I recently said yes to an invite to go along on what will possibly be the adventure of a lifetime. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you what that adventure is yet, but I can tell you that in order to go on this adventure, I have to get an advanced diving certificate.
After browsing the Internet and phoning a few friends in the know, I eventually settled on Divetek. These guys have a solid reputation for training people properly and as this particular adventure will be fairly demanding, that factor played a really important part in my decision.
The highly trained instructors put my mind at ease. Not only were they exceptionally friendly, but I could tell that they know what they’re doing. The okes at Divetek are the Lewis Hamiltons of diving.
I’m about halfway through the process and I’ve already learned an awful lot. There are far too many things to mention here, but the main things that stuck out for me are the following:
*Water is 800 times denser than air.
*You lose body temperature 20 to 25 times faster in water.
*People who dive are Land Rover people. They specifically like the Defender, which is weird, because it doesn’t look particularly waterproof.
As for the actual diving part of the course, all is going fine. I was way more relaxed the first time than I thought I’d be and I’m happy to report that I’ve already fell head-over-heels in love with this relaxed sport. I’m already thinking of ways I can explain the hectic credit cards bills to my wife once I actually buy my own equipment.
The main reason I love it so much is the so-called “flying” feeling. Not much gets close to the feeling you get once you reach neutral buoyancy and you can just fly around in a space. I suspect it’s going to be a hundred times better in the sea.
I’ll be doing a weekly update from this point forward, because things are getting really interesting at this point in time.
I don’t want to reveal too much, but I will tell you that I’m departing on a diving holiday to Sodwana Bay shortly, and as I understand it, it’s always one helluva jol. I also booked myself a Defender for the journey down, because I suspect my long-term Duster might look out of place parked next to all those Landys.
The one thing that has stood out for me so far is just how much you get for a relatively small amount of money. Once you’re a qualified diver, a whole new world opens up for you. I haven’t been on any noteworthy dives so far, but if the photographs are anything to go by, I’m in for some amazing sights in the coming weeks.
You can get in touch with Divetek by visiting their website at www.divetek.co.za. Trust me when I say it’s definitely worth it.
– Gerhard Horn