Days 166 – 169: Pulau Sipadan & Environs

I spent the next three days getting my PADI scuba diving certification-- something I should have done months ago. The first day was classroom-based-- I watched instructional videos, read the PADI textbook, and took a series of quizzes and a final exam. There was a lot of information to absorb, but it really all came down to one basic rule: don't hold your breath while you scuba dive, or your lungs will explode. That's not an easy one to forget, and I passed all my exams with flying colors.

The next two days were spent in the water and were a good deal more fun. I learned to dive on a small island off the coast of Semporna called Pulau Sibuan-- it's not quite as impressive as Pulau Sipadan, where I'd dive after I completed my certification, but still it's got loads of coral, fish, and turtles, and its clear water and light current makes it an ideal place to learn.

Right away I loved the feeling of breathing underwater. I'd always loved swimming, and snorkeling was usually the highlight of my past travels, but diving is something else altogether--- the sensation of weightlessness is matched only by the feeling that you've entered an entirely new world. It took me a few minutes to get used to breathing from my oxygen tank, but once I had that down, the rest came naturally. Over the next two days I spent nearly ten hours underwater, and by the end of the second day I was PADI-certified and ready to tackle Pulau Sipadan the following morning.

Even at Sibuan, the aquatic life I encountered was the most varied and exotic that I'd come across-- even better that at Pulau Derawan. I spotted the multicolored mandarinfish (photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Synchiropus_splendidus_2_Luc_Viatour.jpg), which hides among the sea urchins, the clownfish (photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Clownfish_sprain_water3.jpg), which swims among the sea anemones in the classic marine symbiotic relationship, the stonefish and the lionfish (photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Pterois_volitans_Manado-e_edit.jpg), both venomous members of the scorpionfish family, the devilish spotted moray eel (photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Gymnothorax_moringa.jpg), and the strange frogfish (photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:6983_aquaimages.jpg), among scores of other species. Also, I managed to get closer to all these fish than I ever had snorkeling.

The next day I dove at Pulau Sipadan, which is one of the best dive spots in the world. Everyone told me that I would be forever ruined after diving at Sipadan, because nowhere else would ever be able to compare. And after three spectacular dives, I must admit that I see where they're coming from. I saw all the varieties of fish that I had seen at Sibuan, but the real highlight at Sipadan was the big fish: namely, barracuda and sharks. Over the course of the three dives I saw more then ten barracuda, the longest of which was about six feet long, and around thirty sharks, the longest of which were nearly eight feet long. The varieties of sharks I saw were black- and white-tip reef sharks, which measured only five or six feet, and the much larger gray sharks, which measured between seven and eight feet. At one point I was surrounded by four different sharks, all of which were circling me, and then one swam directly under me, passing only about a meter below my feet. I expected the experience to send waves of fear through my body, but I was surprised to find that in the moment, what I felt was more excitement and awe than fear. Something about being underwater with the sharks lends itself to feeling more secure-- it would be a different story, I think, if I were splashing around on the surface knowing that the giant fish were circling below me.

Looking back, my only regret is not getting my dive certification sooner. I've visited so many places that are ideal for diving over the past few months that it's a shame I wasn't certified. Nevertheless, I'm out here for at least a few more months, and hopefully I'll get in a few more dives along the way.