Hidden islands – as yet unknown

Today, we again went out to sea to see what we could see... You wouldn't believe how much diving and snorkelling gear awaited us on board to be checked. Tanks, weights and all the rental gear. After all, the baggage limit is 30 or 40 kg (different limits despite the same tickets) which is easily reached with the photo equipment, some underwear, T-shirts and all the utensils.

The boat trip was around 45 minutes and took us past a number of small islands. This time, we dropped anchor at entirely different spots. What was remarkable was that, even though the dive spots were so close together, the ocean varied distinctly. The coral landscape was simply breathtaking and beautiful to behold. In contrast, the fish we found were quite unspectacular. We found many species that had already been found before, although we did discover a few beauties as well. Ribbon eels or Bernis eels (Rhinomuraena quaesita), seadragons and pipefish, just to name a few.

We were very close to islands that had barely been visited before, but, unfortunately, we were not allowed to go on land. All the same, it felt great to be so close to land that only very few humans had ever trodden on. Nature, undisturbed by human influence, is truly very impressive. Even if these islands are only relatively small. We were on the water until the late afternoon. Unfortunately, we were unable to stay until sundown, as the boats were not allowed to be on the water after 5 PM. As there was still some time left before dinner, many of the participants took a taxi to Nha Trang and were able to explore the market and a few local shops there. They were able to discover foodstuffs and other national specialties here. Merely crossing a main road is a highlight, although it isn't dangerous in the least and is easy, if you know how to do it. We went on to dinner at 8 PM and, afterwards, enjoyed a presentation on the fish of the Vietnamese inland waters and another one on ostracods (seed shrimp) in Vietnam and the rest of the world.

Tisk