IDC Countdown - the trip starts today!!!
The Time Is Now, as Moloko sang in a very average song a few years ago. In just under 10 hours I’ll be on the plane and just about ready to head off to Thailand. Changes of flights in Taiwan and a 5-hour layover in Bangkok means that I’ll hit the shores of Koh Samui first thing Saturday morning. I’ll be picked up by the guy from the dive shop, who’s going to help me find an apartment/bungalow. So how do I feel about all this… well sit back and I’ll tell you!
The nerves are building to a Mozart-like crescendo, to be honest. I have confidence in myself and my ability here (for the first time in a long time) but I just know how hard this is going to be. My first day will be spent acclimatizing, and then I think on the second day I’m going straight into it with the Gas Blender course. I suppose it’ll get it out of the way. Hopefully this course will serve to build up my confidence for the IDC, which starts on August 3rd. One thing I am quite impressed with is my packing. I’ve managed to get everything into my bags, and stay just within the luggage allowances. The annoying fact is that Bangkok Air are offering me 30kgs of luggage, but China Airlines will only give me 20kgs to play with, so the extra 10kgs is just redundant. Ah well, don’t know if I could have carried much more stuff anyway.
It’s been a busy 7 days of diving and doing other things. I worked on Saturday and Sunday as our school had its annual festival. Work isn’t really the appropriate word though as I didn’t do much except walk around, chat to my students and look at the activities they had prepared. The kids put a lot of effort into their performances, and it’s good to see the fruits of their labour. The 2 highlights of the festival were a samurai play performed by one of my classes (the pair of heel characters had the best evil laugh I’ve heard for years!), and some Taiko drumming from Minami Daito. I do quite like eisa, but I have a lot more time for taiko. The performance was done by 3 of our students, plus 3 boys from Minami Daito. I watched the performances on both Saturday and Sunday and they were something very special to see. Word must have got around, as on Sunday the performance had been made the finale, and the balconies looking onto the stage area were packed. I haven’t got any photos with me as I’m at work, but I will upload some as soon as I get the chance. All I will say is that they are the only group I have seen in 2 years in Japan that have been shouted at for an encore. They obliged and the audience left after witnessing a pretty awesome display of taiko. After the main festival, the students had an after-party in the gym. Students in Japan rarely get to let their hair down, and it’s a great spectacle when they do. Two girls presented the show, wearing goth & lolita kimonos, which ended with a lace trim at about mid-thigh level. A lot of student bands performed and you would have thought that they were world famous acts with the way the students reacted. There really is a togetherness in the school that I have not experienced in England.
Right – enough about work… onto diving! Monday was Marine Day in Japan, and what better way to celebrate than diving with Brian & Linds. We did 2 dives in the morning, and then 2 dives with students in the afternoon. The morning dives were at Sunabe, with a one-way dive from Fab Curry to Ark Dive, followed by a second dive at Fab Curry. The vis was reasonable, but nothing too spectacular. The weather was gorgeous though, with a hot sun beating down on us. After lunch we headed to Kadena North to finish up some OW students. Those dives went well and all the students got through their skills without any issues. During the second dive, I was Divemaster-ing Linds for the navigation part of her AOW dive. We did the distance measuring swim, and then she completed a perfect square after having been given an initial heading. To top that off, she spotted a cuttlefish that nobody else in the group had noticed. Spotter’s badge!
Tuesday was back to work for most people in Japan, but I had Tuesday and Wednesday off in lieu. So I headed to Bolo Point/Zampa Misaki with Brian and his mate. The conditions were diveable but with a few medium-sized waves coming in. We got in and realized there was a pretty strong current moving us around. We were looking for some decent depth and so descended down the hole and came out of the swim-through at about 33m. We then headed down to 46.2m – my deepest dive yet. The current was very strong though so I didn’t feel that relaxed. Consequently we headed back up slowly. Making our way from 20m to 10m, we had to hold onto the wall to avoid getting pulled away by the current. It was a new dive site for me, and nice to set a record depth, but I would prefer similarly deep dives to be in a better environment. For the second dive of the day, we headed to Maeda. In complete contrast to Zampa, the water was flat and the current non-existent. We went again to about 44m, and had a nice long dive, paying off the deco time that we had accumulated. A nice morning’s diving, and the Zampa dive was number 150 for me.
I had planned to do multiple dives with Lindsey on Wednesday, but we ended up doing only one. We headed to Onna, which is one of my favourite sites. There’s something about the crevices and the underwater ravines that you swim between that is very special. And who says you need a 4×4 to get there. I got there in a kei-car, with 2 people, 2 sets of gear and 6 tanks in the back! That was my last dive in Okinawa with Linds – very sad, but a nice way to end things.
Yesterday was a tough day – had to say goodbye to 3 of my favourite 3rd year students, who are going abroad for a year while I’m in Thailand, plus Linds, who will return to the States in 10 days. So this blog entry is dedicated to those people – especially Linds. She’s been the highlight of my time in Japan for the past 8 months, and it has been a pleasure knowing and diving with her. She will be missed, and Okinawa won’t be the same without her.
And on that note I think I’ll call it a day. Hope you enjoy today’s entry. I’ll be in touch from Thailand when I get a chance. Take it easy and dive safely.
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