After arriving in Cairns last night we checked into a dodgy hostel called Asylum. It didn't take us long to figure out that it's definitely not known for its cleanliness as it is for its social reputation. We hit the hay right away and got up at 6 a.m to get ready for a tour to the Great Barrier Reef. We booked our day with Passions of Paradise tours and made our way out into the blue waters of the much anticipated reef. Stopping at the first site, Upolu Cay, Mike and I were supposed to scuba dive and got the introductory lesson but once we were in the water both panicked and decided to snorkel only. After lunch we were convinced to give diving another try after one of the peppy crew members remarked, "Those Canadians are gonna dive even if I have to take them myself." Away we went, all three of us hand in hand down to the mysterious underwater world of sea creatures. We felt around the coral polyps and had our fingers tickeled by the tenticles of tiny species. It was the most outstanding experience ever and are so excited that we got to dive for the first time in one of the natural wonders of the world also known as the only living visible thing from space.