May 17th, 2003 by Eshin
Okay…well, I guess I would show you guys if I was around corporeally. But since I’m not, I have to do it virtually.
I just got myself a nice digital watch. I actually have only three watches that I’m proud of. The first is the one I got from my father for no apparent reason which is my Tag Heuer. I don’t know why I got it but he got me it and I love it and it’s not being replaced (sorry Robert!).
The second is my Seiko. I choose that myself when I was younger but now is pretty much defunct in usage. I still like it though.
The third is my new baby. It’s the only digital watch I now have. The others I’ve managed to lose over the years. However, touch wood, I won’t lose this one.
It’s the Casio Sea-Pathfinder watch. The reason why it’s so cool is that it has a built in compass, barometer and thermometer. It can also read the tides and the moon cycles. Okay, not that useful for most people but for me, as a budding diver, its great. The compass I can use underwater, and I can also get a reading on the temperature. Also with dive planning I can use the other functions. I also needed a good digital watch.
I just thought I’d share.
May 12th, 2003 by Eshin
So, I finally managed to get suited up and go diving in the sea in Hong Kong. My expectations weren’t high, as most people I talked to, questioned a) my sanity to go diving in HK b) the visibility of the water. Compound that with a night time dive, it makes visibility almost as fleeting as that girl you kissed last night…err…or not (just kidding honey!).
I had to travel for about an hour to get to Sai Kung. For those of you who don’t know, Sai Kung is in the New Territories and is away from the menacing urban density that is Hong Kong. It offers a more, relaxing alternative.
A peculiar thing happened to me when I was waiting with the instructors. I was asked whether I smoked and I sheepishly replied yes…knowing all too well that smoking was a bad idea when you’re dealing with well, equipment that enables you to breathe in places man was never meant to breathe. Well, once I said I did smoke, my dive instructor and her dive master whipped out their cigarettes and started lighting up! Atrocious!
So much for the myth that dive professionals don’t smoke. It got worse on the boat…nearly all the people on the damned boat smoked. Good for me, bad for the diving!
Anyway…I hooked up with my new dive buddy, an Israeli called Eyal, and he helped me to remember all the things I need to remember - how to set up equipment, the tests, the checks, etc. Eyal had been doing the Open Water certification just prior to the Advance Certification, so he had been diving for the last couple months each weekend consistently. So he knew his shite better than me.
I suited up in my new equipment, and well, looked damned sexy if I may say so myself. Once I entered the water, I realised that I wasn’t cold at all and the wet suit managed to keep nice and warm.
I waited at the top with the dive buoy (?) while the dive master and dive instructor (Bibian) descended. Then it was my turn…
After a year of dive inactivity, descending down in virtual darkness was not the best idea. With our group and another group in the same area, a lot of silt had been thrown up so visibility was reduced to 2m at best. I guess it was more like the time when you and your best friends spent time scaring yourself shitless under the sheets with a lantern and telling ghost stories (no, no innuendos!). That was what it was like…it was strange that.
An initial idea of claustrophobia perhaps creeped in but it passed…which I may have confused for excitement. Once you convince yourself of your training and that in fact, it wasn’t that deep, you begin to relax…or something like that.
We conducted a basic navigation test which formed part of the formal training. That wasn’t hard, just a little confusing when you can’t check whether you are doing the right thing as you can’t see your instructors signals.
After completing the exercise, we started to do a fun dive….it meant just swimming around and looking at cool stuff. Unfortunately, visibility was really poor and well, there wasn’t, in my humble opinion, much to see. I probably would have had more excitement jumping into one of the tanks in the seafood restaurants here in HK and interacting with the lobsters.
I was also suffering from bouyancy control problems (trying to maintain a level diving position through controlling your breathing), and hence I spent too much time trying to float back down from a higher position. It was shallow enough that I felt my legs make contact with real life air but I knew that if I went down further I would smack back down to the bottom. Bouyancy control is a blessing and I managed to get the hang of it…but only at the end.
I wasn’t too happy about having made this my first dive after so long. It wasn’t too bad but I would have liked to have the reassurance of being able to see my instructor and the surrounding area. But I guess there’s no beating jumping in the deep end (excuse the pun). Next week should be better and I look forward to it.
After the dive, my new dive buddy and I took the long bus ride back to Mong Kok and hopped onto the MTR to Admiralty. We had dinner and a couple of beers afterwards at this cheesy American joint in Pacific Place.
For a first experience in diving after a while, it wasn’t bad.
