From the start of the trip we knew we wanted to do our PADI Open Water Certificates in Koh Tao. The first island on the East coast of Thailand from Bangkok is the dive capital of South East Asia. With over 60 dive schools on the island it is a must do.
We chose to do our course with New Way Diving, a dive school with rave reviews on TripAdvisor. We sent them an email the day before we were meant to arrive and received an email back almost straight away. They offered us a deal we couldn't refuse - the 4 day course with 5 nights accommodation on the beach for 20 000 baht (£420) between us!
We arrived on an over-night bus/ferry ride from Bangkok and were greeted by a sign reading NAT before being taken on the back of a pick-up truck to New Way diving HQ. We were still a little dazed from a restless night travelling but completed some medical forms and signed some other necessities before we were taken in a moped sidecar to our home for the next 5 nights.
Safe to say we hit jackpot with this accommodation!! A modern, sparkling clean apartment which was a stones throw away from the beach. We spent the rest of the morning napping, eating and having a dip in the sea before we went for our first theory lesson at New Way.
It was then that we met the rest of the newbies, 6 Quebecens, 3 other Brits and 1 Brazilian. We were then split into smaller groups, Nat and I being grouped with Mathias the Brazilian whom had spent the last year living in Germany. Our instructor was Rafal, a Polish ex-pat who had spent 8 years living in South West England during which he had learnt to dive in Weymouth! We were given a textbook to work from plus a worksheet of questions to answer. After each topic we were given a test to prepare us for the final exam at the end of the week. The first afternoon consisted of watching a two hour video and answering questions on the topics - simple enough!
The next day was an 8 AM start with 3 hours of theory, sizing up for wetsuits, fins etc and a lesson on how to set up your equipment before an 11AM lunch break. After, it was our first time in the water. Some dive schools take you to a shallow swimming pool to practise basic techniques but New Way chuck you in at the deep end (literally) and take you to a shallow beach. The boat ride was a rocky one and Lots filled up on Sturgeon as a precaution! We put on our wetsuits, flippers, BCD (breathing apparatus), weight belts, mask and snorkel, did our safety checks and proceeded to the leap of death.
The leap of death - a big step off the side of the boat sounds easy but with all the equipment on which is extremely heavy outside of water, is much harder than it seems! The boat was not an actual diving boat, but an old fishing boat which means climbing up the side and jumping from a greater height. When it came to Lots turn, she was helped up, put in the right position (left hand on weight belt, right hand covering the mouth regulator and mask) but refused to jump in. After a countdown from Rafal, there was still reluctancy to enter the water so a friendly push from the Thai captain helped quicken proceedings.
The afternoon was spent learning all the basic techniques required to be able to do the first dive such as taking equipment off and back on in the water, emergency breathing, clearing the mask (Lots favourite) and a horizontal version of a controlled emergency ascent.
Once back on solid ground, we were tired from a challenging first day of diving, but it was not too end there! More theory once back at the centre as well as a maths lesson from Rafal (to Lottie's dismay), by 8 we were free.
By luck, this weekend was Koh Tao Festival 2013. An annual celebration on the island, a nearby field was decked with copious amounts of food stalls, games, displays and two performance stages. We enjoyed the local schools hip hop performance (?!) and a DJ set before we made our way back home for a much needed sleep.
The next day was d-day, dives 1 and 2... no going back now! But before, the theory test. The two of us and Mathias all passed (phew) so we were good to go. Another rocky journey to Lighthouse Bay and we were kitted up, safety checking and stepping into the water. We made our first descent down the mooring line. The sensation of being weightless in water with so much equipment on is a unique one but an amazing one too. We reached a depth of 10.7 metres and were down for 39 minutes. This time consisted of practising underwater skills, buoyancy and some exploring. Dive 2 was a short boat ride away to Mango Bay. This time we only went a depth of 6.8 metres but spent the majority of time swimming around and enjoying the marine life on offer. There were plenty of Clownfish (Lots favourite) to keep her happy plus the odd Triggerfish thrown in for fun... a fish that will attack if you get to close in its proximity, it rears a horn on the back of its neck if it is feeling defensive, safe to say we steered well clear from them!
First day of diving complete, back to HQ to fill our log books in and enjoy a beer with Rafal. That night we went back to the festival where Nat proceeded to consume two spicy pork kebabs, one corn on the cob, one beef kebab, one chocolate chip ice cream and a slice of chocolate cake, washed down with a Chang... All this diving makes for a healthy appetite!
Dives 3 and 4 the next day were truly spectacular. Waking up at 5 and being out on the water by 6 meant we were the first dive school out there. It was well worth the early morning as being the only ones in the water is hard to come by on an island housing over 60 dive schools! We rode out about an hour to a bay called Chumpon, close to the mainland. We felt like we could really relax and enjoy the diving whilst taking in the colourful coral and it's surroundings. Visibility was clear and there were no currents to fight with so we swam to a depth of 18 metres for 45 minutes where we mingled with some Yellow Fin Barracuda. The final dive was similar, except Rafal gave us compasses so we could navigate ourselves, something Nat was a genius at due to his practise on ships.
The rest of the day was spent consuming beers, filling in log books, getting our certification and saying our goodbyes. Diving was truly wonderful and we would recommend it to anybody heading to the South Islands. New Way diving and Rafal were welcoming, friendly yet professional and made our first diving experience memorable.
Now for filling our logbooks with 100 more dives!!
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