great barrier reef

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Erick R. - 17 Dec 2004 23:44 GMT

I'm looking to get padi certified and some of the guys in my dorm got
certified last year taking a week long course on the GBR. This sounds good
because I've never been to Australia and heard you can travel pretty cheap
once you get there, but is this the best way to go to get certified? Should
I just take a local course and get certified in a pool with my open water
in Lake Michigan? What's the best way to go? Or is there a best way?
Erick

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Joe English - 18 Dec 2004 00:37 GMT

> I'm looking to get padi certified and some of the guys in my dorm got
> certified last year taking a week long course on the GBR. This sounds good
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> in Lake Michigan? What's the best way to go? Or is there a best way?
> Erick

Erick

read the comments best place to get OW certified

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Dillon Pyron - 18 Dec 2004 00:57 GMT

>I'm looking to get padi certified and some of the guys in my dorm got
>certified last year taking a week long course on the GBR. This sounds good
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>in Lake Michigan? What's the best way to go? Or is there a best way?
>Erick

Get certified at home, enjoy your vacation diving.

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dillon

"When the French are against it, you know we can't
be far wrong." - Adm. Bobbie Ray Inman

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Reef Fish - 18 Dec 2004 02:52 GMT

> >I'm looking to get padi certified and some of the guys in my dorm got
> >certified last year taking a week long course on the GBR.

Go ahead, get "padi" (your dog, right?) certified. :-)
Then take Dillon's advice:

> Get certified at home, enjoy your vacation diving.
>
> --
> dillon

Don't get your expectation about GBR up too high. GBR diving is
quite good (may even be very good when the conditions are right),
but definitely over-rated by most folks most of the time.

-- Bob.

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mike gray - 18 Dec 2004 01:08 GMT

The alternatives are:

1. Get certified before you go on the grand vacation, and get some
experience as well. Spend yer vaction time in Oz doing great dives with
knowledgeable divers on the GBR.

2. Go to Oz and spend yer vacation learning the basics in a vat of
chlorine, then do a few boring shallow dives with a bunch of newbie
tourist fusterclucks.

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Reef Fish - 18 Dec 2004 02:53 GMT

> 2. Go to Oz and spend yer vacation learning the basics in a vat of
> chlorine, then do a few boring shallow dives with a bunch of newbie
> tourist fusterclucks.

Where would you recommend for him to do this in Oz?
I thought he oculd so that only in the Florida Keys. :-)

-- Bob.

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Ken Johnson - 21 Dec 2004 00:31 GMT

> > 2. Go to Oz and spend yer vacation learning the basics in a vat of
> > chlorine, then do a few boring shallow dives with a bunch of newbie
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>
> -- Bob.

I got certified doing exactly what your friends did. I can't say it was
the best way to do it, but I had fun and we had great weather. The
Australians really do a lot to conserve the reef. I went to Zanzibar
last summer and they have pretty much killed their reef with over-diving
and reef walking tours. It was sad and very disappointing. Not worth the
money.

With that said, if you can afford it, sure, go to Australia. It's fun,
but you will spend a lot of your holiday in the pool. It's real easy to
blow a lot of money. I got to Africa using www.studentuniverse.com with
a student discounts. Look for cheap flights online and compare compare
compare. Look for cheap places to stay. We usually do the one person
guards the bags while the other person looks at a variety of backpackers
and chooses one. That way you're not staggering around looking like a
mark.

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