Sunday 16th March - Wednesday 19th March - Day 42- Day 45

For the duration of the diving course It's a similar routine: classroom study; real dives out at sea and studying in the evening in preparation for a test. We do get enough free time to go to lunch and relax a little.

I bump into a couple of characters from Manchester: Pete and Magoo one lunchtime. They come here every year for a few months. Magoo particularly likes going to the bars in the evening and certain clubs, and has a Thai 'girlfriend'. And Pete assures me he tries not to be led astray by Magoo and his other partying dudes. He says he'll show me around the island if I want. Sounds good to me. We agree to meet up after I've completed the diving course.

All goes well and I pass my test at the end of it. The diving isn't as easy as I would like, especially equalizing where you try and hold your nose and blow to pop your ears while going deep into the water). But I can dive now, which is all that really counts.

I go for a meal with Alexander and Kirsten in the evening. They'll be leaving Koh Tao tomorrow afternoon.

Here's a photo of our group: