Snorkeling at Balicasag Island with Optional Add-Ons

I woke up this morning and was greeted by an amazing sunrise.









I then headed to the breakfast buffet which was insane, I've never seen so many options, and it was all pretty tasty. However you should always wear sandals and never go barefoot when visiting the buffet. Some of the warmers that they use to keep the food, well, warm, are not well grounded and in the Philippines it is 220 volts. So proper footwear to provide a solid insulation between you and the ground is a requirement for breakfast. Otherwise it is impossible to open the warmer with all your muscles tensing up at once, in fact it can be challenging to just let go of the warmer when barefoot.





Proper footwear would also appear to be a requirement for entering the sea as well.

As I walked down the beach I discovered that Koreans and Chinese are very into selfie sticks. I found some guy that could take me snorkeling for what started out at 500 Pesos. Security from the resort saw me leaving the property and came and asked me to sign a waiver stating that they were not responsible for me if I left.

I signed and we were off to Balicasag Island, a place well known for diving, although I would just be snorkeling and the 500 Pesos included a mask and snorkel.

We got to the island and while they don't seem to have optional add-ons for their massages they sure have a lot of optional add-ons for snorkeling. He asked if I wanted to see the sea turtles and I told him that would be awesome, and he asked for another 200 Pesos. That might have been a mistake as I'm 100% positive this was all setup. After handing him the extra cash he yelled something in Filipino at a neighboring boat and then told me to jump in the water. Oh wow, there is one, this is so cool!



I pointed my GoPro at him and let it roll, thinking how the hell did he know there was a turtle here, you could have never seen it from the surface. And thats when it sunk in, this was a plant. I'm sure when he yelled in Filipino to that other boat he was letting them know to release a turtle, they probably had a whole bunch on standby for each sucker they got today. Anyway, it was still cool. After the turtle we went to the snorkeling area and guess what? It was another 200 Pesos for water shoes so I did not cut my feet on the coral. Anyway, there were fish, lots of fish.





It was right on a ridge line where you could stand with your head out of the water and a few feet away was a drop off were you could not see the bottom.







Coral and fish as far as you could see in every direction.







When I was done I climbed back in the boat and jokingly asked if there was any kind of "exit fee". He laughed and said no, but that if I wanted to see a sandbar on the way back it would only be 150 Pesos. I could really go for a San Miguel and agreed to the price. Turns out it was a different kind of a bar, but still cool.







This sandbar was actually called Virgin Island in that each day with the rise and fall of the tide it becomes a new island.

I got back to the resort and figured I should take a few pictures of the resort before working on my tan.



If this swing is a rockin then don't come, well, don't walk in this general area.



After my snorkeling add-on experience I went back to the massage area, maybe I missed the sign with the optional add-ons. I didn't.

My plans for the rest of the day... I would sit in one of these chairs and bury my feet in the sand, letting the sun warm my body while the gentle winds cooled it off. The sound of the waves coming ashore was only drowned out when a staff member asked if I would like another cold beer. You know, life is pretty great, especially when you follow your heart and quiet your mind, leaving the endless rat race behind. Thats for other people, different people, I am no longer interested in it.