Part 3a: Similan Islands and Koh Bon, Day 1
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I woke up around 5am the next day.
Everyone, except for the boat staff, was still fast asleep. We exchanged greetings (“Morning! 😊”)
I went to the upper deck to watch the sunrise.
A few moments later, they ring the bell to wake people up and get ready for breakfast.
It was a 3-dive day and the itinerary was: breakfast, dive, rest/snacks, dive, rest/lunch, dive, rest, go home
They kept mentioning sharks because the spots we went to were known to have frequent sightings of them. We did see a lot of marine life like the day before but there weren’t any sharks around.
Eel
I was pretty stoked to see the turtle. I didn’t spot it right away and somebody had to point it out because its shell was camouflaging. It was just out there looking for stuff to eat.
I see youuuuuu
When I first took up diving, I was pretty much stoked at everything. I remember tripping out on seaweed under us when we were practicing our breathing, “Oooh look at the way it moves! So cool!” 😂 Silly.
There’s an instant change of pace when we dive.
Humans in the industrial world = hustle, hustle, hustle; to marine life = flow.
It really puts things in perspective for me. I take all the troubles and worries I have on land and let the water cleanse my soul.
I meditate on a fairly regular basis and depending on how stressed I am, sometimes it takes me a while to get to that relaxed state of being. But when I dive, I get there almost instantly.
Don’t get me wrong: there are all these important things you have to know and keep in mind and such but once you get comfortable with it, then you start reaping the therapeutic benefits.
When this guy showed up though, the feeling was a mixture of peacefulness and elation.
I wish I can elaborate better how I felt because there will be no technology nor any kind of art – no matter how skilled – that humans can make or simulate than that of the technology of nature to have the capacity to bring this life.
And yet here I am sharing photos and writing about it despite knowing what I’ve previously stated.
What can I say?
I’m just a fool.
I was pretty amazed at its size (about 3-4 metres/15 ft). It was the first big fish I’ve ever seen but I found out later on that this size is actually average for Mantas.
It was beautiful.
It didn’t move like the rest of the fish. Don’t quote me on this but I think they’re dubbed ‘Ghosts of the Sea’ or something of the sort because of the way they move. They move like they’re gliding more than anything.
It felt so peaceful.
It showed up at the latter end of the last dive. We were in the middle of our safety stop when it showed up. Several of us followed it around. It did a couple rounds around us before it left. Apparently, Mantas are very curious.
We started packing up when we got back to our ship. Got our stuff, went on the ferry, then onto the van to drop everybody off.
When I got back to the hostel, I started looking up things to do.
I was bored.
My mother emailed me and told me about Cambodia, “You’re already in that part of the world; might as well.”
“Wtf am I gonna do in Cambodia?” All I wanted to do was dive and it didn’t strike me as a good dive destination.
“Angkor Wat,” she replied.
I looked it up. 😱 “Holy shit! Cambodia, here I come!”
The temple(s) looked amazing.
I got my stuff in order and booked a ride and a flight right away. I was pretty iffy at first. Even though I was after the temples, I didn’t want to have any days where I wouldn’t have the option to dive. Period. I was quite stubborn on this matter but I fell short on the research, as I had found out after booking everything, that the ocean was a 9-hour ride from Siem Reap (where the temples are located). “It’s a good thing I only booked 4 days then,” I thought.
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Part 4: Siem Reap, Cambodia next up
Gelene 