Mini Movies

Here is our first mini movies since we've done the underwater videography course.

Video one is Bubbles, by Carlien...

Video two is my first small movie, by Eugene

Under the sea...

Some more of our photos.

This is why we love diving so much...

Beneath the surface there is a world of constant flow in which nothing else matters anymore.

Something Different

Q: What are the usual decorations you find in bars?

A: Posters of Bob Marley, maybe a countries flag etc. Well the local resort bar in Lanta has a complete dolphin skeleton. A bit creepy, but of huge interest to Eugene. The barman says they apparently found a whole washed up dolphin, much to my relief that no one actually killed it and they then decided to keep the skeleton.

Q: What can we do back in S.A. as job creation?

A: Make curtains out of straws, preferably used ones so that it contributes to recycling as well. These were made just by folding straws in a certain way and then stringing them together with a piece of thread, no staples or pins required, so even people in jail can make them...

Q: How to find an "Action shot"?

A: Simply wait for it to rain non stop so you can't leave the room and then look up at your roof where you are bound to find yourself looking at a live show of the hunt. Better than discovery channel. I fell asleep before the gecko got the moth. Hee Hee, don't tell Eugene...

Circles in the sand

Kantiang beach looks like a picture board.

There are tiny little crabs that form little balls of sand and push them out of their holes as they dig deeper. Once they pop the ball out of the hole they carry it to a strategic place to form the most amazing circular patterns all over the beach.

You are almost too sorry to step anywhere as the crab would then have to start all over to complete his masterpiece.

Then the tides pic up and gradually all the patterns disappear...

A few hours later the beach are full of new artworks.

Meet our Lanta Neighbours

These guys were all over the show. They definitely think they own the place.

If they don't take over your terrace, they meet you at the breakfast table and steel all the sugar sachets out of the container on your table.

Not always very friendly as they don't take kindly to people who don't want to give them food, or don't have food to give them.

We made sure we had various items of interest that we could give them...

Just in case.

Videography course

Us in action...

Our first day was spent in the classroom learning camera techniques, handling etc. The underwater housings weigh a ton and my arms literally shakes when you have to hold them up for a long time. Thank goodness all that weight disappears once you are in the water...

Our first day of diving arrived. We had to assemble the camera's, test them for leaks etc. Use proper techniques of getting into the water, attaching them to yourself as a safety measure etc. Once in the water, the world changed into a mad rush. We were typical first timers who didn't think about what we were filming or getting the right angels, we just wanted to get "EVERYTHING" we saw on tape...

We quickly learned that it is best to plan shots and get less footage than the other way around. Our second day we got to go to the famous dive sites of Hing Daeng and Hing Muang (Red rock and Purple rock). We had a great time and our footage already improved a lot from day one as we were now thinking a bit before doing. The water was a perfect blue with about 25 to 30 meters of visibility, so we couldn't have asked for a better day.

By the last day of the course we returned to Phi Phi to dive the bida's. We were met with very bad weather, bad viz and the worst current the Bida's have ever seen, but we still managed to get some footage and learned that videography and currents don't mix well. On the other hand we were both glad that we experienced it so that we know what awaits on some days when the condition are less than perfect and you have customers with you...

(With three hours to kill before we get to the dive site, why not catch up on some zzzeeee'sss)

All in all we gained an incredible amount of new knowledge and our photography as well as videography skills have improved ten fold...

Thank you so much Phil, Tara and everyone from Scuba Fish.

You guys are the best....

(Some of our pics, after the course...)

Trip to Koh Lanta

What a magical little place...

Which ever way you go, you will travel by sea. We opted for the car ferry to go there and the passenger ferry to get back. Our taxi arrived quite late in Krabi which means we travelled to Koh Lanta in the dark. The whole taxi drove onto the ferry and then you wait for about 30 to 40 minutes or so to get onto the first island.

Then drive like hell (yes, see how fast you can go through narrow roads with jungle shrubbery and huge trees on all sides) to get to the next pic up point for ferry number two. If your nerves are still with you after this trip you can now relax again for another 30 or so minutes until you reach the car drop off point in Saladen and get whisked off onto another hell ride to where ever your resort or accommodation destination is...

The island is probably four times as big as Phi Phi, if not bigger, but so much more relaxed and much more like an island. There isn't people around every cornor, dive shops door to door etc. We stayed on the very south side of the island just next to the nature reserve in a place called the Lanta Marine Park View Resort. Quite a mouth full. The small little town has a 7/11, motorbike rental place, two small restaurants, a little anything but everything store, a dive shop and Liquid Lens...

To get to Saladen which is the main town, takes about 30 to 40 minutes by scooter, through a selection of potholes and jungle like tracks. Of course when we arrived our taxi driver made sure he dropped us off in a record breaking attempt of 10 minutes. We hired a scooter on our first day and went exploring. Found an amazing coffee and cake deli. Try the Mocca death by chocolate. What a combination.

(Filling up our scooter at the local gas station)

Then the rain came, we finally got to know what Monsoon means. By the time Eugene and I got back to the resort, we looked like sewer rats. Soaked to the bone with helmet hair and all. What a sight, thank goodness no one had cameras. I think the resort people felt too sorry for us to say anything so we escaped to our room for a nice hot shower and semi warm close, as we realised that neither of us bothered to pack anything remotely warm, or at least with long sleeves.

The next day the rain continued, but we spent the day indoors as we started with our underwater videography course.

To be continued...