We finally get to set off

The actual arrival of the day you actually go on a long trip seems to take for ever and the time until you leave the house usually seems to drag on and on. Today was no different. Packing had been completed the day before with a final juggling of the weights of each bag, both of which were very close to 23kgs (or so the bathroom scales said).

So after a goodbye cuddle from Sam, it was time to shut the house down – fridge emptied, freezer defrosted, electrical equipment turned off, contact details distributed etc and then as we awaited the taxi, the most enormous thunderstorm arrived (apparently England now has a monsoon season or so the weather forecasters tell us).

Getting to Heathrow went exactly as planned and to schedule. We had

checked in on-line the previous night in an attempt to get decent seats – away from the toilets and galleys, not near children, an aisle for me etc but no alternative seat choices were offered – we were in a large section of the plane, close to the rear of the plane, the toilets, the galley etc. However as we were checking our bags in, we were told that we had been upgraded to the next cabin.

This was a first in over 30 years of travelling – I have been downgraded before but never upgraded. Whilst the upgrade from World Traveller to World Traveller Plus is not one of the most dramatic ones possible when travelling, in this case it did mean a move to a smaller cabin with much more leg space, all of which would be extremely welcome on a 13 hour flight.

Three films. a reasonable meal, lots of attentive service and 13 hours later we arrived at Singapore. Whilst our luggage was checked through to Cairns, we were not, so we had to get boarding passes to Cairns before we could go to the airport shower facility (very welcoming after a long flight) which also offered Internet access, soft drinks and snacks all included in the price of about £4.50 each. A definite must on the way back if we get time.

Our flight time from Singapore to Cairns was changed twice before we left and when we got to the departure gate, the flight was detailed on the screen for yet another time. In the event, that time was fictitious and we actually left Singapore at yet another time.

After a 90 minute stop at Darwin we got back onto the same plane with the same crew and headed off for Cairns with the most wonderful sunrise appearing during the journey. This flight takes about two hours and covers a distance which we intend will take us about three weeks to drive.

One characteristic of the journey since we started crossing the Bay of Bengal many many hours ago has been a lot of turbulence (still continuing very significantly on the last leg of the journey as I type this with all passengers and the cabin crew tightly tied down) and we have been subjected to hours of shaking and bumping. It will be nice when we arrive and it stops.

One of the side effects of long distance travel by jet is that as the time zone difference builds up, you begin to get confused as to what time it really is and what time your body thinks it is and you also get that “been up all night at a party” feeling of mental vagueness. It is not helped by meals arriving at strange times – as we approached Singapore (morning body time but evening local time,) we were served breakfast. We have just had another breakfast on this plane (to Cairns) when our bodies think it should be dinner. We are definitely in that state at the moment. It is Wednesday morning here but Tuesday evening in our bodies and we have had our cat napping interrupted far too often for us to feel rested. I always wear “noise reducing headphones” when I try sleep on a plane because they cut the noise down far better than earplugs or any other method I have heard of and I can usually then get some sleep – I recommend this method to blog readers.

Even though we arrived at the hotel at 9 am, they checked us into a vacant

room and so 31 hours are leaving home, we are in Cairns – with all luggage complete, feeling tired but slightly amazed that we are actually here.

Cairns is quite a nice town(established in 1876), apparently large by Australian standards, with a number of original buildings (now being

used for different purposes) giving an idea of what it looked like in the early days. Of course there are some examples of modern architecture at its best!

but one hopes that the old buildings will always survive.

Sam - here is Nana Pat posting a card to you for your next sticker –

there is an animal on the postcard, which Australian animal do you think it will be?

Preparing for a long trip abroad – day minus 1 and more

In mid June we are going to Australia for three months – we seem to have been preparing for this trip for ages. Many months ago:

• an itinerary was roughed out so we could be certain that knew how much time we needed to go to all of the places we wanted to see;
• flight tickets were purchased during a Qantas sale (although they have changed the flight times twice since then)
• a 4WD camper van was booked to qualify for an early bird discount;
• 4WD training was booked so that we can learn how to drive through rivers and along beaches; and
• when the Australian Dollar collapsed to $2.37 to the £, we purchased a load of dollars (now it is $1.92 to the £).

