The final Thai bubbles

Jerry and I opted for one last set of dives in Phuket near Koh Phi Phi island (made famous by the movie The Beach).

We did two dives and although it was lovely and we were treated to two Leopard sharks it was much the same as before. I realize that if it is becoming common place then it is time to give it a rest.

Plus, so much of the overall experience comes down to the crew, divemasters, and other divers. This time out was the first time I was a bit disappointed in that regard. Our divemaster was a 45 year old American who had only been diving himself for less than a year. He had a bit of a self-proclaimed mid-life crisis and decided to pitch in his regular life in Seattle and come to Thailand. He has found his Thai girlfriend and is wondering why he ever life get so stressful. I am cool with that, but I have been spoiled by my previous instructors and divemasters. They all recognize that this is a service business and even though the clients are own vacation, they still deserve what they paid for. Let's just say that Dave still has one foot in his own personal discovery and hasn't made a full commitment to a new life.

Furthermore, the whole group on board is very segmented. The one diver we are all drawn to is a 8 year old Japanese boy getting his Open Water certification. His parents are obviously big into the sport, and their son seems to be picking it up fast. It was kinda fun having a conversation with him in Japanese about all the fist he saw.

A final note about diving in Thailand has to do with the lack of hooks in this country. Thailand is a developing country, and as such, it still has some simply amenities. Generally most bathrooms are a combination of a shower room, toilet and handbasin. On a dive boat this is always the case, which makes changing into and out of your swimsuit a constant struggle to keep things dry. The floor is wet. The toilet seat is wet. The handbasin is wet. So you need to develop new balancing acts just to keep from having soggy knickers. I have come dangerously close to doing a header into the wall a few times. Good thing I developed my sea legs early in life. Every time I go through this dance, I feel like screaming "For the love of a hook" (my original title for this post).