The Reef

OH MY GOD. OH MY GOD. OH MY GOD. I saw a shark. ME! LISA BURGESS I SAW A SHARK IN REAL LIFE!!! It was about four feet long and swam about ten feet below me. I freaked out a little bit, but then realized I had nothing to be afraid of and followed it for a while. Everyone knows that the Great Barrier Reef is amazing, but to actually experience it in all it’s awesomeness is something else. Typically, I am petrified of the deep ocean. Seriously. I can’t even look at picture of it in books because I get really scared and nervous, but I’m in Australia and this is something I will never be able to do again. We got up this morning at 6 am to head out to the Great Barrier Reef. After a grueling two hour boat ride, we finally arrived at the spot we could dive at.

Half of the people opted to go Scuba diving instead of just snorkeling, but when the staff member saw I had diabetes he said “Lisa, do you plan on Scuba-ing today?” and I told him no then he said, “Yea, that’s probably a good idea.” This was just a sign that I was not ready to go that far under the water. Once at the spot, I put on my stinger suit, flippers, and snorkel. I’ll admit that I was hesitant at first because sea creatures scare me, but once in the water I was like a fish.

had to be fearless and I did it and IT WAS THE BEST DAY EVER. I saw the most beautiful coral, the biggest fish, an eel, a turtle, two dolphins, and a shark. Jenna and I snorkeled around the reef in two different spots for about two and a half hours. After we left one spot, we headed to a small island to snorkel around its shore. The island is protected beach land though so there are patrolling officers making sure people only stay in the roped off area. This is because there are over 1,000 birds that live on the island. Seriously, I’ve never seen so many birds, it was honestly kind of frightening, not to mention noisy. We got super sunburned while on the boat deck and the food wasn’t very good, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Oh, and on the way back, they put up the sails, stopped the motor, passed out Australian cheese and crackers, and played Taylor Swift through the speakers. Honestly, what more could you ask for? I really hope that when (yes, when, not if because she is coming) my mom comes I can take her on a snorkeling trip because I know that she’ll love it more than anyone.

When I was six years old, my family moved to an island in the Marshall Islands called Kwajalein. I was young, but I do remember a lot of it. Before I came to Australia, I kind of assumed that there would be many similarities as far as the water and the climate go. Boy, was I wrong. I remember when I would snorkel on Kwaj and there would be coral, crabs, and other crustaceans, but nothing could ever compare to what I saw today. The colors where unreal, the amount of life in side the ocean is unattainable. I cannot even begin to give it justice. It truly is a wonder of the world.