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New artificial reef in Phuket
2008-04-24 05:30:00
The ‘Coral Reef Squadron’ arrivesIn Phuket a new artificial reef, made up by defunct airplanes from the Vietnam and Korea wars, is about to be opened up. There seems to some controversy amongst Phuket's dive operators about the location of the artificial reef, see this discussion on ScubaBoard.For me, sitting on Koh Samui, I wish Samui or Koh Tao would get some artificial reef like in Pattaya with the HTMS Khram and the HTMS Koot and now in Phuket.Please read the following article as it appeared in the Phuket Gazette today;JUST PASSING THROUGH: One of the 15 flatbed trucks transporting the ‘Coral Reef Squadron’ passes through the Tah Chat Chai checkpoint on Sunday. MAI KHAO: Amidst great fanfare, a convoy of 15 flatbed trucks loaded with the remains of 10 decommissioned military aircraft arrived at the Tah Chat Chai checkpoint at 2 pm on Sunday after a three-day overland journey that began in Lopburi. The convoy departed from Koke Krathiem Air Force Base in Lopburi with th...

International Year of the Reef, 2008
2008-03-29 01:29:00
International Year of the Reef , 2008 It's happening right now and if you're a diver, you should be part of it.The ICRI International Year of the Reef 2008 is a worldwide campaign to raise awareness about the value and importance of coral reefs and threats to their sustainability, and to motivate people to take action to protect them. All individuals, corporations, schools, governments, and organizations are welcome and actively encouraged to participate in IYOR 2008.The International Year of the Reef or IYOR has a good and informative website which I hope you will visit.The slogan "strong reefs, strong islands" embodies two significant messages of the campaign; the need for future marine and coral reef projects as well as deriving lessons from the past.There are tips what you can do to preserve the reefs and educational materials amongst others.PADI's own Project Aware is involved as well.Have a look at their website, spread the word and get involved!Camille
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PADI Specialty of the month March; Diver Propulsion Vehicle (DPV) or Underw
2008-03-06 05:40:00
PADI Specialty of the month for March 2008; Diver Propulsion Vehicle (DPV) or Underwater ScooterThese things are a blast to ride!DPV's offer a thrilling way to see a lot of underwater territory in a brief amount of time. They scoot you through the water without kicking. Want to visit that offshore reef from the beach? A DPV may be the way to go. Here's a picture of one my students participating in the PADI DPV Specialty. This shows a DPV as we use them in our dive centre, a SeaDoo sea scooter. The specialty is a lot of fun and gives you the opportunity to discover larger areas or get somewhere faster.
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First day of Wreck diving in Pattaya
2008-02-18 17:34:00
Today the HTMS Khraam was on the list.We gathered at 8 am at Seaduction's dive shop, opposite the Bali Hai Pier, at the end of Walking Street in Pattaya .It was all very relaxed and Danny who runs the shop together with Andy are nice folks.We loaded our Nitrox tanks on the boat and were off to the HTMS Khraam.Above is a great picture of the Khraam and she's a lovely wreck, sunk about 5 years by the Thai Navy for recreational divers. She's got a nice crust of plants and anemones and assorted other sea life on it's hulls and there are plenty of penetration points all over the wreck. We did two very nice and relaxed dives on the wreck, with Steve R. completing his wreck dive specialty and Marcus and Jamie completing their wreck dive Instructor Specialty.Visibility was fairly good between 7 and 10 meters and there was only a mild current during both dives. All in all a very relaxed day with some good diving! Tomorrow we're off to dive the HTMS Koot, a sister ship of the Khraam and s...
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DAN Provider and DAN Instructor course February 08
2008-02-16 09:10:00
DAN Provider and DAN Instructor course February 08Today Gideon, Simon, Marcus and Steve completed their DAN O2 Provider course. Steve is currently a PADI Divemaster who's completing an PADI Open Water to Instructor career program and this course is part of his training.Pictured from left to right are Gideon, Simon, Steve, Camille and Marcus. Gideon, Simon and Marcus will continue with their DAN Instructor course. Camille

Dive Specialties completed for the moment being
2008-02-16 02:18:00
The dive Specialties are completed for the moment being,But there's more coming up soon, so keep reading!Over the last three days we've been twice on the boat and for one dive on the beach, completing Instructor level Specialty training as Deep diving, Digital Underwater Photography (DUP), Multilevel, Boat diving, Under Water Navigation and Diving Propulsion Vehicle (DPV) or Under Water Scooter for Gideon, Simon, Marcus and Satoshi so they can become Master Scuba Dive r Trainers or MSDT's.During the DUP dive we saw this sea snake. It was a while ago I saw one and it was nice to see one again. During this dove we also encountered a very bog solitary barracuda which was at least one meters and a whole school of squid.This is how one of the Diving Propulsion Vehicle (DPV) or Under Water Scooter's looks like. They're a lot of fun underwater and get you somewhere real fast!We'll be off to Pattaya for more Instructor Specialties this Sunday and Wreck diving is on the schedule amongst...
