Ko Toa is the best island on the samui gulf to learn scuba diving and has some of the best dive sites in thailand. After a 1hr boat journey I arrive and am acousted by a tout on the boat...decided to choose the one that most professional and thankfully choose the best on the island...the accomodation was the best Ive seen in 2mths and the instruction was excellent...Bans Diving School should anyone fancy learning...well worth the money! To be honest I did not realise how much theory/physics was involved in scuba diving...to be honest I thought they just put a tank on your back and something in your mouth and you was way...how wrong I was. I had home work and test/exams and criteris's I had to pass...I did struggle on most of it if Im honest...thank god I got teamed with a good buddy (raf helicopter pilot) and stayed up til early hours revising....anyway the hard work pulled off and I got well above minimum exam pass! So result I qualified as an open water scuba diver...but then by that time I was hooked it honestly is amazing what is underneath us in the ocean (anyone reading this thinking of doing it DEFINATELY go for it) . With my good pass result and 5 dives under my belt I then thought what the hell live for the moment, I was enjoying it so then went onto the advanced open water scuba diver course...and of course qualified. I had to do a night dive in pitch dark...wow definately not my thing I perfer to see where Im going, an experience though. Well Ive now got 9 dives under my belt and want more...have already checked out other countries where Im going on my travels..think vietnam is going to be my next dive place! The last 3 days in Ko Tao there were tropical storms and the sea was changing most boats to and from the island were cancelled...and I had to dive in these conditions! Well I had to take the catarman to the mainland as there was no other way off the island and my visa runs out tomorrow also I have to meet Lewis to move onto Cambodia.... This is a story in itself...the sea was that rough it was like riding the big one at blackpool non stop for 2 hours...I brought my lunch up 3 times. I am never never doing a catarman trip again...visa or arranged meeting of someone sorry! I turned green and had to spend most of the journey outside at the back getting wet through clinging on for dear life and panting like I was in labour! Sea sick at its worst! Then followed by a 11hour overnight train journey to bangkok...the cabin was minus -30 Im sure...frooze all night, and have now mastered sharing a single upper berth bed with my backpack and day pack...yes Im moaning because Ive just had the journey from hell...sorry folks! Though on the last note am still loving the journey/experience...watch out cambodia here I come...! Gary