Well....I have always wanted to come to Aussie and here I am and one of the main reasons was to see the Great Barrier Reef!! I think of Oz I think of kangaroos, bbq's (good old barbie) and the great barrier reef. Sooo...cheese as it sounds today really was a dream come true as we went on a diving trip to the reef. Three dives to be exact!!! The Great Barrier reef covers a larger area than the whole of the UK!!!! Apparently you can dive every day of your life and not see all of the reef. It really is incredible. Anywayyy we were a bit nervous about diving but we were in a small group of 5 and our leader was really nice. The equipment was already set up for us, we just had to turn on the air tank, check it was all working, put on our weight belts, wetsuits mask and fins and we were ready to go!! Woohoo!! So one giant leap off the side of the boat and we descended into a magical world of pinks, greens, purples and blues. The first dive we were just getting back into it. It lasted an hour and was fab but we were a little hesitant. We sawe the usual menagerie of colourful fish. Every colour and shade you can imagine. Not just blue but silvery blue, navy blue, sky blue, neon blue, blue and yellow stripes, blue and red stripes, the famous Nemo type fish etc etc.....Apart from the many many fish the cool sight was a giant clam. When I say giant I mean about a metre long. Our dive instructor put his hand near it and it quickly closed!!
The second dive we were supposed to go to a dive site which would have sharks...no not Jaws style don't worry, but reef sharks around a metre or so long. Unfortunately due to weather conditions the currents were too strong so we had to change plan and instead head to another site. We saw a turtle...not a turtle thats a few inches long but a giant sea turtle that was two or three feet long!!! It was just happily swimming around near us and didn't seem in the least bit perturbed that 5 weird looking divers with bright yellow fins and giant goggles were gawping and pointing at it!! It's quite strange actually because none of the fish care about our presence in the slightest. None of them seem scared. They are just in their own little world. We also saw this really beautiful Manta Ray. All the animals swim so effortlessly and it really is a beautiful world just a few metres under the ocean.
The third and final dive was the most spectacular. Not because of the fish but due to the reef itself. We had to jump off the boat while it was mvoing and swim into a current. Bloody hell it was hard work!! The current wasn't a strong one, it was weak but even a few minutes of swimming against it was extremely tiring. I felt like I was going to drift away. It took all my strength to make any progress at all. When we descended we went with the current which was obviously much easier. The dive was fanstastic as we were taken to a reef wall. I can't really describe what it was like. Just imagine a labyrinth of reef. A reef that moves, that has fish hiding in its crevices, a reef that opens and closes as you swim by. Every way you turn has a fascinating sight...do you look at the giant starfish and sea shells (all over a feet wide) on the sea floor?? Do you look at shoals of fish swimming towards you in all imaginable shapes, sizes and colours. Ones with long noses, ones as big as small sharks, hundreds of tiny silver fish??? Do you look at the fabulous living coral which has surprises round every corner??? Or into the the depths of the blue/grey ocean where anything could be lurking?? Not to mention concentrating on the actual diving- controlling buoyancy, checking how much air you have left, checking that your dive buddy is close, watching the diver leader, seeing what he is pointing out, whether it is a sea cucumber or an unusal fish.
We get a bus to a small town tomorrow! Will update you soon :-)
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