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Published: February 5th 2010
Anna
Ko Tao
3rd Feb 2010
Well before we leave I will just briefly describe my diving course.......I actually did the SSI diving course not the PADI (they are the same) as the only difference was that you had to buy the book for 18 quid , which was fine but then I would have to carry it around with me for 2 months........not ideal and everyone else was in the same mind.
I had only 3 in my group, 4 including the instructor Pierre, a french guy who actually sounded English his english was so perfect, so we were really lucky as most other groups had 6-7. I was absolutely gutted that Dave couldn't do the course with me but just got on with it as it is the one of the best and cheapest places in the world to do it. Well....it was an amazing experience, started off my watching videos, doing homework and completing basic skills in full kit in about 2 meters of water just off the shore. We had to take off our gas cylinder, and weight belt and put back on, allow our masks to fill with water and clear and put back on,
the basics really. Really enjoyed it, despite it being soooooooo weird breathing underwater. The first dive was unbelievable as we were really lucky enough to see a whale shark!! Unbelievable, massive, just floating along at about 10 meters deep, surrounded by fish who just follow it about for the ride.....most people do not see this on their first dive! If you haven't seen a whale shark Google it, amazing creature. I have to say that actually going down from the surface holding onto a rope, in a line with other groups was a very strange experience........you just fall deeper and deeper into the blue...and all around you are bubbles, just bubbles from other divers below you and they are in your face and you cant see anything.....have to say I felt slightly claustrophobic! After seeing the whale shark we moved to another dive site....there is so much to learn and remember with your kit and the order in which you do things that its quite intense. We dived to 15 meters on the second dive and I had a pretty horrendous experience. We had to remain on the bottom and perform some skills, easy peasy, we had done them the
previous day. I was asked to fill my mask and clear it which means still breath through your regulator (mouthpiece), pull the mask from your face, let it fill up, put it back on, look up and blow out through your nose while holding it away from you face. Pretty straightforward except I INHALED through my nose.....oh my god.....the panic. You know when you're swimming, just in a pool and the water goes up your nose and ..well you struggle to breath and cough and splutter for a bit? Well I had that problem quite deep down......just couldn't sort my breathing out....it felt like I was panicking for at least 10 mins, but in fact was probably about 30 seconds! My eyes nearly bulged out my sockets in fear.. Pierre was fantastic, clamped his hand over my regulator and just got me into a breathing rhythm.... I think it was the first occasion in my life when I thought 'shit I m going to die...'. I carried on diving no problem. Pierre explained that it happens all the time, its natural to inhale through our nose (but not in water!) and loads of people freak out but I still felt
Dave with sunburn!!
Silly, Silly....you just can't tell some people!a bit stupid and my hands were shaking when I came back to land. I did my 2 dives the following day no problem, and passed my exam so I can now dive at leisure (with a dive master).The coral is just amazing and there is truly a completely different world down there, however I decided against doing my Advanced course as unless its an activity you are going to pursue regularly I don't think you really need it...and I will definitely NOT be diving in the North sea!!!
Ko Tao was my favourite island and after the dive course finished we had a good explore, really stunning beaches..just like you see on postcards, amazing snorkelling, good food, and a really chilled vibe. We met some lovely people and all decided that a visit to the nightly Lady boy show was a must. It was fantastic, the outfits were amazing, dancing passable, miming hilarious and at the end all willing men were dragged behind the curtains, asked to strip and given an outfit, told to tuck their bits away and get on the stage! What a show...I have video!
Unfortunately the island is still a tourist trap (says
us who visited the lady boy show!) and overpopulated, too many motorbikes, quite expensive comparativley but still............a little piece of paradise.
Friday 5th February, 2010
Chang Mai, Northern Thailand
Well we have arrived in one piece and good spirits after a mere 38 hours travelling!!! We left Ko Tao at 11pm on the night boat which actually had bunkbeds...slept like a baby, in fact if Dave hadn't woken me up I would still be asleep now.....becoming a terrible habit that if I sit/lay still for more than 10 mins I fall asleep (must be the heat)! We then, after another bus and a pick up truck got on a VIP bus to BKK (it wasn't very VIP at all in the fact that it stopped at every darned stop on the way and Dave had bums and elbows stuck in his face for half the journey! Arrived in BKK at Ko San Road in time for a beer before heading to the train station. Great journey on the overnight train, 13 hours later we were in Chang Mai and arrived at our pre booked hotel feeling slightly suspicious as we normally see before we book. My how delighted
Trek up Ko Tao
My god, thought i was gonna pass out.... but the view was worth it! we were....swimming pool, nice bar, excellent staff, AC room and all for the sum of 13 quid a night.
We have had a stroll around the city which is very lovely, lots to see and loads of temples, had a quick swim and now we are heading out to the night bazaar for some tasty treats!
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Aimee
non-member comment
Ha!
Your diving sounds amazing Anna - would love to do that! Cannot believe how lady like those lady boys are!!! Haha! xxxx