Excellent Online Event: DIY Trip Summit

We are not alone

Several months ago we received an email asking us to participate in an online "DIY Trip Summit." We get a lot of similar emails asking us to collaborate and I just ignore them, but this one was different. It was clear they had done their homework, they knew our content and our business. Here is that initial conversation. In fact, it was so apparent that Michelle knew what she was doing that I figured I would learn a thing or two by collaborating with her and her company Intentional Travelers.

We Teach, We Learn

For years it's been on my list to come up with a "Lead Magnet." This is a digital product, report, guide, checklist, or tutorial that is offered for free in exchange for people signing up for your newsletter. First you need to have something valuable enough for people to want it. Then you need to set up the processes for them to click a link, get the product, and give their email to get signed up for the newsletter. I've never been focused enough to get it done before, but this is one of the things that Michelle was asking us to do for her "DIY Trip Summit." 

So, we did it. I created a "Google Photos Guide to Sharing your Travels" and set up the procedures for people to sign up and for the guide to be delivered to them. I was pleased with the results. 

Cover of the Guide that I created for the DIY Trip Summit

Member Note: If you’re a Geeks on Tour member, you don’t have to join a summit to see it! This guide is now live on our Learning Guides page.

For the summit itself, she asked that we create a 15-25 minute video about Smartphone Photography Tips for Travelers. Another project that I enjoyed creating and would not have done but for the motivation provided by the summit. It is also on our website for members only.

A Master Class in Organization

So, what was so great about the DIY Summit? The main thing was just how organized it was. Every detail had been thoroughly thought out. There were 30 different speakers, and we got to meet many of them thru a couple of private zoom calls. We also had a private WhatsApp group, and the organizers prepared tutorial videos and guides to help us all with our presentations and sales. We were impressed.

We were all asked to prepare a video for the summit. Yet, the summit itself was a live 3-day event. It was all organized by topic over 3 days. Such an interesting, and workable combination People could register for free and see all the presentations they were interested in - they had 48 hours to catch any given presentation. If they needed more time, they could pay for a "First Class Pass" which gave them a year to watch. The cost of the first class pass started pretty low if they purchased before the event began, then it went up during the event, and it went up again for a few days after the event when access was cut off completely. For 3 days there were the pre-prepared presentations plus one Zoom call where a panel would answer questions from the attendees. I watched a couple of other presentations and thought they were valuable and well done. 

The organizers created graphics for us to use to promote the event. 

The success of the event was obvious in that 6,000 people registered for it! It was also a success from our point of view, we normally get 5-10 new newsletter subscribers in a month. The month of the DIY Summit we've garnered 219 new subscribers! And, since we helped sell the "First Class Pass" as an affiliate, we'll be getting a few hundred dollars from that. 

Win-Win-Win

• The organizers won: They produced a first class event attended by thousands of people. 
• The participants won They walked away with a suitcase full of travel tips.
• The presenters won We found a new audience, made some extra income, and built lasting professional bridges.

I am so glad I didn't hit delete on that first email. It’s a great reminder that sometimes, the best way to grow your own business is to help someone else grow theirs. I hope they do it again next year!

A work of art? No, a doorway in Rangiroa

Wayne summed up my feelings exactly when he said "We live in a postcard." 

What do you think? It looks like a beautiful painting hung on the wall, but in reality it is just an open doorway in the dive shop. The dive shop is right on the beach in Rangiroa, facing the lagoon. I've seen a lot of beautiful ocean colors around the world but I dare any of them to be prettier than here. If you like closely, you can see our ship, our home, anchored in the lagoon. Here's another view: 

Wayne and Donna are our main dive buddies. From Georgia and Florida, they both retired young and bought a cabin on the Villa Vie Odyssey just like we did. 

On Jan 12, we all signed up to go diving in Rangiroa. This is an atoll in French Polynesia, the remnants of a giant volcano. Here's how Gemini describes it: 

Imagine standing on a thin strip of land where, on one side, the wild, deep-blue waves of the Pacific Ocean crash against a rugged coral wall, and on the other, a calm, turquoise lagoon stretches so far that it actually has its own horizon.

​That is Rangiroa. Located in the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia, it is one of the largest atolls in the world—so vast that the entire island of Tahiti could fit inside its central lagoon.

​The Anatomy of an Atoll

​To understand Rangiroa, you have to look at its history as a "ghost" of a volcano. Millions of years ago, a volcanic island rose from the seafloor. As the volcano slowly went extinct and began to sink back into the ocean (a process called subsidence), a ring of coral continued to grow upward toward the sunlight, maintaining its position at the surface.

We signed up for 2 dives. One in the morning drifting/flying on the incoming tide thru the Tiputa pass and one in the afternoon with the outgoing tide hanging out on the coral reef at the corner of the pass and the ocean.
The first dive started out very relaxed. We were in wide open spaces with a gently sloping coral wall that went down to infinity. At one point we looked below us and saw nothing but sharks, at least one hundred of them!
Then we entered the pass and the current started ripping. Wheee! It was fun at first, then I saw our dive guide head toward the right edge out of the main stream. I kicked as hard as I could to follow her, but it didn't feel like I was getting anywhere. I kicked harder, I breathed harder, I just couldn't do either heard enough. Images of being swept to oblivion goes thru my head - and that panic sure didn't help my breathing! I kept looking at my air gauge thinking I must be sucking this tank dry.
I'm case you're wondering I did make it. 🤔
The afternoon dive was much calmer. But the boat ride out there was quite a roller coaster! I swear I saw 12 foot swells. Our little zodiac went up up up, then dooowwn these mini mountains of water. The surf hitting the shore could rival any championship surfing sites in Hawaii. But once we were in the water, it was back to the meditative experience I so enjoy about diving. We were disappointed that we did not see any of the famous bottle-nose dolphin that often play with divers here. Other boats had better luck.

