SNORKELER'S BLISS

February 2011

In this photo from left: Vince Tabirara, Norman Legazpi, our dive master, Dr. Froilan Ocampo, and myself

Our guided dive outing at the Planet Dive Resort in Anilao was not the culmination of the dream I nurtured since the late eighties when I took up snorkeling. But that would be the first step, or rather, the first plunge, towards attaining it. Its culmination is when I finally get my license as a certified scuba diver - the ambition I formerly chucked off for good because I can't afford it. But now, after having experienced the awesome feeling of being able to breath underwater, and after having viewed the most magnificent underwater scenery I have seen so far (below), I again began to entertain that dream.

Me with my dive guide

Norman Legazpi snorkeling

Nroman Legazpi scuba diving

Our underwater photographer, Dr. Froilan Ocampo

I have to thank my UST High School classmate, Vince Tabirara, for this. Vince invited me to join him for what he called as a neophyte diving expedition at Anilao. I accepted with alacrity not only because I'm a certified sea freak, but also because he further sweetened his invitation with an "all expenses paid" offer. An impecunious artist like me would be a fool to turn down an invitation like that. Vince chose me to be his dive buddy because he knew that I'm quite adept at snorkeling, and he implied that he needed my supposed experience and confidence in deep waters to prop up his own confidence and courage. But he was wrong there- I was not that fearless. He was quite taken aback, therefore, when I confessed to feelings of anxiety and fear just before our dive. But anyway, all such feelings vanished minutes after I made my plunge, when I noticed that the only discomfort I felt was a feeling of dryness in my mouth. Everything else was pure bliss. It's been days since that landmark event in my life, but the euphoric rush hasn't quite subsided yet. With my spirits this high, I now realized that I'm truly blessed because I'm rich with rich friends.

Our group chilling out at the Planet Dive canteen