So as part of the parcel of things I am doing to try to take my mind off of things, I decided to look into doing scuba lessons – something I had always wanted to do.
I am also thinking seriously about attempting a circumnavigation of the globe in a couple of years, and being able to dive would be a great help, and maybe help some under-the-table currency in other countries.
So I had my first lesson yesterday, on valentines day, and it was rad. 2 of the class had cancelled so it was just me and one other student, a rather cute girl of my own age. Which, of course, meant there was a steady stream of valentine day jokes from the instructor and his assistant, but I was enjoying the training so much I didn’t mind, and we went for a coffee afterwards to debrief, so I guess she didn’t mind either.
I didn’t realise but part of scuba is setting up your buoyancy so you kind of float, weightlessly. This is easier said than done and my main ‘technique’ seemed to be dropping like a stone to the bottom of the pool, before ricocheting off the bottom and kind of awkwardly floating a couple of feet up. Ah well, it’s all practice.
Being a huge gear nerd I loved how much kit you have on, most of it having exciting acronyms like ‘BCD’ while makes you feel VERY cool. It certainly impressed the 10 year olds who we were sharing the pool with!
I’d never worn a snorkel or fins before, while the other student had, so I had some difficulty even heading in the direction I wanted to go. While she zipped around like a fish, I basically flailed around like a 6 legged cat trapped in a washing machine. I’d started to get a bit more of the hang of it by the end though.
The last pool training session is this week, and then next weekend it’s ocean diving!! AAAAAAAA I’M SO EXCITED!!
