Lisa’s snorkeling tips

Snorkeling – one of the cheapest (if you are in an island of course :P) and most enjoyable activities! ^^

Okay, here are some snorkeling tips for beginners like me, to keep safe while having fun~

well, to da guy behind me, of cuz i know i’m not certified to giv snorkeling instructions la, x need stare at me lidiz lo.

i’m jz gonna share some things that i hav learned~

1. U owiz need to get the local knowledge about snorkeling destination, weather and ocean conditions before entering the water~

it is useful to know that ocean waves tend to come in sets!!
if u notice carefully, u may have 3 big waves, and then 3 smaller ones. Or a big one, and 3 little ones, and then a big one again~

2. Use sunscreen! If u not wearing t-shirt or rash guard, ensure
waterproof sunscreen has been applied 30 mins prior to entering
water~~

coat it on ur back and the backs of ur legs, the water keeps ur skin so cool and u may not realise ur skin is actually burning
until its too late. There’s this saying that the SPF on your sunscreen tells how long it will last. Eg. SPF30, will last you 30 minutes, so you have to reapply every 30 minutes. Not too sure if it works the same underwater. Hehe~

oh yeah, for girls, don’t apply moisturizer or sunscreen on ur face, it makes ur mask’s straps slipped down easily and u
will b wearing a flooded mask then ><

1st day, i was having moisturizer and make up on… cuz was having meeting earlier and cant wait to go for snorkeling right
after works…

and i suffered badly then :|

well, i had enough of salty waters so i must tell u girls these ><Don’t apply anything on ur face (moisturizer/sunscreen/make up) to get rid of flooded mask~~

day 2, with nothing on my face at all, and i feel so good as i hav my BEST snorkeling experience!!!

* masks shud remain reasonable dry inside, but if accidentally fill with water, u can cleared it easily by raising ur head, pullin the lower edge away from ur mouth, to let the water drain out easily!!

hehe, u can oso leave a lil’ water in ur mask, if u want an instant defog!

3. Never go for snorkeling alone kay?

its dangerous if u r all by urself…

swim with your friends kay?

snorkeling is a buddy sport, so don’t forget yours!!! ^^

4. test out and make sure u are familiar with ur equipments!!!
* To check if a mask is fit, u can pull the strap and ur hair out and bring the mask to ur face. the rubber skirt should touch ur face all the way around, u don have to press it in at all. and when u are breathing, the mask should easily stick to ur face~ as for snorkel, it should rest in front of ur ear~!

must get a correctly fitted face mask!!! it’s the most important thing!!

Some ppl will wear everything before entering the water and some
prefer to wear in the water…

well as for me, i didn’t wear my mask at 1st… and my eyes so painful then :(

but still can take photo lah hehe :P

5. wear the buoyancy vest if u feel the need!!!

YES i can’t swim >_<

okay, do consider bringing a buoyancy vest or other floatation device even if u are an experienced swimmer~ safety 1st ^^

snorkeling… a tool to access to one of the nature’s most marvelous realms, ocean is still one of the best arenas for us to exercise our sense of discovery… and what’s the key to become a successful snorkeler?

6. yes, RELAX.

Relax your body…

and relax your mind….

control ur breathing…

just like it ^^

7. beware of wave sets, winds, rocks etc! keep aware of your surroundings!~


8. don’t touch marine life, for both ur own and sea life good!
can imagine how painful it is if u touch them?

there are MANY MANY MANY jellyfishes at Redang Island~ so just keep an
eye out for stinging organisms for both jellyfish and fire coral and if your stung by it, always tell your guide. They will probably apply some lemon and medicine on it~

beside the normal brown color stingray…

i also saw diz colourful stingray!!! ^^
* stingrays will swim off fast if u bump into them but sometimes sting when they are stepped on!!

okay, i saw sea turtle too!!

one of my dream all this while is to swim with sharks!!! and it comes true!!

well… i was swimming with…

yeah!!! sharks!! who says Redang has no sharks??

but baby sharks :P saw few of them, so excited! :D
*if u see a shark, do not panic! most sharks are passive and not man eaters~ they will normally ignore swimmers, just swim away calmly and slowly :)

DON’T TOUCH ME PLS.

u dont have to touch the fishes… see? they will come to u!

If u are feeding the fishes with bread or other foods, becareful..

roti sikit. fishes r coming really fast!

roti banyak.and more and more fishes around u then!

and the fishes will get really aggressive!!! >< they will rush to u, and u can feel around ur body too~

DO NOT TOUCH THE CORAL. those tiny jelly-like polyps that live inside are really fragile…

one swipe of hand can kill hundreds of them d :(

aint they beautiful?

9. camwhore in the water!

hehe kiddin la.

i love underwater world!

and i really wish to be an underwater photographer but i don hav a professional underwater camera :(

along the journey…

can see all the hidden fishes?

go further…

colorful fishes ^^

many fishes.

many many fishes.

many many many fishes.

further.

and further~

deeper

and deeper

far far…

nice nice

swim even further…

and nothing d…

after all, a relaxed snorkeler gets more pleasure in the water, especially with my new coloured nails..

u are also less threatening by the aquatic wildlife bcuz they realize u are not a threat, and they will then resume their normal routine, allowing u to experience their world ^^

snorkeling in Redang is one of the best place to discover the hidden underwater world in Malaysia, u can even have ur own diving lesson there~ ^^ u can rent the snorkeling equipments there too if u don hav, but i bought mine before go la :P