Day 56 - 30th March 2010

It's the last day of Reef Check today and Si is starting team teaching an Open Water Course so couldn't come out on the boat.  He was pretty gutted, as it turned out to be 'Speedy', Crystal's speedboat.
Apart from yesterday morning, we'd never been on it and now it's two days on the trot for me.
I waved goodbye to Simon and we headed out to the 'Lighthouse' reef which is on the other side of the island.

Today the students are doing their final survey on a shallow (5m) transect 100 meter line where the findings will be logged onto a global database and I headed out with Katti (another Instructor) to survey the deep transect line (10m).  I took the Invertebrates survey as I find that a lot easier than identifying fish ;-)

The visibility was pretty good, an array of coloured coral, abundance of fish.  I was amazed at the lack of sea urchins and sea cucumbers compared to Mae Haad reef.

After Katti and I  had finished the deep survey, we headed off for a fun dive as we still have lots of air left so we headed off trying to find some caves but unfortunately didnt find them and got attacked by a couple of large Trigger fish which was fun  ..NOT!

Back at Crystal we collected the data and transfered it onto forms which Nathan will later log for global use.

In the evening, I caught up with a few people in the bar whilst waiting for Simon to finish his academics with his student before heading home.

Jen

Day 55 - 29th March 2010

Early start this morning, and we squeezed on to the speedboat with some Divemaster trainees.

We were out purely for a fun dive and our mission today was to find a fish we had never seen, The Pink Tailed Triggerfish. We had some information about where 1 or 2 were living on a particular dive site called "Red Rock".

So we began our dive, and went North from Red Rock for about 40 mins and were just about to turn around when we saw them... Awesome fish, very timid (unlike there big cousins!).

Mission completed, we headed back to the boat and ran in to 3 Titan Triggerfish (the big cousins)...   One of them was massive (comparable to a pickup truck engine!) and was very aggressive.. After swimming out of his area, he swam around a rock and hid hoping we would come past... so he could attack again! Cheeky damm fish!

In the afternoon,  we were out on the longboat this afternoon helping with reef check.  It's easy diving just pointing out Substrates, Invertebrates, Fish and any other oddities to the students

Back on land we gathered to discuss their findings and Nathan went through some of his books pointing out numerous corals and discussing what students noticed with regards to coral bleaching, disease & various causes   ..doing the Reef Check course really does make you look at the dive sites in a different light.

Both pretty tired and sweaty we headed home.  Popping into 'Kanya' our favourite Thai restaurant on the island so far to get a take away

Jen

Day 54 - 28th March 2010

Today we're helping Nathan out with Reef Check as a few of the Instructors are taking the course.

This morning they're in the classroom doing academics so we went to Deep Down Productions so that Si could print out some of the outlines for the Documentary Course that he's building whilst I began to read a book that one of the guys gave me.

After reading a couple chapters and Simon's printing complete, we went to Crystal and waited for Nathan and the Reef Check students to finish their classroom work before heading out on the longtail.  Nathan gave a briefing, for today, the students just had to identify substrates, invertebrates and fish (certain types) just to get them into the swing of things along the transect line (100mtr line)  We've helped out numerous times with the course and we're still continually learning with each dive that we do.

After an hour or so, we surfaced after the students had a go at trying to identify each category and then headed back to the beach where we discussed the days findings.

That evening for dinner, we headed to 'Safety Stop' for a Sunday roast and a game of Settlers of Catan.

Jen
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Day 53 - 27th March 2010

Last night was such a laugh.   After going doing to 'Vibe' at around 8pm there was hardly anyone there so Si and I went for a stroll along the beach and grabbed some food at 'Blue Wave' restaurant and then on our return to 'Vibe' the bar was full  ...so many people from Crystal were there for Mark's (Instructor) leaving do.
Little Dave who runs the bar put made a speech and wished him farewell and then announnced that anyone that wanted to buy Mark a farewell shot, it'd only be 50baht  ...so as you can imagine, he had loads lined up on the bar :-D    An hour on or so Simon and I decided to leave and go to 'The Castle' to meet up with Nathan & his wife Tracy who were already there.  At the entrance we paid to get in and received an disgusting orange shot and then looked for Nathan & Tracy who were already on the dance floor. 
As the evening progressed, more people from Crystal turned up and then the heavens opened.  It was quite a weird experience dancing whilst getting totally soaked.  Steve (from Crystal) who was Dj'ing there did a brilliant job and managed to mix in 'Take me dancing, naked in the rain'   ..anyway, after beers & buckets, we left around 1.45am

When we woke it was chucking it down.  Once it had just about stopped, Si went out to get some breakfast.  My museli, fruit & yoghurt turned out to be only fruit, so with that he headed back into Sairee to get what he's paid for.   When he finally returned we sat and enjoyed our breakfast watching Eastenders.

Later in the afternoon we popped down to Crystal to see if any new Open Water courses were starting but it's all a bit quiet at the moment and the English ones dont start for a few days.
Waiting around in the Crystal bar we chatted to a few people and then popped down the road to check out 'Airshot' very similar to paintball but with pellets for Cartsons (Instructor & Si's ole mentor) birthday which is on the 5th April.  Last year we played paintball which great fun but boy was it hot.

In the evening we stayed at the Crystal bar and watched a video and then we were supposed to go to dinner at Cafe Del Sol with a few of the DMT's as it was one of their birthdays but when we got there, they were no where to be seen.  As it was busy they must have gone elsewhere, we didnt have their tel no's so checked a few places and then decided to give up, grab some food and went home.

Jen

Happy Birthday Dad!

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday dear Pops!

Happy Birthday to you!

Day 52 - 26 March 2010

It's our day off today and we both woke around 10.30.  I was shocked  that we managed to lie in for that amount of time, especially Simon.


After catching up with work & emails I went to collect our washing.  The Thai lady in the office looked at me blankly and said  'I have no washing for you'.  it had mysteriously disappeared or someone else had taken it.  We checked the washing line, she called her boss who clearly remembered me bringing it in  ..but it was no where to be seen.   I was told to come back later and 'Sorry, Im Thai'   ..whats that got to do with it I thought.  Simon wasnt pleased at all as it was most of his clothes.

 After that saga, we popped down to Crystal to see if there were any Open Water courses starting that we could team teach on, unfortunately there were only German & Dutch starting  ..so we headed off to grab something to eat at Cappucino's Coffee house.  I had museli, banana and yoghurt and Si had 2 poached eggs on toast.

It seems blisteringly hot today so we decided to go for a swim at Crystal Regal pool   ..this is where our friend Scott stayed.  The pool was pretty quiet apart from a bunch of open water students doing their confined session at one end of the pool.  So Si and I mucked around in the rest.  After a few hours of handstands, being half drowned and races we dried off and came home, only stopping for toothpaste, crisps and water.

