swimming

Palau: Long beach island

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Palau was an amazing country. Unbelievable pristine waters. A water lover’s paradise. I had such a wonderful time there. Was totally in my element and was in the water every single day.

This is long beach island, where at low tide, it’s a long stretch of beach and white sand that reaches an island.

The water clarity is truly incredible.

From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island
From Day 2 Palau – Long Island

Kayaking in Palau

memoirsofaleishaLeave a comment

Hello there.
It’s been forever since I’ve posted. This year has really gotten away. And my life is consumed by work and overtime. Work has been taking over my life, leaving little time for blogging, which is a shame, because I have soooooo much to blog about.

Recently, I went on a holiday to Palau under the guise of an open water swim race. I did actually did the 5km swim race even though I didn’t do any training. It was more an excuse to go to Palau. Such an amazing holiday. Am tempted to go back there. It truly is a spectacular water paradise. Although I will admit it, it kind of didn’t feel like I was getting away from Japan as such. Most of the tourists are all Japanese. All the tour operators and day tours are all in Japanese. And the menu’s everywhere were in Japanese.

Day one, I joined a kayak tour and it was run by a Japanese tour operator. Everyone in the group was in Japanese except myself, so they seemed to always get me a separate English speaking guide. The Japanese tour guide, led the Japanese people in Japanese and I kind of got my own local Palauan tour guide who spoke English.

The morning started off with a very gentle, not at all strenuous kayak through Nikko Bay.
We took a boat out through some waters to a floating dock where we got into some kayaks and then leisurely paddled through the crystal clear waters.
It was amazing.

From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau

The floating dock:

From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau
From Nikko Bay kayaking – Palau

The water has to be seen to be believed.

Jogasaki trail and snorkeling

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A spot I need to revisit this year is the Jogasaki trail. I went there last year as a day trip to check it out. It was pretty good for a recon trip, so definitely need to go back there this year. The housemate, his friend and I rented a car for the day to head down to the Izu peninsula. So much traffic. Got there a lot later than we wanted to.

The Jogasaki trail is about 10km through a bush track right along the coastline. We didn’t hike along the whole track, just small sections of it as we drove to different parts of it. We also did some swimming and snorkeling at different points. It’s a geopark so there’s a lot of diversity of flora and sealife as well.

We started at Izu Kogen.

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

The coastline is really cool. Sometimes I forget I’m in Japan.

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

The trail is also somewhat famous for its suspension bridges.

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Who knew these rocks were a popular swimming spot:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Not quite a sandy beach, but rock pools are cool:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Kids were jumping from the high rocks into the ocean below:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Taking the plunge:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Family picnickers:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

The fish was this big:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling

A waterfall:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

We then drove up to another section of the trail where there was a lighthouse and a seaside park. It was more crowded.

From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Scenery was great though:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

And this was the lighthouse:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

We didn’t stay too long. We didn’t want to pay for parking so we had to be in and out in about 30 minutes or less to avoid the parking fee.

We drove up to Futo where we had read it was supposed to be good for snorkeling.
It was a small marina:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Supposedly a range of marinelife, including humans!

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

I like that someone has a sense of humour at the Izu tourism association.

Time to hit the water and snorkel!

From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Lots of clownfish:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Even spotted me a human!

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

The water was a bit murky and dirty. There was a debris and stuff. Not sure whether it was just the location, or due to the weather (there had been rain during the week).

It wasn’t the most picturesque swimming spot but there seemed to be enough marinelife. I think it’s probably a better diving spot given the number of divers there. Must be pretty amazing the deeper you get.

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

And there were jellyfish!

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Some divers:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

Yeah, popular with divers:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling
From Jogasaki and snorkeling

And there’s a boat onsen to relax in post-snorkeling:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling

The endless ocean:

From Jogasaki and snorkeling

I’ll definitely be back to Jogasaki this summer to do the proper 10km trail.

Ogasawara Islands: Miyanohara beach

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One from the archives – return to Ogasawara Islands.
One of the most amazing trips I did last year was to the Ogasawara islands.

Here are some pics from one of the many beaches I went to – Miyanohara beach. Chichijima island was amazing – so many amazing beaches and very few people. Practically had almost every beach to myself.

I walked to Miyanohara beach in time for a sunset swim.

From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach

My own private beach:

From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach

Coral not so colourful but there were some fish:

From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach

A giant fish right here:

From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach
From Ogasawara day 3 – sunset beach

Ogasawara: snorkeling (again)

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The snorkeling was so amazing at Ogasawara that on my last day there I decided to do the snorkeling tour again. I booked with a different company that took us to the same spot. Photos from the first time here.

On my last day at the Ogasawara islands, before boarding the afternoon boat back to Tokyo, I went on the snorkeling tour.
Couldn’t get enough of this place.
The bluest of waters and so many fish. Truly unbelievable.

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

Out on the water:

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

This is out on the water in front of Miyanohara beach (the beach I visited here):

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

It was like I was plonked into an aquarium:

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

An interesting-looking flat fish:

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

This fish was feeling blue:

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day
From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

Fifty shades of blue:

From Snorkeling Ogasawara – last day

Dubai: Poolside by the seaside

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Just came back from a 2-week holiday over Christmas and New Years. Spent a week in Taiwan and a week in Dubai.
Last day in Dubai was spent relaxing. Poolside by the seaside – coz that’s how I roll in 2015.

