marinegirl

For the first part of this week, Dumaguete was under the influence of tropical depression storm ‘Lando’ (named, I presume, after the Family Guy episode where Peter goes back to school to convince the kids not to ‘do toad’). When it rains here, it really rains. Recently, it’s been raining a lot. My bright yellow, handbag sized umbrella has become my favourite possession ever, now that I’ve learnt never to leave home without it. The rain was then accompanied by wind, and repeated power cuts. Cyclone warnings are like snow days for the tropics - the schools all stay closed and public transport (ferries) is cancelled. Needless to say, these are not the best conditions for going diving, so I was office bound for a few days.

Fortunaely, Lando eventually made landfall up in Cebu somewhere, and Mira’s path is far north of here, so we’re back on track (it’s still raining, but without the wind and destruction). The last couple of days, I’ve been diving at Sumilon Island, sharing a boat with Garry (my supervisor). It’s crazy to think that he’s been doing surveys at that island since before I was born! His data sheets are still the same… made on a typewriter! Tomorrow I’m going back to the reserves at Dauin to learn how to use my U/W camera, so expect photos!