Tonight we're off to 'Vibe' beach bar with a crowd of people and then going onto 'The Castle' club where one of the instructors are Dj'ing  ...should be interesting.

Day 51 - 25 March 2010

Jumped on the bike and headed into Sairee, what I forgot to mention yesterday that we found a Ikelite housing for Si's little Sony Hanycam and I've decided to buy it as it's half the price it should be, as it was ordered in by mistake.   So, now I will be filming underwater.  YAY!!!   In comparison to Si's, it's tiny!

Before the boat arrived the beat up truck that carry's Scuba Tanks, got stuck in the sand, so Simon and some DMT etc... helped get it moving... it took a while and looked like hard work!

I'd earlier tested my new camera housing in the pool to make sure it didnt leak  .. then Si mounted the camera inside.

On the boat I was very excited to get in the water and do some filming.  Si didnt take his monster camera out as at the last minute we were asked to lead some fun divers.

Our first dive was at 'Twins'  usually lovely and clear but because of all the coral spawning, it was 5 meters vis tops and very disappointing.  I didint really film anything apart from a couple of Angel fish and clown fish.

The Second dive was at 'Japanese Gardens'  Looking from the boat the vis looked good so I was raring to go.  In the water, the vis deteriorated the further we went so we just circled a small area and lo and behold an Eagle ray gracefully swam past.  Then from out of nowhere all the trainee videographers appeared and were chasing it so they could get a good shot, not really the thing to do but hey, they're still learning, says she, who's only filmed a couple of times :-)  I did managed to get a few seconds of footage though in all the chaos, which I was pretty amazed at as I couldn't see properly as my mask kept on fogging up.

Back on land we washed our kit, reviewed my footage and then dropped my new housing back at 'Deep Down Productions'.  Back at the Crystal bar we watched Tina's open water video for a bit and then shot off to Sairee to meet with Alan & Heidi (our old landlords) for dinner.

After eating and drinking too much we arrived back at home around 9.30pm  ..I really must stop eating when I'm full but the food is just so good...!

Jen
x

Eagle Ray

Jen's 1st day using her housing and she captures a Juvenile Eagle Ray...

(Very rare on Koh Tao!)

With poor visibility, its not the greatest footage... but nice..

Get Well Soon

News has reached me from the UK, that my Nan is currently unwell, and is in hospital.

So I would like to wish her a GET WELL SOON!!!

Jen and I are thinking of you...

x

SD

Day 50 - 24 March 2010

We were on the afternoon boat and pretty excited as we're taking my Nikon D70 stills camera and Simons Z1 HD camera out to film.  After dropping our kit at the boat we went back to 'Deep Down' videographer base to prep our camera's for this afternoons dive.  I didn't have a problem carrying mine but Si's camera weighs 35 kg and is really awkward to carry  ..finally on the boat and set up we arrived at 'Green Rock'  jumped in and the visibility was terrible.   We ended the dive after about 15 minutes as there was no point on filming anything and for some strange reason, my camera wouldn't take any pictures  ...dont know what's going on there.
Back on the boat, we dried my camera and saw that one of the springs had come loose, surely that was the problem but on the second dive at 'Pottery Pinnacle' I was still unable to take any shots.   I think I'll have to get the manual out ;-O  I can't believe that the visibility is so bad, it's just typical!   Oh well, at least we both know that the underwater housings are ok.

Night Dive -  This was our first night dive in over 10 months  ..I wasnt really expecting much as both dives today were pretty rubbish but fortunately it was amazing, Sting rays galore, baby moray eel, tiny crab, huge barracuda, not to mention all the stunning coral that comes alive at night.  I think because Nathan (Eco Warrior) was leading, we noticed so much more.  Coming up from a dive like this reconfirms why we dive.  I no longer cared about the previous two pants dives  ;-D

Back on land we washed & packed our kit away  and then headed to Dirty Nelly's for a drink with Nathan, his wife Tracy and one of his students, Natalie for a beer and then headed home..

Jen
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Day 49 - 23 March 2010

Today we were diving with New Heaven Dive School in Chalok as Nathan sent us a  text last night saying he could do with our help to do some random quadrant surveys on the Bio-rock.(metal domes that have a low electric current running through them to promote coral growth - see older post 11/02/09)

Diving with 'New Heaven' was a new experience as we had to ride to the other end of the island, then wait for a taxi which had all our dive kit in, the get on the longtail with our bags to get to New heavens dive boat which was tiny compared to Crystals and then headed out.

Once moored up we all kitted up and jumped in.  Si and I took slates and a large meter square which was sectioned off with rope into 25 sections.  With this we were going to each of the metal domes to estimate the growth & type of coral within the square placed at 120,150 & 180 degrees and at 1, 2 & 3 meters from bottom.  Whilst doing this the rest of the team looked for broken living coral that could be transplanted onto the biorock, then attached it.

On the way back to the boat, Si spotted a massive puffa fish on the seabed which didnt move when we approached which is slightly odd, perhaps it was sick, not too sure.

On land, we gathered and recorded our findings whilst we grabbed lunch in at 'KopPee' coffee shop.
Back at Crystal we waited for our kit to be taxied back and then when it arrived, washed it and packed it away.

That evening after going home and showering, we nipped back to Crystal for a couple of beers and to watch aa open water video and then shot home after picking a takeaway at 'Kanya's'   There food is just delishious!

Jen
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Day 48 - 22 March 2010

I think it must have been around 5am when I woke to the sound of Simon being sick. I got up to check on him but he'd locked the bathroom door and was crashed out on the floor but I heard a groan and the click of the lock, poked my head in and he was feeling very sorry for himself and returned to bed a few minutes later.  I thankfully didnt feel that bad, a heavy head and tired but that was it. 

A couple of hours of sleep and Si was still feeling sick but didnt want to be, so we kept drinking (water) with the odd cup of tea in between.  Most of the morning was spent lying down with the odd bit of sleep. We eventually surfaced around 12 and walked into Sairee for breakfast as we both needed to eat.  The only thing Si fancied was a cooked breakfast, so we went to 'Choppers' and ordered two big bottles of water each, a coke and a full english breakfast (one veggie of course)
I was ravenous and Si was struggling big time and only managed to eat half of his as he was still feeling sick.

After breakfast we walked along the beach, back to 'Vibe Bar' to collect the bike where we had sensibly left it last night.  The sun was so intense, even though it was just a couple of yards, it felt like a mile.  Finally making it to the bike we hoped on and took a slow ride home, stopping for more water on the way and straight back to bed for a couple of hours sleep.

