butanding, buntading, ikaw rin ay aking narating!

Finally, I was able to see the famous Oslob whale sharks or Butanding, but locally called Tuki.

Oslob is a 4th class municipality in the southern province of Cebu. It is about a 3-4 hours ride from Cebu City South Bus Terminal (Ceres bus). Just tell the driver or the "dodong kundoktor" to drop you off in Barangay Tan-awan because you will be watching the Butanding. These drivers already know on where to stop. Just an FYI, be there before 1:00 P.M. since whale watching is from 6:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. ONLY! You will not be accommodated if you will arrive there at 1:01 P.M.; they are strict with time!

Now, for the money matters (hehehe), be ready to pay 300 pesos to watch the lovely Butandings. The 300 pesos already includes a life jacket. However, if you want the Habagat life jacket which is more comfortable, you will pay another 35 pesos. If you want to bring your phones while whale watching or your cameras are not water-proof, you can buy a zip lock bag for 5 pesos. The whale watching runs for 30 minutes ONLY. While you are on the boat, please be cautious. Listen to the instructions of the boatmen!

My experience was pretty good because I was with my friends, but there are  things that bothered me at that time. There were tourists (locals and foreigners alike) who were seemed very excited to see the whales that they forgot one of the most important guidelines which is to stay away from the whale within 5 meters. There were also 6 Korean divers that were holding the rope of our boat at the bottom of the sea, which was really scary because they can capsized our boat at any time! Also, I was not comfortable with the sight of these whales swimming beside the assigned fisherman-feeder because it was so unnatural; I am afraid that these pretty creatures will get used it and will no longer know on how to get their own food. 

Anyway, before you eventually get on-board the non-motorized boat (for the sake of the Butanding; don't worry the whale watching is only a few meters from the shoreline so it will not take you forever to see them), there will be a short briefing. If you have already applied your sunscreen or sunblock and you have plans to divide into the water to swim with the whales, you will be asked to rinse your body since sunscreen or sunblock have ingredients that will harm the whales. In other words, you will be asked to take a bath again! Therefore, don't apply your sunscreen lotions or sunblocks if you want to dive with the whales. Again, please listen to the instruction of the boatmen and remember the tips during the briefing! Be a responsible tourist! By the way, after whale watching, you can actually stay on the beachfront and enjoy the rest of the day.