World by Carey Wrap Up

When I touch down in San Francisco on Wednesday afternoon, I will have been gone for 232 days. I will have taken 31 flights, crossed in and out of 18 countries and rode an uncountable number of buses, trains, boats and cars to get to and around four different continents. I have seen white sandy beaches and the what lies beneath the deep blue seas. I have climbed small mountains and walked into seemingly endless deserts. While doing all of this, I have made more friends than anyone can ask for in a lifetime; people that have touched my heart in so many ways that I will never, ever be able to forget. This has been the trip of my dreams. Although the journey will continue in a few short months, the original holiday (ever-expanding as it was) is ending when I leave Christchurch tomorrow.

I arrived in New Zealand last week to find better than average weather. I took the bus in from the airport and met Amanda in the square on a beautiful, warm, sunny day. I quickly made my way to her house for some much needed rest and relaxation and I really haven't left it since. The weather turned sour after the first two days and I've been wrapped up in a blanket on the couch to keep warm. The initial reaction to leaving Koh Tao still hadn't left me. It felt like a blur from there to here. I've gotten over the shock of it at this moment, but with the gloomy clouds I'm looking at in the window, it's hard not to keep thinking of where I was just a week ago.

It's been really great catching up with Amanda though. We've had some good girl time that we didn't on my last visit. We've stayed in each night, playing cards and talking about what has happened in the last two months. I've shown her the pictures and told the stories that make me smile. She seems to be doing really good as well. Her and Neil have gotten the cutest new dog, Eddie, and he's been the center of our attention. I've found myself more enthused with Neil's fish tanks than ever before. It's been a great week with no big highlights. My body needed to catch up after eight months of constant movement and Amanda provided me with that luxury.

Yesterday, she decided to play hooky from work and we actually made it out of the house for a quick trip to the aquarium, one of the few things I haven't seen in Christchurch. I was starting to feel a bit under the weather as we went to lunch, and funny enough, I had Thai noodle soup to soothe my sore throat. You'd be surprised actually...Thai food tastes pretty much the same anywhere you get it...there are just more options when you're actually in Thailand. I started to feel my mood deteriorating as we made our way to the aquarium. It was actually quite cool, so we lingered a bit longer than my body could take. I got to see the endangered kiwi birds that they keep there...very weird looking flightless birds. They just happened to be feeding the sharks around that time as well, so we had some light afternoon entertainment. As we were just about to leave, the aches hit my system. I officially have worn myself out. We passed by the clinic on the way to the car, and I just had to go in. The first necessary doctor visit of my trip.

To be fair, Amanda and friends have been bugging me to go to the doctor since I got here. I have a third degree burn on my calf from the motorbike, an unhealing scab on my knee and a small crater on my heel from a blister that just stayed open for more than a month due to using my fins every single day. All looked infected upon my arrival, but I think I've been taking care of them quite well. But the sore, swollen throat was the last straw. I was remembering my bout with strep throat a couple of years ago and how miserable I was for days. I needed antibiotics, so I walked in and asked for some while paying a small fee. I now have meds for the numerous problems my body is facing. After waking up with what I'm sure is an ear infection this morning, I can only hope they work quickly.

So I am sat here on that couch again, on the last day of my eight month adventure. My flight is tomorrow at 4:30pm and I'll arrive in San Francisco three hours before that (I get to time travel tomorrow!). I am wondering about the next couple months and the things that I will do. I am well aware of how the last eight have changed me and my perspective on things, so what will happen in the days to come? I know I should probably find some sort of employment. I know that I have my best friend's weddings to look forward to. And I know that I've got all sorts of budgeting and planning to do before heading back to Thailand. But do I need to plan further than that? There are many discussions that I'm going to have with my family and friends about where this new life is taking me. My eyes have opened now to the world and all of the little things that really matter to me. Now it's time to take all of the pieces of this puzzle and put them together to make up the next year of my life.

I haven't decided yet whether or not I'm going to keep going with the blog. While I'm in the United States, it seems silly, as there are cell phones that will relay the same information. I have to admit that I enjoy doing it though, even in the times that I can't figure out what to write. It's a task that I think about every week or so. I need deadlines and structure and my blog is really the only thing that gives me those at the moment. I do plan on going through and editing the 50 posts that I've put up since September. It was fun to have pictures for everyone to see during New Zealand and Thailand, so I'll go back through South America and Europe and do the same. I'm also very aware of the copious amount of spelling and grammatical errors that I made while rushing to save money in internet cafes. Since I quit my personal journal about three weeks in, this is my diary, and I need to get this cherished possession up to par. Just another project of the many that I have when I get home.