In the evening Si felt slightly better and thankfully the sick feeling had gone.  As the thought of going out and even seeing alcohol made us both feel ill, we decided to get a pizza takeaway and watch Lost and The Apprentice in bed

Jen
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Day 47 - 21 March 2010

Last night was brilliant!   It was sheer chaos at Nathans, everybody  trying to get hair, make up and costumes on, beers being passed around and photo's being taken.  The time just flew by and before we knew it, Nath has a call to say 'where are you guys', with that we all hopped on the bikes and headed to 'Vibe' bar to gather, pick up a couple of props and then marched down the beach full pelt to the festival.

When we arrived, our music intro had already started so we rushed on stage on stage and took our positions.  Such a wave of excitement as the lights came on and we did our routine.  Due to a tree in the middle of the stage, we changed the routine slightly but I think last night was the best performance of all :-D

The aftershow celebrations began, cheering, hugging, congratulating each other, we'd done it, all that preparation had paid off.  After a late and very drunken evening we went home. Video coming soon....!


Today is Simons Birthday.  We both woke up feeling a bit worse for wear  ...I got up make tea and a egg sandwich and gave Si his cards & prezzies to open whilst giving him various renditions of Happy Birthday!

As we were not diving today the day was ours to do as we wanted, so we stayed in bed for another hour or so watching tv.

Afternoon approached so we decided to venture out to the festival to grab some food.  We had our minds set on Mexican as the taco's on one of the stalls looked really good.  I got a chicken and Si a vegetable one.  Whilst pottering around, we bumped into Alan & Heidi so sat with them for a bit and tried to eat our taco's without too much mess.
Half an hour or so in the sun was enough and feeling dehydrated and tired, we snuck off home to lay down and watch a movie.

Around 7pm we were feeling more alive and headed to Dirty Nelly's to watch a friend's Open Water Video, stopping at Nathans on the way to collect a birthday cake for Si, disguised in a black bin liner.   It was so hard trying to keep it secret, especially when your mode of transport is a bike with Si riding it :-D)  Anyway, even though I think he knew, I shot into Dirty Nelly's kitchen with Tina, placed the candles on it and then felt really guilty that it was videographer Dans Birthday too, so got the chef to cut some carrot up and added his name. Then after the video, got both Si and Dan to cover their eyes and I brought in the cake whilst we all sang Happy Birthday   ...Argh!  I think Si (they) liked it!

So Birthday cake cut and eaten, we headed to the festival to catch Big Blue Dive School perform 'Thriller' on stage.  As we parked, we could here the  Thriller music, so ran to the stage to catch the last of it.  They looked pretty good but were they as good as us the night before  ...who knows?!

The rest of the Crystal crew were about watching Mr & Mrs Koh Tao (people up on stage with home made recycled costumes) so we gathered and started drinking.  Poor Si was being bought drink after drink, shot after shot.  Im not surprised we staggered home...

Jen
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Day 46 - 20 March 2010

Woke pretty early and cooked breakfast whilst Simon put the finishing touches on the graphics for tonights performance of the Crystal Horror Show.

Around 2pm we ventured down to the Festival to see what was happening and to meet up with some friends.  The entrance itself was pretty impressive, a huge straw tunnel decorated inside with white strips of material hanging with fish made from recycled plastic bottles painted with neon. Around the festival, giant sea creatures hung from trees & ropes, food stalls lined one side while other areas were set aside for pictures & information boothes as to how people can help, what they've already done to preserve the island & it's reefs.

The main stage was finally finished. A reggae band were rehearsing and  I felt pretty excited that we were going to be up there later performing  OMG!!

A couple of hours later we headed home to relax before the show as we were all meeting at Nathans to get ready and obviously have a few beers for dutch courage.

Day 45 - 19th March 2010

The morning was spent at home, I collected washing and tidied up whilst Si did some work.

Around midday we hopped on the bike and headed to Crystal as today there was a 'Dive Clean Up'.

Today's clean up was just off Maehead beach.  As there were 20 or so of us, Nathan was going  make 2 trip in the longtail.   The drop off point was 'Junk yard' the artificial reef that Simon & I  helped create.  Once there, divers would drop in and then head straight back to Crystal, collecting any rubbish on their way.

After setting up Nathan briefed us all and then we split into small groups making sure that the less experienced were paired with instructors.  All equipped with mesh bags, scissosr for cutting nets tangled in the coral and compasses, we were ready to go.  

Simon & I had been put with two newly qualified divers.  Once in the water we descended we were on  the hunt for rubbish.  I was astonished, 30 or so minutes into the dive and all we had was a plastic back.  By this time we were probably only 50 meters from Crystal and it was getting very shallow, so Simon put up his safety sausage (SMB) just in case any longtails decided to drive straight over us.
I was pleased but dissappointed by the lack of rubbish we found  ..it wasnt until the last 15 meters or so that I found a bucket, fishing line, sack and some plastic  ..so that was pretty satisfying.

Once everyone had made it back, we sorted our finds into different baskets washed our kit and then packed it away.   We all then gathered for a couple of photo's, holding the ' Dive Site Clean Up' banner.

Back at home, we had a couple of hours to relax and then at 6.30, had to meet Rocky Horror Crystal team down at the stage where the festival is being held for a quick rehearsal.    What we hadn't expected is a bloody great big tree in the middle of the stage ..why on earth they've set up the stage around a tree, God knows.  Anyway, we had limited time so we just about managed to go through our routine making a few adjustment due to the tree.  After only 10 or so minutes we were told to clear the stage so all decided to go back to the Koh Tao Regal and practice some more.
I just hope everything will be ready when we arrive tomorrow night to perform.....

Day 44 - 18th March 2010

By the time I woke this morning, Si had already done a couple of hours of work and then ordered me to stay in bed, whilst he cooked a delicious breakfast of egg & beans  .. he even stuck an episode of Eastenders for me to watch  ...life is so hard sometimes!! ;-D

Today, all we had to do was to go down to Crystal, so Simon could sign off his student before he left and then go to the Crystal Rocky Horror rehearsals at 7pm and that was it.   Oh, plus we were going to meet Nathan at the cabaret bar at 4pm to see if we could hire some costumes for the show.

After Simon had sorted his student out with all his paperwork, went home to chill and then what seemed only half hour or so, jumped on the bike and met Nathan and Rob at the cabaret bar to see what costumes they had.  After much laughter as you can see from pics we were sorted.

Jenny with Tina's outfit

  Nathan loving his costume.

Rob loving his far too much!

 The only costume they didnt have was my maids outfit ..so we shot up to the market to see what we could put together.  I ended up buying a little black dress with fishnets & hopefully one of the girls has aquired a little white pinny.

