Semporna - Scuba Junkie - New Year and Dive Certification

A wonderful trip, shared here as a travelogue! If you have questions, scroll to the bottom and leave a message on my WeChat public account.

Preparation

Everyone has different tastes and is moved by different things. One image stayed with me when I was younger. That is not sentimental exaggeration; it is true :). Originally, I planned a self-drive trip around Taiwan, something I had always wanted to try. But a mainland Chinese driving license seemed inconvenient to use abroad, so I abandoned the idea. Looking for something interesting to do, I thought of Semporna.

There seemed little to do there besides diving, and that turned out to be true. My girlfriend and I decided to take the Open Water course. I will skip the two months spent teaching her to swim.

Because we were learning to dive, we booked directly with a dive operator: Scuba Junkie. Other operators had many negative reviews online, and some advertised guaranteed certification, which struck me as irresponsible and immediately put me off.

One inconvenience is that Scuba Junkie requires communication by email in English, and replies can be slow. See their website, or leave a message on my WeChat public account at the bottom.

Itinerary

2018.12.30 => Beijing T2 -> Semporna town 2018.12.31 => Semporna -> Mabul Island 2019.01.01 => OW 2019.01.02 => OW 2019.01.03 => OW 2019.01.04 => Snorkeling 2019.01.05 => Mabul Island -> Semporna town 2019.01.06 => Return trip

Day 1 - All in Transit

Skipping the flight connections… The airport exchange rate was unfavorable, but we still needed some cash for taxis. With a UnionPay card, you can withdraw cash from Maybank ATMs in town; Google Maps shows the locations. The town was rather dirty and chaotic, so take care when going out.

We stayed overnight in Scuba Junkie’s small apartment accommodation in Semporna.

Day 2 - Mabul Island

We got up early, had a mediocre Cantonese breakfast nearby, and checked in for the Scuba Junkie boat. The operation looked professional. Perhaps because it was Western-run, there were fewer people and less noise than elsewhere. I liked that.

The boat to Mabul takes about an hour. Remember to book a diving activity on the transfer day: doing so waives the boat fare. We foolishly missed this and booked no activities on either transfer day, paying rather expensive fares.

The island is divided mainly between local residents and resorts. Scuba Junkie’s resort is small. I had imagined strolling around the island, but there was little space to walk. Swimmers can snorkel directly from the jetty, though. Finally, at 1 p.m., we could check in!

Day3 - OW

Day4 - OW

Day5 - OW

The OW course here is strict. Be comfortable in the water before coming: our 200-meter swim and ten-minute float were tested in waves. My girlfriend had trained intensively for three months to take OW with me, but found the sea too difficult and withdrew. More details are in the Bilibili video below.

A typical OW day looked like this:

• Wake up at 8
• Dive * 2
• Lunch and a midday break
• Dive * 1
• Dinner
• Dive log

For an aging office worker like me, the exhaustion was enough to fall asleep within ten minutes of lying down. Yet the next morning, or underwater, I was excited again. Perhaps that is one reason diving becomes addictive!

Day 6 - Snorkeling

Why snorkeling? Since my girlfriend had not completed OW, I spent a day snorkeling with her! If you can freedive, there is still plenty to see. Look!

What I Want to Say

Learning to dive was a chance decision, but it revealed a different world. Shipwrecks once seen only in films appear before you; schools of fish you imagined glide past. Marine creatures a dozen meters below the surface do not treat you as an alien, despite never having met you. Imagine a quiet place where you hear only your own breathing, surrounded by an underwater world as rich as the one on land. No other activity offers quite that experience.

Things to Remember

Important tips for underwater photography!!!:

• Do not strap the camera to your hand; it makes shooting angles difficult to control.
• Do not enable the so-called diving filter; it looks awful.
• Wipe any fog off the lens or waterproof housing before entering the water.

Yes, I made all these mistakes and took few good photos. Ironically, snorkeling produced some decent results. Watch the video below to learn more about the place!

If all goes well, I will visit Sipadan later this year :).

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