So there it is....that was the world by me and what I chose to do with it! I'll be back in San Francisco in day or two and then in Michigan on the 5th of May. I'm excited to keep up my never-ending summer, as winter is quickly approaching where I sit right now. Do a sun dance for me if I'm coming to see you. My hair is almost blond again and my tan is fading quickly. I'll need to keep up my tropical appearances even during my visit to North America. Kelly and Jen, I can't wait to see you get married! I am so looking forward to celebrating my 30th birthday (yikes!) with my dear friends back home. This is it for now, we'll see where I go from here. Catch you all on the flip side...

I left my heart in Koh Tao...

So this is it, I have left my beautiful island paradise. I am in Bangkok awaiting my flight to New Zealand and from there I will head home. Yesterday I said goodbye to my Koh Tao family. The people from Sunshine have become a part of me and it was the most difficult departure I've had in the eight months that I've been traveling. I can only compare it to the last few days before moving to San Francisco. There were so many laughs amidst uncontrollable tears. I will miss the people and the island more than anyone can imagine. My life there was the best I've ever had it and the memories I made will last my lifetime.

The last week in Koh Tao was an exciting one. Many people have been coming and going. I was not the first or the last. With the first DMT, Mahats leaving just a few days before me, everyone got together and did a DMT underwater photo shoot. We dove at Shark Island and Aow Leuk. The conditions were beautiful and we finally got some shots of all of us together doing what we love. We brought down props and built a human pyramid. There were sword fights and water guns. A bottle of wine was even brought down and drunk at 10 meters (not quite PADI standards, but it was only a sip each....we just needed to see that it could be done). The photos turned out amazing thanks to our beautiful photographer, Alice. Here are a few of them. There will be many more to come later.





















From the DMT shoot, we all just got out diving again. Mahats had his snorkel test last Friday night, complete with scavenger hunt and three legged race. Afterwards, a huge group of up went into Sairee and crashed the DJL pool party. It was a soaking wet night, but a great time for everyone. I think everyone started getting sick after that...there was about that pool that I don't even want to know about.





Then it was down to my last couple of days. I planned my diving so that I could take an afternoon off with everyone to enjoy an afternoon picnic at one of the local beaches. We brought or dive bags full of fins, masks and snorkels, hoping to get in the sea during the afternoon together and made our way down the treacherous road to Aow Leuk. After two people, including myself, skid down one of the roads, we decided to shuttle in on some of the bigger bikes. I'm definitely much better now that I've been driving for a few weeks, but these roads of concrete covered by sand are just too much for me to take.

We got to the most beautiful beach and were almost immediately approached by an insane little Thai man going through our bags and throwing our things around. It was his beach apparently, and he didn't like us bringing in dive bags and food that wasn't purchased from him. He made actions to slap us all and then began karate kicking Adam, screaming for us to leave. We did nothing in retaliation for fear that he might pull out something more that his foot. We left bitching and complaining, swearing no more money would ever be spent there. When we got back and told others about it, we heard that this has happened before. That guy was a nut!

So instead, we made our way to Sairee beach on a much safer road. We went all the way to the north and tucked between some boulders to stay out of the intense sun. We listened to music, some of us swam. All in all, we just generally enjoy one of our last days together. It was worth missing the afternoon dives to be with these beautiful people.





After the picnic, we headed up one of the mountains to Sunset View, a restaurant overlooking all of Sairee. We had our fruit shakes and hoped that the sunset would come out through the clouds, which it didn't. It was a slight disappointment, but gorgeous all the same. From there we did the farewell dinner for Mahats and then I prepped for a day full of diving.





I did four dives on my last full day in Koh Tao. Unfortunately, the night before I burned my leg on the exhaust pipe of my bike, so keeping it clean and dry was my ultimate goal. It's a wicked burn that wen through at least three layers of skin. My new Koh Tao tattoo, I guess I needed to take something home with me as I've bought no other souvenirs. So I bandaged myself up and got in the water. Our first dive site was Mango Bay, one of my favorites, as there is a HUGE cloud of my wonderful fussilier fish that I just love to go play in. Unfortunately, I was assisting on an open water course, so I wasn't able to sit in the school for too long. But at least I got to see them and say goodbye.

