Trinidad and Tobago is a dual island nation near Venezuela. Tobago has the Caribbean Sea on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. Going into my trip I put in a good amount of research regarding my level of diving and interests and came to the general consensus that Speyside would be the best bet for me. Speyside, located on the Atlantic Ocean side of the island, is known to be the best place to reach the more advanced dive sites (e.g. The Sisters, Curry Coconut, London Bridge, etc.). Being a shark enthusiast, I wanted to go where I had the best option to see Hammerheads! Unfortunately, i did not come across any sharks (except a large Nurse Shark just off the beach in Speyside) during my trip. I plan to return to Speyside and dive The Sisters in January for a better chance with Hammerheads! I dove with a couple of shops during my stay and feel grateful enough to have found Tobago Dive Experience, in Speyside. They cater to ALL skill levels, and more importantly, they have a conservationist approach to, not only invasive species underwater, but to helping dogs on the island as well. My kind of people! We had some truly epic dives, got a ton of non-native lionfish off the reef, and were able to enjoy some amazing recipes with the lionfish we had caught that day.

Now, there were things that really surprised me during this trip. The first pleasant surprise was the remote-ness of Speyside. Locals from Tobago were heard describing it as "the country" and I found out why. It takes about two hours to get there from the airport and their side of the island is home to some of the most windy, hilly, blind roads I have ever driven on. But once you get to Speyside you are greeted by an amazing culture, a tight-dive-orientated community, with gorgeous postcard-like sceneries. There were so little tourists on this part of the island that I really felt that I was getting a genuine Tobago-Island experience. Much better than our time on the other side where all the tourists seem to go.

The second, and most awe-inspiring aspect of this trip was simply the reef. I typically travel at least once every other month to some exotic location and this reef was, by far, the best shape I have ever seen one in. The life was amazing. The colors were unbelievable. And the drift diving feels like flying. Does it get any better than that? Well, add some sharks in and im not getting back on the return flight.