Behind the Blog: Corinne Bourbeillon, Journalist and Underwater Photographer
I'm Corinne Bourbeillon – a journalist, diver and underwater photographer. This is my personal blog, where I share my underwater adventures.
Bubbles Underwater & Beyond – at a glance
Blog created in: 2006
Author: Corinne Bourbeillon
Topics: scuba diving, underwater photography and travel
Contact: corinne@petitesbullesdailleurs.fr
1. Who I am in “real life”
I live in Rennes, in Brittany (France), where I am a journalist on the editorial staff of Ouest-France, the country’s leading daily newspaper. Before that, I also worked for various magazines and publishing houses in Paris. I was also a literary translator (English → French).
When I'm not at work, I’m taking photos underwater... As a result, some colleagues nicknamed me “Coco with fins" or, more elegantly, “the Naiad”. It's this dual passion for scuba diving and underwater photography that I share here.
This blog is my personal site, a small patch of the web that I tend with pleasure, on my own, in my free time. What I publish here does reflect my day-to-day professional life at all. One thing's for sure: I always look better in the water than I do in the office...
2. How I became a diving blogger
I started publishing my first blog posts in 2006. At first, it was a simple holiday hobby to give updates to my family and friends during my diving and underwater photography trips. Over the years, this website became a sort of logbook, and its audience grew far beyond the private circle and expanded tremendously!
I run this blog out of passion; it’s not something I earn a living from. It has nevertheless become something of a showcase for my underwater adventures, earning me regular requests from the media, publishers and magazines for underwater reports and photos, or even, quite recently, for a photography festival. A few examples below...
OUEST-FRANCE. Above, two of my front-page photos for Ouest-France, on Sunday June 8 and Monday June 9, 2025, for the opening of Unoc-3 (the 3e United Nations Ocean Conference) in Nice.
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC. I’m rather proud of this one… My picture of a freediver facing Komodo manta rays in Indonesia (above left) has been published in this National Geographic book, entitled 100 Dives of a Lifetime (2019).
3. My diving experience
I have been scuba diving for more than twenty years. I made my very first bubbles underwater while on holiday in Thailand... A revelation. Now, every time I go back under the surface, I feel the same immense and intense happiness!
To date, I've logged over 1,300 scuba dives and my certification level is PA40 (certified for unsupervised diving to 40 metres). I completed my recreational diving training partly with the FFESSM (French Federation of Underwater Studies and Sports) and mainly with PADI, reaching the Rescue Diver level, with specialties Deep (40 m), Enriched Air (Nitrox) and Self-Reliant Diver. I also completed professional training, earning a Class 1 Hyperbaric Aptitude Certificate (CAH), mention B (up to 30 m). Finally, I practised freediving for a time, reaching AIDA 2 level.
Being very sensitive to the cold, I prefer warm intertropical seas to the cool waters of Brittany... But in 2020, unable to travel because of Covid, I started wearing a drysuit to return to explore Brittany's waters close to home without fearing the cold any longer. Quite a change of scenery from the Indo-Pacific archipelagos (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines), in the heart of the Coral Triangle, where I had the privilege of diving often.
4. My passion, underwater photography
The beauty of the aquatic world never ceases to amaze me and underwater photography has become my great passion. I started in 2005-2006, self-taught, while backpacking in Southeast Asia, equipped at the time with a modest compact digital camera.
In 2010, I switched to a DSLR, with the Canon EOS 7D which I used underwater in its waterproof housing. It then accompanied me on all my dives!
In 2023, I switched to a mirrorless camera, the Canon EOS R7. Likewise, I had to find a watertight housing for this new “toy” of mine, a trusty companion on my underwater adventures.
I also talk about my passion for underwater images on my other site:
→ About Corinne Bourbeillon, underwater photographer
With the experience I've gained over the years, my technique has improved and my images have grown in quality. But even today, I continue to refine my skills and develop my practice... Underwater photography is a never-ending learning process!
Read more ➜ See my Instagram feed @cbourbeillon
Read more ➜ Diving and photography equipment: my gear
Read more ➜ How I got into underwater photography on my own
5. Protecting the ocean
I strive to encourage scuba diving practices that are as responsible as possible. I have been diving regularly in the sea for a long time, and I consider myself very fortunate to have been able to watch so many species in their natural environment... This may not be the case for future generations, who may only ever see coral and fish in aquariums.
I already observe the impact, in just a few years, of overfishing, pollution and climate changeon fish density and coral ecosystems. And, of course, tourism has an impact too...
Read more ➜ Diving and protecting the ocean
This brings me back to my own contradictions. I'm much more aware than I used to be of the huge carbon footprint of my air journeys. Since Covid, which put international travel on hold, I find myself questioning my choices... I stopped flying for three years in a row and started diving again in France (mostly in a drysuit). But in August 2023, I set off again on a very long-distance trip (four months) in the Pacific. At the same time, I finished a book, published in December 2023, entitled Diving destination: Brittany and Pays de la Loire. A guide made up of 24 “immersive” stories to inspire us (French divers) to rediscover the underwater wonders close to home.
Diving without traveling (without flying)
6. Travelling solo
When I travel, I often go off on my own; it gives me a real sense of freedom. Those who have never tried it may not realise, but travelling solo rarely means loneliness. You never meet as many people as when you're unaccompanied. This is even more true when you're doing an activity like diving, which makes it easy to socialise with others who share your passion. I've already talked about it at length in this post → Travelling solo.
