Are there actually whale sharks in Donsol, Philippines?
We’ve left the hustle and bustle of BGC Manila and flown down to the beach city of Donsol, where we’re hoping to catch a glimpse of the glowing trees of fireflies and cash in a raincheck for swimming with the majestic whale sharks of the Philippines. But speaking of rain, we’ve had constant showers since stepping off the plane last night, so we’re hoping to attract a little luck this morning while we wait for our guide.
We had a whale shark excursion booked in the south of Cebu, but after doing a little research on the most ethical ways to interact with these gentle giants, we decided to cancel that opportunity and instead spend the day searching for the most adventurous street foods in Cebu City.
As much as we love the idea of hugging baby penguins and as much as Colt likes catching lizards, as a general rule, we respect the mentality of observing nature instead of interfering with it. Other dive sites attract whale sharks by chumming the water, which creates an unnatural dependencies. Here in Donsol, these activities are done right, which can mean less reliability that you’ll encounter any of them but when you do, you know that you’re doing much less to disturb their existence.
Contents:
0:00 Intro
0:34 Elysia Beach Resort
2:23 Searching for Whale Sharks
7:48 Beachside Lunch
9:16 Downtown Donsol
10:33 Nighttime Firefly River Tour
14:47 Dinner at Barracuda
17:20 Conclusion
19:32 Outro
