For the next four days I would be tasked with Open Waters Assist – accompanying a Dive Instructor with training guests who are learning to dive for the very first time. We have just two students in their 60s. Everyone’s eyes look a little strange when wearing a mask underwater, but I have never seen such terror in the eyes of these two women! The one really struggled to just dip her face in the water, and the other fell all over the pool floor trying to maintain some balance.
I was very glad that I could assist, keep them calm, show patience, and gradually get them more excited about the training and what was yet to come. The French Instructor, on the other hand, banged on about the dangers of diving, forgot to mention what certain hand signals meant, and left out a few steps during training exercises. These may sound like the words of the newly-converted, but I really think I could do a better job. For example (said in a French accent):
“If you inflate too much at ze bottom, you will fly to the surfece and your BC will… explode. Also, the change of ze pressure in ze lungs, will make them go… pop!”
I was trained not to drill in the horrors of what could go terribly wrong, and kept adding that such occurrences are very unlikely to happen and that we would be looking after them the whole time. The whole training session could probably have been shortened by half. I was glad I was on Open Waters Assist for these two women. By the end of it they seemed a lot more confident. When we do take them on their first dive, I will be watching them way more than the fishes.
We were warned that Coral Divers was fully booked for the Valentine’s Day weekend. There are hordes of new arrivals. The more peaceful moments are being cherished. In the early mornings I enjoy visits from little mongoose families or groups of Crested Guinea Fowl. There are also small buck that trot around the premises. But there are also monkeys… troops of them! One came into my cabin while I was in there and unsuccessfully went for my breakfast apple.
Every evening, fires are lit, merriment begins, and scuba stories are shared. I haven’t met many people and it’s a bit of a shame that all my fellow divers spend their evenings in the staff quarters, so I generally take the time to look into Divemaster career opportunities.
I would very much like to move into the conservation side of diving – doing things like coral reef restoration and monitoring, creating new coral nurseries, and collecting samples for the lab. This may initially require some volunteering to build up experience, but I’m keen.
The specialty courses that Coral Divers offers seem to be way overpriced for what you get – even for low season. Something like Fish Identification can be self-taught, or you could pay a few grand to spend a couple of days in a classroom. Not worth the bucks is my general feeling. It’s becoming increasingly clear that PADI is BIG business. Even one exam question was “How often do you need to renew your PADI membership?” There is also a Skin Diving specialty, which essentially certifies you to snorkel…
A cyclone is currently bashing Mozambique and the effects are being felt over here, so the next few dives may get cancelled.
Next: Fully Geared-Up and Ready to Rumble!
Previously: Coral Reef Mapping Like Fish in Water!
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