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Whale watch
Source: Inquirer
Author: Tim Yap
Date: 2001-04-25
 
THERE is a running joke in Subic that the monkeys you see on the highway are of high-maintenance that if you give them Chippy, they won’t accept it. Throw them Pringles—only then would they be happy.



Not so with the whales we went "swimming" with.



See, Subic has this very interactive nature thing—go kayaking in its waters with fish jumping all over, hobnob with the monkeys on the highway and hug some whales in the sea.



Yes, hug them, kiss them and dive with them.



"This is the only spot in the world where you can do this," said the extremely accommodating Australian trainer Brian Homann as Pounder, the 15 ft or so long and 3 ft wide friendly whale we met at Subic’s Ocean Adventure, swam along with us. "Others go swimming with sharks or whale watching—you will be swimming with whales."



Parade of sea creatures



We got there before lunch, just in time for the briefing. A lady explained to us, a small crowd of Subic explorers composed of media colleagues and locals, how the whales behave, how we should behave, the birds and the bees, etc…



I was sidetracked from the lecture as I watched the sea mammals parade proudly, jumping up and down the water like high-school cheerleaders in a street festival.



After we fastened our life vests, we were ready to go. We were divided into two groups and occupied each side of a boat which followed the direction of the leaping whales. We stopped right smack in the center of the bordered part, and right then and there the whales surrounded us.



"This is Pounder," the trainer told us as he clapped his hands. Slowly, just like a submarine going up the surface, Pounder rose from the side to our center, face up, opened her mouth, smiled and made a welcoming sound.



I felt as if I was in some Disney movie mingling with some amiable creature from the deep. All of a sudden, fascinating stories from diver friends came to mind. I realized we were in the company of a friend.



Pounder made more high-pitched sounds, as though telling us how glad she was to meet new friends. Her outbursts sounded like a dolphin’s or a seal’s blended with a trumpet’s tone, reverberating with cheerful vibe—and, just like a new playmate, she was excited to show us some tricks.



Pounder as ‘Jaws’



She "marched" on the surface of the water, went down, then startled us by suddenly going up. Next, she flapped her fins and made a splash. Soon, we were playing water games with her, pushing the water in her direction. Pounder would play sport and just welcome our amusement.



Next she would jest and do her interpretation of Jaws—complete with the mouth-up countenance of filmdom’s most famous killer shark—to which we would cheer and applaud and reward her with fish, which she so dearly enjoyed.



Later, each of us got to hug Pounder. We would put our arms horizontally in front of us, then she would dive deep and spring up right between our palms, also bussing our cheek along the way.



Pounder’s skin felt sturdy and smooth. It was like touching a slick rubber boat, only this one exuded with energy and vibrance.



We ended the session by leaving our boat and, with the guidance of the well-trained sea staff and with our life vests intact, we headed toward the distance where we once again frolicked with Pounder.



We took turns in feeding her with her favorite fish one last time. She seemed really happy.



Now, if she asked for caviar, that’s another story.

 

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