The afternoon dives were beautiful as all of my girls came out and we did two girlie dives at Chumporn and Green Rock. We just swam about and played in more schools of fish. We went down over 30 meters and looked for the bull sharks lurking around us in the sea (we found none...thank god). The fishes were crazy that day and I was sure something big would show itself, but never did. The visibility was stunning and although I had the option for diving the next morning before my boat, after two perfect dives with my very wonderful friends, I knew that was it. I'm done diving in the waters off Koh Tao for the next couple of months.



My going away night was spectacular. We made it out to the Caberet, Thai lady boy show, one last time...and the best that I've seen. Even the boys joined us this time and we made a night out of it in Sairee afterwards. It was an emotional evening, but nothing compared to the next day, my last.

I awoke bright and early with Sam and Camilla and burst into tears at the though of having to leave them later in the day. Adam came over and helped console me as well. We went back to the shop and I got everything out of my file. I said my goodbyes to the instructors I will see in a few months and then made my way back home to pack up my bungalow. There was a lecture in the afternoon which everyone attended, so Sam and I were left to ourselves, just hanging out, waiting for the inevitable. Chris and Sam drove me to the pier to catch my boat and I got a text from the others saying they weren't going to make it. As the boat pulled up and I was just ready to get on, I got a call from Adam telling me not to get on, and the next thing you know, I looked over and five more of my friends were there wanting hugs before I left. Of course there were more tears and getting on that boat was one of the hardest things I've ever done. They all stayed at the pier and watched me cry from the upper deck of the boat until I couldn't see them any longer. I got some beautiful texts from them on my way up to Bangkok last night. I left a piece of my heart with them and I just wish I could go back. In July, some will be there, but others will not be. They have made the last two months the best I could have ever imagined. I'm still tearing up now as I write this blog.







So, after six and a half weeks, four pairs of flip flops, three pairs of sunglasses and almost 80 new dives in my logbook, I am back in Bangkok. I made it in at 5am this morning and my flight to New Zealand is at 5:30 tonight. It's going to take me a long time to get over leaving Koh Tao, but the photos and memories will keep me going for a while. I can't wait to go back. I can't wait to see where some of these friendships will lead me. Most of all, I can't wait to tell everyone all about this experience when I get home. See you all very soon.

Happy New Year!!!

It's another year here in Thailand as we just celebrated Songkran, Thai new year, two days ago. It's the annual festival of water and life that just happened to be one of the most fun days I've had on the island. As with any new beginning, I've been reflecting on what has happened over the past eight months of my life and what will come of the next. I said a while ago that I hoped to one day wake up with an epiphany as to where my life would head. Although that hasn't happened in the way that I expected, I really believe that I have been moving in a good general direction.

Two years ago, I went to Panama. I remember being worried at that point about swimming in saltwater. I hated the thought of large objects (with big scary teeth) sharing the same space. It scared me, and I recall being quite hesitant to get in the ocean for the first couple of days that I was there. And now... well, apparently I am over that. I get in the water each day and dive to depths of 30 meters or more staring at the fishes and exploring new frontiers. I am completing my divemaster, which will make me a professional at being under the sea. It's a crazy turn of events that just brings on so many more questions. How far do I take this? How much more money should I invest? What will I do with it once it is complete? And more importantly, when will it be finished? I have a lot of decisions to make as I return back to the states in two weeks. Although I'm not ready for this to end at the moment, I'm welcoming the break to give me a sense of reality for a little while. Knowing that I have a ticket back to Thailand in July makes it a lot more bearable as well.

I did my second Burma run last week and hopefully it will be my last. It's very simple to do, but the sixteen hours of buses and smelly boats isn't really an ideal way to spend a night and day. I still got the butterflies in my stomach when I saw Koh Tao in the distance that afternoon. It makes me wonder how it will be when I return the summer. I'm going to be like a kid at Christmas jumping around the boat; ready to play with all of the toys on Koh Tao again. Upon my return, things were still the same. Sam was still gone, and I got back to my routine of four dives per day. We get up early, dive, have lunch, dive some more, and then find the time to get some games of cricket and whatever other sport is available in the steamy evenings.



