I Don't Need No Stinkin' Cage!

One day on Palau Kecil I took a snorkeling trip around the island. On our first stop, we swam with sharks! That's right! Black tip sharks, and big ones at that -- 1.5 - 2.5 meters long! I was sooo nervous and scared, but our snorkeling guide let me grab his hand whenever I wanted to, and that was a huge help. I had been so disappointed back in Cape Town when all the Great White Shark Cage Diving trips were sold out. And granted, these black tips are no great whites, but it was fantastic to see them so close, swimming amongst the reefs. Wow! And now I'll be just fine to NEVER see another shark in person again!

At a later spot, we swam with turtles....huge ones! They're so cute and wise looking. I'd been trailing above one for several minutes, and much to my delight it began to surface. As it surfaced, I saw that it was so much bigger than I'd realized. And then suddenly, this huge sea turtle was directly under me! I was gently stroking it's soft, slippery, mossy shell as we swam along for a pretty good distance together. But in my excitement, I didn't pay attention to my snorkel, and suddenly I took in a huge gulp of salty sea water - bleeech! My jerk reaction was to go from a horizontal swimming position to a vertical position with my head above water, and in the process I kicked the poor ol' turtle and sent him flying back down to the bottom -- poor guy! I felt horribly. Way to go grace! Unlike the sharks, I do hope to have another chance to swim with big turtles one day.

Back on land there were other exciting creatures on the island. Most fascinating were the huge monitor lizards. Picture a big alligator but with slightly taller legs, and a head that looks just like the velociraptors from the Jurrasic Park movies, and that's what a Malaysian monitor lizard looks like! Thankfully, in the scavaging ways, they mostly kept to the trash heaps. There were also huge bugs, including a spider that shared my bathroom with me. It was too big to even attempt squashing it. Believe me, I've never showered so quickly in all my life! There were also beautiful huge fish eagles with their mighty talons and beautiful white heads. Overall, I had a great time sharing the island with the Malaysian creatures.

xoxo,
Mere