From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai

Dubai city skyline:

From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai

Lazing by the pool:

From Last day Dubai

Enjoying the view:

From Last day Dubai

With cocktail in hand:

From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai
From Last day Dubai

Not a bad way to start off the year.
But it was soooo hard to go back to work today!

Swimming WITH dolphins in Japan

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Swam with dolphins yesterday. Dolphinitely an amazing experience.

So many wild dolphins. I could have spent the whole day chasing after them.

From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming
From Dolphin swimming

Travel notes:
Overnight ferry from Tokyo to Miyakejima. Join the dolphin swimming boat tour. Boat takes you out to Mikurajima where all the dolphins live. Swim with dolphins. Chase dolphins. Repeat several times. The water was deliciously warm at 27 degrees. Air temp was 21 degrees. It got quite cold in and out of the water and on the boat as we chased the dolphins. Actually did this same dolphin trip last year but was unable to swim with the dolphins due to my burn injury. Was so happy to have been able to go into the water this year and actually swim alongside them and get lots of underwater shots this time. Got quite close to them as well.

A SUPrise day trip

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Last Tuesday was a public holiday. Was taken on a mystery day trip. Final destination was Moriya where I got to do some SUPing, snorkeling and swimming.

Was a nice relaxing day. Need more 4-day working weeks.

From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing

I think this rope is at a loose end:

From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing
From Moriya SUPing

Ogasawara Islands: Day 1

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Ticked off another destination on my bucketlist – the Bonin Islands, otherwise known as Ogasawara Islands – truly paradise.

It’s about 1000km away from Japan yet is still part of Tokyo. It is Japan’s southermost spot.

The Bonin Islands mean “uninhabited islands” and are an archipelago. Two of the islands however are habited – Chichijima (father islands) and Hahajima (mother island).
They were designated as World Natural Heritage sites a couple of years ago.

The ONLY access to the islands are by a 25-hour boat ride from Tokyo. There is no airport on the island. Boats only depart once a week so the basic itinerary is 5 nights. 2 of which are spent on the boat and 3 nights on the island. If you miss the boat or want to stay longer, you have to wait for the next week’s boat departure. Life on the island, as I discovered, revolved around the boat’s island arrival and departure.

I was lucky to go there during August – summer holiday and the end of Obon. Managed to get a spot on the boat, but even harder was finding accommodation. Given that accommodation is limited and it was peak season, a lot of places were filled up. And I had left it last minute. I only decided to this trip 1-2 weeks prior. I did end up finding a small minshuku to stay at.

The only departure to Ogawasara Islands is on a Saturday so I left on Saturday morning and would not arrive on Chichijima until Sunday lunchtime.
Tickets are not cheap. About 30,000yen one way and that was for the cheapest class which was basically a mat in an open-floor room. If you want beds in upper classes except to pay a lot more. And even more for the suites. I ended up getting a spot in the Ladies-only room which suited me fine. The general sleeping floor area fit about 100 plus people in the lower decks. They had a couple of ladies-only room which were smaller closed rooms that fit about 30 ladies. Considering I was traveling on my room, the ladies room was a better option. Got to avoid sleeping next time to snoring men and loud groups of people.

The boat was more like a cruise ship – restaurant/cafeteria, shower facilities etc. I normally quite like boat rides, but there wasn’t a lot of space on this boat – not a lot of free seating area. A bit tight in rooms filled with lots of people and not a lot of personal space.

I was looking forward to the 25-hour boat ride. Plenty of time to chill out and catch up on some reading. But I ended up getting seasick and threw up 3 times within in the first 5 hours. Napped a bit and ate some cup ramen on the deck. Ended up just sleeping through the majority of the trip to ward off vomiting. I got through one movie on my laptop and was in bed by about 7:30pm. Lights were turned off at 10pm.

A pretty long and uneventful boat trip. No wifi or phone reception on the boat either. Was ready for land.
Got some fresh air on the decks, enjoyed the views until arrive on Chichijima.
The Ogasawara Islands were amazing. Well worth the 25-boat ride.
A ticket to Ogasawara:

From Ogasawara boat

Bon Voyage:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

If you’re in second class, your beds are allocated as you bed. I got number 24.
My sleeping mat and pillow:

From Ogasawara boat

Out to sea:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

The next day:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

Approaching the islands:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

Everyone from Ogawasawara village on Chichijima comes to greet the boat on its arrival and all the accommodation owners come to pick up their guests.

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

Look for your accommodation sign:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

Welcome to Ogasawara:

From Ogasawara boat

Checked in my tiny room at the minshuku:

From Ogasawara boat

Ate lunch at a local cafe:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

Chichijima – a small beautiful remote island located in the Philippine Sea, 1000km from Tokyo, and World Natural Heritage Site:

From Ogasawara boat
From Ogasawara boat

Next up is some dolphin spotting!

Ogasawara Islands: Dolphin swimming

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Ogasawara Islands is known for whale watching and dolphin spotting. The marine life down there is pretty specacular.
There’s no shortage of boat operators there who take you out to the various islands for snorkeling, and whale and dolphin spotting. Winter months are whale spotting season, so I opted for a half day dolphin swimming and snorkeling tour in the afternoon that I arrived on Ogasawara.

I got to see lots and lots of dolphins. Oh, happy days!
They got really close to the boat and there were so many of them.

From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling
From Ogasawara day 1 – minami jima and dolphin snorkeling