Some of my most favorite dives weren't in exotic far away places... They were in fact in the cold waters of NE... while solo. Not so much what I saw, but I'm just diving peacefully through the water. Just me and the bubbles. I'm dialed in with weights and trim. The water is clear (pretty rare for NE). I start to forget about anything other than my dive. I can take my time and pause to play with some of the life who seem interested in interacting with me. I can roam. It's quiet. Relaxing. No buddy to keep track of... I'm in my own world... Until... LOBSTER!!!! When I see claws that look like keepers, it's like saying SQUIRREL to a dog. It doesn't take much to excite me.
Other favorite dives were in Palau when I'm swallowed up with walls of fish (Blue Corner) and they ended up swimming ALL around me in a circle. Here I am, in the middle... Fish everywhere. It was like a magazine shoot. Then seeing sharks feeding just off the wall. Impressive!
Another most favorite dive was in Grand Cayman when the Silversides came in!!! Just swimming in and out of tunnels packed with Silversides. I actually sat just inside the entrance to a tunnel about 10 feet. Silversides were so dense I couldn't see out of the entrance that I am sitting in. Then the Jacks and Tarpon come in to feed... The Silversides just opening and closing their school as bigger fish swam in to feed. Holy Cow! I could have stayed all day. No kidding.
And the last one I'll mention is diving with the Tarpon at Cayman Brac, Tarpon Alley(?). They can be skittish and will swim away when you get too close. I managed to dive alone at the end of a dive and went into a large crevice where the current was flowing pretty good. Very slowly, I crept into the middle of a school of large Tarpon. I just hung out with these big beautiful gleaming shiny silver creatures, admiring their chrome-like Terminator-look. The closest ones were only about 3' from me. Loved every second of it.