Diving in the Great Barrier Reef

Back in the early days of my youth, on a family vacation, we went snorkeling in Florida where the only exotic animals we saw were yuppy fish the size of my index finger and my cousin was pecked on the head by a bird he was taunting for a good 10 minutes. As cool as I thought it was, I realize now that was merely good practice for the real scuba diving experience. My second underwater experience was a submarine ride in Hawaii where I failed to pay attention the entire ride and missed the “majesty” the people around me claimed they saw. In my defense, I may or may not have been distracted by the crew’s tacky version of Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” that played for the duration of the ride and involved a lyric about a hot dog. Not one of my most memorable experiences.

To be frank, I am not 100% comfortable with the idea of scuba diving and having nothing between me and the various sea creatures I encounter. In order to keep in line with the recurring theme of facing fears, however, I’m willing to take the plunge into the ocean to explore a world we visit so infrequently. When I make my way to Australia, I’d like to take a diving course and spend 1-2 days swimming the depths of the reef having my own Discovery Channel adventure. Come with me!

My top 5 picks for places to go scuba diving:

Australia
Fiji
Thailand
Florida Keys
Hawaii

Have you gone scuba diving? If so, where and for how long? Share your stories and experiences!

Ideal Location: Cairns, Australia
Projected Price: $500 USD
Actual Price: TBD
Date Completed: TBD

Every Monday, I will reveal one thing on my bucket list that I hope to accomplish one day (get it?), and hopefully, you’ll feel inspired to share one item on yours. Let’s share dreams and encourage each other to cross one off as frequently as possible.