Dive Ta Bai

As soon as your face hits the water, you feel the stress bubble slowly dissolving, making way for a euphoric sensation. 

Then, you start descending into another world that looks like it was made only for your dreams. Reaching the bottom is the exact equivalent of touching base with reality. But the only difference is: the reality you are in at that moment is the fantasy you have longingly wished to experience.  Let go of your inhibitions and liberate your desires. You can’t hide from yourself underwater. This is freediving.

Some of you might ask, “Why the florid narration? It is only diving. I can experience all that while scuba diving without all the trouble of going through the discomfort of fighting for air.”

Freediving is a completely different discipline. Yes, it does require a tad of discomfort at the beginning, especially when you are new to the hobby. But who doesn’t feel at ease when they are new at something? Trust me though. The moment you achieve the basics, not only can you stay longer underwater, you will start to do something you should have done a long time ago: listening to yourself. Without the cooperation of the mind, the body will not work properly. That is why it is advisable to go through proper training when you want to get into this practice. Even if there are competitions based on depth and bottom time, at the end of the day, the only challenger you’re facing against is yourself. But if you do have the competitive spirit, you could always inform your dive buddies whenever you plan to push your limit.

“Where can I find these ‘dive buddies’? I don’t think freediving is that popular of a sport”, you might ask. You don’t have to dive any deeper to find a huge team of freedivers around your area.

DIVE TA BAI is the biggest diving community in the Visayas, together with its sister groups: Dive Ta Bai – Bohol and Dive Ta Bai – Davao. If you ever feel the need to scout a dive spot the next day and you’ve got no one to go with, all you have to do is post on the respective forums and presto, you’ll end up diving with a group of ten. This is the best thing that has happened to me since the rib-eye steak sale at Rustan’s a while back. And that’s saying something. This group is guaranteed to get your freediving addiction going at a rate so fast you’ll find Joffrey Baratheon pale on the floor at around season two. (To those that understand that reference, may George R.R. Martin bless your soul – or not. Whatever floats your goat.)

DTB Cebu and Bohol have recently teamed up to organize the first and biggest school of divers to invade the waters of Bien Unido. This group had a total of 31 good-looking baracudas: two Koreans, three Japanese, a French, a Norwegian, one from Bhutan, two from Manila and twenty-one from the Visayas. You could say United Nations day came in late for us. We were led by one of DTB – Bohol’s popular faces, Ian Uy, and accompanied by National Record Holder and Level 3 SSI freediver, Martin Zapanta, and Aida Freedive Instructor John Folkvord.

The whole trip was amazing! The sites were spectacular, and even the food was magnifique. We visited two spots during our expedition: The Sto. Niño statue with a 25 to 30 feet base depth, and the Blessed Virgin Mary grotto under a base depth of 70 to 80 feet; both statues were 14 feet tall respectively. These statues serve a more critical purpose other than just tourist attractions. They were put in place by the faith-inspired group of divers known as the Sea Knights. This was an effort to restrain illegal fishing activities around the area. Danajon is one of the six double barrier reefs in the world, and is the only one in the Philippines. This is where the country’s biggest source of seafood is found, and this is also where Bien Unido is positioned. It’s a no-brainer why the government and its people are trying to protect the site. I can’t stress anymore about how ridiculously incredible the whole trip was, so let the pictures and the video do the talking.

Here is a short clip of Ian Uy diving down 80 feet to the Mother Mary grotto:

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Filmed by: Aida Freedive InstructorJohn Folkvord
Safety: Philippine National Record HolderMartin Zapanta

This picture was taken about 80 feet underwater where the Mother Mary grotto is located by JooYoung Chun.

Asaki Okada at the Sto. Niño pilgrimage looking amazing in her white ensemble.

We got up-close and personal with a Cephea cephea, or more commonly known as a crown jellyfish, with freediver Disston Tan lurking behind it. Photo by Ian Uy.

Lak Bay doing a bit of underwater worship. Photo by Martin Zapanta.

That is me trying to look like a flawless mermaid. Photo by: Ian Uy.

Meet the crew!

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: Scuba diving and snorkeling are for people who want to look around. While freediving is for the people who want to have a look within. You don’t need wings when you can hold your breath long enough to be one with the ocean, and simply go with the flow. Maybe this is where the grass is greener. Safe dives, everyone!

Dive Ta Bai - https://www.facebook.com/DiveTaBai

FREEDIVESCHOOLS IN THE PHILIPPINES

1. Freediving Philippines - Wolfgang Dafert
http://www.freediving-philippines.com/
Moalboal, Cebu

2. Element Freedive - Andrew Zuke
http://elementfreedive.com/
Moalboal, Cebu

3. Freedive School - Jussi Rovanpera
http://www.freediveschool.com/
Moalboal, Cebu

4. FreediveHQ - Mike Wells
https://www.facebook.com/Freedivehq
Mactan Island, Cebu

5. Freedive Panglao - Stefan Randig
www.freedive-panglao.com/about.htm
Panglao Island, Bohol

6. Just One Breath - John Folkvord
www.justonebreath.com
Panglao Island, Bohol

Special thanks to:

Ian S. Uy

Martin Zapanta

John Mendoza

Lak Bay