I'm so excited...

I have had one of the best weeks of my life. It took forever to happen but on Monday, I started my PADI Open Water learn to dive course. The first two days were all about theory: mornings in the classroom, afternoons in the pool implementing all that we learned.

The first time I was in the pool was incredible. I went from being the girl who hated having her face in the water to sinking down to the bottom of the pool and breathing under water for the first time. And it was an incredible rush! The first two days were exhausting but excellent. I had the best instructor, Corey, and had such a great experience learning about diving. Each skill that I learned and accomplished only boosted my confidence and I felt ready to dive for the first time!

So on Wednesday, I went out to the Great Barrier Reef and just went for it. I won't lie: I did cry and I hadn't even made it off the boat yet. But if you know me, I am very emotional. It wasn't that I was scared (I actually felt very confident in my abilities... I was well trained) but I was overcome with emotion because this would be the first time I stepped off a boat and went for a dive in the ocean. The Great Barrier Reef no less. But I just did it and how I felt is really hard to capture. I was overwhelmed with the expanse of the ocean and the whole new world that I was able to explore. I was excited about what I was seeing. And I was so proud of myself for taking that step... it is by far the best physical challenge I have ever undertaken.

So over two days, the group accomplished 4 dives. And each one was unique, challenging but so cool! By the end of the two days, I had sat on the bottom of the reef and taken my mask off, removed my regulator (the thing I need to breath!) underwater, floated mid ocean, did flips, swam through coral shelves and completed all the tasks required for Open water certification. Oh, and I almost forgot... I saw a shark (what a beautiful creature... almost took my breath away except that I remembered the number one rule when diving: never hold your breath!), a stingray, turtles, and lots of fish! What a remarkable place to dive... there is always something to see!

So by the end of Thursday, I was a certified Open Water diver!!!! It was a great group of people and I had the best instructor and an amazing crew on the boat! Oh and I can't forget my buddy, Mark, who was a blast to dive with and I fully trusted! Thanks everyone!

I loved the experience so much that I cancelled some of my plans and stayed an extra day so that I could complete the Adventure Diver course. With Open Water, you are allowed to dive to max 18 meters depth. By completing the Adventure Diver course, I am now allowed to dive to 30 meters! This opens up so many more dives to me! And to be honest, I didn't really notice a huge change diving at 25m... just that the life down there wasn't as prolific. Friday consisted of 3 dives and now I am a certified Adventure Diver. God, I get so excited just thinking about it. What an accomplishment! And all in just 5 days.

So next up for me is Townsville where I will dive the best place in Australia... Yongala wreck. It will be amazing... I can feel it! I'll let you know how it goes. Oh, and pictures will be coming shortly (so you can get a sense of what I am rtalking about).

So, talk to you soon. I have a bus to catch!

Love, Lisa