Philippines
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Swimming with whale sharks is impressive and safe. This is why so many people want to do this activity. However, they are still wild animals and the diving conditions are not always good. Here is my opinion on the meeting of whale sharks in Oslob :
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Swim with whale sharks at Oslob
You will have to get up very early. You will get on a boat at sunrise but you will have to queue to be placed in a group before. This means that you will have to be there around 5 to 5:30 in the morning , at night.
For 30 min in the water with whale sharks you will have to pay the amount of 20 € , which remains expensive for the Philippines.
You will be between 10 and 15 people per boat, with life jackets.
gipsystraveleverywhere.com
gipsystraveleverywhere.com
What to know
When they sell you this, they tell you that you will be able to take full advantage of the animals because you will only be ten per boat.
LIE !
You will be ten per boat, of course, but all the boats leave ... at the same time ! That is to say that you will find yourself around thirty boats in the water and therefore 300 people !
In addition, whale sharks are baited with food . Without ever giving it to them. Imagine the boats lined up in a row, and the whale shark going back and forth in front of this line, following the boat that has food.
On the 30 minutes, you therefore only see a few seconds the animal every 5-7 minutes and the rest of the time you have to wait for it to pass in the other direction.
Besides, that most tourists (especially Chinese) do not know how to swim well and push themselves to take GoPro videos, I let you imagine 300 people floating in their life jackets, pushing themselves to see better, we are more in a messy titanic scene than in a moment of nature appreciation.
Why should we boycott?
I think if you like nature and you are not selfish you have already understood why it is necessary to boycott this kind of practice.
Firstly because the conditions of the animal are terrible . To attract a wild animal is to domesticate him and therefore to condemn him to no longer know how to hunt on its own. If the activity has to stop overnight, the animals would be disoriented and could die.
Having so many people swimming near him can stress him out . Without counting the a******* who try to touch them.
This is a business . They don't care about animals or your experience. After 30 min they tell you to get back in the boat, I asked to stay a little longer, which I get for my money because I had barely seen the animal. They did not want to know anything, it is a factory, in the chain, so that the next tourists can embark in their turn.
I wanted to make a scandal about the scam that it was, on the price, the animal conditions ... nobody listened and they laughed at me . Yes Yes.
Enough to say that I have a HUGE regret , to have lost money, and especially to have participated in this selfish and non-human business.
What to do ?
For a more ethical meeting , you can hire a boat and go snorkeling at sea. Locals generally know the right spots. Just ask around.
So yes , you will pay a little more, (but pay 20 € in Asia for so little and enriching an unethical business is not better) and yes , you will not be 100% sure to see whale sharks.
BUT , that's how life works isn't ?. Made of chance and beautiful encounters?
Imagine approaching whale sharks in their natural habitat, alone in the water without tourists around to disturb them. And the fact that if they approaches you it's because they WANT it not FORCED.
To choose, my choice is quickly made . Let's stop being selfish , thinking of our personal pleasure before the well being of a living being. Let's stop supporting barbarians who do unhealthy practices for money. Boycott , this is how mentalities will evolve and how we will move towards a better and more respectful world.
gipsystraveleverywhere.com
gipsystraveleverywhere.com
I hope this article has enlightened you on these practices and that you will be able to make the right choices. Always ask if the activities are ethical and respectful of animals before your personal pleasure.