Today was awesome :) definitely got the bug to get back out there and under the waves to see more! It literally is a whole new world you're travelling through the middle of.
I woke up this morning feeling very nervous, mostly about having to jump into the deep sea with all the heavy gear on! Amy was feeling even more nervous but after a good (free) pancake breakfast we were ready to head off and meet our boat.
We ran through safety procedures and kit and stuff again then kitted up, after reaching our first dive site, white rock. Now surprisingly the nerves had subsided I was so excited to get going. After struggling to get my fins on while trying to keep my balance at the back of the boat I was tiptoeing towards the edge. Hand on face mask and regulator and one on my weight belt and I was taking the plunge, woohoo! I got my bearings floating on the surface and took a sneaky look downwards- WOW! Fish schools and divers climbing down into the depth beneath us. We followed a rope down and made sure we equalised our ears frequently and gently. Before I knew It we were staring at the bottom of the ocean floor surrounded by coral and fish I was struggling to contain my smile while trying to keep the regulator in my mouth! For 45 minutes we followed our instructor and just swam to get used to buoyancy control, breathing and relaxing in this surreal environment! I felt very relaxed, loved it, kept looking up and all around. We saw angel fish, zebra fish, a big puffer fish that was a little too close for my liking, big trigger fish- one had his fin out as a warning we were in his territory! Saw a couple of blue spotted sting rays, nemo fish and a dangerous scorpion fish that wasn't too threatened by us. So many big tropical fish too though all around, I had one big very bright multicoloured fish swim right in front of me for quite a while probably just checking me out!
Our 2nd dive site was Twin rock. Here we had to complete more skills and tasks like flooding masks and using your buddy's alternate air source while kneeling on the sea bed in shallower waters. Coped with this better today but still hating flooding the mask and clearing it!
Tomorrow we go to 2 more dive sites and go deeper. After speaking to two guys today who had just done them I'm even more excited. They say you see so much more and it's a completely different experience :)
Do something new everyday that scares you!