Apo Island

The Philippine Society of Information Technology Educators (PSITE) held its annual convention for Region 7 last week at Foundation University in Dumaguete. The event was attended by IT administrators and teachers from Cebu, Bohol and Negros Oriental (no participant attended from the 4th province in the region, Siquijor). Not being able to participate in the past, I took the opportunity to join the event, because I really am just a newbie and need to be exposed to more IT trends and topics. The event lasted for 3 days, with the third day allocated for the outing where the participants could explore local sights and interact with each other in a fun atmosphere.

The area for the outing was Apo Island, a volcanic island 7 kilometers off the southeastern tip of Negros Island. I have never been there before, so this was a good chance for me. The island is tiny, with a diameter of only 3 kilometers and an area of 12 hectares. They do not have a steady supply of electricity on the island, their only source of water is rain and deep wells, and there are no vehicles as well, but Apo is a top tourist attraction in this area of the Philippines because of the marine sanctuary that surrounds the island. It's a great place for people who want to dive and snorkel, as it is consistently ranked as one of the top 100 dive sites in the world.

To get to Apo Island, you need to board a pump boat from the fishing/market village of Malatapay in Zamboanguita, located 30 minutes from Dumaguete, or hire a boat from any of the resorts in the area. The boat trip to Apo from the mainland takes 30 minutes as well. As we only had a few hours to spend on the island (you have to make the boat trip back to the mainland before late afternoon as waves get bigger during that time of day), we immediately did the main activity for non-divers in Apo--go snorkeling! And it was wonderful! You can find corals with colorful fishes very near the shore. My only wish was that I had a waterproof case for my camera so I could take underwater pictures! After snorkeling, we went to an area where you could supposedly find turtles, and we did find them! I'm happy to say I finally saw a real turtle, not just a Nat Geo one!

Of course, everywhere I go, my main goal is to take pictures of scenery. Here are some photos of Apo for you:

While it is true that there's not much to do in Apo except swim, snorkel, and laze in the sand, being there evokes a peaceful feeling. This is a place where you can't have Internet, cable TV, or airconditioning. It's a place that brings you back to the basics of life... and that's what makes it extremely special.