The Lyceum - searching for eudaimonia

Sean

I suppose with so much of flood water in Qld the required QF points for business class flights should be discounted to the level of economy flights.

Any way Cairns is a lovely place so long it does not rain when you arrive.

Hi Miner.

Had a great week up here. Only one day of bad weather on the reef otherwise fine. The Kangaroo Explorer wasn't as good as I remember but the diving sites were ok. We decided to go out on another live aboard for 3 days as the weather was holding up. We chose OceanQuest which was 200 bucks more expensive but was well worth it. A much nicer boat, great food, better room and bed, good crew and service. The diving sites were ok but the vis was ordinary due to the rainy season.

Came back to the Shangri La last night and we were upgraded to a suite which was very nice but not required. More room than we need really. Nicer balcony views of the marina though.

Back on Qantas this afternoon for return to Sydney....

Sean

so what u use up there, obviously not a 7mm(tho that padding, twice over parts does affort grt protection when the waves get like a good day on bondi and you are in the rock ledges). its so shallow i guess u use tank after tank.
liked the look of yr unit down south, i wasnt sure if u had followed the big money and managed to pick up something reasonable out here.
the swiss grand will go up soon if the hotel block sells well next door-march eta, tho its a whole block.....

Originally Posted by shag

so what u use up there, obviously not a 7mm(tho that padding, twice over parts does affort grt protection when the waves get like a good day on bondi and you are in the rock ledges). its so shallow i guess u use tank after tank.
liked the look of yr unit down south, i wasnt sure if u had followed the big money and managed to pick up something reasonable out here.
the swiss grand will go up soon if the hotel block sells well next door-march eta, tho its a whole block.....

I had my 3mm and wifey wore a 3mm plus a 1mm vest/hoodie. I could have worn my vest/hood as well and been just that little more comfy.

I will never dive around Sydney again without a dry suit. It's just not enjoyable.

We pick up the keys to the Melbourne pad this weekend. Whoohoo!! Move in the following weekend.

We've mixed emotions at the moment because we started the process of looking at Melbs to buy the long term dream home but we have now been so happy living in Bondi... We love it! At the moment I would have been more happy buying a nice apartment over the beach here. Would have cost $500k more I suppose...

But, family and long time friends are in Melbs, and we will have those views until we croak...

Sorry, it's been a while since we were aboard, and I didn't provide a lot of detail on this one.

Summary is that I think we found the best value for money diving on the GBR.

We've now been to Cairns about 6 times and been on 6 different live-aboard dive boats and we think OceanQuest wins!

Apart from visiting the same dive site a couple of times the boat, professionalism, equipment, staff, and food far surpass similarly priced boats.

We went back out on Kangaroo Destroyer and it's really lost it's charm. Not sure what has happened there, but the staff were vacant and the food was crap! A few years ago I thought it was exceptional value for money but now it's just cheap.

Anyone wanting to stay somewhere nice before or after a dive trip: Shangri La at the marina. We've stayed there the past 3 times in Cairns and very good!

Going back to OceanQuest in the coming months and probably for 7 days to really get into it.

http://www.diversden.com.au/oq.htm

The other option is Spirit of Freedom on their 7 day trip. Looks awesome!

http://www.spiritoffreedom.com.au/

Really, the GBR is some of the best diving in the world. Relatively expensive for those coming from overseas but for Aussies, amazing stuff!!

Next diving trip now looks to be Cook Islands (mainly for the vistas) or perhaps Sidapan Island in Malaysia. Looks to be one of the best dive sites in the world!!

Will be there at Christmas I think..

Since last post things have changed. Heading to Malaysia and Thailand in 2 weeks. Will report on the diving.

Leaving Friday for a 5 day trip with 2 nights on a boat and 3 in hotels. Haven't been diving since Jan 12! I might need to do a check dive. LOL.