This is the 4th time I have rewritten this blog entry! I've been so busy that I haven't had time to post it and then something new happens which I want to tell you so I have to rewrite it! The last 6 weeks have been the most adventurous, fun, emotional, adrenalin fuelled of my life - I'm addicted folks and here is why...

SoI'm 5 weeks in to my internship at Hidden Depths and have been on the island of Koh Lanta for 6. The Divermaster course is pretty epic, I am really enjoying working at the dive centre but it can be full on. In the main this is because everything is new. You know what it's like to start a new job and the first few weeks are tiring and a bit of a blur, well this is similar but times by 10! My days are either spent reading theory, on the speed boat assisting instructors on courses or practicing guided dives.

Guided dives is where I lead a group around a dive site, but this is not as simple as swimming around with people following you. Oh no, you need to be aware of their air consumption, their level in the water, point out interesting fish and coral, be aware of their safety on and off the boat....and the list continues. Its nerve racking getting it right, but I have good instructors who watch and guide me so I feel in safe hands and know they won't let me (or the customers) get lost ;) The other times I help out and do 'work' this can be either sitting at a table at a 5 star resort answering questions about diving, taking bookings or working at the shop selling dive items. I'm also responsible for washing and preparing kit for customers, so I am fully involved in all aspects of diving. I'm living, breathing and now dreaming about scuba diving!

The other side of Island life is spent going out for dinners or parties with my new dive family where the venue differs every night. I've made some good friends in the last few weeks, however we are going in to low season and people are now moving from the island. When I first started the course there were three other DMT's (a bit like my pseudo siblings!) and they have now moved on. It was nice having people who were going through the same experience as me about to discuss things with and also go out for dinners in the evening. They also provided a great deal of entertainment either through joking about at the dive centre or introducing me to other activities. Sandra, one of the DMT's fought in a Muai Thai boxing match - this was her first fight and she was against a Thai girl who had done 60 fights! The whole dive team went down to support her and we were all very proud when she made it through all 5 rounds!

Although it is quieter now, the owners of the dive company are fantastic at keeping me busy, very welcoming and often organise activities such as a quiz nights (questions about diving plus homemade curry meal) or including me in family meals or party nights on St Patricks day.

Overall I am enjoying it here but there are days which are difficult (as such is life anywhere). One of the reasons for deciding to go travelling and diving was to live in a community abroad and to become apart of it and help out. I have never 'lived' in another country and wanted to see what other cultures and traditions are like and also have the opportunity to give something back. Unfortunately a tragic event that happened a few days ago allowed me to do that.

I had a day off work and spent the morning assisting my instructor with teaching skills to a group of Open Water Students. We had finished at lunchtime and I was starving and went to a local Cafe for brunch with a couple of friends. They left after I had eaten and I decided to stay in the Cafe to finish my blog and post it when I heard a load bang (like a car back firing) outside. As I walked outside to see what the noise was I was greeted by a scene I will never forget. A motorbike had gone head first in to a van and had exploded, a man was still on the bike and a woman was lying next to it.

Now, I am a Rescue Dive, which means that I am trained in first aid and have a basic knowledge on how to deal with emergency situations. Until something like this happens, you never know how your going to act, whether you go in to shock or freeze. As it turns out my instinct was to help, my heart was racing and adrenaline was pumping through my veins, but amazingly my training kicked in and I started running through the mental check list on what to do which I had learned on the course.

The first is to asses the situation and make it safe in order for me to administer first aid, so I ran back and forth to cafe shouting water or Nam (Thai for water). Many people were too shocked to move and were frozen on the spot but eventually the fire was put out, the man dragged to the side and I was able to run to his side and help.

Out of respect to the injured man I am not going to go in to details of his injuries or what first aid I had to administer but I am sad to tell you that he passed away. I was with him for 20mins before the ambulance arrived during which time I felt I did the best that could be done.

When the ambulance arrived they took the man to hospital and at this point I turned my attention to the girl. Luckily another girl was with her who was a nurse so I help her mainly supporting as she was already doing an amazing job.

What struck me at this point is how the community moves and copes with these situations; the Police here do not appear to have medical training and left me and the other girl to deal with the victims. The other aspect which is annoying was that there were many people taking photos and video. I was later told a video had been put on You Tube and Facebook and I was in it. I was none too pleased but the caption was 'Please be careful on the island' so I imagine the intentions were good, just very different to how western society deals with it.

The other odd reaction was that as this was a Muslim island the men did not want to touch the girl so the care was left to myself and the nurse. The call was made to take her to hospital on the back of a Police pick up truck and if we had not volunteered to go I think she would just have been put on the back without a medical person to assist.Even more crazily, it was left up to myself and the other girl to lift her in to the van as the men could not touch her upper half (being a woman this would have been very inappropriate).

It differs to what I am use to but it is not my place or role to question their society or beliefs. I'm just glad I was able to help and in some way give back to the community I have lived in. So we went with the girl to hospital and again I'm not going in to details of care and her injuries but heard recently she had passed away also.

I went to a Buddhist temple yesterday and gave offerings to the monks - my way of saying goodbye and offering peace to them both. It has given me the closure I need.

It's been difficult dealing with this whilst being away from home and not near family & friends but the dive centre staff (my dive family) have been very supportive and have kept me busy, in fact yesterday I did a pool show and 3 people put on dive gear for the first time and I dived with them in the pool. They were all smiles and laughter as they came up. Life is good when this happens and I love that I'm a part of the introduction of this new hobby, which may go on to change their life the way it has changed mine. Diving is not just about putting some kit on and going for a swim: it opens a whole world of new opportunities, a way to travel, meet new friends, to explore the underwater world with beautiful fish and coral, an opportunity to live in a new society, to help people smile and laugh, to challenge yourself both physically (see the photos on Facebook of lifting tanks!) and emotionally. Each day is different and each day I learn, it's fantastic!

Recently, I have been giving a lot of thought as to what next and am considering becoming an instructor which will allow me to teach. Decisions to be made again -I feel like I've only just made the last!

I hope you're all well, this is my open letter to you so please email me your news as I love to hear from everyone.

Take care - Mwah - Julia xxx