Hi, I’m Howard and I’m from the UK. I am currently staying in Kamala, Phuket and training to be a PADI divemaster with Merlin Divers. I hope you enjoy reading my blog about my experiences and impressions of scuba diving on Phuket, Thailand.
My arrival in Kamala – Phuket
When I told my family and friends about the trip I had planned they either thought I was crazy or the luckiest man alive. I happen to agree with both reactions! It takes a little bit of crazy to want to jump on a plane and fly away from everything you know for a 4 month trip into the unknown. I also think that the prospect of scuba diving in Thailand everyday for 4 months in some of the most beautiful tropical islands and coral reefs in the world makes me a very lucky man indeed.
Whilst planning my trip I read every website I could find about diving in Phuket and concluded that this is where I wanted to be. I read about an internship programme offered by one of the dive schools which offered training courses up to PADI dive master in exchange for volunteering hours to help out at the dive school. I thought that this must be too good to be true but as I would be traveling on a budget I thought I’d find out more. I got in touch with Robert Klein from Kamala Diving Center and asked about the details and whether there was a place for me. Robert replied straight away with a very detailed and informative email that answered all my questions and really helped me to understand what was involved. Not only would I get full, professional training at a well established and popular dive school but I would also gain valuable work experience in helping the day to day running of the school.
My journey from England to Phuket has taken me a little over 30 hours. I stopped off in Dubai and Bangkok before finally arriving in Phuket. I followed Robert’s advice and walked past all the taxi touts at the airport and found my way to the yellow metered taxis. It was cloudy and overcast but still about 28 degrees and very humid. I arrived at Kamala Diving Center and was made very welcome. I was introduced to the others guys training here and enjoyed the chance to sit down and rest having finally arrived. My first priority was to find accommodation but the team here were very helpful and had arranged a room nearby for me to look at. The room was very clean and smart and certainly very cheap. I was almost dead on my feet after my long journey and so after finding out the local places for me to get food and supplies I headed back to my little apartment for some sleep. I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow, dreaming of the adventure and challenge to come.
