How I save USD 148 dollars when obtaining a diving license

Day 3 – Day 4 | 22nd – 23rd May 2016

Tips for getting around an unfamiliar country

1 hour on the road left to Don Sak (Thailand), as shown on my GPS. I use Maps Me, an offline Navigation map with Live GPS (On my phone). It is so good, you dont need to buy a Garmin anymore. Just dont go under buildings/ bridges that blocks the satellite from reaching you.

For backup apps, in case Maps Me crashes or is unable to open, I have Sygic and Here Maps (By Nokia) too.

All 3 of these apps are FREE and they offer you:
1. Downloadable offline maps (FREE)
2. Live GPS Navigation (Must have a GPS enabled phone)

Its better to download more than 1 because for example, Here Maps does not have any map for Cambodia, whilst Maps Me have a downloadable map for Cambodia.

I prefer Here Maps navigation due to easier to see preferences and they have more a detailed “dashboard“.

Maps Me wins hands down in offering/ notifying you nearby places of interest. Like Petrol Stations, Hotels/ guest houses, markets, shopping centers, whereas Here Maps does not provide that. You can bookmark POI too and they appear on the map itself, unlike HERE maps where they Bookmarks remain hidden (slower to navigate or find your way).

For Sygic, I dont really use it as I have had negative experiences with it, but I still have it in my phone as a 3rd back up.

Also, be sure to bring another GPS enabled phone as a back up, in case your primary phone fries due to water seepage or broke down be it in anyway. You dont want to get stuck anyway, unless you know your roads well.

As of 2021, I have changed my style of riding & driving – not relying on GPS 95% of the time. 1 in 20 rides, only 1 ride with GPS.

Even going to new places, I do not use any GPS now. I would usually do a quick look at an online map if its a new location, understand it, and go.
In Malaysia and Vietnam roads, No GPS usage at all too from state to state, usually mounting the phone GPS up only when I reached the city center and locating the POI in a cluttered area.
Only for the first time. By the 2nd time I come back, I would have usually understood and connected the routes mentally. I prefer this now as I realised I was brainlessly relying too much on the GPS.

I have come to my preference as I mature:
1) Following blindly & brainlessly on the GPS is not my thing.

2) With the GPS on, it is a huge distraction for me. Instead of looking at the roads and avoid cars, my eyes will always be trained to a damn phone. Its a no no for me. I recently used the phone GPS 2 months ago, I almost went into a ditch, because I was looking at the phone. What the Freak. Never happened to me without a GPS.

3) With the GPS off, I notice my surroundings more, situational awareness peaks too. That is very important for us motorcyclist.

4) I enjoy the sceneries more.

Back to the 2016 Solo Motorcycle Tour:
Some of the people I met are really old timers, they do not use Live GPS systems but instead have a physical hard copy of a map work, and they write down the roads/ highway numbers that they require to pass/ turn.

 

I booked my tickets (on the spot) to Koh Tao from Seatran. I was making a risk, as there was only 2 ferry trips to Koh Tao for today. I was lucky that I reached early, to take the 2nd and last ferry to Koh Tao for today. Funny thing is that I checked online and the website writes that there are ferries throughout the entire day.

Oh well, I was prepared to sleep for 1 night in my tent here anyway if I cant get any ferry. I got my tickets at least, dont need to think much after that. I cant remember the price, but it was reasonable. Around USD 10. The ferry took about 3 – 4 hours. Best to eat before you go up the ferry because the food are priced pretty high as usual over there.

I locked my vehicle at the pier in a spot under a surveillance camera with lots of traffic going through it.

A total of 4 locks on the bike,
1) HandleBar lock
2) Chained the bike to a metal post through the crashbar and exhaust
3) Chain the Front Wheel
4) Chained the Rear wheel with the sprocket.

I doubt anyone will bother to try to steal it now with all the difficulties and the heavy traffic around there. Even if the stealer managed to removed my wheel, the weight of the bike would collapse on the front forks/ swing arm and they would need at least 5 men or more to carry it away (Again it is chained to a metal post too through the exhaust). They would need to remove the exhaust before they can “unchain” it.

I reached Koh Tao and I went to find Crystal Dive resort. Enrolled for the PADI Advanced Open Water Diver Course, completed it within 2 days and got myself a room for the 2 nights (included in the package). It cost about USD140 cheaper here than the damned country south of Malaysia, and I managed to cut the cost of it.
So the next time if you are thinking of getting/ upgrading your dive license, save it for the time when you are supposed to go to Thailand/ to your destination and check if its cheaper. Its just take a few mins of your time!

Overall the training was not as good/ fun/ intuitive as Blue Reef Scuba School (Did my Open water License). Nonetheless, they did taught the requirements and safety is always a number one priority as usual.

It was a total of 5 dives over a Span of 2 days. I felt that the time we chose to dive was not a good 1, but the class still have to carry on. For a total of 5 dives, 4 of them were pretty murky as crap. Visibility was only about 5meters max because the sand was being swept around by the strong currents on the seabed. I wasn’t able to see much marine life due to this. Tioman waters was so much more fun, clear and I saw much more marine wildlife despite only being able to go a maximum depth of 18meters previously.

With successfully completing the course (License card will be emailed back to home), I made back to main land and carry on my Journey to visit the infamous Kanchanaburi Tiger Temple (shut down by Thailand’s Wildlife Authorities 1 day after my 1st and last visit there due to Illegal Wildlife Trades of tigers).
Boy, am I glad to visit the Tiger Temple before it got locked down DAYS after!

Check out the official story by National Geographic here.