Stay tuned for the rest of the Australia story, which’ll have to be blogged when I return to the States. For now, here are some photos of my current locale: Apia, ‘Upolu, Samoa – home to sunny skies, friendly people, and that laid-back South Pacific groove.
Following a quick transition from Cairns to Sydney to Newcastle, Tristan, Chris, Brent, and I drove to Scone for the 61st annual Scone Cup. Fair dinkum, the Scone Cup is a true blue Australian horse racing experience… I first attended the Scone Cup four years ago during my study abroad in Newcastle, and ever since I’ve always envisioned returning. Four years later, I was back, and another literally perfect day ensued.
After the second liveaboard trip, my divemaster course was complete, and I had a few free days in Cairns to explore and enjoy time with old friends before flying out to Sydney. Some photos from Cairns and the surrounds…
With one liveaboard trip complete, the second liveaboard trip went smoothly. Coincidentally, on this trip I also dove my 100th dive, which turned out to be a night dive. Apart from Dive #1, Dive #100 is arguably the most celebrated milestone in scuba diving. As for me, on the Great Barrier Reef at night with clear skies and calm waters, consider it celebrated. 
My 2.5 week divemaster course consisted of theory (classroom sessions) and practical application (pool and ocean sessions). Specifically the theory involved studying stuff like dive physics, physiology, and tables whereas in the practical application, I primarily assisted instructors with the teaching of entry-level Open Water scuba courses.
I assisted with two Open Water courses from start to finish. Each Open Water course was four days: the first two days were spent in the pool learning the 20 basic Open Water scuba skills, and the second two were spent on the Great Barrier Reef refining scuba skills in the ocean (i.e., open water).
The open water portion of the Open Water course was conducted on a 3 day/2 night liveaboard trip to the Great Barrier Reef. In brief, the liveaboard trips included lots of diving (up to 11 dives for certified divers), plenty of sun, and all the food you could eat. Since I was primarily being evaluated on my divemaster duties over two Open Water courses, that meant I got to go on two liveaboard trips.
On each liveaboard trip I was evaluated both in and out of the water. In the water I assisted with Open Water and Advanced Open Water courses, and out of the water I helped out with deck duties such as logging divers in and out of the water and filling tanks. In other words, the practical application involved the actual duties of a divemaster, and take it from me that you certainly learn by doing! Here are a few photos from the first liveaboard trip.
