Anilao, Batangas: 2021 Mid-Year Dive

posted on Monday, May 31, 2021

After last year’s pre-Christmas and year-ender dive in Bauan, Batangas amid the pandemic, 2021’s opening turned mid-year dive was finally scheduled on the last weekend of May. It was a trip planned for my daughter’s 10th birthday and since her request was to go to the beach, Ling and I decided to do it in Anilao. Wish granted for our kiddo and ours as well as we long wanted to return to Anilao’s macro paradise!

We booked our 3-day stay with none other than Anilao Boarding House. The affordable rooms pegged at P2,000, good for two pax, with its amazing beachfront view was the deal clincher. And since we are only doing shore dives, it is no doubt the perfect place to satisfy our macro hearts.

As part of its COVID-19 safety protocol, the resort requires guests to present negative antigen tests. We scheduled ours at a diagnostic clinic near our home in Quezon City at a rate of P1,500 and we all tested negative. Guests are also asked to fill out a health declaration form to be submitted to the LGU. As a parent traveling with a child, it is certainly reassuring to know that safety measures are in place especially in resorts operating in the new normal.

We scheduled our four dives with Kuya Mac Tabangay, one of our regular fave dive masters. Anilao’s superb macro welcomed us back after a five-month long diving hiatus. I have been diving for more than a decade now but I’m always in for first-time critter surprises during dives. It is my first time to see a Colpodaspis thompsoni, a kind of headshield slug. Also saw a sea hare I have only previously seen in Romblon. Banded and ornate ghost pipefish abound. We even saw a ribboned kind that is quite rare in Anilao. There are tons of clownfish eggs. I instantly fell in love with the teeny weeny pregnant hairy shrimp and the uber small batwing slug! And oh, we spotted the house reef resident green sea turtle, too.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect during our return to Anilao in the new normal---but one thing's certain, I knew we won't be disappointed. It is and will always be one of the best macro dive destinations in the country.

Anilao Banded Pipefish

Anilao Batwing Slug 24

Anilao Batwing Slug 25

Anilao Batwing Slug 26

Anilao Batwing Slug 27

Anilao Batwing Slug 28

Anilao Batwing Slug 29

Anilao Batwing Slug 30

Anilao Batwing Slug 31

Anilao Clownfish Eggs 18

Anilao Clownfish Eggs 19

Anilao Clownfish Eggs 20

Anilao Clownfish Eggs 21

Anilao Green Sea Turtle 1

Anilao Green Sea Turtle 2

Anilao Green Sea Turtle 3

Anilao Green Sea Turtle 4

Anilao Green Sea Turtle

Anilao Hairy Shrimp 31

Anilao Hairy Shrimp 32

Anilao Hairy Shrimp 33

Anilao Headshield Slug 1

Anilao Headshield Slug 2

Anilao Headshield Slug 3

Anilao Headshield Slug 4

Anilao Headshield Slug 5

Anilao Headshield Slug

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 13

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 14

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 15

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 16

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 17

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 18

Anilao Ornate Ghost Pipefish 19

Anilao Ribboned Pipefish 1

Anilao Ribboned Pipefish 2

Anilao Ribboned Pipefish 3

Anilao Ribboned Pipefish 4

Anilao Ribboned Pipefish 5

Anilao Ribboned Pipefish

Anilao Sea Hare 2

Anilao Sea Hare 3

Anilao Sea Hare 4

Anilao Sea Hare 5

Anilao Sea Hare 6

Anilao Sea Hare 7

Anilao Seahorse 7

Anilao Seahorse 8

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About Mona

Certified as a PADI rescue diver. Got my first compact camera in 2011. I was simply content then to just capture a glimpse of what I see during my dives. It was only last February 2014 that I fully maximized the use of manual macro settings.

My camera skills and knowledge are still a work in progress. Enjoy browsin’!

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