fat, and bright to beige!

This is probably my favourite fish to see underwater! They just look so graceful! Moorish Idol.

Moorish Idol

Here's the man himself :-) 

Brad

I forget what these guys are called, but I've seen them all over. They huddle in a group on the sea floor and swim over one another to move the group forward as if they're foraging on the sea bed. I'm not sure my description makes much sense, so I'll try take video next time and post it.

The house boat really was fun. It was so beautiful to sleep under the stars overnight. The food was good and the staff were really helpful and nothing was too much trouble. Even if it meant rearranging the dining area for a few more hours of sleep on the way to the reef.

We landed at San Jose airport and had to take a bus ride to the resort. Lets just say that some of the seating arrangements were interesting. Our friend had to make do with a plastic char!

I have a fascination with corals. I can't help taking pics when they're in interesting formations or when they have crazy colours like this one below.

So if I'm not mistaken, this is the real angel fish. These guys are really hard to take a photo of. Somehow they always seem to get away from me, but this is the best one so far.

Angel Fish?

One of the most incredible fish we saw at Apo was this Tuna. Certainly not as big as some I've seen on TV, which says a lot I think, but really incredible to see. I really hope that our childrens' children get to see these magnificent animals one day!

The resort was really well thought out. Each room had its own hammock! The bathrooms were really well finished and large! Certainly didn't feel anything like the bathrooms I've seen at other places we've stayed. The decor was simple, but really appealing too.

One of the best things was hearing the sea lapping up on the shore, right outside our room! The outside table and chairs was a perfect place to just be still and enjoy the wonderful creation God made!

I promise we didn't read a memo to dress alike!

On our last day, we couldn't dive obviously, because we had to fly the next day. So we went on a day trip to a waterfall/pool in the hill area. The drinks and our picnic lunch were carted up by Caribou. Really interesting!

The most incredible thing was when we drove through one of the villages and saw this tractor-cart improvisation! Really ingenious!

The walk was very hot, but it was enjoyable!

 This was one of the pools that we could swim or wade in. Unfortunately we didn't get video, but a few of us, Brad and myself included enjoyed a bit of rock jumping too!

This was the little suspension bridge across the mini river. On the way back we detoured away from the bridge and didn't use it at all.

At the end of the day we were spoiled with a beautiful sunset. We had all been lurking in the pool, which has its own built in bar/dining area. This was the perfect way to end off a fabulous weekend!