Koh Tao

Recovering from the Full Moon party, we left to Koh Tao (Turtle Island) on an hour ferry ride. We booked a 3 day diving package in order to get our Open Water Diving certification at Crystal Dive resort. Upon our arrival, we were immediately welcomed by a friendly international staff. Most of them backpacked through Koh Tao at one time, fell in love with diving, and decided to stay and work at the dive resort.

Our open water certification consisted of four ocean dives, to a maximum depth of about 18m. Of course, hours of classroom instruction also accompany the experience, and they proved to be quite valuable for us once we put on our diving equipment. Adjusting to breathing underwater wasn't too much of a problem for us, since we were able to start in a pool before entering the open water. After mastering our equipment, the next challenge for us was to gain control of our bouyancy in the water. With the right weights and breathing techniques, a diver learns to essentially make himself float or sink with a breath of air rather than increased motion. Less motion requires less air. Less air used means more time underwater. In diving, although its counter-intuitive to what we know about swimming, you move very slowly and gracefully, making for a very calming experience underwater.

The ocean is a totally different world. What an remarkable experience! We were lucky enough to dive in good visibilty wter and saw dozens of different species marine life including fish, crab, rays, jellyfish, anenomies, and coral. After mastering bouyancy and getting a good bearing on my breathing, I began to fall in love with the hobby. We had such a great time, and 3 days was just a tease, so Jordan and I decided to stick around a few more days and pursue our Advanced open water certification, which includes a night dive and 30m deep water dive as well as additional navigation and bouyancy skills. I have acquired a newfound passion for the ocean. Now just sitting on the beach may not be enough, since I will be constantly thinking about what's beneath the surface. (A new yet expensive hobby for back home)

Koh Tao also boasts a very festive nightlife. Several beach bars line Sairee Bay and play chilled out music into the night (with much less of a crowd than Ko Phangan). We also found a really fun Australian Bar in Sairee that had live music. Our entire dive group (and instructor, Guy) went out several times after our courses for some drinks. The place got pretty crazy, with patrons (mostly British and Irish) dancing on tables singing loads of songs acapella.

We had a fantastic and relaxing week on the Island, and it was well worth it. We departed on a cramped night ferry back to the mainland and stayed in transit for 48 hours to get to Tokyo. The Ferry was quite an experience. It had about 50 people packed in the main cabin of a loud, old wooden boat. We were on the boat with most of our diving team (coincidently we all were leaving the same day). We all sat underneath a single light playing cards and drinking some good beer to help us sleep in the 3 foot wide stiff mats that were our so-called beds for the trip. A tough night's sleep, but it was quite a fun experience sharing card games with our British friends.