Tag 108-109 ' The three P's ...'

The past few days have been exciting. Why?

... about a week ago we decided to book a tour to Whitsunday Island. We have heard and read a lot about it and now we want to experience it ourselves. The islands are located in the middle of the Great Barrier Reef and are said to be perfect for snorkeling. So far so good, because we have read that before 🤔.

There were a lot of offers and after a short decision-making process, we decided on a 2-day/1-night sailing tour with snorkeling.

The tour started from Airlie Beach and we were excited. Who would come with us? What is the boat like? Where and how will we sleep? And so on ...

The crew was super cool and relaxed and the boat was big enough for everyone. There was a short briefing for everyone beforehand. One golden rule on board the ship, which everyone quickly remembered. The three P's were very important for survival in the next hour. Always remember: P(ippi) / P(oopo) and P(aper) 😂.

From now on, sunscreen was applied more often and we enjoyed the view. When we arrived at the first snorkeling spot, we went into the water with a wetsuit. Not because of the cold, but because of possible jellyfish. We were taken to the spot by a small boat. Already upon arrival, our first snorkeling group called out to us, 'We just saw a shark.' What now - a shark? Of course, you think about it here in Australia, but luckily it was 'only' a reef shark 🦈.

After that was clarified and the first shock was digested, we plunged into the cool water. And already here we saw soooooo many, great, colorful fish. 🐠🐟🐚🐡 Everywhere you looked ...

We went straight to the second spot afterwards. Here, the corals were the highlight. And my long-awaited 🐢 was discovered 🥰.

It was already worth it. In the evening, we sat on our boat and watched stars, fish, and told our stories ... 🧔👱🏼‍♀️👨‍🦰👩‍🦰👨‍🦳👨‍🦱👲👧🏻

The next day was long. Not only because it was like a school trip. There were those who went to bed at 10 p.m., and then there were the others who stayed up late and talked louder and ran around. Accordingly, the night was short for everyone involved. Some took the opportunity to sleep on deck, but they were woken up at 5:30 a.m. by a surprising rain shower 😆.

Today on the agenda - Whitehaven Beach. With a quartz content of 99%, it is considered one of the whitest beaches in the world. And it was really sooooooooooo white that it made your eyes squint. We enjoyed the view with our Finnish buddies from the boat and took a bath in the bathtub-warm water between lemon sharks and stingrays 🧜‍♀️🧜‍♂️ . After a long bath and exploring the area, we returned to the boat and back home. Even here we saw some huuuuge turtles ...

In summary, it was a very successful but also very exhausting trip that we can definitely recommend ⛵🏝!

By the way, our captain Mark is a very special person. In 2005, his ship capsized at sea and he survived for 11 days with his partner without food and water. He didn't make a big deal out of it, but since the story fascinated and interested us so much, we immediately bought his book about his journey. We are excited about the details ... 📖