Xtreme Gap Year Blog

Alasdair 19, Uk. Doing Muay Thai and diving in Thailand.

After 1 and a half months on Koh Tao, I now have 3 days left on the island to fill with last minute souvenir hunting and leftover muay thai sessions.

My last week here has been slightly different as I finally got round to starting my PADI Open Water course, which only lasted 3 days but was really amazing – I have never been scuba diving, or even snorkelling before [and to be honest I'm not even a very good swimmer!], but 3 days of teaching, with 4 dives at 4 different dive sites around Koh Tao, has been more than enough to make me feel comfortable scuba diving [and I hope to use my certification when I travel to Australia to go on a shark dive!].

 The teachers are all really friendly and funny [especially Claude and Sarah, who taught me!], and there really were some amazing sites to be seen at the various dive sites – damselfish, eels, and just swimming through a school of angelfish, along with a pretty colossal triggerfish, were all incredible. We also had a photographer on our last two dives [as they have for all Open Water courses apparently], who filmed us underwater as we scuba’d around – I’m really looking forward to seeing the video this evening! [if only to make sure there was nothing in between my teeth]

Overall the scuba diving course has proven a really nice ending to my time here on Koh Tao – although I am looking forward to the rest of my travels, as I will now be spending 6 weeks in rural China, I know there are some things I will definitely miss from Koh Tao – the trainers from muay thai [although perhaps not the situp routine], the weather [and my tan!], and most of all the endless supply of mango shakes!

Jonathan, 23. UK

is on the Muay Thai programme on KOh Tao and wrote us on 22-06-2010:

I am enjoying it thank you for arranging. First impressions were good, it was pretty much what I expected. Sarah met me off the boat which was great and then we had dinner which was nice as it was a good intro to Thai food. Training has been going well too.

Jonathan

William, 19. UK.

Williams is doing his Divemaster course in Thailand with 2 friends on Koh Tao.

We’re having an amazing time, thanks for your help making it happen! We’ve been here just over 2 weeks now. Haven’t quite got there yet buit we’re in no rush! The weather is fantastic and people are all lovely and the nightlife is classic! x

Alasdair, 19. Uk

Alasdair is training Muay Thai in Thailand for 6 weeks with Xtreme Gap:

Well, I’ve been a month here so far on the island of Koh Tao, doing Muay Thai training every day [unless I have a particularly bad hangover!], and it’s been an incredible experience! On the Muay Thai side of things it can be pretty tough, and the trainers definitely know how and when to push you – I’m one of the few people training who has come here as a complete novice, as most people who come here already have a few months or years experience in Muay Thai at home – but that really hasn’t affected my experience as the trainers appreciate everyone at their own level [although it does mean that I end up doing a LOT of situps - so far it's gone up to 200 after an hour and a half session. I have about another 16 sessions left now, which I'm going to double up on so I do morning and afternoon sessions everyday - although I'm not looking forward to getting up at 8 in the morning for the next week, I'm hoping it'll be worth it!

Apart from Muay Thai, Koh Tao is a really nice island just to relax on [which I've ended up doing a lot of after some of the training sessions!] – most of the time you just end up on Sairee Beach chatting to other travellers or reading [I've met some really fantastic people, both at training and just on the island in general], and although I haven’t been out all that much [mostly because I'm too lazy to after training!] the nights I have been out have been really good fun, and there’s always something going on somewhere, even if it is just the fire show at Lotus Bar or something like that! All this, along with the nice accomodation that Xtreme Gap provides and the good restaurants around here, has meant it’s been a really enjoyable time here so far – I know I will probably miss being here when I set off for China in 10 days’ time!

 Anyway, just wanna say thanks for the experience and to the people from Xtreme Gap, both here on the island and back at base – everyone has been really helpful and friendly, and they have ensured that my month here so far has gone pretty smoothly! [although with the occasional cuts and bruises from Muay Thai!]

Alasdair!

