Birthday Scuba

So, on my birthday, I went scuba diving for the first time ever. I was totally terrified to go.  In fact, Ashley asked me long before the trip if I wanted to go while we were in Thailand, and my response was "hell no." Ashley and our new friend Katie went on May 3rd.  Katie was a first timer too, and after she reported back about how cool it was, I decided that I needed to go too.  Ko Phi Phi has some of the best diving in the world--I couldn't leave without trying it.  Ashley was already certified, and Katie ended up getting her certification while we were in Ko Phi Phi. So, we stopped by the dive shop and signed up for the next day. We also ended up going out drinking with most of the dive instructors that night--awesome! If you ever go to Ko Phi Phi (which you should) I highly recommend Aquanauts.  They were great!

Here is a photo of me and Ashley underwater:

Then I was trying to pose for a picture with my guide, Chris.  I wasn't very good at controlling myself underwater.  This was one of those times when I was floating away.

And, we're back in business.

We saw SO MUCH stuff during the dive. This is a lionfish...

And obviously, this is an eel...

We did two dives that were about an hour long each. Since I wasn't certified, the deepest that I could go was 12m. That was fine by me.  I still never got quite used to it. During our second dive, the current was really strong, which made swimming hard.  However, the second dive was definitely our most scenic.  The end of the dive was actually the scariest part.  When we got back up to the top, the waves were 2M high!  Not sure if you've ever tried to get on a boat from the water with 50 pounds on your back in 7 foot waves, but it isn't easy. One of our guides hit his head on the boat, and Ashley's leg and hand got banged up a bit.  Luckily, I managed to escape without any injuries!