Valentines date with Whale Sharks [Oslob, Cebu]

It's ironic how a mistake turned out to be one of the most unforgettable trips I've had. See, we booked this Cebu trip for Valentines day, totally forgetting that last year, we booked ALSO a Cebu trip for the coming Independence day -- Yes, also THIS year! AHHKK! Who travels to the SAME destination for pleasure, just after 4 months?! Yep, apparently, us!!! But thank God for giving me a husband who loves travel as much as I do - He lessened my guilt when he said Cebu's too huge for one trip anyway! We can, for a example, go see a "Butanding" now and go to Bantayan (or Malapascua) later. Hmm. For a while, I wondered how my husband knew where to see Butandings. Gee, I don't even know then what they are! hahaha! Ah, I hate it when my husband appears to be more pro when it comes to traveling! So anyway... YES... BUTANDING aka... WHALE SHARKS! That justifies the back-to-back Cebu bookings we made! OSLOB it is  (thanks, google).

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We reached Oslob, after a morning flight and a 3-hr bus ride. It was quite late for the sharks' feeding time (630am-12pm) so we decided to just hangout around Aaron beach resort, and wait till the next day. THAT tested my emotional quotient. I was so excited to see whale sharks!!! But the chilly weather kept me calm and happy (that's why I'm all cuddled up with a warm fluffy comforter!). Aaaah, I can't believe I'm by the beach once again, just 2 weeks after our Palawan trip!!! OT:  can you see the beach dog? He loooved hanging out with us! The resort owns him, and his name is Pacquiao! haha!

Next day came, along with another perfect weather (yay!). We started with a short briefing:

Then finally, time to see the whale sharks! 

One word to describe them. They're HUGE! They're like mini buses swimming around! Yes, they seemed really scary ...but just at the start. Later on you'll realize that these giants are actually harmless! BEST TIP to maximize this experience - Fear NOT. Remove your life vest and snorkel mask, wear your goggles and swim. Free-dive if you can. That's the only way to experience whale sharks up close, and to have the best-est underwater photos!!! .......OK, that was just me being a bit braggy. Truth is, all these photos were taken by our boatman! hahaha!

mouth. I think a human body can fit in there!

trivia: each shark has a unique 'design' of dots and lines on its gills...

...pretty much like fingerprints in humans!

in case you're wondering: lower left photo shows janitor fishes
always swimming UNDER whale sharks. I wonder why!

like I said - fear NOT, and have that nice photo with a whale shark!

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And that's it! All done by 8am!!! I can't believe it! Now I understand why I don't see so much guests in the resort - You don't need 2 days nor a whole day to see whale sharks. From Cebu City, you can reach Oslob before sunrise and watch whale sharks for 45 minutes (briefing included). Next thing you know, you're back in the City before lunchtime! Unless you want to check out other things in Oslob -- falls, island hopping, etc. -- this place can be listed as a day trip destination.

That is why we cut our stay short - from 2 nights, to 1 night. We left Oslob instantly after checkout time, and went back to Cebu to pigout on real Cebu goodies (Best cebuano food, for me, is still in the city). Though we were eager to leave, the overall experience was really memorable, educational, and fun! ...that we made sure we didn't leave without these tops -- we've been wanting them since the first morning we came: (pardon the eye bags. We really are NOT morning people!)

We just stopped ourselves from buying because we knew the prints wouldn't be truthful till we REALLY see whale sharks UP CLOSE. Now we deserve them ...and we can wear em with pride. hah! 

Oh, last trivia: whale sharks are SHARKS, not whales! Can you believe that? -- I technically had a close encounter with sharks! Glad to be home in one piece.. haha! Thank you, Oslob! It was such a great experience!!!