I enjoy my independence and the internet makes things easy. Even if I no longer travel with just a backpack like I did when I was 20, I still organise most of my little diving trips on my own, often without the help of an agency or tour operator. Generally, a few emails are enough to secure my accommodation and diving reservations. And anyway, preparing a trip is already part of the journey...
7. A bubble of freedom and escape
This blog is my bubble of freedom, my bubble of escape! I update it in my free time, without pressure, guided by my inspiration, my wishes, my destinations... I enjoy sharing my diving adventures here, whether live or in retrospect. I love chatting with those of you who leave comments. But I can also go long periods without posting anything, and the blog just carries on quietly.
Since I’ve often posted articles between trips, even under the Breton drizzle, some have mistakenly taken me for a full-time globe-trotting diver. I admit, I would have loved to travel permanently. But at a leisurely pace, settling down for long stays in some places, without back-and-forth flights at the beginning and end of holidays and with a less insane carbon footprint...
8. Photos and copyright
Unless otherwise stated, I am the author of the photos published on Bubbles Underwater & Beyond. These images are copyrighted and it is prohibited to use them without my permission.
I generally allow a picture to be reused for an editorial mention or a short quote, provided that my name, Corinne Bourbeillon, appears in the credits, with a link to the source. For any other request to use my photos, feel free to contact me!
👌
Hello Corinne,
I just stumbled upon your site, nice and pleasant... and I see a link to my blog. I do the same. Have a nice day!
Philippe
Hello Philippe,
I really like the scenes of daily life in Bangkok that you publish on your blog... Thanks for the link exchange. And for these last pictures on Loi Kratong, we have a little bit the impression to be there!
🙂
Hi to you !
First of all congratulations on your blog!!!
Southeast Asia + backpack spirit + diving, you can't do better 🙂
thank you for these escape bubbles that I found by chance on the net, you are now part of my bookmark!
Hello,
I was looking for information on Raja ampat at the base and I came across your blog, while browsing it I was delighted to read your article on Sogod bay which brought back fabulous memories.
Your articles are very pleasant to read in any case!
Sincerely
Alain
Thank you for this very nice comment, Akway! I'm flattered that Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs is in your bookmarks. I went to visit your blog, which I also liked... And which I'm also bookmarking. I see that you have discovered the many facets of Thailand that make me love this country so much!
😉
(PS. I'll answer your email about blogging with WordPress very quickly... By the way, this is a question I need to address in my "Blogging with WordPress" section).
And then one day I discovered your passion ...!
Hello Corinne,
During my immaterial wanderings on the Internet, I stopped on a link bearing your name and rushed to it. I am then extraordinarily surprised by what I can read there. You will understand ...
About four or five years ago, we met for a single day, one day in December, in a train that was taking us to Paris to ask Amélie Nothomb two or three questions (more or less welcome)! The story of an interview, the story of a meeting between an author and his readers. That's not what I'm about; I just wanted to tell you how pleasantly surprised I was to read this blog that you devote to a passion that, it seems to me, you didn't tell us about during this distant meeting. I am happy to hear that you are doing well and that you are living beautiful moments.
I am now studying in Rennes - a Master of Arts (as expected) and now read Amélie Nothomb's books much differently.
I could not go without leaving a few words.
I can't pass by without wishing you more sublime discoveries.
Bastien C.
Hello Bastien,
Gosh... What a nice surprise! 🙂
I remember very well this meeting we had organized with Amélie Nothomb for readers of "Ouest-France". I have a very good memory of it, by the way. It was a nice day, and I found the experience very stimulating: for us, journalists, it renewed the classic exercise of the interview, and it was really interesting to discover the questions that you, readers, wanted to ask the novelist.
Anyway, I'm glad you left a little note on my blog. Ah! the magic of the web... (I take the liberty of being on first-name terms, it's the custom on blogs. And don't hesitate to do the same if you ever come back to leave comments).
🙄
Obviously, at that time, the important thing was you, the readers: your expectations, your impressions, your emotions... I was not going to tell you about my Asian escapades and my underwater happiness in tropical seas.
😀
Bravo for choosing to study literature. Contrary to what people would have us believe in this age of "working more to earn more", literature and the humanities are very useful.
😛
It opens the mind, it stimulates curiosity, it forges judgment. And literature can lead to anything, the proof: I am now a translator, a journalist, a blogger, a globetrotter, a diver, a technophile and a web-addict...
I wish you too many beautiful discoveries! See you soon.
Hello, very nice travel blog, thank you. Rod
Hello Corinne,
I had sent you a comment with a very important question for me: Bali, Thailand or Malaysia... After having read and reread your blog, your message and having informed me about the Tashi Delek website, we are heading to Bali at the end of April for 15 days.
I wanted to thank you for your answer and also for your wonderful blog, it really makes me want to go and explore all these wonders. I hope that once I'm back in France, I'll go back to Asia for a few months... It's crazy, I'm not back yet and I want to discover something else, I think it's the magic of travel! Anyway, thanks again for sharing your experiences with us. I'm keeping your blog as a favorite 😛
@Violaine: Thank you for your little note, Violaine. Your compliments mean a lot to me. I wish you a great stay in Bali! See you soon on Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs!
🙄
Hello,
I am preparing my 5th trip to Bali with so much anticipation, this year diving in Amed and Gili. Would you have a recommendation for the dive center? Amed dive Center?
