Diving at Subic...

Water...Swimming...My waterloo...

My apprehension for swimming has been well known amongst my close friends especially if it is deeper than 6 feet so one can understand when I went ahead with my friends for a weekend trip to Subic to try out diving...

Subic Bay is part of Luzon sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kms northwest of Manila Bay.Its shores were formerly the site of a major U.S Navy facility.

The experience of diving was mind blowing and something that has to be done atleast once in life irrespective of the fear for the sea.

It was a whole new world down there at the sea bed and though we just dived in to about 5 mts deep, it seemed much more than that in the claustrophobic attire in which we were. However the sights and life at the sea bed was beautiful.

At the start when I was on my way down to the sea bed, it felt as if I was dying a slow death. However that all changed once I got aclimatized to my surrounding and overcame my fear and dislike of water.

Within the first 30 seconds due to the change in air pressure, my ear drums started paining like hell, and the concept of equalizing which we learnt in one of our diving sessions prior to the dive was well exercised.

However once at the sea bed and at peace with my surroundings, it was time to appreciate the blue world at the bottom. I had seen so many diving videos, but the actual visual was just something different.

It was difficult roaming around in the water, with all the diving equipment tucked to me, and it even difficult to walk on the sea bed because of the diving flippers we were given to wear.

For me and my friends who were first timers just like me, it was an experience of a lifetime and something we plan to do more often, now that we have been bitten by the diving bug.

Emile was our man of the hour who planned and executed the entire trip and was also the one who took care of us during the entire trip.

The guys from "Boardwalk dive centre" were phenomenol and taught us everything that was needed to know in the water as well as saw to it that we survived our first experience of diving and came back alive from the short adventure.

All in all an awesome weekend, well spent with friends, drinking, eating, sleeping and doing new things.

Watching "Live" basketball match in the Phillippines

I have been dying to post this entry for close to a month now but because of the time constraints, I had to let the urge to blog prolong for a while longer. (Finally doing it during FM lecture @ the start of term 2 in class...Can you beat that)... :)

The game I am talking about here is one of the most important games in the calender year for an average Filipino basketball supporter.

La Salle vs. Ateneo (Green vs. Blue) on paper might just seem to be a normal college basketball match, but in reality and by looking in to the history of these schools, the game is the biggest night for the school, it's players and more importantly it's fans.

For the first time in my life I realized how big a deal it is and how huge a business is "college sports". Having seen college level sports in U.S on television as a kid, having the privilege to watch one here in Manila has been an experience worth it's weight in gold.

A special thanks to Aina (my classmate) for forgoing the chance to go for the game herself and letting me and Harsh to go in her place instead. (She is a die-hard fan of La Salle and the one who told me about the games during the first few weeks of our MBA).

Now to the game...

Date:- 16th August'09.
Time:- 1700 hrs.
Venue:- Araneta Coliseum @ Cubao in Quezon City

The coliseum was filled with sea of blue and green; the official colors of the two teams.There were more than 4000 people for a college basketball game.This goes to show the popularity of the sport in this country.

The upper tier of the stadium housed the two school bands on either side of the coliseum blasting their drums and equipments to the raptures of the crowd below.

It seemed as if as the players sweated out on the court, the two bands sweated, competing against each other for the entire duration of the game and creating an amazing atmosphere within the stadium.

The fans of the two teams where phenomenal, with one side of the stadium depicting a sea of blue and the other side showcasing the floral color of green.

The entire set up was so electrifying and by the end of it all, it was not about the two teams or the score and who won and who lost, but the experience of being there.
The cacophony which the two school bands created in the coliseum was to be seen to be believed. They just electrified the entire arena with their drum wars and the fans were at it too.

All in all, a wonderful experience, and one to cherish for a long time to come.Thanks to Aina...

ps:- For anyone and everyone , if ever you guys are in Manila in during July-August,and have an opportunity to watch an Ateneo vs La Salle game, go for it...It's worth it...Trust me on this one.