If you throw an Aussie, a Dutch, couple Germans, couple Poms and a few Americans into Fiji , what do you get? An unforgettable funny, rewarding, and cultural
experience. When you tell people you spent six weeks in Fiji doing Volunteer Marine research, scuba diving, living in a traditional village, beach parties with the locals they first thing they ask is who you did the program with. Then I tell them Fiji Dive Volunteer Marine Conservation.
The first thing I think of was the amazing diving, perfect for for beginners or advanced divers. Then the colours of the corals , being circled by Hammerheads,
seeing minkee whales off the boat, dolphins racing against the dive boat, turtles, eagle rays and every sort of fish in every colour. Spending one week in a traditional village
your understanding for the Fijian culture deepens, you live the laidback lifestyle- Seganaleqa/no worries. You live in their homes, play games with the local kids, go to
choir practice, try kava, cook and eat their food and live like a Fijian.

Then you remember the people there, the always smiling and laughing dive crew and Kelera your Fiji mother. Then there’s the other particpants scattered from all over the
world, you live with for the whole time and you get the see their best and worst sides (waking up for early mornings or after having one too many bowels of kava)
and love them for it, friends you would have never meet and now you just want to go to the other side of the world to visit them.
Its an amazing experience, even after more travelling over the world I still hold this experience highly in my heart and cant wait to return to Fiji .

Sarah Kitney November 2009

View the Fiji Diving programme here

Adam followed 2 months of Muay Thai training on Koh Tao from on February 2010.

“hey, my fight was awesome, one of the best experiences ever! Thanks for everything you guys have done! I left koh tao about a month ago now to see a bit more of Thailand, but am thinking of heading back to Tao to do some more training, i cant get enough of it!”

Caroline is following our surf instructor course in Australia and she is having a wicket time. This is her feedback:

Surf instructor course week 1:

I left Scotland to learn to surf in Australia, I had a lovely first weekend in Sydney. On Monday I was picked up by a giant green surf bus and we eventually made it down a dirt track after a six hour drive, which I believe is ‘just round the corner’ in terms of Australian travel distance.

I think my swimming has definitely paid off as I feel relatively fit however I am definitely not confident enough to go the whole instructor level. Maybe I will think differently in a few weeks.

The instructors are all super nice and swear they can save all of us if we are swept out in a rip. Reassuring and nice to know, it makes me feel more confident when I am pushing myself in the surf.

Week ones achievements: Using the rip to get out back and got my first (small) barrel.

Surf instructor course week 2:

There are 5 girls and 3 boys on the course, so the surf girls rule! During this week my water confidence improved and I have been surfing with a big smile. I have always been afraid of big surf  but this week I was sent paddling over big waves, using rips and body surfing and I survived! My fear for big surf is gone! The surf instructor we have is an excellent teacher and everyone is getting better at surfing but more importantly everyone is just having so much fun.

This week I did my first surf instructor classes and it is much harder than it looks. But great fun because you get to learn others to surf and that improves yur own skills too! It is also cool to make a difference to the new surfers who all managed to ride waves by the end of the session and also sharing the enthusiasm of surfing with them.

I am having so much fun!

Australia Surf instructor Course, third and fourth week. I have been having such a great time, I forgot to e mail you for a few days. But here is my update: Yesterday morning me and my group were surfing with Dolphins! Last week we have been training with run swim run swim on the beach, which was harder than I had anticipated and we also practiced surfboard rescues which were really good, but also really funny. We went to a locally based shaper to see how surf boards are shaped and made. I am having such a good time, I can’t believe I am already half way through the surf instructor programme. I am enjoying coaching so much more than I thought I would and plan to return again for a while. I just love this place!

Ik ben Dion van Putten en ben 19 jaar.
14 mei 2010 ga ik met Xtreme Gap 8 weken Muay Thai trainen in Thailand op het eiland Koh Tao.
Waarom ik met Xtreme Gap ga? ik kwam de site bij toeval tegen op het internet en was al een tijd aan het kijken om voor langere tijd op reis te gaan, de site sprak me gelijk al aan dus een reden om er even op rond te kijken.