Great Blog, I almost spent my night there, I will be back! Can't wait for the time when I can do what you do... spend my time in the water 😀
Hello Sonia, and welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs! Hey, hey, I love it when people tell me they spent the night on my blog...
😉
I would love to spend my time in the water. But really, it's only during the vacations... Can't wait for the next one!
For Amed, I don't have any particular recommendation regarding a diving center. I had dived with Eco Dive: big club (maybe a bit too many people, for my taste), very nice welcome, French speaking management, great Indonesian guides. There is also Euro Dive, and a lot of other centers... The best is to search on the Internet.
Good preparations for Bali! If you have any other questions, don't hesitate. You can write me directly by e-mail:
corinne@petitesbullesdailleurs.fr
Hello, I discover your (your) blog via Twitter.
By the way I hope your editor has understood the incredible potential of Twitter 😉
"Little bubbles..." is really excellent, I enjoyed it: well written, with a fine use of multimedia tools (this is my view as a trainer). I also use the Arthémia theme on my site, so I feel at home there... I'll come back 🙂 A+
@Phil: Oh well, thank you for that nice little note! It's a pleasure... 🙂
I realize that I had already read on your blog Univermedias this fascinating article on the "Mojos". Nice to see you on Twitter!
I love Arthemia too. Moreover, it is an Indonesian who made it. It's really in line with my Asian theme... I've been adapting it to my needs, by unpacking one by one its clever functions. I think I will soon "lift" it a bit more to make it cleaner. I'm starting to find my home page a bit too "busy".
As for my editor, we'll see if he starts Twittering one day soon...
😉
See you soon, then, on Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs or Univermedias!
Hello Corinne,
A friend of mine found this link. I'm not a diver (only a bit of snorkeling), but I'm very attached to the sea.
Do you know the site of Marie-Ange Ostré? another diving enthusiast.
http://www.unmondeailleurs.net/
Go and see, it's a wonder to read and watch. I don't know anyone who has been to so many places in the world.
At the moment she is in the Maldives, and has just dived with the grey sharks on Maya Thila. Before that she was in the Seychelles... She doesn't stop. She also travels a lot for her job, she is a photographer. Photographer and diver...
@Joce: Marie-Ange and I know each other. A few years ago, I reviewed her site for our Multimedia pages in "Ouest-France", and then we met, with great pleasure, at the 2008 "Salon de la Plongée", where I also had to do an interview with Francis Le Guen who was releasing "Carnets d'expédition" on DVD. You'll note that Marie-Ange sometimes writes here, and that I regularly leave comments on Un Monde Ailleurs... Finally, if you look in the right-hand column, you'll see that Un Monde Ailleurs is in my list of "Favorite", "Friends", "Divers" and "Travelers" blogs...
🙄
Hello Corinne,
Just a short line to tell you that I find your site superb. I have just discovered it and it is a real invitation to travel, bravo!
See you soon on Twitter,
Astrid D.
@Astrid: Welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs! The objective of this blog is indeed "the invitation to travel"... I'm glad you appreciate it. See you soon!
🙂
Hello Corinne,
I am preparing a long trip to Asia and from link to link, I just landed here and I must say that all this convinces me even more on the choice of my trip.
I haven't had time to go through it all yet, but I'll be sure to pick it up.
Thank you and continue like this !!
@ Mylene: Welcome to "Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs", I hope that the visit will continue to give you the desire to travel. Asia conquered me, I'm sure you'll fall under its charm too!
😉
Thank you for this breath of fresh air that is your blog in any case
I don't dive but in Reunion Island there are also many magical places... also
cordially
LN
@Laurent: Welcome to "Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs". I hope to continue to oxygenate you through my articles. One day, maybe, I will have the chance to discover Reunion Island too...
😉
Hi Corinne,
It is via Sabrina's blog (Odyssea Dive in Mozambique) that I discovered this dream world that you share in a very lively and emotional way. For sure, after my next diving trip in Africa, it will be South East Asia that I don't know yet.
Many thanks for this great blog. 🙂
cordially
Jean-Luc
@ Jean-Luc: Welcome to "Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs"!!! Southeast Asia is really a fabulous region of the world for diving. But I will also have to discover, on my side, Mozambique. The Sabrina's stories give you want!
🙂
Hello Corinne,
Do you know some interesting places in the Philippines for diving?
For my part, I dive in Boracay, it is really great.
Congratulations on your blog! 🙂
Regards,
Michel
@Mimi: Hello Michel, and welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs. I dived in the Visayas archipelago in the Philippines. The spots I preferred: Dauin and Apo Island, near Dumaguete, on Negros Island. I don't know Boracay. But I plan to go back there to explore other spots... You can find all my dives in the Philippines by following this link:
➜ My dives in the Philippines
Good bubbles!
😉
Hello Corinne,
One year ago, I discovered your blog through a link from the Valérie (Mantaleau). I was vaguely planning a trip to Thailand at the time. Reading it not only fascinated me, but also taught me a lot of useful stuff and motivated me. So I went for 8 weeks. This year it will be much longer....
I regret not taking the time to pay tribute to you: you deserve it. Here it is fixed!!!
Thank you again and good luck.
Denis (diver, traveler and also administrator of the BMPP)
@Denis: Hello, Mr. BMPP! Thank you very much for your comment, which means a lot to me. I'm very happy that my Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs contributed to give you the taste of Asia and Thailand in particular. Good continuation and congratulations for the remarkable work on the Good Plans Bad Plans Diving website!
