Scuba-ing Koh Tao
Life has been speeding along in the past few days. Becky and I left Koh Phangan on Saturday, making it to to the port at Thongsala - a very bumpy ride inland - and then by boat to Koh Tao.
Luckily we already had in our minds a scuba resort to stay at as there are over 40 dive shops on this tiny island - and most of them bombard you at the port.
We were whisked up the shore to Sairee village and to Big Blue resort where we signed up to scuba courses. Becky wanted to do the Open Water course (four dives and certifies you to dive to 18m) and then the Advanced course, while I was unsure if scuba really was me.
So I signed up for a trial with the option of extending to the full Open Water and we were introduced to our instructor, Scobby - an Australian with bags of enthusiasm.
We settled into our room - a 200B a night room with rather thin walls but it did the trick and wandered around Sairee village and beach. The dive shop is right on the beach and the restaurant, like many bars and cafes here, are along the shoreline. The beach is long and quite narrow but palm-fringed and very pretty.
The days here have been quite cloudy and windy but this has only affected where the boat will take us diving. Luckily we have had more to occupy us than sunbathing - namely diving and the theory and homework that goes with it.
Luckily I loved diving. We went out to a shallow but stunning dive site called Japanese Gardens on the first day to learn the skills and as we picked the up quickly, sneaked in our first dive.
In subsequent days we have been running around the island on the boat looking for calmer waters and good visibility where we can dive to 12m, 15m or down to 18m.
Some of the coral has been amazing and we have seen fantastic giant clams, angel fish, trigger fish and all kinds of marine life. It has been truly spectacular to be in this submerged and underwater world seeing such vivid colours and floating along weightlessly.
Yesterday (Wednesday) was our last day of the course and we were to dive to a maximum of 18 metres. You can dive to certain depths depending on how much air you have in your tank, the interval between dives, how long you stay down and so on for safety reasons. On our first dive we actually went to 24m ( we are only licensed to go to 18m) and on the second to about 21m for half an hour because we found a hawsbill turtle. Officially that breaks the rules of safety by the SSI tables but our instructor has a more accurate computer which ensured it was safe - if a little too advanced for us!
But Becky and I had been hoping to see a turtle all week and earlier Matt, who had been diving with us on previous occasions, had seen a small turtle. So we were amazed and delighted to descend and see this huge, powerful hawksbill which was about 1m diameter.
Watching him, we kicked up a bit of silt and scared him off but we managed to give chase and find him again, watching him munch away and got really close to him. Fantastic creature.
I had a really lovely evening chilling on the beach. There are a few bars with mats on the sand and candles and lanterns in the trees and sand. I met up with some of the divers and chatted the night away.
Unfortunately, this led to another rift with Becky who claims to have been concerned about my whereabouts after she went back to the room at 8pm. I have never been shouted at so rudely, and I felt enough was enough.
Today was my rest day, so I paid up at Big Blue resort and moved to a bungalow at Siam Scuba - more expensive but much nicer and with my own balcony, big bed and clean bathroom. It was a good deal.
So I spent today chilling on the beach, reading, catching up with other divers at Big Blue and having fun.
Just eaten very greasy Thai meal and feel a little bloated and sick but will have a cocktail now to sort that and then head to bed. Tomorrow I have to meet the dive team (the advanced course divers) at 6.45am to head out to Chumpon Pinnacle. I decided I wanted to do a deep dive to 30m which is part of the advanced course.
This is because there are sharks at Chumpon and if you go down that far they are actually swimming around you instead of below. Also, in Australia some of the best sites are at 30m depth and its better and cheaper to dive here.
So then, on to Cambodia. Not sure when leaving here for definate but maybe Saturday, maybe Sunday. I am loathe to leave this beach idyll where there is little to do but lie in the sun, read, drink, eat and dive.
Luckily we already had in our minds a scuba resort to stay at as there are over 40 dive shops on this tiny island - and most of them bombard you at the port.
We were whisked up the shore to Sairee village and to Big Blue resort where we signed up to scuba courses. Becky wanted to do the Open Water course (four dives and certifies you to dive to 18m) and then the Advanced course, while I was unsure if scuba really was me.
So I signed up for a trial with the option of extending to the full Open Water and we were introduced to our instructor, Scobby - an Australian with bags of enthusiasm.
We settled into our room - a 200B a night room with rather thin walls but it did the trick and wandered around Sairee village and beach. The dive shop is right on the beach and the restaurant, like many bars and cafes here, are along the shoreline. The beach is long and quite narrow but palm-fringed and very pretty.
The days here have been quite cloudy and windy but this has only affected where the boat will take us diving. Luckily we have had more to occupy us than sunbathing - namely diving and the theory and homework that goes with it.
Luckily I loved diving. We went out to a shallow but stunning dive site called Japanese Gardens on the first day to learn the skills and as we picked the up quickly, sneaked in our first dive.
In subsequent days we have been running around the island on the boat looking for calmer waters and good visibility where we can dive to 12m, 15m or down to 18m.
Some of the coral has been amazing and we have seen fantastic giant clams, angel fish, trigger fish and all kinds of marine life. It has been truly spectacular to be in this submerged and underwater world seeing such vivid colours and floating along weightlessly.
Yesterday (Wednesday) was our last day of the course and we were to dive to a maximum of 18 metres. You can dive to certain depths depending on how much air you have in your tank, the interval between dives, how long you stay down and so on for safety reasons. On our first dive we actually went to 24m ( we are only licensed to go to 18m) and on the second to about 21m for half an hour because we found a hawsbill turtle. Officially that breaks the rules of safety by the SSI tables but our instructor has a more accurate computer which ensured it was safe - if a little too advanced for us!
But Becky and I had been hoping to see a turtle all week and earlier Matt, who had been diving with us on previous occasions, had seen a small turtle. So we were amazed and delighted to descend and see this huge, powerful hawksbill which was about 1m diameter.
Watching him, we kicked up a bit of silt and scared him off but we managed to give chase and find him again, watching him munch away and got really close to him. Fantastic creature.
I had a really lovely evening chilling on the beach. There are a few bars with mats on the sand and candles and lanterns in the trees and sand. I met up with some of the divers and chatted the night away.
Unfortunately, this led to another rift with Becky who claims to have been concerned about my whereabouts after she went back to the room at 8pm. I have never been shouted at so rudely, and I felt enough was enough.
Today was my rest day, so I paid up at Big Blue resort and moved to a bungalow at Siam Scuba - more expensive but much nicer and with my own balcony, big bed and clean bathroom. It was a good deal.
So I spent today chilling on the beach, reading, catching up with other divers at Big Blue and having fun.
Just eaten very greasy Thai meal and feel a little bloated and sick but will have a cocktail now to sort that and then head to bed. Tomorrow I have to meet the dive team (the advanced course divers) at 6.45am to head out to Chumpon Pinnacle. I decided I wanted to do a deep dive to 30m which is part of the advanced course.
This is because there are sharks at Chumpon and if you go down that far they are actually swimming around you instead of below. Also, in Australia some of the best sites are at 30m depth and its better and cheaper to dive here.
So then, on to Cambodia. Not sure when leaving here for definate but maybe Saturday, maybe Sunday. I am loathe to leave this beach idyll where there is little to do but lie in the sun, read, drink, eat and dive.
posted by charlie at 5:44 pm
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