Scoooooba! (scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef)

Ahh... the Great Barrier Reef, a divers mecca. When I got certified 11 years ago (wow! Has it really been 11 years?!), the GBR was something people talked about with such awe and passion, that I was jumping out of my skin with excitement for finally being here! We decided to maximize this experience by doing a live-abroad (or overnight trip) on a boat.

So basically in 2 days, 1 night, you can get up to 7 dives in. Wow! I ended up getting 5 in, including a night dive and a 6:30am dive. I have to say, I was pretty pooped after doing 5 (can you tell I was tired?):

Seeing the coral reefs was incredible, but I love looking at the fishes and the underwater wildlife. Highlights were big o' tortoises, clownfish in the anenome (nemo!), big o' clams, parrotfish (I looove the colors).

Here's me scuba diving with Nemo:

It was kinda funny because we were on this big boat that could fit 52 passengers, and there was Lauren and I, and then these 3 young lads (a brit, a swiss, and a german)... and thats it! So we got VIP from all the crew, and it was nice just relaxing. Oh, and I finally saw Borat - funny! It was pretty much like a cruise ship with a little hot tub, cute rooms, and a full on deck. The hot tub definitely came in handy because our sched was: dive, rest a little, dive again, eat something, dive again, and on and on. It was pretty intense and exhausting. After the 5th dive, I just couldn't do it anymore - enough being cold and wet, ya know? But I really did feel I maximized the diving, which is cool! The water temp was pretty nice (around 70's) and visibility was pretty good. We broke it up a little and went on a nice glass-bottom boat tour.

To be honest, I found it amazing, BUT, I really have to say that The Red Sea off of the coast Egypt is probably the best diving I've done to date. Some of this is because unfortunately, there is a lot of dead coral out there, which is sad. Yes, the Great Barrier is the largest reef in the world, but a lot of it is dying, sniff sniff, and unfortunately again, this is due to it being overpopulated by tourist divers like myself (I guess its quality not quantity, huh?). But yes, all and all, I finally experienced The Great Barrier Reef and it was fantastic!!! Scoooooooobbbbbbbbbaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

Here's me enjoying the view of the GREAT Barrier Reef! Yes, a dream come true!