🙂
Well, I pass by here and who walks there... Denis!
😀 You are that too... a community of divers!
Selamat Sorre Corinne,
A delight while surfing on google to come across your manta ray videos and your blog that I will discover more of! Thank you for these bubbles of escape, of pleasure...
I love Indonesia where I have been going for more than ten years and what a pleasure to see and stroke stingrays in the Togian Islands last winter as well as my first nudibranchs, I hope this winter to "taste" manta rays somewhere in Indonesian territory...
Do you know if it is possible to observe them around the Cendrawasih Bay in Irian Jaya, being also a fan of Art Premier?
Good writes before new dives!
K 🙄
@Kalamity K: Selamat sore, or pagi, depending on when you read this!
Thank you for this little word. I like Indonesia very much too. But I don't know much about it, really, just a few islands and dive spots. And I don't know if you can find mantas in Irian Jaya in the Cendrawasih bay... Well, a little research on the internet is necessary. You pique my curiosity!
See you soon on Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs!
😉
Hello, I'm looking at your site while already in Bali. To tell the truth, I'm in Kuta and I don't plan to stay there for a long time... I've planned a 3 months trip and I feel a bit lonely in this big island... I don't meet many people. It's true that it's my first big trip alone, and after my first big blues, I'm looking for people to meet and travel a bit... You are currently in Indonesia?
Hello Marion, good morning to Valérie and Corinne,
The reading of this message moves me. I myself had left nine months ago in South-East Asia following, like Marion, a "big blow of blues" but being probably less young it was not the first one 😉
One of my friends told me that traveling is also a return to oneself... It's true but it's not everything.... It is true that the first days can be difficult: there are so many new things to manage and it can happen that you feel alone. But persevere.... Above all, look ahead, don't plan (or a minimum...) let yourself be guided by your desires. If you like a place, stay one more day, try to go one morning to a bus station and choose a destination that makes you dream, just like that, without booking, without planning... Everything will fall into place. Don't try to meet people. Look up and look ahead, leave behind what you left for, it will be time to return.... Just look into the eyes of those you meet, smile and talk and the meetings will come alone...
You will see, I hope so because for me it worked like this, the causes of the blues will not disappear by miracle, but you will discover other centers
interests and then you will be stronger to face the old ghosts.
One day, maybe it will be one evening, while walking along the river, the sea, maybe while visiting a temple, you will feel serenity... Then you will know that you have won... There will still be difficult moments, but you will know how to cope. For me it was the third week on the Mekong, I wish it would be faster for you, but whatever it is it will come.
Raise your head and advance !!!
And sorry Corinne if I hacked your blog, but I thought it was important to send (which you may have done by the way) a little affectionate and encouraging greeting to Marion....
For me at the moment I'm traveling in a very close suburb: the Gulf of Morbihan 😉
Kisses to all
@Marion: Welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs! I'm not traveling at the moment, unfortunately (I'm in Rennes, in Brittany). Three months is probably a lot for Bali only. If I were you, I would spend one month maximum in Bali, and the rest in other Indonesian islands or in neighboring countries.
One thing is sure, it is better not to stay in Kuta, especially if you are going through a period of big blues... Since you have time, I can't advise you enough to go to Pemuteran, in the north-west of the island, to spend at least one week in Amed, in the north-east, to discover Padangbai (I don't know it, but a lot of people found the atmosphere nice) and to spend some time on the island of Nusa Lembongan, which I liked a lot
The story of my last trip to Bali may be able to help you:
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-bali-indonesie-2008/
As well as my thoughts and those of other internet users in comments, on solo travel:
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyager-en-solo-20090427/
And then, of course, the excellent advice given by Denis above (I couldn't have said it better!).
8)
@Denis: You did very well to leave this beautiful message. Marion's comment touches me a lot too, and I hope that your words will help her! So thank you very much for coming to put your "grain of salt" here.
🙂
Thank you all for your messages..
I looked at the itinerary you did in Bali and it gave me some ideas!
Thank you for your words that give me hope and I will try to maximize my trip ..
Happy birthday to you! Yes, big brother (your facebook page...) is watching you. Actually, it's the best too, that's why.
Well, I will give my impressions of the Andaman Islands, I leave next week for 1 month.
Ciao
Rod
@Marion: I realize that I forgot to wish you a safe journey!
@Rod: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! But now that I know you're going to the Andaman Islands, I'm jealous, jealous, jealous... 😆
Not very original but ...: Your site is bluffing.
While navigating on it, I am ashamed of not having done the same of my travels which remain selfishly in my head.
I just bought tickets for the Philippines in February. You help me for the choice of the route, thank you.
Your column on your return to Rennes de Cebu leaves a taste of too little and makes me think that I will suffer too on my return (I am from reindeer) 😥 😉 .
Thanks again
Alain
@ Danette35: Thank you ! My next departure may be for the Philippines too... 😉 The itinerary I had composed in 2008 for three weeks "diving" oriented in the Visayas turned out to be well balanced. Otherwise, if you are a diver too, you will find my report of this trip also on Plongeur.com by following this link :
" [CR] PHILIPPINES • VISAYAS • January-February 2008
Hello Corinne, I am sending you this note to get some advice on travel, either in Bali or sulawesi. My trip would be more oriented towards hiking (Club Aventure offers one on the island of Sulawesi). If you, can give me some tips and advice.
Thank you in advance and have a nice day.
