Day 11: Tui Tai Day 7- Great White Wall

Today was a great day. We even had some spots of sun for the famous White Wall, our first dive of the day on the glorious Rainbow Reef. There were a few too many people as everyone wanted to experience one of the best dive sites of Fiji! The supper nanny must have been caring for the kids, like they did the whole trip, as all the adults were diving. Due to the crowded dive, we hung at the back of the pack to have more freedom and pureness. You descended into a flowering rainbow of corals. The colors are spectacular and truly impossible to get sick of. Even I (Amy) couldn't get bored here! :) Swimming through coral gardens and fish galore, right at about 23 meters, we spotted it. The Great White Wall. It was crazy incredible. There is this giant wall that extends to about 40 meters. It is full of giant bright white coral. It looks like a snow covered peak under water! I couldn't help but go deeper than I was supposed to, for longer the I should have, it was just to once in a lifetime to worry about safety. Sadly, we had to move on as my computer started beeping at me. Those things are amazing. We have never used our own before and it is like diving with a parent or your own personal dive master. It knows more than we ever will for sure! Regardless, the rest of the dive was still wonderful as it ended in a magical purple garden or coral, my personal fave. We returned to the boat for our hot breakfast and finished just in time to put back on our wet gear and head back out for our second dive of the day. This time it was Joel and Robin (a great couple from California) and the two of us, with Owen of course. We headed to Rainbow's End. It was great, but now our standards have risen. We saw numerous schools of fish and Joel was like a kid in a candy store. We were glad that they enjoyed their lady dive on the Tui Tai. For our last and final dive of the whole trip and on this famous reef, it was just us. We couldn't resist. We asked to dive the Great White Wall again. It was like going to a restaurant, you find the perfect meal, it's your last chance, do you go with something you know will rock your world, or do you try something new, with a big chance of being disappointed. We wanted to play it safe and go out with a bang. After all, the currents had changed and we did the dive in the reverse. It was another amazing dive. Again, we couldn't stay there for ever as we did have to take care of our bodies, which we're accumulating quite a bit of nitrogen from the 16 dives we had just done. It really does take a toll on your body, especially if you are not used to it! Anyhow, enough science for summer. We pushed it, but listened to our computers. We were so happy with the decision. It was just as incredible the second time. Truth be told, if we could do it again right now, there wouldn't be a moment of hesitation. Despite the crummy last night windstorm and cold weather, all in all, it was a spectacular day! Despite the way too many and not so polite kids (which was truly unacceptable for a trip like that- especially as it advertises on the website 14 and over), it was an amazing trip. It was an incredible blend of exceptional diving, culture, and adventure. The crew of the Tui-Tai is unmatchable. They were awesome! If there are no kids, or no more than an American few (meaning 3- not the Fijian 9- 8 being boys- all under 11 years old), we would say it is a must do! However, be sure to ask, with that many kids, if you don't have them, it may not be worth the money on your holiday escape. Interestingly enough, the website has changed since we booked and it's now being marketed more as a family trip- just be sure to check. When we saw the website had changed it confirmed our suspicions that we were a little duped, but gratefully so. If we had known going in abut the 9 young kids, we would have saved the money, but then we both agreed we would have missed out on a once in a lifetime experiencer