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EFRI Course completed today
2008-02-12 09:17:00
EFR Instructor Course completed todayJames, Simon, Fred and Adam participated in the EFR Instructor course, Gideon participated already last year in this course with me and Marcus was already an EFR Instructor before he joined the IDC, only Ulrike didn't participate.At 9.15 this morning we kicked off! James in action on the mannekin 'Little Annie', much to the amusement of Simon, Fred and Adam.Adam showing off his baby eating skills!All of us combined in front of the control panel of the local chamber, where the course was held in the upstairs classroom, from left to right, Simon, Fred, Adam, James and Camille.Camille
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Specialty training has started, today Gas Blending was on the menu
2008-02-12 01:56:00
Specialty training has started, today Gas Blending was on the menuMarcus put his first steps in to the world of Gas Blending and he also did the Equipment repair course.Today I'm conducting the EFR Instructor course, to be followed by a few days on the boat, the DAN O2 Instructor course and a trip to Pattaya that will include the Wreck Dive specialty. Stay tuned for updates over the next few days. Camille
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The February 2008 PADI IE has been successfully completed
2008-02-11 02:06:00
The 2008 .html">February 2008 PADI IE has been successfully completedBy all 9 of my candidates, after an action packed and for the participants, a nerve wrecking weekend.Under the skillful guidance of George Wegmann, the PADI examiner, who's send over by PADI HQ to evaluate the candidates, all 4 segments of the PADI IE were absolved and completed. Here's George giving a briefing for the Confined Water part of the IE. Simon, James, Marcus, Fred and IDCS Paul are listening in. All 9 of them and George together in the pool for their Confined Water skill circuit.After having completed all 4 segments of the IE, Theory (5 Theory Exams and a General Standards exam), Confined Water, Open Water and Knowledge Development, the tension is gone and their listening to George's debriefing at the end of the IE.The official picture!From left to right Chris and Wahid Azab (IDCS), Nobuhiko Abe (IDCS), Adam Tomaszweski (OWSI), James Donald (OWSI), Gideon Rybier (OWSI), Simon Brindley (OWSI), Satoshi Kajiyama (O...
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The February IDC finished yesterday and the PADI IE started today!
2008-02-09 07:56:00
The February IDC finished yesterday and the PADI IE started today!Yesterday everybody completed the IDC program successfully. However, there's no rest for the wicked and today the PADI IE started.This morning at 8 am all 9 candidates gathered at World Resort, where today and tomorrow they will be evaluated by George Wegmann, PADI's examiner on this occasion. The weather is great, it's nice and sunny, for more info on the Samui weather situation, please visit my Samui weather blog.The Introduction is in full swing with George, PADI's examiner, during which George explains what will be waiting for them during the next two days and in the meantime he's also trying (successfully) to relax the candidates a bit.This morning, after the Orientation, they sat their 5 theory exams, followed in the afternoon by the Open Water dive presentation and Rescue skill. The 5 Theory exams were completed without any hitch by all 9 of them, well done! That was a good start.Tomorrow they will have to...
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AI course of the February 2008 IDC completed
2008-02-03 11:48:00
Yesterday we completed the AI part of the current IDC.Last night James threw a BBQ at his house where all attended, thanks James, it was great, despite the fact that you created a new meaning for the word blackened! The Chili and salads were excellent though! Whatever happened to the fireworks, by the way?During the Assistant Instructor (AI) part of the IDC, the candidates get to present their first Knowledge Development presentations and this picture shows Gideon in action, with Ulrike and Adam listening in, rather fascinated. As always, the lunches at World Resort are excellent. With so many people involved, the tables are filled up nicely!The other part that they get introduced to, is their Confined Water presentations, here are James and Fred preparing, with Gideon in the background.Adam and Simon having fun before they go into the pool. Part of the Confined water training is the Rescue Exercise # 7 of the Rescue diver course, for which they get evaluated during the Open Water s...
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First IDC of 2008 about to kick off!
2008-01-29 16:23:00
Tomorrow the first IDC of 2008 starts!Today we completed the prep course.It shows a fairly crowded classroom, there are 9 IDC candidates and 5 IDCS participating. In this picture we can see Adam, Gideon, Fred, Ulrike, Simon, James and Marcus. On the back row are 3 IDCS; Paul, Chris and Wahid. Chris and Wahid work in Sharm El Sheik in the Red Sea and are having a work vacation, during which they staff this IDC.This picture shows everybody sweating it out during one of their exams.Today, first thing in the morning we went to the pool. The sun was burning so fiercely, we all got sunburned in our faces!Tomorrow the real IDC starts and I'll try to keep you updated on the progress.Camille
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Influences of Marketing Factors on Diving Trip Selection
2008-01-27 03:13:00
Help a Thai University student with her project by filling out her questionnaire;Influences of Marketing Factors on Diving Trip Selection Browsing the net I found this questionnaire by Ms. Jittima Srivoranart, a student at Kasetsart University in Bangkok. She is studying MBA (International Business) and this questionnaire is for her IS (Independent Study) which is one subject of the course."This is a questionnaire which is set for the independent study of Master Degree in International Business Administration at Kasetsart University, done by Ms. Jittima Srivoranart. Its primary objective is to investigate influences of marketing factors toward the selection of scuba diving trip."The questionnaire comprises of 3 parts. Please help Jittima with her survey, she needs to collect 400 questionnaires.This is the link to follow to the questionnaire.Camille