Sunrise in Oslob, Cebu

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The people of Oslob are early risers because the whale sharks locally called "butanding" are hungry and feeding them is the easiest way to the snorkeling tourists and the ever-ready camera! For a fee of P550, one can swim with the whale sharks and have his unlimited photos taken by the assigned photographer and later bring them  home in a cd. This is the flourishing tourist attraction in Oslob. When we got there one long holiday of April 2015, there were hundreds of tourists, local and foreign.

But rising up earlier than the tourists is the key. The sun may not have shone from the mountain's side this time but seeing it rising from the ocean is phenomenal for me as seeing meteor showers are for other people. I joked that in this side of our archipelago, my kindergarten drawing of a nipa hut against the backdrop of two mountains with the rising sun and fluffy clouds in between them is not correct. Amazing grace it is to feel the early sun on my face, to receive the light, to feel divine grace. One early morning in Oslob.



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Location: Oslob, Cebu, Philippines

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