Rehearsals went well and we all felt pretty confident with the routine, so we finished around 10 and then grabbed some food and went home.

Jen
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Rescue Course Video Part 5

Final Part....!

Rescue Course Video Part 4

Part 4!

Rescue Course Video Part 3

Video Part 3!

Day 43 - 17th March 2010

Happy Birthday Chris & Happy St Patricks Day!!   

------------------------------------------------

Today was supposed to be a rest day and the only thing Si had to do was pop down to Crystal to complete his Rescue divers paperwork and then come home which I was pleased about as I felt pretty lousy.
So while he was out I showered, dropped off our laundry and walked into Sairee to get a couple of essentials, tissues included as my nose is like a tap at the moment.

On my way back, Si called to say he was on his way.  Then 2 mins later he called again saying that he had to lead fun divers on the afternoon boat  and wasn't too happy.   If only he'd left 2mins earlier. So much for a rest.   We were supposed to go night diving but as I was congested, thought it best not to dive and I could have assisted on the advanced course but I dont think that would have been wise.

So I spent the afternoon resting and to be honest I was pretty bored.
Si returned at 6 ... we both jumped in the shower and headed back to Crystal to watch Simons 'Rescue' video.  On arrival at Crystal there was a buzz of excitement as all 7 students were there and it's the first time in years that a 'Rescue' course had been filmed.  As we sat and watched I was really impressed, they'd done a good job and as for a first Team Teach, Simon was brilliant!  So very proud.

As it's St Paddy's day, we headed to Dirty Nelly's for a couple of beers whilst the Rescue students were getting absolutely hammered.  I don't blame them as the Rescue course is full on, such a sense of acheivement at the end of it.

We ducked out pretty early, and they carried on till the wee hours...

Jen
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Rescue Course Video Part 2

Video Part 2! (2nd attempt!)

Rescue Course Video Part 1

Thanks to Justine and Deep Down Productions for the following footage of the Rescue Course that I just finished teaching.

Its a long one, so you may need a cuppa at hand...

Also, please read this blog before viewing to understand what is happening!

I have cut it into 5 segments for easier viewing.

Ta

SD

Day 41/42 - Koh Tao - 15/16th March 2010 (Jen)

Day 41

Simon had to be at Crystal at 6.45am for his Rescue course so that meant, I had to be up too.  Not too keen on all these early mornings!!

Even though I didnt have to be there until 9am,  the previous night Iain informed me that I had to take the students throught the exam on my own and if possible do there swim test with them as he was urgently needed to lead fun divers.  So this gave me a couple of hours to go through the exam.  The last thing I wanted, was to mark their exams and not be able to explain in detail any incorrect answers.

9am sharp the students gathered and I handed out the exam and left them to it.  I need not have worried as there were only a couple of  incorrect questions which took little explanation and everyone passed :-)

As it was still early, I gave them a 15mins break and told them to come back ready for their 200 meter swim test & their 10 minute float.   When they returned, I gave them the choice to do a 300m snorkel off the beach instead and that went down very well.

They went to grab lunch and return, by that time I'd packed their bags (BDC, Fins, Westsuit) ready for Open Water Dives 1 & 2, Iain was back from leading fun divers and we were ready to go.

Mango Bay - Dive 1
On the way, Ian briefed the students for the dive and I took notes. 
Once in the water we snorkelled toward the beach, stopped, did a few surface skills (Weight/BDC  & Cramp removal) then did a shallow 5 point acsent.    Maybe 5m down, we lined them up and did a few more skills and then ventured off into the blue  ...Mango Bay is pretty shallow, you'd be hard pushed to exceed the 12m max depth for dive 1 & 2.

As briefed on the boat, half the students followed Iain and then I followed on with the rest.
It felt really good being responsible for them, seeing them try to get their buoyancy, adding, releasing air and expecting a instant response  ..then, when they saw a huge shcool of fuseliers ..it was magical   Its an incredible feeling to share the wonders of diving and to hear "Wow! that was one of the best moments in my life" when you surface.

Twins - Dive 2
Tanks changed and sat up on deck we gathered for Iains briefing.  I took more notes.
Once kitted up, buddy checked we were back in the water. We ascended down the buoy line and headed to a sandy area to do more skills (mask clearing, partial/full - Alternate air source to name but a few)  then we were off fun diving ..even from dive 1 you can see slight improvements in their buoyancy

Day 42

Chumpon - Dive 3
7 am start and after the briefing we headed downstairs to kit up.  Today the videographer is on board to film our students and the video will be played at Crystal bar at 7pm.  This will be my first video  YAY!
The water temp was 31 degrees and visibility was stunning that you can see the seabed from the surface.
As this dive site exceeds 30 meters we stayed around 16/17 meters.

Twins - Dive 4
Our last dive before the students qualify and I was leading.   After Ian had briefed them we did a free ascent to the bottom  ...then headed for a sandy area where I gathered the students to do there last few skills (Mask flood/removal, Pivot & Hover)  They all completed the skills whilst being filmed with ease and then I signalled and they all followed me for a fun dive.
I spotted a blue spotted ray which they were all very excited about and then bumped into a trigger  ..which was just chilling  ...then further on we went to see Nemo, a family of clown fish who's home is circled with stones primarily to stop students getting to close and destroying Nemo's home.
On our safety stop Iain pointed out a Scorpion fish which was cunningly disguised on the pinnacle,  I wouldn't have spotted it in a million years.

Back on land after washing and handing back in our kit we took the newly qualified students to retail to have their photo's taken for the PADI cards and then gathered back in the bar area where Iain & I double checked their student files, ensuring all the necessary documents were signed, dated, quizes, knowledge reviews enclosed.

After congratulating them, Ian spoke to them about ConEd where 4 out of the 6 decided to do their Advanced Open Water, which is just brilliant. 

Later on Iain showed me the sections that I had to complete on each student file and then I probably spent the next hour or so just signing off all the portions  ..Argh!!  It's pretty repetitive but I now have 6 certs to my name :-)

That evening, our video was playing, so we met at the bar and chatted about their whole experience. 7.30 came and it was their turn to be in the spot light, so we all gathered on the beanbags  ..Dan, videographer has done a super job, great music, footage and I felt really proud.  My first Open Water Students!!

Jen
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Day 38 - 41 Koh Tao - 13th - 16th March (Si)

Man, I'm tired....

The last 4 days have been very early starts and late finishes. Was it worthwhile? I'll let you be judge.....

Day 38 - I took Jen in to Crystal to start her 1st ever Open Water course, and while I was there I checked the board to see if I was down for anything... I wasn't :-(

Then Kiwi (New Zealand instructor) came around the corner. He suggested that I Team Teach his Rescue Course with 7 students!! Very daunting....

