Last month, I wrote a blog post about the nonprofit organization Coral Cay Conservation and mentioned that I would be participating in their reef conservation project in Tobago. I have now returned, beaten, battered and possibly broken, yet elated and entirely glad I went. As far as expeditions go, one must always expect the unexpected- things will not go as planned, and on occasion the inconceivable rears its ugly head. Maintaining a positive attitude, preparing yourself for the worst (while simultaneously hoping for the best) and cultivating a wry sense of humor are essential to surviving, and enjoying, this type of trip.
This advice has never been as true for me as on this particular expedition. Everything seemed to go wrong. Some of this was within our control, some within the organization's control, but by and large it was out of human hands.
I went with the expectation that I would learn how to survey reefs, identify factors pertaining to coral health, and provide a service in collecting data for this important aspect of reef conservation and sustainability. The stated plan was to do two science/survey dives per day during the week, with Saturday as a recreational dive day. Sunday is a strict no dive day, giving our bodies time to off-gas the nitrogen collected in our tissues during the week. I was prepared for the conservative dive plan they utilize understanding that safer is better, especially when far from appropriate medical facilities.
As a long-time diver and certified Divemaster, I thought I was prepared for the rigors of a dive expedition, and went ready to throw myself into the schedule and work required. As I am not a morning person by any definition of the phrase, I thought the hardest part of the trip would be waking up at six o'clock every morning. Silly me.
Since I've started The Eco-Traveler, one of my aims is to encourage you, my readers, to consider volunteer work, international travel, and hopefully, international volunteer work. I hope you have found the concept appealing. But until you go on a trip like this, it's difficult to know what to expect.
While on the expedition, I kept a daily journal. I want to share with you the day to day realities of participating in such a program. I realize that some of what I experienced may be a bit of a turn off, especially if you've never traveled internationally before. But please don't look at my experiences as negatives. They are simply part of expedition life, and I'm writing about it to give you an accurate view of what life on an expedition is like. Not to scare you, but to prepare you. I believe that life is less about what happens to you, and more about the difference between expectation and reality. If you expect perfection, you will often be disappointed. If your expectations are grounded in reality, you will be better prepared (mentally and physically) to deal with situations as they arise. And this leads to a higher level of enjoyment in whatever you do.
Even though the trip was rough going at times, I never wanted to leave. There were moments when I was thoroughly frustrated, I felt like the program treated us as children, and I felt like I was wasting my time as I didn't do a single survey. And yet, I learned more than I expected, I met an amazing group of people, and I realized how far along I have come in my personal continuum of growth in that that I was able to cope with most everything thrown at me.
And do keep in mind, this is the most disaster-ridden trip I have ever participated in or even heard of. The journal entries I will be posting are as bad as it will get. I hope you read the following posts with a sense of humor, and store away a few kernels of knowledge so when you do go on your expedition, you can be better prepared.

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