Dumaguete is known as the city of gentle people which serves as an apt descriptor for the atmosphere. The four universities keep the local population well educated and friendly. The majority of visitors we encountered were from Europe and China. I hear that the area has a rich night life, but our time was limited so we spent most of it underwater.

We made it out to Apo Island on our first day and I cannot help but write about it in dramatic tones. Soft and hard corals competed fiercely over the limited real estate creating a dynamic environment full of colors that would seem unnatural anywhere else. And while the diverse coral cover at Apo was nearly 100% in places, the wildlife was even more spectacular. There were times when I had to choose between the in-your-face humphead parrotfish and the hungry hawksbill sea turtle, all against a staggering backdrop of unimaginable colors. Apo Island ranks alone as the single best dive I have ever done.

If Apo is all about sweeping seascapes, the local sites at Dauin are as impressive on a macro scale. The local dive spots are very close to the resorts with our farthest near-shore site being a brief 10-minute boat ride away. At first the dark volcanic silt seems an unlikely place to find tropical creatures, but then armies of cryptic animals start appearing from the muck. Within one day, I had checked many dozens of animals from my macro bucket list. In my first dive alone we came across a warty frogfish, seahorses and all 3 species of ghost pipefish. It was uncanny. Before each dive I started asking the DM to find something rare and specific like a blue-ringed octopus or a stargazer and without fail, they picked one out of the muck. They claimed that flamboyant cuttlefish hadn't been seen for months, so I requested we try and sure enough, I was playing with a pair of them on the next dive.

There is a good reason I am the first reviewer for Kosrae- it is completely off the map and mostly untouched by the western world. If you are looking for modern luxuries, a hopping nightlife and a community of fellow divers, go to Chuuk, Palau or any of the other dozens of overinhabited tropical islands to which divers flock. If your goal is to unplug, dive on gorgeous coral reefs, take in some serenity, encounter genuine local culture and go home with an amazing experience from a place none of your friends have visited, Kosrae is for you.

The 2000 inhabitants give the island a small town feel; they all seem to know each other and many will recognize you and quickly start to greet you with a smile every day. Kosrae has no major imports as the locals are supported mainly by subsistence farming, but they are very welcoming and appreciative of tourists. The mood is vey laid back, especially on Sundays when no diving or working is allowed. Small stores are fairly spread out throughout the island. The cars are all purchased used from Japan, so they are right-hand drive even though everybody drives on the right side of the road. It is at once a funny yet beautiful place inhabited by wonderful people.

This island is an undiscovered gem both above and beneath the waves. The diving is mostly drift diving over wonderful hard coral gardens with abundant reef fish and punctuated by frequent encounters with larger animals like gray reef sharks, stingrays, turtles, and giant Pacific groupers. The staple organisms of anemones with resident clownfish can be seen on nearly every dive.

The island also boasts a number of wrecks. The Sansun Maru is a supply ship that rests in about 60' of water. Don't miss out on the sunken plane wrecked nearby. Finally, there are the remains of the pirate ship owned by the infamous Bully Hayes. Called the Leonora, there isn't much left, but the dive itself is a fun muck dive in Utwe Harbor, perfect for days when the winds kick up and limit your options.