Above: The jetty at Uncle Chang’s.
It was my last dive day this trip, starting with a 0445 wake-up again. I hadn’t bought anything for a quick brekkie and took a couple of biscuits with my coffee.
I reported to Scuba Gen before 0600 and got picked up by boat, this time, around 0620. I was diving with Uncle Chang again, with Hassan as my divemaster.
Arrangements were less stop-start today. There was hardly a wait at Uncle Chang’s Mabul base. Bianca, Liana and Peter boarded, joining us from Borneo Divers not far away. I noticed that the two women had beautiful eye-lashes, probably done up with mascara, despite their day of diving ahead.
After repeating the signing-in process at Sipadan Island, we did our first dive of the day, again starting at Barracuda Point. It started with a gorgeous wall with a stunning array of colourful reef fish. It felt like a truly special place and I have learnt not to expect the tornado of barracudas that I had seen twice before.
Having realistic expectations is the key to enjoyment. I saw four barracudas, two white-tip sharks and two turtles.
We had a coffee break back on Sipadan island. The diver’s diet isn’t an ideal one. Sweet coffee is the normal drink on our breaks. The snack provided is white bread with jam. And the standard lunch comprises a big portion of rice, some vegetable and chicken.
The second dive was at Turtle Patch. One of the group was highly experienced and tried changing to a different site but we finally settled on the dive master’s choice in the end. That proved to be a good move. Again, there was a gorgeous wall teeming with colourful reef fish. The wall went as deep as my eyes could see.
I saw four turtles but the others saw around fifty, they claim. I had missed out because I was so focused on the wall I hadn’t looked up. It appears that there were many turtles cruising above us during the dive.
During lunch, I got talking to my co-divers. One was highly interesting. She’s Malay but went to Chinese primary school before doing secondary in an Islamic school. She can speak better Mandarin than me, read and write. And also speak Hokkien.
Sipadan on our surface interval.
She qualified and worked as an urban planner before re-training as a chef to one of the royal families in Kuala Lumpur. She wakes early to make them breakfast and lunch. She makes dinner for the royal family to heat up in the evening before returning home. The royals have a varied love for food including dietary requirements that include vegan.
Our dives this morning had apparently been sorter at only around 35-40 mins and so our lunch break was shorter too.
My last dive this trip was at South Point. It was a wall in parts with the usual mix of colourful reef fish. The highlight was the large wall of jackfish again but it was amidst strong current where I had to work and breathe heavily to avoid being separated from the others. I misread my air gauge (again, after yesterday) as I had trouble reading up-close. So it was a bonus when I realised my mistake and we could continue diving instead of surfacing.
I saw about 10 turtles, some cruising around and others resting on ledges on the wall. It felt like a happy ending to my dive trip. Due to a maximum depth of only 18m, this was our longest dive of the day at about 50 mins.
We were back on Mabul before 1400. I was offered a simple buffet lunch, which seems to be available to their guests for most of the day. Quite soon after, I was on my way back to Semporna arriving around 1445.
Panorama from Uncle Chang of Mabul and the surrounding area.
I was over 3h earlier than yesterday, due to less waiting around at Mabul at the beginning and the end. Also, with only four divers on the boat rather than 12, everything takes less time. And then we had shorter surface intervals.
Again, despite the early start, I felt OK unlike my first day. It really does show that having a rowdy crowd can drain me.
With some time in the afternoon, I messaged Chris, the manager of Scuba Gen, who was currently in China. I offered him some feedback on the unruly crowd on my first day. It was very well received, so I felt good about it.
My plans for a grand finale dinner turned to disappointment. My prawn sambal came with shells on. I had forgotten to ask. After taking the shells off, I think it yielded less than last night’s meal with assorted dishes including a prawn one without shells.
It was another early night on my final stay at Pacific Inn at Semporna. Just a note that the weather had been pretty awesome during my stay. It didn’t rain one drop. It is the wet season on the northern coast of Borneo right now and Semporna is well away from that region.