Hey everyone!

Today we went to the Great Barrier Reef!

Our day began early as we headed over to the harbour to board the catamaran which would take us out to the most beautiful areas of the reef.

Naturally, the day trip started with tea (and muffins), and was followed by a briefing on our introductory dive. There was quite a lot to remember and Christina found it a bit scary, but exciting too. It took us 90 minutes to get out to the outer edge of the reef, where fewer tour companies have a permit to visit and the coral is far more beautiful.

At the first stop, we kitted up in our dive gear, ready to start our introductoy dive. We thought it was going to be a slow start, but we were thrown in at the deep end, literally! We had to jump off the boat into the sea, and being able to breath underwater was a very odd feeling.

First of all, we had to complete three tasks to make sure we were ready for the dive, including taking the regulator out of our mouths, then putting it back in and clearing the water from it by blowing out. We also had to clear water from our mask whilst underwater.

Christina hated being underwater and doing the skills, knowing that if she panicked she couldn't get to the surface quickly. After a few attempts and knowing that the group only had a short time underwater, she decided to get out. Alex and the rest of the group carried on, and went deeper down into the water to explore the reef. For 20 minutes, we swam around the coral and spotted a few huge fish and many small, colourful fish. We saw a stingray go past, and had our photos taken by the professional photographer too.

Up above nearby, Christina had grabbed some snorkelling gear and had a nice time exploring the coral around the boat. It was the best coral she had ever seen, as it so bright, colourful, and close to the surface too. She saw so many fish, including huge red fish, and found nemo and many of his relatives as well. It was then time to move to the next site, only a few minutes away, but long enough to have a cup of tea.

At the next stop, we both listened to the snorkelling briefing to know where the best places to snorkel around the boat were. After that, we were soon in the water and swimming in search of turtles. Although sadly we didn't find any turtles, we saw some giant clams, and many schools of colourful fish. Here, the coral was often less than a metre from the surface of the water, so was really easy to admire.

It was then time for lunch, and just as we sat down, we spotted a turtle bobbing around just metres from the boat. Christina was very excited as had wanted to see a wild turtle for a long time. At the third and final spot of the day, we did some more snorkelling (and began to feel like pros at it). We joined the guided snorkelling tour and the very lively guide found us lots to look at. He often swam done to the giant clams and made them close up by quickly putting his hand in them, and got pieces of coral from the seabed for us to touch. When we went off to snorkel on our own, we saw a stingray go by underneath us, a few swordfish just under the water surface, and a huge fish called a Napoleon, which we followed round for a few minutes. It must have been almost a metre long and half a metre high, definitely the biggest fish we had ever seen when snorkelling.

We had a nice relax on the journey back to Cairns, resting our sore feet (sore from wearing flippers all day). The professional photographer had taken some good photos of us throughout the day, and Alex decided to buy the photo of him in scuba diving gear down on the sea bed.

It had been great day and definitely the best coral we had ever seen, and another very nice change from job hunting in Cairns too. Xxx