Of course, I said "Yes".. and had a couple of hours free before the students arrived, So I hooked remotely into work and finished a DVD for a client. Upon finishing, I had 10 minutes to grab an Egg sarnie, and shoot into the classroom.

Feeling quite shy at this point, I sat in the corner making mental notes of how Kiwi teaches in class. They spent the morning completing the first 3 chapters of their Rescue Diver manual., before breaking for lunch.

After lunch, it was time to go the pool for Rescue Scenarios. This is where they learn techniques and procedures for rescuing, but in a safe environment.

We spent 6 hours in the pool teaching stuff like "Surfacing the Unresponsive Diver" and "Quick Reverse" etc... before packing up... Then just as the students were about to chill out, we dragged them down to the beach to work on "Beach Exits". Tired and aching, they were glad Day 1 was out of the way.

For Jen and I, the day was not over, and we went to Rocky Horror rehearsals for a couple of hours, before grabbing takeaway food, and sleep.

DAY 39

Up early, and met the students... they were all very excited about spending another few hours in class. Instead of being in the back like yesterday, it was my turn to Teach. So the next few hours was spent with me saying words like Emphysema, Pneumothorax, Mediastinal, Sub Cutaneous... it was a mouthful...! Then I sat them through their final exams. They all passed. That was the theory out of the way.

The students sitting the exams..

We broke for lunch, and then went on to the boat with 2 DMT's (Divemaster Trainees). After arriving at Japanese Gardens, where mayhem started.. The DMT's and instructors all get in the water (secretly) and do various scenarios for example, A panicking diver on the surface, or Unconscious diver on the surface.

These scenarios certainly put them through the mill and they were extremely disorganised at first. Very typical. They nearly 4 minutes to kit up and get in the water to "save" someone. Once they arrived at the various "victims"... they would usually approach incorrectly, in which case they would get dunked underwater, whether they were wearing equipment or not!.

With me keeping them busy, Kiwi disappeared to place a safety sausage as a "missing diver".. Once he had resurfaced it was time for all of them to find the "missing diver".. The correct procedure is to ask the buddy (Kiwi) for relevant information... These guys just dropped down in to the water... fiddled with compasses for about 10 minutes, having no clue where to go... eventually I used my tank rattle and got them to get a move on... They went in a random search pattern, and the lucky gits, came across the safety sausage. Then the DMTs, Kiwi, and I became the "missing divers" and the students had to safely bring us up to the surface. This is a dangerous procedure, similar to an Emergency Ascent, but because we are "unresponsive", the students have to inflate our BCD to bring us up... On the way up, I had my hand on my dump valve, in case I needed to drop my air as quick as possible. We went from 16m to the surface, in about a minute, with my computer screaming at me.... Once on the surface, the students had to carry on with rescue breaths etc, and drag me back to the boat.... Then we stopped the exercise, and all jumped back on board to head to the next dive site.

At "Twins" , we moored up and spent more time practicing surface scenarios like the previous dive site. Once we were satisfied with there performance, we took them for a fun dive. Along the way we would introduce problems like spitting the regulator out, or ripping our masks off, simulating out of air problems, to get them to deal with potential underwater situations.

At the end of this, it was time for "missing diver" again... So after another quick ascent, with my computer going bonkers again... it was time to get the "victims" up the ladder of the boat.. This is a single person exercise, and can be VERY DIFFICULT.. We spent about an hour encouraging the students through this painful task to carry another person up a ladder. There were nearly tears, and pained looks... but once they had done it... they were very proud of themselves..

That was the end of the day for them, and they all retired to bed.. Me, I did more work, and almost fell asleep into my dinner!

DAY 40

In at 6.30am to pack the students bag.... I was super sleepy... The students arrived exhausted and due to the tiring day previously, we decided to go on a fun dive.. I led the 1st dive at Southwest Pinnacle with a total of 11 people in our group (standard group is 4-6).. I have never led such a big group, and in poor visibility... I was constantly alert..

The next dive was Shark Island, and Kiwi led this time... at the end of the dive, we split up and I surfaced nearer the boat than he did!! YAY!

Day 41

The final day for the Rescue Divers, and it was very tough on them.. same scenarios as the previous dives but with more pressure, and sneaky tricks... we pushed them, and pushed them. They were stellar, and at the end of the day, bruised and battered, they were very proud to be Rescue Divers, and I was very proud to teach them. 7 students certifed! SWEET!

After filling out paperwork, Jen and I went to the bar, to watch her first Open Water Course.. I was amazed at how professional, and efficient she looked. Totally blown away.... it looked like she had been doing it for years.. I was quite choked... :-)

We then went for dinner at Dirty Nellys, and chatted with Jens students, before trying to leave early... when I got collared by John from Deep Down Productions... who was very merry... and bought several beers and Sambuca for Jen and I... we arrived in bed at 1.30am...

Happy Birthday Emily!

Just a little note to wish my god daughter....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PLOPSTER!!

Lots of love, Uncle Simon and Auntie Jen.

x

Day 40 Koh Tao - 14th March 2010 (jen)

A tiring but good day.

Yesterday, I spent all day in the classroom with the students, going through knowledge reviews, watching videos, and taking notes on the best way to do things. Today, it was time for some practical work.!

After setting up the students with equipment (Fins, wetsuit, BCD & Tanks) we headed to the bar area and Iain demonstrated how to set up their equipment as they copied then they had to do this another 4 times on their own.  ..after this was mastered we headed for the pool for their underwater skills.

All in all they were very good and I think they'll be fine it comes to their actual dives.

By 12.30 we'd completed all the required skills and foreheads burnt, we all exited the pool and washed out kit and broke for lunch.  The rest of the afternoon was spent in the classroom where they watched more video's and completed all of their knowledge reveiws. ...I find the PADI video's very boring and very dated, God knows what the students think.

6pm and we were out of the classroom, they'll sit their final written exam 9am tomorrow.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!

Just a quick note to say

"Happy Mother Day!"

to Mumsie dearest..

SD

Day 38 Koh Tao - 13th March 2010

Today, we both have got on to our first Team Teach.

Jenny is joing Iain on an Open Water Course.. starting with Academics all day today.

Jenny (as an MSDT candidate) has the role of Team Instructor.. learning hints and tips from a more experienced instructor..

Iain, being a very nice guy, is perfect to gently ease her into the role. Very nervous... I sure she will qualify her first 5 students with flying colours in 3 days time.



Me, I have joined a Team Teach Rescue Diver course with Kiwi and 7 students !!!! This is certainly NOT easing myself in, but being dropped in at the deep end, will certainly make future courses alot easier to manage.

