Palau is an island group located in the Pacific Ocean, about 800 kilometers east of the Philippines. Palau gained independence in 1994 as one of the youngest nations in the world. The main attraction in Palau is scuba diving. It’s every scuba divers’ dream to go diving in Palau!

The most famous dive site is called Blue Corner, known for the abundance of sharks. This is the reason I want to go diving in Palau, I love sharks :). It’s about one hour away by boat from the main island and it’s often rated as one of the best dives in the world.

Blue Corner features a vertical reef wall, a reef plateau at about 15 meters deep and a drop off from 30 to 330 meters, covered with Giant Gorgonian sea fans. Large schools of fish have made Blue Corner their home. You’ll find almost every type of fish that lives in tropical waters here, such as Eagle Rays, Groupers, Barracuda, Green turtles, Tuna, schools of Jacks, Triggerfish, Snappers, Wahoo and of course a number of different types of sharks. If you’re lucky, you might even spot Great Hammerheads, Whale sharks, Manta Rays and Whales.

Blue Corner isn’t the only reason to go diving in Palau. There are many other interesting dive sites such as Blue Holes, Ulong Channel, German Channel, New Drop Off and Big Drop Off.

Palau is also known for it’s non-poisenous Golden Jellyfish, who live in a lake called Jellyfish Lake. In the absence of predators their poisonous stings have evolved away and it has given the Jellyfish the opportunity to reproduce freely. As a result, more than five million are found in the lake. You can’t dive in the lake as the air bubbles exhaled by divers can harm the jellyfish, but snorkeling is allowed.

Other than diving and the Jellyfish lake, their are a plenty of other things to do in Palau, such as kayaking, canoeing, land tours and visiting the famous Rock Islands.

8 April 2013 Jasper