Low and behold, one day I went out on the boat, as usual, only to return to the dive shop and find Sam sitting there waiting for me. She had just texted the day before to tell me that she'd be elephant trekking near Bangkok and that she'd make her plans soon, so I was quite shocked to find her back on the island ready to hang out for another week or so. She also happened to show up on a planned girls night out, so it was the perfect celebration of her return.



Since then, it's been business as usual. She decided to do her open water course, so I've gotten to dive with her, finally. It's so hard when people here aren't partaking in the underwater fun. You come back in the afternoon filled with excitement about what you've just seen, and they have no idea what you are talking about! With the visibility better than I've ever seen and the water bordering on 30 degrees, we had some perfect dives and I got to show her what it was all about. Of course, she was a natural and loved every minute.

The last day of Sam's course just happened to be Songkran. I've been hearing about it for ages, but really had no idea what to expect, other than to be drenched all day. Thai new year is celebrated with buckets and squirt guns, hoses and barrels. After coming up from our final morning dive, the boat turned to chaos. It all started with Natalie hatching a plan to get another DMT into the water. As she pointed to some non-existent fishes in the water, Adam leaned over the boat just enough for me to push him out. Then the boat boys came into play and dumped a huge bucket over the captain. The DMTs were running around like mad filling water bottles and splashing them around. A huge hose was brought out and they proceeded to spray other boats that were tied up to us. It was the best morning I've ever had on the boat. Everyone was high on life and covered in foam and water.







From there, we were wisked away in the dive taxi back down to Chalok bay. Our taxis here are open pickup trucks, so when we arrived at Bans to hop on, we were in shock to see the amount of people out on the road. This island has one main "road" so everybody who's anybody was out on it. Either standing on the sides spraying water, or in a car or motorbike ready to get splashed around every corner. It was like a parade. This island was just one big water theme park, and there's no way to leave.

After returning to the shop and cleaning our gear (and Sam getting thrown in the BCD cleaning bucket), I desperately had to go to the clinic. I had fallen a few days prior and had a small scrape on my knee. This wound turned into a yellow infected mess within a day as things just do not heal here. You'd think that saltwater each day would help, but with all of the reefs and coral in the area, the water is just filled with bacteria. A cut or scrape can take over a month to heal. You go to the clinic and the only thing they tell you is to stop diving....which is just not a viable option at the moment. I went in and the women proceeded to penetrate my knee with tweezers and a needle. If any of you know me well, I am not a good patient. I was very happy when this was over and I was able to resume the Songkran activities.

With a cleaned out and bandaged knee, we went to diving village for an afternoon fiesta, complete with squirt guns. We had snipers in the trees shooting people in the nearby road. It was the best way to spend a hot afternoon in Koh Tao.



From there, things just got better for the next eight or so hours. We made our way into Sairee village for dinner and water warfare and then to the beach for a beautiful sunset. We danced the night away as we were sprayed with water hoses. The evening was one I will not forget anytime soon.





Being wet for more than eighteen hours has caused problems with almost everyone I've seen in the past day. Bumpy rashes and minor bruises are rampant on this island at the moment. Yesterday morning was spent being dry and the afternoon was meant for diving. We went out to Chumporn Pinnacle yesterday and got to take in a cloud of fusilier fish and even had a shark spotting (I did not see them but my fellow divers did..and I'm ok with that). Last night, all craving western delicacies, we went out for Mexican food in Mae Haad. An expensive evening of food, but oh so good on one of my last few days here.

Today Sam is planning her escape again. She will be back, but by that time, I will be gone. I've only got five days left before returning to New Zealand. It's going to be really hard to leave, but I think I'll be able to cope...although I'm sure there will be tears. The last two months here have opened my eyes to what else is out there. It is an era that will always be remembered and I am so fortunate to have had this time. I can't wait to get home and tell everyone about it. And hey, anyone is welcome to join me when I come back in July. A little time in paradise never hurt anybody.

They come and they go...