Here's the video:

Papeete Tahiti

Due to weather and other considerations our itinerary changed to give us 3 more days in Papeete, Tahiti. The speakers corner I was supposed to give tonight had accordingly been postponed for a few days. So I am footloose and fancy free in Papeete. We didn't feel energetic enough to find an excursion, but we did get off the ship and just walk around. 

Jim found a dive shop where we were able to get a replacement pressure gauge to replace the one on my scuba regulator that broke. The gauge has a scale for both PSI (used in N America) and BAR used everwhere else, like metric. I love it! Since I dive all over the world, I'll be conversant in both measurements. 

I'm starting to use a travel app called PolarSteps and it always indicates what country we're in. Currently it tells us we are in France. This is French Polynesia, I expect it to be more Polynesian than French, and as a remote tourist destination I expect an abundance of English. Nope, not here. We are in France! They speak French here pretty exclusively. There are baskets of baguettes in every little store. 

Our Google Fi cellular data service is hit or miss. That is very odd. Usually it works or it doesn't. Here it works on one block and not the next. Jim's is better than mine even though we're on the same plan with the same service. He has a Pixel 9 pro, mine is a Samsung S25 Ultra. 🤔

We sauntered over to the marketplace. I would like a little dress but they all seem to be big and long. Sure are pretty though. Jim saw a sign for beer upstairs, off we go. We're hot and thirsty. Then I'll look for a dress. 

Oops it seems to be closing time. Dress shops pulling everything in and closing the doors. It's 3:30? 🤔

This place reminds me of an upstairs food court, I think in new York City. 

We may not be taking many cultural tours or go to museums but I still feel like we learn a lot just by being here. I love travel.

Fakarava Diving

First dive was a reef. It had the best visibility of any dive site in recent memory. You could see so much. Like the beautiful giant mantas rays headed straight for you! And the sharks in the distance. The coral was not very colorful, it looked mostly dead. But then there were some healthy looking coral heads as well. 

Manta on the First Dive

Second dive was in the pass. It was a drift dive with a strong current. We were told not to dallie on the surface but to head straight down as soon as we hit the water. Get to the bottom and stay together because the current was going to sweep us away. We all prepared to do a back roll into the water at the same time. So, I'm sitting on the gunnell and adjusting my BC, making sure everything is nice and snug, mask on my face, regulator in my mouth. 1-2-3, go! I hit the water on my back, turn over and start to kick ... WTF! I have NO fins on my feet 😱 I can't go anywhere.  I yell up to someone on the boat - I forgot my fins! They quickly find them and hold them up. I am now a ways away from the boat, there's a current, remember. I am panicking. Kicking gets me nowhere. I use a breast stroke as strong as I can muster and get a little closer. It looks like he may throw me my fins, then thinks better of it and motions for me to come closer. I stroke with everything I've got and kick too. I'm sucking air and water. I get close enough to grab the fins being held out to me and I quickly put them on and turn around. I reach for my release valve to make sure that all the air is out of my BC and I can sink down to meet my buddies, but that's going to be way too slow. I turn head down and start kicking but my fins are just grabbling air at this point. Finally I'm under water, kicking and moving down. I see the dive master and my buddies waiting for me. Thank God the current was not so strong here to have taken them away. I'm gulping air as fast as I can. The dive master is motioning for me to come down. Well, yeah, that's what I'm doing! As fast as I can. Oops, don't forget to clear your ears Chris! Luckily I had no problem with that. 

So, all is well and we all take off with the current. At some points, the dive master stops and grabs onto some dead coral to stop his progress. He indicates we should do the same. OK, I grab one likely looking branch and it comes away with my hand. After a couple tries I find a secure handhold. Then we're off again. I see him veer off to the right up ahead, but the current is taking me straight. I make it, but it's a struggle. Wheee, I am flying.

Thank goodness for the video. Looking at that reminds me what a beautiful exciting dive it was. So, I can remember that and not the panic.

2025 Full Year Capsule

 

Click to see the Archives of all our Geek Newsletters

Every month for our Geeks on Tour newsletter, I pick a photo from the prior month's shots. I think they tell the story of our year in a nutshell.

• January: making the decision to buy a cabin on the Villa Vie Odyssey
• February: dreaming about the travel we'll be doing
• March: taking care of final preparations, selling house, establishing new domicile.
• April: local newspaper highlights us on the front page! See article here.
• May: We start our new life, boarding the ship on April 20 in Cartagena, Colombia
• June: First month on board
• July: Traveling up west coast of the U.S.
• August: Alaska!
• September: Japan!
• October: Taiwan
• November: Philippines
• December: South Pacific

Click to see the interactive map

 

What a year! And we are loving it more every day and every port.