Great Barrier Reef

So the main reason I went to Cairns was for a 5-day learn to dive course to get PADI open-water certified. I have been looking forward to this for as long as I can remember. I booked this trip in January and am so excited that it finally happened.

The course started with a day of classroom work and a day of pool work. The next three days were spent on the live-aboard boat! By the afternoon of the second day, our training dives were done and we became certified divers.

My class was a total of 9 people and by the end we had had so much fun together. We were people from all around the world, differing in age and position in life but somehow had so many things in common. They made everything extra fun.

The reef was unbelievable! First of all sitting on the sun deck watching sunset and sunrise made me never want to leave. The color of the water was so blue and clear that it was easy to see the top of the reef. 

The company had an on board photographer who took some wonderful pictures with his amazingly expensive camera.

I did get a little seasick being that I generally have motion sickness. The second night we drove all the way back into port so only had a few hours of smooth seas. I spent that night on the sun deck with the trashcan. The last day I was so tired from not sleeping, had some motion sickness medication and fell asleep at lunch. This is what happens when you leave your camera unattended.

This trip was worth it ten times over!