Self contained underwater breathing apparatus
Trip Start
Jun 15, 2008
1
11
36
Trip End
Jun 15, 2009
Ko Samui,
Thailand
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
I mentioned in a previous entry that Tubing in Vang Vieng and Scuba diving in Ko Tao were two of the things that I really wanted to do on this trip. So was it all that I expected? It was that and more.
We checked into our accommodation at 3pm and it was straight into it for us that evening with our orientation taking place at 4pm. During our orientation we learned what was in store for us over the coming three days. One thing we were not aware of was that we would have home work... and lots of it. We were given our open water diver manuals which consisted of five sections and each section had a quiz at the end of it which we had to complete. Not only that, we would be having a test at the end of our course and if we didn't get seventy five percent we wouldn't pass the course Not only were we going to be tested mentally but we were going to be tested physically during the course. The three days that we were diving (One day in pool, two days in ocean) our days would begin at 7:30 am and we wouldn't finish up until around 6pm. Our cries of objection at the orientation fell on deaf ears. We were on holidays for Christ sake, surely they didn't expect us up at 7.30 and then doing homework when we finally finished up in the evening. OH YES THEY DID.
The course was physically and mentally exhausting but also so rewarding especially for Caroline. Caroline is a nervous swimmer i.e. she can swim but just not in the deep end. Well then what was a person who cant swim in the deep end going doing a scuba diving course where you dive to a depth of 18 metres? I think it was just a matter of proving something to herself and that she did.
Scuba diving is nerve wrecking the first few times you do it and that is coming from me, who is confident in the water. Caroline is not, so it took some guts for her to go through with the course. Did the fear of water and diving practically cause her to to cry herself to sleep each night thinking about the following days diving? YES. Did she wind herself up so bad with nerves each day that she became as approachable as a a stray Thai dog with a bone? Yes, But did she go through with the course? Yes.
I'm sure your tired of hearing about our Scuba diving already so Ill just give you a quick overview of our three days diving. Day one in the pool we practiced every conceivable problem that can occur while your diving i.e. mask fills with water, regulator (The thing that you breath into) gets knocked out of your mouth, you run out of oxygen e.t.c. and we practiced the solution to each problem.
Incidentally I think that this Scuba diving course could be tweaked a little so that they don't scare the bejesus out of you at the start of the course. All you hear about at the start of the course is the problems that can occur while underwater and the various ways you can get ill and die while in the water. Just a tip: this isn't the best way to endear yourself to a new diver.
Back to the diving, day two and three were in the ocean, we did two dives each day and again each day we would practice our "Skills" underwater i.e. clearing our mask of water, retrieving a lost regulator and the scariest of all taking your mask off underwater and putting it back on. Thankfully we all did fine and passed the course and by the time we had all done our fourth dive in the ocean we felt comfortable underwater(including Caroline) and were all looking forward to our next dive (Wherever that may be) as certified Open water divers. On the evening of our final dive the whole group got together to have dinner and drinks and watch our DVD which had been filmed that day. It was kind of annoying having this camera in our face earlier that day as we prepared to dive but it was worth it as we laughed and laughed watching it that evening. That night we went to Lotus bar on the beach and partied and made up for three days without alcohol (Not alcoholics, we swear)
So that was Ko tao, absolutely amazing and myself and Caroline were both very sad to leave. The resort we stayed at, Bans, was amazing and our instructors were the best so thank you Neil and Tuf. Also a big thank you to everyone in our group who made the course very enjoyable and helped Caroline all the way through.
We returned from Ko Tao to Ko Samui by Catamaran boat for a few days R&R before we head to Singapore and then on to Australia