Now we are a few weeks away from going and it is “list time”. This means that numerous lists are produced covering:

• what we are going to take in each suitcase - useful if a case gets lost on route, then you know what you have to replace and also so that you can split similar things between the suitcases so that not all gets lost at the same time
• which electrical items are going and which charger they need - essentially, a “can we share chargers between items” list
• what we are taking in our hand luggage – high value and essential items such as medicines and travel papers
• what we have to buy as soon as we arrive –for example there is no point taking enough shampoo for three months since it is easy to buy there and some things can only be got there such as an Australian mobile phone
• what food we need to buy as soon as we get the campervan – the van has two gas rings so meal choice is limited by what you can cook on two rings
• what documents are to be scanned and stored on the web (passports, credit card details, address book etc)
• what items we want to take but have not got so need to buy now
• whom we have to notify we are abroad  - credit card companies being one of the major ones
• which bills need paying before we go or which bills will  become payable whilst we are away and how they will be dealt with – house insurance, car insurance and house ground rent come to mind

When we were very new as a couple, we went off to the far Middle East for 10 weeks with a budget of about £1 a day each. Our luggage was one small rucksack containing clothes and essentials plus a rucksack frame with our small tent on it – total weight probably about 10 kgms. Now we have about 60 kgms of weight allowance between us and the question is – “is this enough?”

Flying back and Reflections on a week at St Johns

As we suspected on the way out, the flight back was delayed by just over two hours (and so I got home at 4 am). Their excuse was that our scheduled plane had been moved to another flight and they then had to wait until another plane became free to collect us (the third week this excuse had been used apparently). The only upside was that the plane which collected us was much larger and more luxurious than the scheduled plane so the trip back was comfortable.

This was a really good week of relatively easy but fascinating diving. My air

consumption has further improved (dives 53 to 71 above) and we are now both on over 70 dives (which makes us sufficiently experienced to dive most sites in the world). The dive guides were superb and really made the whole week for us both.

Where next I wonder?

Last Day Diving – Day 7

Although it is the last day in the water and after this it means our holiday is effectively over, most people are somewhat relieved that this morning is the last time the cabin door will be banged on at 6 am and we will hear the words “Dive Briefing” summoning us upstairs. 19 dives in a week takes it out of you physically but neither of us would change the week in any way – diving is addictive.

Dive 18 -  Sha’ab Sharm

Straight forward off the rear of the boat, fin north at depth, reverse at some large Gorgonian coral and back at a shallower depth. We have learnt that following a dive guide usually means you see more and also if there is the potential for tricky conditions (current in this case on the northern edge where we are intending to turn around), it is reassuring to have someone more experienced with you. So we follow dive guide Kati.

a hungry Moray Eel which noticed breakfast (me) nearby

a nudibranch (type of underwater sea slug)

Picasso Trigger Fish

Unicorn fish

It was a pleasant early morning dive and just before it ended, we say the most enormous Napoleon Fish below us, at least two metres long. It was of a size that we had read about but did not really believe existed.

Dive 19 – Sha’ab Marsa Alam

Three hours sailing north to our final dive of the day at the same site as the checkout dive. There is rarely a problem in visiting a dive site twice because the fish are usually different and you can just dive at a different depth and have a totally different dive. As is usually the case, we chose to do the last dive as a “buddy pair” and simply follow a dive plan which would enable us to gently see the dive sight for as long as possible.

 

The plan was to jump off the back of the boat, head west exploring the coral blocks, around the large Gota (a very big block but not big enough to be called a reef), explore the wreck and back to the boat for the last time (remembering that we are the third boat on the reef).

This was to be a perfect final dive, lots of interesting fish, an interesting wreck and at the end, the most beautiful coral block surrounded by small fish.

a Snapper which seemed to be burrowing a hole in the sand as I passed over

Banner fish always seem to hang around in pairs

Picasso Trigger Fish

Threadfin Butterfly Fish

a mystery fish

a general assortment of fish around a coral block

This short video gives an impression of what it is like to hang around a coral block with thousands of fish just swimming around you 

The wreck was that of a fishing boat which being mainly made of wood, was too dangerous to enter.

