点评:Sardine run with Scubaco - fantastic, unforgettable and incredible experience!! We already loved Scubaco after using them for diving and safaris several times and knew that we didn't want to do the sardine run with anyone else but Tam and her team. I think this unequivocal trust allowed us to approach the sardine run without thinking about it too much beforehand, knowing that we were in good hands, but also to come at it in the spirit that comes from following the cues and example of an obviously accomplished and experienced crew (thank you, Stephen, our champion guide, and Ashleigh, our indomitable-in-the-face-of-4m-waves skipper, for keeping us smiling and safe). Unless you can swim faster than a dolphin, this expertise is crucial to being able to witness the best action when it suddenly pops up.
I feel blessed to have experienced not only these marvels at sea but something else that has become increasingly rare nowadays: to be catered to, provided for... but in a way that is personal, not packaged and, more intangibly and importantly, that does not just have you as a nature spectator but lets you come face-to-face with the full beauty and wildness of it in 360 surround sensations (hard to explain but it's the difference between walking through a city park and trekking in Nepal). There are the dolphins, the bait balls and the whales (oh, so many whales from so many angles!) but Scubaco has the experience and know-how that comes from respecting the ocean and waves in order to find the quiet, truly moving moments that take you by surprise even after you think you've seen it all.
On land, Tam relies on her decades of working in the diving and tourist industry to anticipate and manage everyone’s needs so that what could be chaotic feels as if something we’ve all done naturally for months. This can’t be achieved using a paint-by-numbers system that focuses more on chasing good customer reviews. Everyone on the Scubaco team is attentive to details as well, constantly helping customers and each other, which is probably why the whole week felt like a big family reunion (one you want to be at!).
So I guess it shouldn’t be surprising that we ended up running unexpectedly into friends from previous trips (the Galapagos, Socorro, Thailand) and making new ones (an amazing professional photographer who has gone with Scubaco for the sardine run five times already) as this personal approach automatically attracts like-minded, discerning repeat customers. This is almost as important as all the rest because there’s nothing better than the synergy created when everyone is just revelling in being where they are and glorying in magical moments, feeling like the luckiest people on the planet.
Lastly, I have to give thanks and kudos to Marian and Bull’s Inn in Mpame as well. We’ve been to even more remote places but never expected such a dream place and setting, not to mention the warmest of welcomes, home-baked goodies and fresh seafood or BBQ every day. It’s the perfect place to disconnect from it all and, even without the sardine run, an incredible location for discovering the gorgeous Wild Coast.
翻译:与Scubaco一起体验沙丁鱼大迁徙——一次棒极了、令人难忘且不可思议的体验!!我们之前多次通过Scubaco安排潜水和游猎活动,因此一直都很喜欢他们。我们深知,只有Tam和她的团队才最适合带我们体验这次沙丁鱼大迁徙。这种毫无保留的信任让我们在参与活动前无需过多操心,因为我们知道自己交给了最可靠的人来照顾。同时,我们也应以这样一种心态来面对:即紧跟那些显然经验丰富且技艺精湛的团队成员的指引与示范(在此感谢我们的顶级向导斯蒂芬,以及面对4米高巨浪仍镇定自若、确保我们安全无虞的船长阿什莉,是你们让我们始终面带笑容且安然无恙)。除非你的游泳速度能超过海豚,否则这种专业经验对于在精彩瞬间突然出现时及时捕捉到它而言至关重要。我很幸运,不仅领略到了大海的种种奇观,还体验到了如今愈发稀缺的一种经历:得到悉心照料与照顾……但这种照料是个性化的,而非千篇一律的套路。更重要的是,它不会只把你当作自然的旁观者,而是让你通过360度的全方位体验,亲身面对大自然的极致美丽与野性(这很难用语言描述,就好比在城市公园里散步与在尼泊尔徒步探险之间的区别)。这里有海豚、鱼群形成的“饵球”以及鲸鱼(哦,从各个角度都能看到好多鲸鱼!),但Scubaco拥有丰富的经验与专业知识——这一切都源于他们对海洋与海浪的敬畏之心。正因如此,他们才能捕捉到那些宁静而动人、甚至在你以为自己已经见识过一切之后仍能令你心动不已的瞬间。
在陆地上……Tam凭借自己在潜水及旅游行业数十年的工作经验,能够预见并满足每个人的需求,从而使得原本可能混乱的场面变得井然有序——仿佛我们大家都已经自然地习惯了这种状态似的。而这种做法是无法通过那种只注重获取好评的固定流程来实现的。Scubaco团队的每一位成员也都十分注重细节,时刻热心地帮助顾客以及彼此。也许正因如此,整个一周给人的感觉就像是一场盛大的家庭团聚(一个你绝对不想错过的聚会啊!)。因此,我们意外地遇到了以往旅行中结识的朋友(去过加拉帕戈斯、索科罗、泰国的那些伙伴),还结识了不少新朋友(比如一位出色的专业摄影师,他已经五次跟随Scubaco参加沙丁鱼迁徙之旅了)。这也不足为奇——这种以个人化方式对待客户的服务理念自然能吸引到志同道合且眼光独到的回头客。这一点几乎和其他所有因素一样重要——因为没有什么能比得上这样一种协同效应:每个人都尽情享受身处此地的快乐,沉醉在那些奇妙的瞬间中,感觉自己是世界上最幸运的人。
最后,我还要感谢位于姆帕梅的玛丽安与公牛客栈。我们去过更加偏僻的地方,但从未想到会有如此梦幻般的环境与场所,更不用说他们给予我们的无比热情的款待了。每天都有自家烘焙的甜点、新鲜海鲜以及烧烤。这里是暂时远离尘嚣的绝佳去处;即便没有沙丁鱼洄游的盛景,它依然是探索美丽的野生海岸线的理想之地。