Schnorcheln 2 - Fish without end

The snorkeling in front of Koh Ma the day before had gone well, and it made me want more. I was very impressed by the underwater world there, so I decided to try it again the next day. I now had a better understanding of everything and knew what to look out for. I wanted to go out in the morning when the water was high enough. But to avoid having to swim the long way to Koh Ma, I asked So, the resort manager from Myanmar, if I could borrow the canoe he uses every day to catch squids. He happily agreed and quickly went to the shed to bring me the paddle, although one side of it was only half there, which was not a problem.

I had put on an old shirt to protect myself better from the sun, as well as my cap. I wouldn't go without the water shoes anymore, and I stowed the snorkel and camera in the plastic canoe, which I pushed into the water with great joy and set off for Koh Ma.

I love paddling, moving on the water and feeling the gentle up and down of the waves, looking at the shore from the sea and slowly letting it pass by. I steered towards the area where I had encountered the fabulous underwater world yesterday. I hoped to find better lighting conditions today, as the sun was high in the sky and not obscured by clouds. When I arrived there, I slipped into the water, put on my dive mask and snorkel, and immersed myself in the new fabulous world. Once again, I was overwhelmed by the abundance of shapes, even more so this time because everything shone much more due to the stronger sunlight. However, the canoe that I had paddled so wonderfully easy now turned out to be an obstacle. I had to hold onto it permanently so that it wouldn't drift away. When I didn't do this once, the light boat was quickly swept away by the current. I had a hard time catching it again - I hadn't estimated the current that fast. Only later did I come up with the idea of ​​tying the canoe to one of the makeshift buoys. Until then, however, I was very restricted in my movements. Furthermore, I only had one hand free to hold the camera, which unfortunately resulted in very shaky or moving videos. But what I saw underwater made up for all the problems. I had come across a huge school of fish! Wherever I looked, there were fish everywhere, silvery-gray shimmering fish about 25-35 cm long with a bright yellow stripe on the side. It was simply breathtakingly beautiful. Depending on how they were illuminated by the sun, it glittered and sparkled all around me. The many individual fish bodies formed a single body that moved slowly in the water. If I got too close to the fish, they scattered or simply accelerated their flow, only to slow down again at a safe distance and find themselves back in perfect harmony. I could hardly believe my luck because the school of fish remained calm, did not disappear, but always stayed in the same area. I could hardly get enough of this wonderful spectacle, but at some point, I had to climb back into the canoe and paddle back - it had actually been like being in a trance, fantastic.

The next day, I was able to persuade So, the resort manager, to paddle out with me. While I was exploring underwater, he would go fishing for squids. We pushed the canoe into the water together, but he absolutely refused to give up the paddle, that was beneath his dignity, he was the boss in the boat, or I was the fine gentleman who he did not want to serve.

I directed him to the position where I had come across the large school of fish the day before. While I got into the water, he stayed in the canoe, took his fishing rod and let the bait sink into the depths. He probably knew that he wouldn't catch any squids here and now, but he didn't let it show and just played along.

To my surprise, I found myself in the middle of the school of fish again, which apparently hadn't moved. Today, a group of very similar fish had joined the silver-gray ones. They also had a yellow stripe on the side, but it was flanked by 2 blue stripes above and below. However, the ones with a single stripe were clearly in the majority. In addition, young tuna swam in large numbers in front of the camera. Unfortunately, the water was a bit cloudy today, which affected the visibility and the videos, but not the experience. Despite everything, it was fantastic.

I let So know about the enormous abundance of fish in this spot, but he wasn't interested. He needed a net for these fish, and he didn't have one with him. He was only interested in squids, which he would sell in Chaloklam - for 3-5 euros per kilo, depending on the size of the animals.

After about an hour, I felt a little sorry for So, who was waiting for me idle in the canoe. That's why I climbed back into the boat so that he could paddle us back to the shore, which was a bit embarrassing for me this time, especially since he vehemently refused any payment.