Description of pics:
1. Me and my house-mates cooking dinner in our kitchen
2. Me and the Irish girls- Aoife and Tanya (I need a haircut so badly!!!)
3. Mnemba Atoll- beautiful place
4. Me and the East Africa Diving girls
5. The boat captains relaxing while we dive. Love it!
I’m all settled into life at the East Africa Diving dive shop in Nungwi, Zanzibar. The shop is run by a German/South African couple and is run with a lot of precision and standards. It’s a little less fun and free than some of the dive shops I’ve frequented, but it’s a perfect place to learn to be a very good divemaster because of the structure.
My usual day: Get to the shop around 8am and set up for the day’s dives or open water course. When the divers/students arrive then I arrange the rest of their equipment and then we’re off for the dive or to the pool to practice skills. I am the assistant to the instructor for the courses or whoever is leading the dives. We go out for two dives and then usually make it back to the dive shop around 1:30-2pm. If we go out to Mnemba Island then we get back around 4pm. I head home for lunch (I’ve been cooking a ton recently and LOVE it – I think I’m going to become a very good cook back home) after the dives and spend the rest of the afternoon at the dive shop. Currently I’m studying for my 8 exams next week- 1) dive physics, 2) physiology, 3) dive equipment, 4) general skills & diving environment, 5) recreational dive planner (basically this table telling you about safe levels of nitrogen in your body), 6) how to use the instructor manual, 7) & 8) dive master standards and practices (I think- I’m still a bit unclear about these 2). I also help out around the dive shop when things are needed. We are at the shop until about 6:30-7pm. It’s a long day, but it’s good. I’m getting used to everything and the craziness.
In general the dive master course is a lot more work and more challenging than I thought it would be. I think it’s more challenging because my instructors are pretty strict and demand high quality. That’s good, I guess. I’m sure I’ll look back on it and be very happy that I did it here. The last couple of days we’ve been attempting some of the skills and requirements. After 2 attempts Yasmin (other Divemaster in Training) and I mapped a couple of dive sites – the depth, distance, and significant landmarks. We attempted, but haven’t yet succeeded with the “stress test” equipment exchange. We passed with flying colors our swimming test today- 400 meters in less than 6.5 minutes and 800 meter snorkel in less than 14 minutes (no hands, but with fin, mask and snorkel). We have a ton more to do- most importantly this skill circuit where we have to demonstrate 20 dive skills to them at a demonstration level. We completely failed the circuit when we attempted it a couple of days ago. Oh well.
It’s great here. I’m tired, but happy. I’ve made a few friends and love the environment. I miss everyone, though, and am looking forward to seeing everyone soon!!!
My usual day: Get to the shop around 8am and set up for the day’s dives or open water course. When the divers/students arrive then I arrange the rest of their equipment and then we’re off for the dive or to the pool to practice skills. I am the assistant to the instructor for the courses or whoever is leading the dives. We go out for two dives and then usually make it back to the dive shop around 1:30-2pm. If we go out to Mnemba Island then we get back around 4pm. I head home for lunch (I’ve been cooking a ton recently and LOVE it – I think I’m going to become a very good cook back home) after the dives and spend the rest of the afternoon at the dive shop. Currently I’m studying for my 8 exams next week- 1) dive physics, 2) physiology, 3) dive equipment, 4) general skills & diving environment, 5) recreational dive planner (basically this table telling you about safe levels of nitrogen in your body), 6) how to use the instructor manual, 7) & 8) dive master standards and practices (I think- I’m still a bit unclear about these 2). I also help out around the dive shop when things are needed. We are at the shop until about 6:30-7pm. It’s a long day, but it’s good. I’m getting used to everything and the craziness.
In general the dive master course is a lot more work and more challenging than I thought it would be. I think it’s more challenging because my instructors are pretty strict and demand high quality. That’s good, I guess. I’m sure I’ll look back on it and be very happy that I did it here. The last couple of days we’ve been attempting some of the skills and requirements. After 2 attempts Yasmin (other Divemaster in Training) and I mapped a couple of dive sites – the depth, distance, and significant landmarks. We attempted, but haven’t yet succeeded with the “stress test” equipment exchange. We passed with flying colors our swimming test today- 400 meters in less than 6.5 minutes and 800 meter snorkel in less than 14 minutes (no hands, but with fin, mask and snorkel). We have a ton more to do- most importantly this skill circuit where we have to demonstrate 20 dive skills to them at a demonstration level. We completely failed the circuit when we attempted it a couple of days ago. Oh well.
It’s great here. I’m tired, but happy. I’ve made a few friends and love the environment. I miss everyone, though, and am looking forward to seeing everyone soon!!!
1 comment:
Ha! I'll believe the cooking when I see it:) Your life looks amazing. Enjoy every moment!
Post a Comment