Today is June 21st, 2012. Which means that exactly one month and one day ago we were celebrating our 1-year anniversary while basking in the sun of the Philippines (it’s totally different from the sun in America). And that means that exactly 1 year and 1 month ago we were saying our vows and starting our own happily-ever-after.

Seriously?!!! I realize we live in the future—kind of—but let’s talk about how time flies! I don’t know if the past 13 months have gone by in the blink of an eye for anyone else, but seriously! I guess this is a sign that we’re getting old or something.

Dan and I have so much to be thankful for. We won’t go all mushy-gushy here, but this past year has been the happiest year of our lives.  We are extremely grateful for each other, and we feel overly blessed for all the amazing experiences we have had together in only one year. We haven’t forgotten all the help we received in preparation for our wedding and honeymoon, and we will always be thankful for the support from all of you, then and now!

So on to the details of how we celebrated our first successful year as Mr. and Mrs. Moore. One of the great parts about living in Taiwan is our close proximity to beautiful Asian islands (even if we’re always working and not really able to enjoy them to their highest potential). For our anniversary, we wanted a little bit of adventure mixed in with a lot of relaxation. We choose Apo Island and Bohol Island in the Philippines (surprise!) as the perfect destination to meet our expectations. Luckily, our entire vacation went above and beyond our pre-exiting criteria.

 

Apo Island

Apo Island, Philippines

Our first stop was Apo Island, world-renowned for its scuba diving. I’m sure the city is lovely, but we stayed outside of Dumaguete at a dive resort only a short boat ride away from Apo. This was a fantastic decision, and if anyone else is headed to the area for scuba diving, you just have to go to Liquid DumagueteIt’s owned by a couple named Tim and Zoe, and they are awesome— really fun, really accommodating, and could not have provided better customer service in any aspect. We really appreciated the homey feel they gave to the place, and Tim can make some mean cocktails.

Liquid, Philippines

Of course, we went to Apo/Dumaguete to dive, so we did. 5 dives in 2 days is enough to make your ears bleed, but Apo Island deserves the high talk that it receives. The dives were gorgeous, and we can confidently say that Apo Island had the best diving we’ve experienced yet. We’re talking Finding Nemo scuba diving here, with walls of beautiful and colorful coral, clown fish frolicking in anemone, sea turtles gracefully drifting off into the unknown, and herds of barracudas stalking the shadows. Unfortunately we don’t have an underwater camera, so you’ll just have to take our word for it. But if not, here is a different dive resort’s video with footage from one of the same places we dove: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoYi6tnXcqI

A Cruising Couple, SCUBA, Philippines

After getting our fill of ‘adventure’ interspersed with ample amounts of pruney fingers, it was time to fully stock up on relaxation. For this, we called on the expertise of the Amorita Resort in Bohol.

Amorita, Philippines

Oh. My. Goodness.

Tarsier, Philippines

This place was incredible. We don’t normally stay at places in this price range. But the Amorita Resort was worth every penny. Our Garden Villa was spacious and beautiful, equipped with a personal plunge pool, large outdoor shower/bathroom area, and nightly turndown service with dessert. (The chocolate cookies were divine). The in-room massages were fantastic, the restaurant had great drinks and food, and the staff consistently greeted us as Mr. and Mrs. Moore.

Amorita Massage, Philippines

Bed at Amorita, Philippines

A Cruising Couple, Breakfast at Amorita, Philippines

A Cruising Couple, Philippines

A Cruising Couple, Dinner Date

And then there was the infinity pool. Wow. We probably spent the majority of our time here, sipping on cocktails and enjoying the view. We were quite lucky to be visiting the resort on a slow weekend, and often we had the ripple free horizon all to ourselves.

 

Infinity Pool, Philippines A Cruising Couple

 

Infinity Pool, Philippines

If what I’ve heard about ‘the first year is the hardest’ is true, I can’t wait for what’s in store next year. I’m thinking the moon.

We Are One, Philippines, A Cruising Couple

One Year, Philippines, A Cruising Couple