Long days await, with Rocky Horror ehearsals at the end of the day, we went to bed totally shattered!

Day 2 awaits.....

Day 37 - Koh Tao - 12th March 2010

Up early and on the boat to 'South West Pinnacle' and 'Shark Island'

First dive, we buddied up with Kati and had a lovely relaxed dive and we stumbled across a small net which was caugh up on some coral, so spent 10 mins or so at 22m deep, untangling it from the coral and amongst it was a baby moray eel.   The image below shows what kind of devastion this kind of idiocy can do, and why we are so keen to scrap our fun dive and spend the time to clear up other people's mess.

 Anyway, the rant over, we continued the dive.. No bull shark or whale shark unfortunately.  Did see a few divers who were all over the place, knocking into coral which makes me so mad! WHAT IS IT WITH PEOPLE! I know that everyone starts somewhere, but to be able to dive this dive site you need good buoyancy as it is very deep in parts. So if you are at this dive site.. you should know what you are doing. Other dive schools are to blame, I saw no Crystal divers demonstrating such awful skill.

Second dive was much better, probably spotted 4 blue spotted rays, moray eel, couple of puffer fish, some juvenille butterfly fish and saw a trigger fish a couple of times which was hanging around a little too long for my liking.  Kati did spot a scorpion fish sat next to a grouper but didnt tell us  ...I've not seen one here before so was pretty gutted.

Back on land we washed our kit and tomorrow afternoon, depending on the amount students, we'll be starting our Team Teaching  ..feel a little nervous but cant wait to get stuck in.

We're now back home ..Si's, yes you've guessed it  ..WORKING for hours and hours ..and I've done some washing ;-)

Jen
x

Day 36 - Koh Tao - 11th March 2010

The Vibe BBQ was pretty good.  We must have got down there around 8.30pm.  There was a massive queue for the food so we just parked ourselves at the bar and I waited for it to subside before grabbing a sausage in a bun, Si didnt fancy a bread roll so didnt eat.

Our first nights sleep was great.  Apart from getting up a couple of  times to check what was happening outside as there was an almighty thunder/lightning storm going on  ...I slept really well but Si had a very restless night.

After Simon did a couple of hours work and I watched Eastenders we biked down to Crystal with my Ikelite camera housing to test it in the pool for any leakage ..thankfully everything was ok.  We then dried it and headed to Deep Down Productions (2 min walk) as they kindly said I could store it there.   So now, all I've got to do is take my camera down and start taking some photo's on our dives  ...can't wait!!

With that job out of the way we then headed for the phone shop as the phone I'd bought in Bangkok died on me. After looking at a few, I decided on a Samsung.  Cheap, easy to use, what more could one want? ;-)

As we walked out of the phone shop the heavens opened so we ran into a jewellery shop for shelter.  I had a quick look around, spotted and bought a leather necklace.   This wasn't for me but for Simon. He had been given a lovely pendant but the lace it came with was really thin and scrawny so needed replacing. 

Ten or so minutes passed and the rain came.  We hopped on the bike and zoomed home to charged the phone, re-laced the pendant and so that Si could do MORE work.

In the evening we went to Crystal to meet Katti (Finish girl) who'd just arrived back on the island. She was doing her Dive Master training the same time as us  last year and also helped out on a lot of the ECO projects. 

Jen
x

Pin Up Delay

Sorry about the delay, but bad weather has hampered photo taking.

We have our 3 candidates, and shall be posting the photos asap!!

Ta

SD

Day 36 - Koh Tao - 10th March 2010

No diving today   ..instead we're packing our gear and moving down the hill to 'Suksamran' 
I'm going to miss living at Star Villa, having drinks on the balcony looking out over the sea.  It's such a beautiful location but I shall not miss the journey on the bike up the hill.  Our new home is a lot smaller than the appartment but just a short walk into Sairee which will be very handy.

Alan kindly dropped us and all our luggage at our new place and I unpacked whilst Si logged on and did some work.  There's not so much drawer space here but I managed to find a home for everything  :-)

 

It feels a bit weird but I'm sure in a day or two it'll feel like home.

So that was the bags & electronics unpacked, we then decided to go shopping and get some essentials, like bread, milk, eggs,beans, wash stuff, beer & vodka   :-D   As we couldnt possibly carry everything, we're having it delivered, so goodness knows when it'll turn up.


Tonight we are going to 'Vibe' bar to join in on their 3 year celebrations  ..they'll probably be a free BBQ and most of the Crystal crew will be there  ..so looking forward to that.

Jen
x

Day 35 - Koh Tao - 9th March 2010

I didnt get up till 11am.  Si as usual was already up working.  This lady of leisure is great but I do feel guilty as I can't help.

Anyway, we were on the afternoon boat and our first dive was at the 'Lighthouse'  Neither of us had dove this before so didn't know quite what to expect.

One of the videographers Jace, was taking one of his students down so decided to tag along to see what's involved with the videographer course.   Jace gave tips on buoyancy, fin pivots and handling of the actual camera then let the student loose  ..only interferring when needed.  We could both tell that the student was more than over enthusiastic as he darted all over the place.  You could tell that he needed to work on his buoyancy but nevertheless, he was filming lots and doing pretty well.

The visibility today was lovely.   We spotted a few blue spotted stingray, puffa fish and huge schools of baitballs (random small fish)  There was loads of brain, fan and tubular coral everywhere with a diverse  amount of colour.  I really liked this dive site.

Our second dive was at 'White Rock'  and yet again vis was fabulous.  Again we tagged along with Jace trying to spot stuff for them to film.  We bumped into two puffa fish which seemed very aggressive with each other, another blue spotted ray and a huge school of baraccuaa mixed amongst huge baitballs (small random fish)  there were a few triggers about but they just carried on munching.   The last 15mins or so we were just at 8 meters just transfixed on the huge baitballs. 

Tonight we have rehearsals for The Rocky Horror Crystal Show   ..Ggrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaatttttttt!!!

Jen
x

Day 34 - Koh Tao

Another beautiful day!!   Si and I sat outside on the balcony drinking our early morning tea  ...This is the life!!

Today we were on the afternoon boat double diving, going to 'Chumphon'. In the last month or so, Whale shark have been spotted there but as Ive said before,  they must know we are back and have disappeared.

 

Both dives were good, started off with a deep dive of 30mtrs   ..saw a few really big barracuda's, trevally's, slighly shallower we tried to find the lion fish but he's moved  ...the schools of fish in this place is incredible ...at one point I think it must have been a Jack or something going in for the kill and the sound whoosh that you could hear and feel from all the baby fish was unreal.  At one moment I thought that something from the deep was going to appear  ..eerie but brilliant..

