I’d say thumbs up, but when you’re diving that would be the signal for ascend, so I’ll have to give you the big OK. When we got to Hong Kong we found ourselves being checked on a single flight, instead of the initially planned two. This was a pleasant surprise. We were checked in to our hotel by about 1130pm on Sunday night.

Today we split into two groups. Those who were certified (ten of us) dove on Raja Noi and Raja Yai. It was a great day. Calm seas, clear visibility, good food on the boat, and plenty of sunshine. Backflips off the boat were accomplished by Mr. Lauchlan, and Pio (under the strictest of safety conditions, of course). One of the highlights came as we ascended from our third dive and spotted a Manta Ray. Beauty. Not everyone saw that one, it’s a big ocean.

The second group had the more enclosed water environment of the dive center trainig pool. They started out the day with some classroom instruction and by the end were in the pool, breathing underwater, and running through the various training exercises. They’re tired but excited as after one more day in the pool, they’ll will have their first open water dives on Wednesday.

Everyone is excited to be here and we’re looking forward to a great week! The Macau forecast is a balmy 12 degrees. We’ll try not to miss you too much.