v-collins

Day 1: 1/21/12 Sunday, Bangkok I board the express water taxi at Tha Tien headed for Wat Pho. It is no small feat. I am herded onto a teetering boat along with a flood of people while passengers on-board squeeze through the chaos, intent on getting off before the boat lurches back into the river traffic. The long-tail motor rumbles and roars making it impossible to hear anything above the din- anything besides her. A petite Thai lady with a stern face and sharp eyes elbows her way to the clump of new passengers. Somehow the sea of people part before her. There's an air of authority around her that is magnified by the intensity of her shrill

My eyes fixate on an underwater rock. At first glance it's mundane, displaying the usual algal growth common to the countless other boulders. Even so, I stall and invert myself for a closer look. The rock blinks, its gaze meets mine. The rock moves. Fins arch displaying a vibrant color scheme of yellow and auburn before nestling back into the rock. I crane my neck around, signalling towards the rock. Some divers acknowledge my find with a smile in their eyes and the "OK" signal while others shrug staring at me and the rock quizzically. With my makeshift tank-banger (a dull and rusted garden stake), I point delicately to the top of the rock w

A bead of sweat trickles down my forehead as I bake in the Blue Sea Diver's beach kiosk. The heat of the day bears down upon the shack maintaining the suffocating temperature. The ocean waves to me from a distance, tempting me with its pristine waters. From within the oven, I smear perspiration from my brow with my forearm. There's no relief from the heat. It takes all my might to focus my mind on the promise of tomorrow's dives-anything but the rising temperature. more underwater adventures at vdives.blogspot.com