Now were are both sat in 'Safety Stop' blogging, working and catching up with mails  ..whilst sipping a strawberry and chocolate icecream shake  YUM!!

Jen
x

Day 33 - Koh Tao

We were on the early boat this morning, so up at 6am.

Finally we get to go to the other side of the island to 'Hin Wong'    Unfortunately the visibility wasn't too great below 15m or so but there were some beautiful fan, whip and table coral. We bumped into a couple or trigger fish which seemed pretty placid and were fortunate to see a couple of razor fish.  At the end of the dive we just  stayed above the pinnacle probably 5-7 meters, the visibility was perfect.  The abundance of colour and fish was just amazing!

Our second dive was at 'Green Rock' which is known for its Trigger fish pitts  ..I think the last time I dove her, one of the dive master trainees refused to lead as she'd been triggered numerous times.  I was pretty apprehensive at first as we ascended and there were at least three trigger fish swimming around.  For some reason, even though it is mating season, they all seemed pretty preoccupied and left us all alone throughout the whole dive.

The dive itself was fabulous.  So much variation compared to the last dive.  Visibility was great. There were a couple of swim throughs, moray eels, huge travelly, angel fish, butterfly fish, huge schools of damsel fish and  I spotted the smallest baby sweetlips ever... they are so cute as they haven't mastered swimming yet and just seem to be doing "The Twist" dance.

After the dives, we headed home, had some lunch and slept for an hour or so  ..these early morning dves really get to you ;-D

That evening we showered and went back into Mae Haad to 'Dirty Nelly's' to watch a couple of Open Water students videos.  The first video, they'd been lucky enough to catch an Eagle ray on film ...so jealous!!
After the films were shown they put the football on (Yawn)  ...so we finished our drinks and went to Sairee to  'Lotus', where we had a beer and watched the guys dancing with the fire poi.   Si was pretty tired so we left after one beer and headed home.

Jen
x

Day 32 - Koh Tao

Tea on the balcony today, was beautiful.  A nice cool breeze swept through the apartment as we got ready to go out.

Our first port of call was to Crystal, to book ourselves on tomorrows morning dive and to collecting our mask & fins as we were going snorkelling today, to 'Shark Bay'.

On arrival we popped into the 'New Heaven' bar/restaurant for a drink and bite to eat.  This place has a reputation for having slow service but we didnt seem to have a problem.   I had a tastey cheese omlette with large bottle of water and Si had a veggie breakfast and shake which took no time at all.
The view from this place was lovely, you could see the whole bay  ..must be beautiful at sunset!

Down headed down the monstrous steps to the rocks we kitted up and got in the water.  We snorkelled for a couple of hours at least, saw the big puffa fish, around 5 black tip shark (slightly disappointing) and a few trigger fish which were pretty chilled.  On our way back in, we snorkelled across the old Bio Rock (basically a metal structure which has a small current running through it to promote the growth of coral) it's been there for nearly two years now and it's pretty amazing to see how much growth there is compared to the surrounding area.

Anyway getting out was pretty tricky, I should have remembered to swim around to where we got in originally as I had done previously with Alan & Heidi but we both decided to take our fins off and climb across the rocks.  I didnt have much success, the rock surface was so slippery, I ended up walking between the rocks and still slipped, cutting my leg in the process.  DOH!

After clambering up the steps and riding back to Crystal to drop our snorkelling gear we headed to the bar for a coke & sprite.  Boy, it's was hot.   Even though we'd been in the sea for most of the day we then decided to go to the pool to cool off.

Dinner was at Safety Stop where we both had a spicy burger (veggie burger for Si) then after writing mails and doing some work, we popped into 'Dirty Nelly's' to have a quick beer and then went home to watch Battle Star Galactica.

Jen x

Top Secret Photos!!!

SCOOP!

An insider has leaked me some undercover photos of Crystal Horror Picture Show rehearsals..

Grainy as they are, we can see Jenny practising what looks like hiding from the audience in one photo.... nerves maybe?



In the other... not sure... maybe she is now so used to the stage and people are attempting to drag her off?


:-)

SD

Day 31 - Koh Toa

Early start today, up at 6am to get on the 7am boat going to 'Chumphon Pinnacle' for our first dive.
On our way, we stopped at 'Zest' to pick up our usual order of a fried egg sandwich then zoomed down to Crystal to gather our kit and headed to the boat.  Morning dives are great, apart from being a lot cooler, generally the dive sites are pretty quiet.

Once in the water we descended to around 22m, anything deeper than that, the visibility deteriorated.  After a couple of minutes, I spotted a moray eel and then saw my first Thai Lion fish   YAY!    It's really odd to think that in Egypt they are everywhere and there is only one solitary one here  ..that I've seen or heard about.
Chumphon Pinnacle is where we saw our first whale shark even though it was only a few seconds.  I think they must know we're back as sightings have been rare. Just after we left last year, it was whale shark heaven here.  Typical!!

Second dive was at Twins ..we had inside info on where the Sea horses were but unfortunately we didnt find them.  Next time perhaps.   Apart from that, the visibility was excellent and we a lovely chilled dive, spotting a blue spotted ray, scribble file fish and at the end of the dive I found someones mask   ..what a result!

Back on land we stopped at the shops and got some lunch and went back to the apartment to eat and then had a welcome snooze.

In the evening we went to a Save Koh Tao meeting where they discussed the success all sorts, past, ongoing, suggestions were made for future projects and whats happening, whats needed for the sucess of this years Koh Tao festival.

After everything was done and dusted, a few of us headed to the 'Flavour' bar for food and then made our way home.

Jen
x

Pin Up Poll

Well congrats to the ladies. They have the most vote for the 1st ever Pin Up of the Month.

We shall select 3 candidates in a couple of days for you to vote for.... and don't worry ladies, next month it'll be Men!

Cheers


SD

Day 30 - Koh Tao

We didnt dive today  ..so just spent the day chilling, catching up with emails and Si edited the footage (which is on the blog) of Buoyancy World that Jace (Videographer) had taken.

19.30 was rehearsals for the 'Rocky Horror Crystal Show'  ...Its really coming together but I think I'd be better if learnt my lines ;-)

After rehearsals we stopped in Sairee for a takeaway  ..Si orderd vegetable fried rice and I had beef noodles and ate that during Eastenders and Gordan Ramseys Kitchen Nightmares   ...boy, was it spicy!!    

Jen x

Buoyancy World Video

Here is a short video of some of the work we have been doing at "Buoyancy World"

Its now complete! YAY!!!

Thanks to Jace at Deep Down Productions for providing the footage while we did the hard work!!

