When he visited Malaysian military base Layang Layang three years ago, John Bantin gave it a bit of a rough ride for its "wallpaper" diving, security lapses and overpowering stench. When he went back this spring, the story was rather different. more...

Anyone for a week on the atoll of Layang Layang? No? How about five days? That's about enough for any normal diver, says John Bantin, who found the unrelenting perfection of the coral vistas a bit samey; in fact, a bit like wallpaper. Then there was the guano... more...