We continued our island hopping, less cycling, and a little snorkeling — from Koh Phi Phi to Koh Lanta. A week on Koh Lanta went by really quickly. Ferda and I spent three days taking a freediving course with Lion at Phoenix Divers in Ban Sala Dan, the same town where the ferry from Phi Phi dropped us on Lanta. We had a classroom day, a pool day, and an open sea day. Mostly we learned techniques: relaxation breathing, duck dives, kicking with long fins. In the pool we did both static apnea (how long can you hold your breath under water?) and dynamic apnea (how far can you travel underwater with fins?). In the open water we practiced our duck dives and rescuing a disabled diver from 5m. Our goal was to learn a bit to improve our snorkeling. Along the way we earned PADI freediver certification for whatever that’s worth.
Here’s Ferda rescuing our instructor, Lion.
As a little bonus, almost as soon as we had completed all our skills tests for the certificates, a zebra shark swam under us.
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