#64 Malapascua Island Slow Life

A small island in a nation of islands, Malapascua with its white sands, palm trees and wood huts was until recently just another of thousands of destinations in the Philippines. Just north of Cebu in the center of the country, and only 1 kilometer by 2.5 kilometers in size, it was well known simply for its Bounty Beach.

Then, in the early 1990s, it was revealed by underwater adventurers that the waters around the island harbor regular visitors that are a rare site anywhere on earth – thresher sharks. At the Monad Shoal, the sharks come early in the morning to be cleaned by smaller seas creatures, and don’t seem to mind having an audience.

Malapascua’s development due to foreign influence isn’t just a modern development. The island is said to have gotten its name from a group of Spaniards who were stranded on the island on December 25, 1520 in bad weather. The Spanish called the place “Bad Easter” (Mala Pascua) , but locals still refer to it as Logon.