Jean Louis
Batz-sur-mer (44) 🙂
@ Alesto44: Not being a walker at all and even less a hiker, it will be difficult for me to advise you on this... But I see that you have already found a tour operator that organizes hikes.
As for "advice" and "tips", this question is so vague and open that I can't answer it, except to suggest you to already read my different posts on Bali and Sulawesi, which testify of my personal experience, and to start by reading books and travel guides on the subject.
" Sulawesi 2007
" Bali 2008
If, afterwards, you have more specific questions about particular places where I have stayed and that I can answer, it will be with pleasure. For that, it's better to write me privately by email than on the public comment thread...
" Contact Page
🙂
Hello,
I discover your blog via Twitter.
Extraordinary!
Good writing, good luck,
Eric
@ErykMistewicz: Welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs and thank you for this little word!
🙂
Hello, my turn to leave a message following your many new fans. Great, I'm one of them 🙂
I'm from Angers and I was rather raised on the Courrier de l'Ouest sauce. Now I'm based in London but I love discovering words, pictures, places and little things online... so thank you for your posts, real breath of fresh air. And your blog, zou, in my favorites!
@Taslima: Welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs and thank you for this fanatic impulse!!! 🙂 From a Londoner, it's a pleasure!
Hello
I thought I'd written it somewhere around here, but my message probably got lost in the meanders of the virtual sphere: your blog is as much fun to read as it is to watch.
The world of blogs rarely offers the opportunity to observe our contemporaries manage to concomitantly reconcile content and form.
I have a question: I use a platform - Blogspot - that offers little customization.
Does Wordpress require specific skills or know-how?
Thanks for your advices.
@Lislandais: Your previous comment is not misplaced at all, but rather present, under another topic, at this location:
Mantas and nudibranchs »Comment from Lislandais
I repeat the answer and the thank you I gave you at the time!
🙂
Your questions about WordPress are similar to those asked by another reader in a recent comment on another post:
The bride and groom of Derawan »Comment by Fabrice
I replied (see the comments below, from this link).
WordPress does not require special skills and offers lots of features and customizations that are easy to automate.
That said, to go further, and really be able to do some tweaking in terms of design and functions, have some notions of html, css and php help a lot.
🙂
Hello
I found thailand splendid 🙂 but too touristy 🙁 . I did however do the north go around chiang Mai, chiang Rai, Nan. It's not Pukhet ....
If you want to go to a really "wild" place, "non touristic" go to the cantal 8) ...
but for diving it's not so good 😀
@greg: In France as in Thailand, you can find "wild" and "non-touristy" places... Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket are part of the traditional Thai "tourist" circuit. So, inevitably, there are structures to welcome tourists, and then tourists...
😉
Hello Corinne,
recently registered on plongeur.com, I got a link to your blog, following a question I asked.
Thanks for the info, and I look forward to seeing you out or in the water ... (harder to discuss but for adventurous), I am also a globe trotter, for some time in Asia, I also have a blog a little special, see.
friendships
Gil
@tesmagil: Thanks for the nice note! I'll go through your blog as soon as it's easier for me to log in....
🙄
Extraordinary! I put you in link on my Facebook.
Thank you for these images and these sharing of texts and emotions.
A real pleasure, I'm a fan!
See you soon. Therie
@ Therie: Oh, a thousand thanks ... I am very flattered !!!
🙂
Hi Corinne,
Your blog is great - it was Cedric (Pulau Weh) who recommended it to me
I'm in Mayotte - a little less Asian but nice even when submarine.
Come by whenever you want - I invite you on faire2bouc; I put some nice pictures there (only distributor when you start).
@+
@mako: Thank you for your little note, I'm delighted that you like my Little Bubbles of Elsewhere. I'll come and discover Mayotte virtually on FB very soon!
🙂
Hello Corrine,
First, excuse my French!
I just read your blog about Derawan, and I have a question for you because it is very difficult to get specific information about the losmens. For the Losmen Reza, there are rooms on the water, and rooms on the beach. Do you remember if the rooms on the water had private toilets?
Thank you!!!
@Ryan: Hello ! The rooms "on the water" of losmen Reza were under construction, when I was there. So I don't know if they have a bathroom or a private toilet.
But don't worry: there are plenty of other guesthouses on the island, many with private bathrooms. You just have to go from one to the other and choose... Most of them are not known by western tourists, in fact. Most of them are not known by western tourists, in fact. It is the Indonesian tourists who come there, mostly to spend the weekend.
Hello, where can I buy Loy Kratong lanterns? I literally fall in love !!!
I can't wait to burn one with my daughter, she'll love it.
I am in Paris.
Thank you in advance.
Raphael
@Raphael: No idea. I live in Rennes, Brittany. In Chinatown in Paris, perhaps?
Hello Corinne,
I am also from Rennes, in the town of Villepot exactly, in the countryside ...
6 months ago, I made the big departure following a love encounter, 14,000 km from my family, destination Costa Rica - and since 6 months I enjoy, visit and I wanted to share this beautiful natural, ecological country... so I set up a small blog 🙂
Here is my little story,
Very nice blog and very happy to discover your adventure and your travels ...
See you soon,
Vincent
@Vincent: Welcome to my Little Bubbles of Elsewhere! And good luck with all your projects!
🙂
Hello Corinne,
it's by chance that I came across your blog which is very beautiful, beautiful photos. but I do not see any trip to the south pacific? especially Polynesia where I am from. is this voluntary?
