So, Next stop on our travels was one we had been most looking forward to since we started planning our trip, scuba diving in Koh Tao. First we had to get to the island from Bangkok though. We took a 1 and a half hour walk to the train station at midday which looking back was unwise as it was hot as hell and along a main road so our lungs were filled with smoggy crap by the time we got there. When we arrived we found out that there were literally no trains available to go anywhere in Thailand as it was the new year and hence the busiest time. We chatted to a woman about buses and booked a night bus to Chumphon for the next day at 7. When we got to the station the next day just on time thanks to some cheeky driving skills by the taxi man (who earned a well deserved tip) we found ourselves in bedlam. Hundreds of tourists trying to do the same thing with about 3 staff to organise it and they didnt know their arse from their elbow. After being largely ignored for ages despite talking directly into their faces we finally got on a bus at 9:30. The bus seemed ok at first glance but was filled with mosquitos and uncomfortable to say the least. Anyway we got to Chumphon about 3am and settled down for a quick kip on a concrete floored shack. Next we were shepherded onto a ferry for the 2 hour boat ride to the island. The ferry ride was awesome and blew away the cobwebs, especially when we first saw Koh Tao on the horizon with crystal clear waters and white sand beaches. We had taken the road through hell to get to heaven.

We arrived at our dive resort which was called Crystal Dive and filled in some disclaimer forms before spending the rest of the day chilling and purging our souls of the darkness the night before. My medical questionaire meant I had to go to hospital as I have had a duff ear since it was caved in boxing once and I couldnt dive till it was given the all clear. The ladies there were great and I had a shedload of wax pumped out of my ear and got the 'fit to dive' stamp i needed to continue plus I could hear better than I had for 6 years - ACE! The next day we were in the classroom starting our PADI open water course. Our group was six strong with 2 other couples and our teacher was a fairly stern chap called Michael. We learnt all the basics like bouyancy, gear set up and the do's and dont's of SCUBA and Kate and I both agreed it was quite nice to be doing a course and learning something again, the first time since uni. That night we went for an all you can eat BBQ where the chef didnt seem to know what meat was what so I was unsure if I was eating perfectly cooked pork or badly underdone chicken, we still filled our boots though. We got talking to a gay couple from Bulgaria called Tito and Vigo (aka the scurge of Compathia for all you Ghostbusters 2 geeks). They were a right laugh and we all decided to hit the next beach along where all the parties were seeing as it was new years eve. We went from bar to bar under a full moon with loads of flying lanterns dotting the starry sky which was beautiful and sampled a few of the legendary Thai buckets which are basically sand castle buckets filled with cheap booze. Pissed as farts we danced the night away and went for a cheeky swim in the sea after to end the night, great stuff.

New years day we did nothing but the next day it was time to get our scuba gear on and do some 'skills' in the pool. Kate had no problems breathing underwater as she had feared and the afternoon was spent floating, diving and spinning about perfectly weightless, giving us a taste of the adventure we would share tomorrow. The next day we took our tests to certify us as PADI divers, Kate and I both smashed it with 96% scores (BOOYAH) and then we went for our 1st dives to 2 places called 'Twins' and the 'Japanese gardens'. We sat for a few minutes at the bottom of the ocean doing skills like taking our masks off underwater and putting them back on while massive hermit crabs and colourful fishes bopped about around us. There's nothing quite like the peace that comes with feeling weightless, the bubbly quiet and being surrounded by so much clear blue water. After our skills Micheal guided us round the reefs pointing out things of interest while we tried not to crash into each other and the beautiful, delicate reefs. During all our dives (6 in total over 3 days) we saw trigger fish, christmas tree worms, sea cucumbers, cleaner wrass, butterfly fish, white eyed eels, box fish, angel fish, clown fish, blue spotted ray, puffer fish, sea slugs, small barracuda, banner fish, 3 tailed wrass, gobi...the list goes on.... We took some videos with our underwater digital camera and it was my first time using it so I hope they come out well enough and if the cameras a bit shaky its probably because I was headbutting a bit of the reef at the time....although it may take some time to get them on here so bare with us.

We did 4 dives on our course and 2 'fun' dives after. The fun dives were the best as we didnt have to do any skills or learning and could just cruise about looking at the gorgeous scenery and smiling. Now we are certified we can dive anywhere in the world together so we plan to do a few more dives and hopefully can upload some more videos soon.

Unfortunately I have temporarily broken the Mac so we cant upload any photos for a while but we shall still try to update the blog as much as possible till then. Next Stop Phi Phi...