The onset of pain in my left ear was sudden and excruciating. I knew something was wrong, so I gripped the anchor line and stopped ascending. My buddy saw me stop, and I communicated via hand signals that something was not right with my ear and that I needed to pause our ascent.
When you get off the boat on Sabang Beach, near Puerto Galera on Mindoro Island in the Philippines, a sign that reads “Welcome to Sabang, Your Gateway to the Center of the Center of Marine Biodiversity” greets you. That phrase defines the diving in the region, as you will not find more fish species anywhere else on Earth.
Born in Uruguay in 1982, Alejandro Garbino, MD, PhD, has been fascinated with air and sea since he was young. His passion for the air stemmed from an uncle who flew banner airplanes along the beach.
I have been a fossil geek my entire life. In 2012 I moved to Charleston, South Carolina, and in the past 10 years I was able to turn a hobby into a living. Scuba diving for megalodon teeth in the nearby fossil-laden rivers, such as Cooper River, seemed like the most logical step seven years ago, and I haven’t looked back since then.
Diving at night provides an exciting new dimension in underwater exploration. As the light fades and darkness spreads through the water, marine life exhibits different behaviors, and the underwater world takes on a new and ethereal quality.
I am grateful for the safety information DAN publishes, their recommendations for dive medicine physicians, and the peace of mind their insurance coverage provides. My wife, Julie, and I have had DAN insurance for many years and are fortunate to have called DAN in an emergency only one time, 13 years ago when a lionfish stung Julie. Our diving had been without any incidents aside from that, but our last trip to Little Cayman was different.
