Shane's Trip Journal

This week I have been on Koh Tao getting my PADI open water scuba diving certification. Koh Tao is an island on the east side of the south Thailand peninsula that is known for inexpensive scuba diving certification. I was scheduled to visit Koh Tao when I first got to Thailand but the tropical storm in the south kept me from being able to reach the island. This trip was essentially one day of travel there and one day back with three days of scuba training. The first day was spit, half in classroom and half in the pool. I was in a group of four students with one instructor and one diver that was doing some advanced training but also helped us with instruction. The half day in the pool consisted of getting the proper fitting gear and learning basic techniques of breathing underwater as well as safety procedures.  The second day was also split half in classroom but this day we spent the afternoon going on two dives around the island. The third day was spent with two morning dives in the ocean then on a boat and bus back to Bangkok. Part of the dives in the ocean are spent doing skills (i.e. take your mask off under water, put it back on and clear the water out of the mask or simulation of your air running out and using your buddy's alternate air source to reach the surface) and the other part of the ocean dives are spent swimming around looking at coral and fish. Everything about breathing and becoming weightless underwater is awkward at first, but after a bit this goes away and you just enjoy the view. The water on the dives was clear to extra clear. There were fish everywhere and the views were amazing. I wish I could have taken a picture underwater to show everyone the beauty but unfortunately not this time. Right now, I am back in Bangkok for a few days. Hope everyone is well and I will touch base again soon.