I found Nemo. And Marlin. And Nemo's adopted sibling.

An adult and two baby clownfish swimming around through anemone was part of the find on my first scuba experience.

After two days spent in a scuba pool learning the basics of snorkeling and scubaing, we went out into the waters of Kenting for some in-ocean practice and observation. We did about 3 tanks of air (roughly 2 hours in total) before packing it up and calling it a long weekend.

The more I thought about it, the more I was pleased with my accomplishment. There aren't many people in Canada who can say they've scuba'ed before - the chilly waters don't make it easy. While we can afford to do wetsuits in Taiwan, Canadian waters require drysuits and a whole other set of training. Anyway, Kenting doesn't have the best in underwater exploration, but even with its limited offering, there was plenty to see for a first timer and at 12 meters' depth. What might bore me in aquariums facinated me as a scuba diver. It's like the difference between watching Riverdance on video or in person... although some would argue it's just as boring either way. Being able to get upclose and personal with the living creatures under the sea was something else.

Needless to say, I'm really excited about getting my Open Water scuba license. I wish I had done it sooner. These are skills I can take with me when I travel in Southeast Asia - and now I can keep a list of "where I've scuba'ed" locations. Yay for me!

[I didn't take the clownfish photo.]