I invite you to come and dive here at home. on the islands of fakarava, rangiroa and tikehau. see you soon i hope on our islands
thierry
@Thierry: Thank you for this little note! I would love to go to Polynesia, but the rates to get there, stay there, travel there and dive there are a bit prohibitive compared to Southeast Asia. But I'm planning to save some money to discover the Polynesian islands one day soon!!!
8)
Hello,
it is true that the prices are quite high. but we can have a ticket from Paris to Papeete for 1200 euros and that on the spot it is not given. but we can see a lot of big, but also beautiful corals. only lacks the wrecks...
See you soon in our islands
@Thierry: I'm adding a little note today (December 2012), as I completed my very first trip to Polynesia recently, in October 2012... Disappointing, I admit, but fascinating... I started telling it at the end of this link:
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-polynesie-maupiti-rangiroa-2012/
Hello,
I discovered your site by chance, but it almost makes me want to go to Asia, a continent that does not attract me much...
I also try to blog (but "home-made" in html...) with much less success!
@ Séverine: Welcome to my Little Bubbles of Elsewhere... I can only recommend you to try a trip to Asia! In principle, you will come back addicted... I am very happy to have given you a desire to travel, in any case.
I also started my own blogs and sites a few years ago, in "home-made". The first one is here and still exists:
http://southeastasia.fr
I learned a lot that way, about Html, and it continues to be useful, especially for customizing my themes and blog features. I now use WordPress, but on my own hosting (not the online version which has limited customizations).
Hello Corinne
Several months already that I take pleasure to read your tickets and other stories of diving. Congratulations and thank you for these beautiful pictures. I often travel professionally in Asia (Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam ...) but not yet had the time to put the fins. It must stop ... I console myself with your photos and videos (ah! This 7D !!! ...)
cordially
Patrice
Thank you for this nice word, which encourages me to continue... Soon new images brought back from Indonesia (Raja Ampat, Papua). See you soon !
🙂
Hello Corinne,
I fell by chance on your blog.
Journalist for Ouest France and literary translator? I must say that I envy you!
I am a translator and writer myself, and I have just created a travel blog for the trip my partner and I will be taking for 7 months through South East Asia and Australia.
So I'll be happy to come to your blog to pick up some tips and other goodies 🙂
See you soon
Jess from Undertherainbow.fr
@Jess: "Under the Rainbow", what a lovely name!!! I'll be following this....
😉
I do not translate much lately, my journalistic activities having taken precedence over my literary activities. But it remains the pleasure to work on the words, the text, the language ...
Hello,
Our 2 children (11 & 14 years old) and their parents, all 4 divers, love your site; excellent quality photos & videos will still allow us to escape after our return to France in 6 days, after a year in Asia-Oceania. Even during our trip, we were inspired by your dive sites to choose our destinations. A huge THANK YOU. 8)
@Edith, Thierry, Thibaud and Vincent : thank you very much for your little message, it really touches me !!! It makes me very happy to learn that my Little Bubbles could be a source of inspiration.
Welcome back, you must have your head full of incredible memories !!!! I'll go find out about it on your site ...
🙄
Hello Corinne,
Fell by chance on your site, I find it really nice with beautiful pictures. Many things / tips still to read, to look at, I will put it in my favorites.
I'm going to live in Brunei for three years and I'm planning to visit a maximum of places and unusual places there? I'm thinking about diving too and I was wondering which place you prefer the most, the most magical place for diving in South East Asia?
thank you in advance,
Thibaut
"travel opens the mind to the wonders of the world"
@Thib: Brunei ? Then you are very close to fabulous dive sites!!! When you will be trained to dive (you can do it in the north of Borneo, in the Malaysian part, near Kota Kinabalu, there are a lot of nice islands for relaxation and diving), you absolutely have to go to Mabul/Sipadan. Sipadan remains an extraordinary site, with sharks and turtles everywhere!!!
After, the most magical place in my eyes is Raja Ampat, but it's far, it's almost not Asia anymore, we are in the Papua part of Indonesia...
From Brunei, you can anyway explore most of the sites I talk about here, on my Little Bubbles of Elsewhere... All are worth it!!!
Good bubbles!
🙄
Hello,
Happy to have made a virtual acquaintance and to have found your blog. Myself a diver/photographer/enthusiast of SE Asia where I will be going for the 6th year this winter. I wanted to go to Raja Ampat, but I'm wondering where and at what period knowing that my amplitude is from end of December to beginning of April. Do you have any tips? Thank you!
@Olivier: welcome to Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs and thank you for leaving a little message!
Raja Ampat is "diveable" all year round. During the summer season (June-July-August) there is only more wind, so that the cruise ships stop their activity, but you can still dive from a resort (this is what I did in July 2012). The period December-April is perfect, depending on your desires, your budget, you can choose a cruise and/or a resort. Moreover, February-March is the manta ray season...
Where to go ? In this period, you can combine Raja Ampat North + South with Misool via a cruise, or focus on the North.
You will find at the end of this link the articles I put online about my stay in March 2012 (I went on a cruise on the Black Manta, followed by a stay at Papua Diving, at the Sorido Bay Resort) :
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-raja-ampat-bali-indonesie-2012/
I will soon put online other posts, about my stay in July 2012 (I went back to Papua Diving, in Sorido), to be found at the end of this link :
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-alor-raja-ampat-indonesie-2012/
Good preparation! 🙂
Hello, recently I'm surfing on lots of blogs!
