Aaron Update # 2

I got to talk with Aaron last night on skype, which was great!  Here's a little update for ya:

He and Sam met each other in the airport in Bangkok. I think it had been about 4 years since they saw each other last (I think).  Anyway, they took a 4 hour (air conditioned) bus ride from Bangkok to the border of Cambodia at 7:00am, and spent most of the ride catching up on life.  Then they transferred to a shuttle bus in Cambodia, which took them to a nearby town where they caught a 2 hour taxi to Siem Reap, YES, 2 HOURS in a taxi!  Luckily, they met a cool Italian guy named Marco, who shared the taxi with them, and a 1/3 of the bill!  The 3 of them are staying in a guesthouse in Siem Reap called Two Dragons (And yes Mom, they have a website, so you can read all about it!  You know you're going to!)

The 3 of them had traditional Cambodian food for dinner together in Siem Reap and got to bed nice and early, since they're planning to get over to Angkor Wat tomorrow morning to see both the sunrise (5:00am) and sunset from the temples (weather pending)!  It was stormy when we talked on skype.  So cross your fingers for good weather!

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Helmet Diving

Sorry for the nearly 4 week delay on this blog post!  I think I partially didn't want to admit that I went helmet diving (because it's so ridiculous) so I've been putting off posting the pictures!  But, I'm going to fess up and admit it.  I did it, and I eat my words about it being lame!  It was really fun!

I did this about 1/4 mile off the coast of Boracay (Philippines).  I sat on the edge of a boat, and they put this 50 lb helmet on my head and lowered me into the water, where I ultimately sank to the ocean floor!  Terrifying?  Ummm, YES!

I was handed a piece of bread, to feed the fish with, which is why they surrounded me!  Once I had been underwater for a couple minutes, my heartbeat began to slow to a normal pace and I was able to really enjoy the experience!

I was about 40 feet underwater at this point, and I stayed underwater for about 45 minutes.  I was able to touch live corals, which were surprisingly soft and slimy!

The helmet has a tube that sends air from the boat into the inner part of the helmet, but it was crazy, because I could literally stick my hand up inside the helmet to scratch my face and stuff... and when I got out of the water, my hair was dry!  It's the perfect water experience for someone with high maintenance hair!

I'd say it was a successful experience considering I didn't get bit! :)

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