4:30 wake-up in fan cooled room at Adventure Camp, same tricycle driver is picking us (Carl and myself) and Morris and Nadja up to take us to the harbour and board our boat. The crew is waiting, captain, two deckmen and divemaster Toto. It is a wooden traditional boat, large enough for everybody, the gear, luggage and groceries to fit. The ride there across a lightblue sea is on itself an experience, beautiful view over the ocean and the main land, a rainbow flying fish and even a few dolphins (lumba-lumba) we see. Can not believe my eyes we reach the Apo Reef and Apo Island, close to paradise. Apo Reef is the second largest (after the Great Barrier Reef) in the world and a top rated dive site. The island has beautiful fine white beaches, a mongroove forrest and is a total Bounty island. We arrive around 9am and first offload all the cargo. First dive of the day will be at 10am. Today we do 3, tomorrow 2 more.
Day 1, dive 1; South Corner, 37 meters, 40 minutes, white tip reef sharks up to 2 meters, had a problem with the weights and mask, solved for next dive.
Dive 2; South West Corner, 35 meters, 40 minutes. Black tip and white tip reef sharks, trigger fish, strong current upon entry. Lots of fish and hard and soft corals!
Dive 3; Eagle Wall, 22 meters, 50 minutes. Shark with 2 travali fish escorting, 2 x green sea turtle, tuna, nemo (clown fish), white tips, napoleon fish.

The dives are quite spectaculair, gear is prepared and we take the boat out to the reef for these wall dives. The current just takes you along the wall to enjoy the view. Weird thing is that my dive watch stopped wirking the dice functions as soon as we got on the island. There are a few soldiers presenr in the island (with their M16's) to defend it against the Chinese.
From the island we can see the dolphins swim by! Walked along the shore to some hidden beaches, got sunburnt in 30 minutes, always tricky when there are clouds.. For dinner we broughr noodles, spam, bread and crackers. In the evening we talk and exhausted as we are, we wait until 22:00 hrs for the possibility of turtles coming to lay eggs. But unfortunately not happening. I sleep in the open air next to the beach under a mosquitonet and wake up before 6am to a beautiful sunset.
Dive 4 at 7am; Apo Reef Wall, 60 minutes, 33 meters max depth. Reef sharks again, turtles, parrot fish, humphead napoleon, 5 giant lobsters sitting together and two devil rays swimming up together out of the deep blue.
After this dive walked to the lagoon in the middle of the island, there is a bamboo bridge system to walk around on, mangrove forest. Then climbed the lighthouse for a 360 view of the whole island. Very cool.
Dive 5; 22 meters, 45 minutes, same beautiful sealife, this time a white tip that came really close up to us and swam along side me. I also swam along with a green turtle for a while!

We agreed to leave around 1pm, so our boat and crew was waiting. Last groupphoto with Toto the divemaster, saying goodbyes and off we go back to Sablayan. We pass through a large group of dolphins and they are jumping all around us. I made a video and put it on Facebook. Carl got a flew so through the pharmacy he took the 4pm bus to San José. Going home through KL back to the UK. I go to the Eco Tourist center to shower and share the experiences. Skyping to Holland and Finland and then on the nightbus to Manila, leaving 8pm. But it left at only 9pm, reached the ferry at 2am to leave this Mindoro Island and on to Manila, arriving 8am. Trouble finding the right bus terminal to get the next bus, it takes me 2 taxis and 5 terminals. Everybody keeps saying something else. But 9:30 my bus to Baguio leaves, 6 hours the north. Then need to transfer another bus to reach Sagada and later Banaue for Unesco protected riceterraces, waterfalls and other beauty. More later!