But I don't know what to say... I love it with this beautiful presentation page
your simplicity to explain your photos!
Only that ! Happy and happy continuation to your blog and your travels!
A Breton from Brest
Dom! 😀
@tyzef29: merki! 😀
Hello Corinne, from the south of France... oops, "selamat pagi"
Whaouffffff ..BRAVO ... !!!!!!!
I'm a 65 years old grandpa, I started diving in Mexico with the Phocea at 59 years old...
Since then, I am making up for lost time. I have just made 4 trips of 8 weeks ... in Bali / Lombok / Gillis, cruise Perama on Komodo, then Sulawesi / Rantepao / Bunaken for diving .... then Flores, diving with ReefSeekers on Komodo .... Then this year, Bali and Lembongan, still manta rays .... but nothing to do with these majestic black mantas of your blog, and I'm not a diver emeritus, but I fell in ecstasy before these ballets of mantas, among others ...
I am planning a trip in February-March 2012.
Is Kri a good base?
How much do you have to count on a 5-day cruise with Black Manta?
And if you have a good address (s) to stay a few sup on an island ?????
Sorry for all these questions. Many thanks in advance.
@Christian: and kudos to you, for this incredible "catching" of bubbles... 🙂
For Raja Ampat, in Indonesia, yes, Kri Island and Mansuar Island are, in my humble opinion, an excellent base to enjoy the most beautiful sites. Otherwise, there is indeed the cruise option.
To find the prices of the dive-cruises with the Black Manta, the best is to go on their website:
>>> https://www.whitemanta.com/index.php?page=schedules-rates
But I see that many of their cruises look more or less complete, already, for the period you are interested in. There is also this site to find cruises with a lot of other boats:
>>> https://www.liveaboarddiving.net/
For a stay on land, having enjoyed the Sorido Bay of Papua-Diving on Kri Island, I recommend them, of course. They also have the Kri Eco Resort, cheaper. See on their website:
>>> https://www.papua-diving.com/
Other possible resorts:
Raja Ampat Dive Lodge on Mansuar Island >>> https://rajaampat-divelodge.com/
Raja4Divers on Pulau Pef ➜ https://www.raja4divers.com/
Papua Paradise on Birie ➜ https://www.papuaparadise.com
To find the posts where I talk about my dives and stays in Raja Ampat:
March 2012 ➜ https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-raja-ampat-bali-indonesie-2012
July 2012 (posts still to come) ➜ https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-alor-raja-ampat-indonesie-2012/
😉
hello Corinne
this year, the Pascha is no longer in service, but like last year, I will be alone on a boat in this beautiful archipelago 🙂
as for the beautiful island you know in front of Pura, the dives are beautiful this year, Sphyrna Lewini is back ...
good bubbles elsewhere!
@Pat : too bad about the Pascha, it was a nice boat... Enjoy !
🙂
Dear Corinne,
Thank you for this blog which allows us to travel and to inform us, which is not necessarily obvious simply with guides. We intend to go discover the Raja Ampat Islands this summer in August, we would like 2 advices:
- Do you think August is ok to go?
- we have 1 month in front of us, we will not stay so much, what to do in addition knowing that we leave Singapore and that the movements in Indonesia seem complex ...
in advance thank you very much
@Lau: thank you for this little word! 🙂 To answer your questions:
1 - I think that August is "not worse" than July in Raja Ampat... I was there in July 2012 and I enjoyed my stay and my dives. See here :
-> https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-alor-raja-ampat-indonesie-2012/
On the other hand, it is not an ideal month for cruising and sailing, as the sea is rough and there can be impressive gales. It is better to stay in a resort close to the diving sites, if you are divers...
You can also read here, my practical advices to prepare your stay in Raja Ampat (read also the comments of Internet users, which bring interesting information):
-> https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-plongee-raja-ampat-20130303/
2 - Take advantage of Sulawesi, since you will return by Manado or Makassar from Sorong! See below my different trips or passages in Sulawesi, if it can inspire you:
-> https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-sulawesi-indonesie-2007/
-> https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-sulawesi-indonesie-2010/
-> https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-indonesie-weda-halmahera-bangka-sulawesi-2013/
Thank you very much Corinne,
It helps us a lot.
Just 2 last questions:
We do not just dive snorkeling; do you have recommendations of places?
To do Sorong Bali it seems complicated and expensive what your experience was?
Thanks and hello from Bunaken!
The
@Laurence Alvart: For snorkeling, I'm not sure... in general, there are good snorkeling spots wherever there are nice diving spots. There's plenty to choose from among all the spots I've mentioned... See the "Dives from here and elsewhere" page:
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/voyage-plongee/
For the journey Bali-Sorong-Bali, it is not complicated, it is just a little long. You have to go through Makassar on Sulawesi. See this post, where I summarize a lot of information about Raja Ampat:
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/plonger-raja-ampat-voyage-20130303/
Hello Corinne,
Bravo for your excellent blog which is for me, freshly PADI Open Water, a real source of information and escape.
Continue to make us dream with as many fish as ever. 😉
@Marco: thank you for this little note, and have a nice walk on my Little Bubbles of Elsewhere!!!
🙂
Hello, I'm a student and I'm very interested in your career path. I just have a small question: did you study journalism or did you become a journalist thanks to your strengths (namely photography and diving)? Thanks in advance 🙂
@Romane Claes: As I explained above, Petites Bulles d'Ailleurs is my personal blog and this blog has nothing to do with my work as a journalist in real life. I publish articles, photos and videos here, just for fun, to share my passions: travel, underwater photography, scuba diving... Nobody pays me for that. This blog is my own little piece of web, it's a bubble of freedom, without professional constraints.
