Thursday, April 20, 2006

PULAU DAYANG (9) 21 APRIL 06 - 23 APRIL 06










There are some changes in plan and I will depart for Dayang tomorrow morning at 8am, thats the early as it can get. It is already a routine that ♠Vynx will come and pick me up from my home. Just as we came back early from the last trip, we had to set off early as the boat is departing Mersing at 12pm. He needs to attend to some important matters at Dayang as the Malaysian Tourism Board is visiting the Island resort hmmm!. Whats it means? My plan to visit ADEX 2006 had to be aborted and I has to be home tonight to pack and prepare my equipment and necessities. Another late night for me! Sigh! The consolation was that I got to sleep enroute to Mersing and during the boat journey. Another plus was that I got additional day at Dayang with all the facilities all to myself ... hooray! Hey! did I mentioned that I had activated the Pay as you roam services from Singtel the evening before? I had been relying on ♠Vynx's mobile for the last three (3) trips as my main phone is down due to unpaid bills sucks! Talking about bills I had loads of them .... hospitalisation bills, phone bills, internet bills etc The roaming service is still not activated by the time I reached Mersing Sianz! So much about world class service!

I assumed there are many divers and friends alike that have realised that I frequented Dayang Island on almost all my weekends. I fell in with Dayang the minute I set my eyes on the island last year, not only does the island possess many beautiful dive sites but the people there are nice, it make all the difference. Since then, I have made Dayang Island a destination and it has also become my "home" away from home and permanent training ground for my diving education.










You must have realised that I did not take any underwater photographs recently and thats because ... My Canon Ixus 400 is out of action! I am now using my Casio Exilm in the meantime until such time I save enough money to send it in for evaluation before deciding whether to repair or just use my other camera, Canon Ixus 65 for underwater photography. If the former proves beyond economical repair then I will have to find a buyer for the underwater casing and invest in the new underwater casing for the Canon Ixus 65. Sigh! So till then, I will not be able to take underwater photos and have to rely on my partner-in-crime, ♠Vynx's Camera for all underwater photos. frown










Since we are on the topic of equipment, I will continue to share with you on my diving gears. The gear was bought for me as my birthday present. Why buy? My friend realised that I was into diving but could not afford to get my own personal gears due to my financial limitations. His reasoning to buy for me the gears is that he wanted me to enjoy my sports to the fullest by feeling good, feeling safe and feeling complete. Moreover having a personal gear would improve personal safety as I would understand the characteristics of my gear and would improve on personal hygiene. His take is to buy what money can afford and so we went to do some research and also through fellow diver's recommendations before we shop. We decided to invest in equipments as follows:
  • Scubapro Pacific Steamer Wetsuit c/w Hanger
  • Scubapro Gloves and Sausage
  • Scubapro Regulator MK25/ 600
  • Scubapro Glide 1000 BCD
  • Scubapro Aladin Air Z Nitrox Dive Computer
  • Uwatec Compass
  • Gull Short Booties Oceanic Booties (Bought by ♠Vynx on Apr 06)
  • Force Fin Pro Mares Plana Avanti X3 Open Heel Fins (Bought by ♠Vynx on Jan 06)
  • Apollo Mask
  • Remora Knife
  • Canon Ixus 400 c/w WP-DC800 Underwater Casing Canon Ixus 65 (MSU 06)
The objectives of this trip are:
  1. To identify the facilities required to host MSU Alumni outdoor gathering in May 06.
  2. To refresh my basic skills for my PADI Dive Master Course commencing in May 06.
  3. To practice free dive and underwater breath control for possible assignment.

This trip I did not manage to make any dive as I aggravated my back while on the boat journey to Dayang. Sob Sob Guess what! Vynx was so sweet, he gave me a surprise present just before I headed for snorkel ... he bought me a new pair of long booties as my previous pair of booties is giving me blisters on my last trip. With my back injury, I could only snorkel. The boat dropped us at the eastern tip of the Dayang (we usually snorkel from the western tip) and from there we swam inwards towards the jetty. This time round, minimum effort was required as the current was pushing us towards the jetty anyway ... drift snorkelling anyone? Oh yes! I got the opportunity to eat my favorite chilli crabs and prawns and .... the dinner is a "Finger Licking Good". This was because the dinner was specially cooked for the first night as there were VVIPs staying over. My ear was giving me problem ... and I cannot equalised myself. Over the three (3) days, I snorkel, free dive, attempted to play beach volleyball, write my diary, play my DS, yoga and sleep! I realised this week that I had bad ball sense haha! I had reached stage 3 of the Super Peach Princess game.










I am in the midst of organising a trip for MSU Alumni so I needed to be sure that the facilities were adequate. Though I have been there eight (8) times prior to this trip, I had not walk through the island resort thoroughly. So during this trip I made an effort to walk through the entire resort. I tried to cover as much as ground as I could. In general, I found that the resort have the necessary facilities to support my activities, from private rooms to room for four to rooms that can accomodate up to twelve people. They have ample dinning areas, pits as well as game facilities (beach football & beach volleyball) shops, attached showers and common shower facilities.










All aboard and headed for Mersing at 2pm today and finally after many gruelling hours of boat and car journey, we arrived Singapore around 9.30pm. For info, the Singtel Pay as you roam thingy is activated and I have began to received smses and calls... Next stop ... Holland Village, had porridge for dinner before heading home. Surprise, my mummy gave away one of our guinea pigs!! Sob Sob


Dive Calender:

  • Pulau Dayang (10) 28 APR 06 - 01 MAY 06
  • Bali, Indonesia (1) POSTPONED (YOS Marine Adventures)
  • Pulau Dayang (11) 05 MAY 06 - 07 MAY 06
  • Pulau Dayang (12) 19 MAY 06 - 21 MAY 06 (51 Scuba-MSU Alumni Dive Trip - TBC)
  • Pulau Dayang (13) 26 MAY 06 - 28 MAY 06 (TBC)


Diver's Link:


Comments:
Hi there
I chanced upon your blog. I'm a fellow diver plannin to do my advance course in May.

I need to get masks as my previous liveaboard trip, the mask gave me a lil prob as it did not fit very well. However, i'm still very new 2 the sport and i need advice on what to look out for when i get a mask, Could you give me some advice and also places on where i can get good masks?

Also, i'm a contact lens wearer so i was wonderin if it would be possible to get masks with degree lenses? Thanks!!!
 
Hey! Nice to hear from a fellow diver. There is mask with degrees built in but that will cost you. If you are looking for a good bargain, head down to SUNTEC this weekend for Asia Dive Expo 2006. You should be able to see all the latest gear. Cheers!
 
hi
your blog is very interesting
keep on going!
 
Hi Benoit Lapierre, Thanks for the compliment. Cheers!
 
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