H is for hurl (sorry!)

Today was my much anticipated trip to snorkel at the great barrier reef. As the title suggests it didn't go quite according to plan...

I booked to go on a smaller tour (25 people max, there were actually 13 of us), that was a great! We were on a fairly small vessel that mainly used the motor but tried to do a bit of sailing as time allowed. 

I sat near the front on the way out and got absolutely drenched which was quite fun!

Unfortunately when we got to the bit of reef we were diving on I didn't get on so well. I felt totally unbalanced with my flippers and wet suit and so got towed back to the boat and took them off. I then got on a bit better and saw some fish and coral, but was still mainly thinking about clearing my snorkel of water. After a little I got really tired and then I started feeling ill S and throwing up. So I got towed back to the boat again. I'm not entirely sure if it was motion sickness from bobbing on the boat, swallowing some sea water, or heat exhaustion - maybe a little of all three. And proceeded to feel ill for about 2.5 hours until I'd spent 2 hours on dry land (Green Island). So yes, hurl is the relevant word of the day, unfortunately. 

They packed me a lovely plate of food and all I could manage was nibbling the bread. This did end up being one of the best bits of the day... 

First, I had a few tiny ants show up to steal the crumbs (the video is better than the pics). 

Second, there are loads of these birds, buff banded rails, on Green Island. This one was particularly cute with little black chicks (again video is better than photos)... Whilst I was distracted, another bird nipped onto the picnic table and nabbed the other half of my bread

This is the vessel from Green Island. It doesn't look like the water is moving much but it really was when you were in it!

We did actually see a sea turtle from the ship, just chilling on the surface! We also saw a small shark, and a barracuda too. So not a total fish fail!  

On the way back we ran into a bit of rain

By the time we got back to Cairns I was feeling okay, which was frustrating but at least I got home safely.

Today very much reminds me of a proverb (16:9 from the book of Proverbs). "In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps". Thanks for keeping me humble as I try to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding" (3:5-6) - still I would have like to see some more fish!