🙄
As for my career, I studied literature, I specialized in publishing, and I started my working life with one foot in publishing and one foot in the press... Before becoming a salaried journalist at Ouest-France, I started by working for various Parisian publishers, I was also a literary translator as well as a freelancer for magazines.
I sincerely think that none of my employers recruited me for my skills in scuba diving and underwater photography nor for my taste for travelling in Asia... 😆 The mission of a journalist is to inform. As far as skills are concerned, we expect a journalist to be first of all curious about everything, able to bring back a news item and to check it, as well as to carry out a report, to conduct an interview, to cover a news item, to deal with a dispatch, to correct a paper, to title an article, to stage a subject in the respect of the editorial line of the media for which he/she works, etc. etc.
If one day I decide to exploit my personal passions professionally, that would be another story (but then, that would mean turning vacations into work!!!).
😡
For the moment, therefore, I dive and travel during my vacations, as a tourist. But, probably by professional deformation, because of my profession and know-how, I want to tell and stage my experiences as a diver-traveler.
8)
Hello,
Congratulations for all your romances and photographs 😉
Being a diver I greatly appreciate your blog.
Continue and live the dive
@Alexis: thank you for that little comment. I'll try to continue in the same vein, then !!! 🙂
Wonderful site and magnificent photos! It's good for the morale to discover other worlds, other visions of travel! Although I can't complain, living in Guadeloupe for 8 years !!!! It's really nice to share your travels and your experiences. I think your site is great! In another universe, I would also like to create a blog like yours to share experiences of my travels because it is very pleasant for me, when I have planned a destination (lately 3 weeks in the American West in September and a week in Rome in June - in preparation NY in September 2014) to go and pick some addresses and some advices on sites like yours. On the other hand, could you advise me to create a travel blog like yours (at the level of the idea but not of the reports, not being a diver " yes, yes, I already almost drown in my shower, so !!!). Is it an easy creation or did you go through a company? Thanks in advance for your advice.
Hi Corinne, I stumbled upon your blog by chance, the pictures are beautiful, I envy you 😉 ! The article on the Derawan archipelago is exceptional, a dream for me to swim with turtles...
Hello Corinne,
Leaving for a diving cruise in Raja Ampat (April 2015), I am also looking for the necessary information to prepare my trip. So, your blog has delighted me...and I feel ready to go!
Your article on the buddy-buddy made me smile, because often it's me who feels like a ball and chain: apprentice photographer, I'm always looking for what I might have missed, and I furter, and furter...to the great displeasure of the rest of the group or the guide. Well, I promise, I will make an effort...
Thank you for your good mood that is reflected in your articles and your pretty photos.
Good continuation
Hello !
Good evening from Belgium where it snows !!!
I love your site full of stories, photos, colors, desires to leave .......
Yesterday, I took the liberty of borrowing one of your photos for my wallpaper.
It is a woman who swims in blue and green water, in a light blue bikini and we see at the same time the inside and outside of the water.
I can not find it on your site.
Do you see what I mean?
Thank you! Nadine. 😈
Good evening Corinne
We are neighbor, Norman in the Bay of Mont Saint Michel
I just saw a report on Raja Ampat
I really want to go for a walk there
Do you have good advice to give me
Accommodation, diving center ...
thank you and see you soon
silvan
@Sylvain: hello, all the info for Raja Ampat are there, on this page:
https://petitesbullesdailleurs.fr/plonger-raja-ampat-voyage-20130303/
🙂 Good preparation!
Hello Corinne
Congratulations on your blog!
I live in Rennes myself and I love to travel!
See you soon
Hello Corinne, I've been in front of your site for 24 hours and I can't let it go... I'm vibrating and you make me dream! BRAVO for all these experiences this passion and your generosity. I come as an intruder on your site because I can't dive (heart!!) but I'm passionate about the underwater world so I'm satisfied with the PMT. I enjoyed last year in Egypt and I would like to go to Indonesia. Do you know a good place for LMP? I looked at the site of cove eco resort which seems to me quite open to LMP... what do you think? do you have echoes on other places? can we go in August or?I believe that it is preferable to stay in a hotel and to go on outings on different spots rather than to be with several cruising boats on the same spot... I know that I put you in difficulty to answer because you are diver but can you help me. I thank you in advance Very cordially geneviève
Nice to meet you, Corinne and happy next trip to you!
Thank you Colette, shared pleasure 🙂
A little hello from a Breton from the Bay of Mont St Michel who lives in Toulouse. Merci pour ton blog très utile. I've just come back from Triton Bay Divers and Raja Ampat and I'm off to Alor in 15 days for my ninth trip to Indonesia. Diving is also my passion, along with underwater photography.
Hello Corinne,
Thank you for this top-quality blog, which I visit again and again for inspiration and information to help me plan my travels.
I'm leaving tomorrow evening for Romblon and Anilao (via Asiaqua) and it's all thanks to you, so thank you 😉
Regards,
Michel.
@ Michel Hagege : the blog is a bit dormant at the moment, but thanks for taking the time to leave a note. Enjoy your stay in the Philippines! 😎
Hello.
Many thanks for your valuable advice on whale sharks in the Philippines. We will follow your advice for an ethical approach. Trip planned end of January 2026
Thank you