The thing about island life is seeing people come and go. There are so many sad goodbyes and hopes to see eachother again. After being here for over a month, I've grown used to the people around me. It's like I've known them all for years. We've all had this incredible experience together and then it's over far too quickly. For me, the time is coming very, very soon. Just a couple weeks left in this tropical paradise. Time to make the most of the time that I have left (as if I haven't been doing that already).

Sam left me yesterday. We've now known eachother in Peru, Colombia, New Zealand and Thailand. Each time we meet up, we know when the next reunion will be. When she left yesterday morning, we didn't have any particular "later" to discuss. She may come back to the island, but by that time, I will be gone. So it sounds like I need to go to England sooner or later. My time with her was too amazing to say it will never happen again.

Last week, I wrote from Koh Phangan, the full moon party. For those of you with grand ideas of what it's supposed to be like, you may not want to read further. It was great because I had that time with an awesome friend, but other than that, eh...I could've had just as much fun staying here and going out in Sairee Beach.

I expected a DJ and dancing the night away with thousands of others on a beautiful beach. There were definitely DJs and dancing, but the beach was just so-so and the thousands of others were just very, very drunk. Haad Rin beach was nice, but not as good as we have it here in Koh Tao. The beach was a bit dirty and just filled from wall to wall with bars. There were people everywhere and medical facilities between each of the hundreds of bucket stands. It was all pretty funny to watch as we got there at 5pm and somehow managed to stick around for the chaos at 5am. We danced to bad pop songs, drank a couple of buckets, we made a few new friends, and I lost yet another pair of sunglasses to the sea. When we hopped in a cab to go back to our luxurious bungalow, Sam and I both looked at eachother and said that we just wanted to go back to Koh Tao. It was a good experience to have once. It wasn't all bad as Sam and I had a blast together. I can say that I did it, but I probably won't be going back.











Neither of us felt all that well on the catamaran back to our island. We craved McDonald's and just wanted to relax when we returned home. And that's exactly what we did. Since the full moon, there's been a lot of hanging out, some movies and a bar night thrown in there somewhere. I've been on a diving binge with my new gear and have gotten to hang with Sam and my gang of DMTs in between all of that.

I've been averaging four dives per day for the last week. As a DMT, you get all of the diving you want. With the visibility under the water getting better and better, I just can't help myself, I'm addicted. I recently got to assist an advanced course. I've been out leading fun divers. I'm finally getting the hang of all of the dive sites and am actually making it back to the boat each time without getting lost. All in good time; I know it will just keep getting better from here.







There was a whale shark spotting on White Rock four days ago, and I had just been diving at that site an hour before. I had done two dives that morning and was on the afternoon boat out to a deep pinnacle in the ocean when we heard the news. We could see the dive site in the distance and the captain was going to give us five minutes of snorkeling with it if we could find it. The boat started to buzz with excitement as everyone grabbed their masks and fins while the boat creeped toward the site. We all stood on the edge of the deck looking out into the deep and although one person on the boat saw it's fin breach, we never found it and never got to swim with this gorgeous creature. Apparently they are attracted to the coral spawning that happens once a year around this time. I will continue my routine of four dives a day until I see it. I swear it will show itself at some point while I'm here.

So that's it. There's not a whole lot going on other than that. I have to go to Burma again tomorrow night for my final visa run before I fly back to New Zealand. From then, there are just a few more leaving and then it will be me. It's amazing how time flies when you're having fun.

On a final note....I've finally gotten some underwater photos!!! I put some of them from the boat above, but I've been dying to snag a friend's underwater camera for weeks...and I finally got to yesterday. Here are some of the things that I get to see everyday under the waters surrounding Koh Tao.



This is my nemesis...the triggerfish. I got attacked by two the other day and it took a nice bite of my fin. I hate them, and of course was surrounded by eight of them on my morning dive today...



Butteryflyfish....



There is a nest of clownfish on the divesite at Twins. Luckily, I get to visit my little Nemo friends almost everyday....



It's like swimming in a giant aquarium...



And the anenome fish in their little houses....very cute as well....



And then there's me, just swimming around everyday...

Just a quickie

I've been on the internet for way too long trying to get the pics up into the last blog, so this is just a quick one. They are there now and you can see them.

I've just purchased my ticket back to Thailand for the middle of July. It's official, the journey will continue.

I'll post about Koh Phangan and the full moon in a few days. For the time being, here are a couple of shots of a day in my life. :)