Snorkel, snorkel

My intention of leaving Cairns for Christmas and Boxing Day was decided for me when I saw that return flights cost $800-$1000. Seriously... wtf. Aah well. This was going to be my only weekend in Cairns having spent the first weekend working/exploring central Cairns and last weekend in Sydney. If I didn't do the Great Barrier Reef, then it defeats the reason why I scheduled work here in the first place!

My Christmas was a bit ho-hum. I slept in until about 11am, had lunch, did a load of laundry and then went to the beach and read some of my book. Oh and then I remembered that I would need cash for my snorkeling tour and so I hopped into the car and drove in search of an ATM (which I found, of course). I had my dinner, watched a few episodes of Supernatural (Dean is freaking HAWT!) and then forced myself to sleep in preparation for my early rise. An 8am boat boarding time is not ideal.

My disposable underwater camera. Pretty cool eh? But if I could go again, I would buy a camera with a flash. The water dulls the colours of the coral and the deeper you go, the duller it gets.

I'm not the best swimmer and if left to my own skillz, I would be one of the first to die in the great big ocean. Thankfully the tour organisers make it pretty much impossible for anyone to drown out in the pretty, pretty corals. It wouldn't be a bad way to go though, but the fish, coral and future divers might not be too impressed with your carcass. Flippers and a swimming noodle are provided! With that kind of equipment, you could even be a non-swimmer! The swimming noodle doubled as a type of fish-nip, guaranteeing you some fishy action.

According to our tour organisers, Tusa Dive, the weather conditions were just perfect which permitted us to reach the outer Saxon Reef. We snorkelers had to wait for the scuba divers to head off first before embarking on our own more superficial exploration.

I was reminded that I was under water when I exclaimed 'Cool!' and my snorkel filled up with salt water.

It was pretty amazing and just like swimming in an aquarium, except it's not an aquarium - it's the ocean! It was soooooooooo cool to have all the different tropical fishies swimming past, getting on in their daily tasks. I didn't get to see the sea turtle which some other snorkelers saw :(

I don't suffer from motion sickness but after my first snorkel I felt a little woozy. Maybe I should have eased up a bit but I'm sure that my teech clenching on the mouthpiece also contributed to my headache.

I had a Cornetto in an attempt to counter my ill feeling.  This is what happens to ice cream in Cairns.  By the time we made it to Hastings Reef, I felt a bit better and was glad that I wasn't going to barf.

Yes, beneath the sea I will still attempt an Asian pose.

I found Nemo!

My teech clenching got the better of me and I found way back to the refuge of the boat. If you ever head to far north Queensland, it would be an utmost shame to not snorkel or dive out in the reef. Even if you can only just float, that'll be enough to do basic snorkeling.  IF you can't swim, you can do an underwater reef walk!  Fun for all!