The ship’s barbecue

Tips are an important way of life out here and on the final day there was the usual “two envelope” collection for the Dive Guides and for the Captain and Crew. I was told by the group that “you are obviously experienced in making speeches” so I had to present the envelopes. We suspect that the contents are really their wages for the week and therefore the giving is relatively generous.

Back on Dry Land

After a period of intensive diving, one always spends 24 hours “not diving” before you fly back in order to allow all of the nitrogen which remains in your body from repeated dives to completely escape.

We are staying at the Hotel Marina Lodge in Port Ghalib which is close to the airport. It is rather a nice hotel in the middle of a building site.

Apparently the master plan is that over the next few years, more development will take place on each of the islands in the picture. It will be quite massive when finished. The hotel is full of divers, some like us staying only one night and others living in the hotel and going out on day boats to the various sites around the area.

Unfortunately the open air disco is just below our room but luckily we are so tired that we quickly fall asleep despite the very loud dance music.

During the night my dive computer (a gismo all divers wear when diving in order to monitor and manage dive safety) switches off its “no fly warning” meaning that we are now safe to fly back and we are degassed.

Four different dive spots – Day 6

We are all surprised how much we eat on this type of holiday. One of the dive group has said that divers use up about 600 calories per dive. If this is true then it explains why we like being fed often. We never eat very large meals, just lots of them. We are diving for up to four hours a day, sometimes easy, sometimes physically challenging so our calorie count is probably true. A typical day would  be:

Breakfast: cereal, eggs (hard or fried), ham, cheese, fruit, refried beans (an Egyptian staple), toast, fruit juice etc
Lunch: Rice,Coleslaw, Deep fried cauliflower, Langoustines, Tomatoes; Vegetable stew, Watermelon
Tea: Cake and Fruit
Dinner: Turkey, Stuffed Zucchini; Beans, Salad, Vegetables, Rice, Cake

Tea, coffee, chilled water and soft drinks are available throughout the day and for diving safety reasons, we are encouraged to drink about 6 litres of water a day but as soon as you have a beer, it means no more diving for that day. Perhaps because we are so tired, beer does not feature high on our agenda and we have only drunk five cans between the two of us so far on this trip.

Dive 14 – Sha’ab Claudio (Claudio Reef) 

A straight forward dive around a large coral reef with a few caves and swim throughs. We followed Kati (Dive Guide) since experience has taught us that on complicated sites requiring many depth levels, you get more out of it following someone who knows where they are going.

Plenty of fish (some being hunted by a large Ray), interesting anemones and coral gardens. The caves were more challenging with some swirling

a shoal of fish

Large Puffer Fish

a Parrot fish

Sea Anemone

Anemone with Comic Fish living in it 

Coral Pinnacle with lots of little fish living off it

currents (“water movement” in Dutch) and a large Napoleon awaited us back at the boat.

Large Napoleon awaiting us under the boat 

Dive 15 – Abu Galawa Soraya

After breakfast we move one hour north for the next dive, again on a reef but this time with a fairly recent wreck (1992).

 

This reef has a long channel through the middle and we went through the channel in an anti-clockwise direction in order to use the currents. The profile was a bit up and down with the deepest part towards the end.

a coral pinnacle

a strange coral growth a bit like a pod

Ben’s best picture of a puffer fish

Butterfly fish

The wreck was that of a sailing / motor yacht which had sunk on the reef in 1992 after hitting it and loosing its rudder. Apparently having lost its rudder,

 

it then tried to anchor itself away from the reef but sunk two days later having been driven on to it. Most of the equipment on board was “liberated” by the dive boat which rescued the owner. It must have been a really beautiful and expensive yacht before it became a wreck. Now all that is left is the hull (and the ship’s toilet).

Dive 16 – El Shaleniate (The Points)

A rib drop off on the far side of the reef. Finned from there around the island and back to the ship. Lots of very amazing coral gardens,

some fish activity including a Racoon Butterfly Fish eating a jelly fish

which seemed to be very abundant in this area.

Coral Hind Grouper

Wrasse

Dive 17 – Dahara Wedi Gimal

An unremarkable “last night“ night dive, saw a very large Moray Eel and a Moses Sole but not much else.