truly a paradise to behold, sipadan is like a dream island. as the boat approaches the island, one can see the waters change from a deep blue to a bright aquamarine. the atoll wall is a plunging 600m and the reef around the island is not large. the water is unbelievably clear and visibility is easily about 30m.

my father did not dive but came on every boat ride to snorkel on the surface. he was intrigued by what he could see even from the top- reef sharks, green turtles. he even swam in a school of barracuda and a school of jackfish.

i dived and so was able to see much much more. of course turtles were a regular sighting- they were often resting on the coral wall or sometimes swimming up for air. we saw some reef sharks and a family of white tips which was fun. swimming among the colorful and very plentiful reef fish all along the coral wall was like diving into a fantasy aquarium.

we met some nice friends from germany and sweden and my father, as a true blue singaporean, always wonders how they manage to afford taking weeks on end off from work. i tell him people just choose to live life very differently, not take up too many obligations which will tie them to their desks too much. sometimes i think he fears i might become a wandering, traveling vagrant for the rest of my life.