Anilao is home for many Manila-based divers. It’s what we miss when we’ve been away from the sea too long. It’s where we go when we want a dose of compressed air and salt water.

I’m heading there tomorrow for a day of diving. Wilson, my dive instructor/ friend, is teaching an advanced diver how to use enriched air. I, on the other hand, will visit old friends.

I started diving in Anilao. That was about 10 years ago. I’ve come back several times and it’s hard not to say that the place has diminished a bit within the decade. I remember a time when each dive, I’d come across a handful of nudibranchs. Now, I consider myself lucky if I pass across one.  Corals are less healthy too because of water acidification and increased water temperature, among other factors.

My main destination this March is the Verde Island Passage, acclaimed by Conservation International as “having the highest concentration of marine shorefish biodiversity on the planet” in 2005.

Anilao is right at the edge of the Verde Island Passage. It’s a good peek into this part the ocean.

Hopefully, I get some good shots tomorrow. Whatever happens, it’s good to be back in the water.