SD

Day 29 - Koh Tao

After having a cup of tea, we headed down to Crystal ....Today we have 15 or so volunteers to help move the last of the bamboo structures at Buoyancy World.  Equipped with 8 lift bags, 2 spare tanks it should be a breeze.

Si & I were again the first in the water to deploy a large metal basket which Nathan had made.
The guys on the boat gently lowered the metal frame into the water whilst we quickly attached our airbags at either end and filled them so the airbags were taking all the strain.  Luckily today the visibility was great, from the surface we could easily see the other positioned bambo so we swam above it, released some of the air from the lift bags and slowly began to descend.  Once at the bottom, we positioned the basket and emptied the lift bags.   First job acomplished.    We then ran a tape measure from the basket to the remaining bamboo that had to be moved.    Two divers were already at the bamboo with spare tanks and regs to fill the liftbags.
After we attached and filled the bags, to the bamboo, we waited  ...and waited   ...where was everyone else?  Finally divers appeared with spare liftbags, which we took and then sent them back with the structures.  It didnt take long before we were on the final piece. As we were both low on air, we made our way back to the boat and did our 3 minutes, 5 metre safety stop and ascended.  Moving structures is pretty exhausting!

Back on the boat we grabbed some biscuits, had a coffee and relaxed.
On our second dive, we had to move another swim through structure only 20 meters or so and then our job was complete.  Only 8 of us went down whilst others went for a fun dive.   Firstly we had to move two concrete slabs 20 meters or so these  holding the structure in place and then two of us stayed with them, whilst the rest lifted the swim through ....it was pretty heavy and took some time to shift but eventually they made it, moved everything into position and Buoyancy World is complete    HOORAY!!!!!!!

As we still had time and air on our side we decided to go and potter around the pinnacle where we were lucky enough to see a huge Porcupine fish and two Scribbled File Fish ...these guys are incredible by the way they change their colour.

On dry land,  we washed and packed our kit away and then grabbed a beer or two at Crystal.  Later we headed off to Steve & Laura's (Instructors) for a BBQ where most of the Crystal crew were.
Their house was lovely, nice living area, big kitchen & pool   .Im so jealous!

Unfortunately for Si, there was no veggie stuff so he ended up not eating at all today.

Jen
x

Day 28 - Koh Tao

Today we were on the long tail boat helping Nathan out with Reef Check Course.  Hopefully all of the Crystal staff will be steered to take this course.  Today we had 2 instructors & one dive master.

After our survey we washed, stored out kit and headed to one of the classrooms to enter the data that we had just taken.  If you remember from last year, Reef Check is where we'd put down a 100meter line and survey a total of 2.5m either side (invertibrates, fish and substrates) and then log the data and send it to Reef Check.

It was really good to hear that each of students found it very rewarding and totally refreshing from instructing all the time.  Its funny how we are blinkered to coral damage, disease especially when you're not looking for it.

Dirty Nelly's was tonights venue as a friends Open water video was being shown.  Not that I watched any of it as Nathan's wife Tracy turned up with her friend Nelly and we got chatting and ended up laughing uncontrollably about the silliest of things   ...boy, it's good to laugh.

I think we retired around 11pm for a good nights sleep.

The Pin Up Vote

Come on guys, place your vote for the Pin Up of the Month (see above!)

You only have a couple of days to vote whether you want to see a Male Pin Up or a Female Pin Up ?

I know what I'm voting for!!!



SD

Day 27 - Koh Tao

This morning woke to find a few Burmese guys climbing the coconut trees in front of our house like monkeys, chopping down the coconuts nuts & palms down. Safety is totally out the window. For each tree they did, they'd get around 300baht ..and that apparently is a good rate. Rather them than me ;-D

In the meantime, Si had spotted a odd looking leaf insect on the inside of the window of our living room ..check it out!

We left the boys with their coconuts and went to the boat for a couple of fun dives... Just us 2.... The first dive was "Twins", visibility was beautiful and we spent most of the time looking for small stuff.

Next dive was "The Pottery". Being a shallow, small dive site it can get a bit tiresome. But today we dive it differently. We jumped off the boat and headed directly south of the dive site. After 10 mins of seeing not very much, we came across "Three Rocks" a little dived site. With a very nice swim through and lots of life such as Puffers, Triggers etc. It added a new element to "The Pottery" Very nice.

We arrived back, washed our gear as per usual. Couple of drinks at the Crystal Bar while Simon did work stuff, and then back home for Eastenders and another takeaway from Kanya, which is fast becoming my favourite Thai food place on the island.

Day 26 - Koh Tao

Today we went to 'Choppers' to catch the World Superbikes 1st Race but when we got there it wasn't on, so refused to order anything for about 20 minutes, then got fed up and left to go to 'Cafe Corner' for breakfast.  There, they were showing the devastation in Chile  ..thankfully our friends Tim & Magda who live Coyhaique, south Chili were not affected (we think).   As for the Tsumami warnings in Hawai, Oz and New Zealand ..frightening stuff.  We're not affect thankfully, being in the gulf has it's advantages. Anyway, walking back to bike we walked passed 'Choppers' again and low and behold, the Superbikes were on  ...typical  ..Si was not happy  at all.

Our afternoon dives were at 'Mango Bay' and 'Twins'   ..The visibility at Mango was terrrible, we could just about see the guys in front of us  ..God knows we were going  ..anyway, 30mins in or so, we headed into shallower water where funnily enough it was crystal clear  ..whats that all about?!  ...our second dive was at 'Twins' diving conditions were perfect!   We showed the group we were with around Buoyancy World.

Since we last dove, structures had been moved and there were a couple of guys down there putting together the massive octopus  ..it's really going to look good once it's finished.  I did a count of the bamboo structures and theres still 30 to move  ..so we'll have to round up a few people for that job.

Back on dry land, we washed our kit and headed for a quick drink at the bar before getting a takeaway.   Back home Alan & Heidi were having a BBQ  ..with music blasting and friends gathered around the BBQ.

We munched our takeaway which was tasty and very cheap (110Baht) whilst things were slowly cooking on the BBQ  ...there was enough in our takeaway for 2 days, portions so big  ..knowing that I had more in the fridge I went for seconds  ..what a gannet I am LOL
There was quite a mixture of people, Thai, French, American and German  ...only spoke to a few of them but they all seemed really nice.  Later, Alan pulled out the biggest tub of ice cream Id ever seen and we all tucked in.  By this time I was more that full  ARGH!!!!   As the evening passed, most of the gang went down to the games room to play pool.  Si, Tom (our neigbour) & Fred retired to our lounge for a quiet drink and chat.

A great evening had!!