Toen ik aan het rondkijken was kwam ik het gedeelte over de muay thai training tegen, en toevallig was ik na een jaartje of 4 net weer begonnen met trainen voor thai-boks.
Ik had gelijk het gevoel dat ik dit moest gaan doen en heb, nadat ik informatie had aangevraagd, de reis geboekt!

Xtreme Gap heeft mij erg goed van informatie voorzien.
Ik heb regelmatig via de telefoon en email contact gehad waardoor ik een erg duidelijk beeld kreeg van de voorbereidingen voor deze reis.
Ik ben geholpen met het uitzoeken van de vlucht en de verdere reis van Bangkok naar Koh Tao.
Ook het uitzoeken van de juiste verzekering, was met behulp van Xtreme Gap erg eenvoudig. Verder heb ik veel nuttig informatie over Thailand ontvangen, zodat ik mij goed voor kan bereiden op mijn verblijf daar.
Xtreme Cap is voor mij het extra steuntje om zo jong al alleen deze reis te gaan maken. De begeleiding van Debby is erg professioneel maar ook heel persoonlijk. Alles is tot in de puntjes geregeld en ik kan met al mijn vragen bij haar terecht.

Ik heb er enorm zin in om lekker 8 weken te trainen en vakantie te houden op een tropisch eiland, nieuwe contacten te leggen en nieuwe ideeën op te doen wat betreft opleiding of werk.

Dion van Putten

Ann did Yoga on Koh Tao in September 2009.

Hi Xtreme,

I’m travelling about for several more months but you’re quite welcome to lift any of the pictures you want from facebook. I also took a couple of the Muay thai boxing place. I had a great time, and absolutley LOVED the yoga. I also tried out the boxing whilst I was there which I also loved and will be doing again. Ann”

Thomas and his brother went Tiger shark diving in Souh Africa in November 2010 (Dutch)

“Hoi Xtreme Gap,

Excuses voor de late respons, maar ik was het vergeten. De trip was fantastisch. Mark heeft echt passie voor de dieren en weet er veel van. We kregen ruim de tijd om de dieren te bewonderen, het was leuk om te zien dat Mark er zelf ook veel plezier in heeft om haaien te zien. We werden behoorlijk vrij gelaten, we moesten zelf letten op decompressiestops etc, dus duikervaring is wel vereist. Het materiaal was goed. Een leuk detail is dat we bultrug walvissen zagen en dat mark een hydrofoon bij zich had, zo konden we dus naar hun gezang luisteren, super! Mark was erg geduldig en heeft ons nooit het gevoel gegeven dat we moesten opschieten. Als we terug gingen richting wal kwam dat omdat wij het te koud hadden om nog door te gaan. Mark heeft prachtige fotos van ons en de haaien gemaakt. Een hiervan heb ik toegevoegd als attachment.

Het hostel waar we verbleven was prima. Mooie kamers, goede gemeenschappelijke ruimte. Wat opviel was dat er alleen ’s ochtends een gastvrouw was. ’s Avonds was er niemand en dan zit je daar wel een beetje in de middle of nowhere. Erg aardig was dat we de eigenaar altijd bereid was om ons een lift te geven als we hem belden.

We hebben uiteindelijk alleen blacktip en dusky haaien gezien, geen tijgerhaaien. Daar was het seisoen kennelijk niet geschikt voor. Ondanks dat was het een onvergetelijke ervaring en heeft het ons enthousiasme voor het duiken met haaien verder aangewakkerd!

Bedankt voor de goede organisatie!

Groetjes, Thomas”

Xtreme Gap Year are  Adrenaline Travel experts

Gap Year Africa | Asia Gap Year | gapyear | Gap Year Diving |  Fitness Holiday |