I’m already a week into my PADI Divemaster training at Two Fish Divers and it is good times in Bunaken!
Every day has been different with something new to learn all the time. In the beginning, it was mostly getting used to the early mornings with filling the boats with the right tanks and finding all the gear for the guests. A week in, and you have a natural flow. Go to bed early, wake up early. The duties of a Divemaster are many. Everything with helping out in the morning, do beach clean-ups, assisting on PADI Open Water courses to guiding a group of certified divers underwater.
From the past week, I will especially remember when I was assisting our instructor Maia on a dive tour with two divers, who haven’t dived in years. One of them has just done a refresh course in the pool, while the other hasn’t been diving for many years. It was the last dive in the afternoon and they both decided to go underwater with the guidance of Maia and me. I was going to take care of the diver who had done the refresher, while Maia stayed with the other diver a few meters above us. This was my first experience guiding, and everything went so well. We literally “swam” in turtles – that was so many there were. Did I forget to mention that the walls of Bunaken also is home to thousands of turtles? You will most likely encounter several turtles on every dive you have here at Bunaken. Here is both the green sea turtle and the hawksbill turtle, the one cuter than the other. I always had a lookout for my diver and keeping an eye on his buoyancy as well as being oriented where Maia and the other diver were. When we all ascended together and reached the surface, our two divers were all smiles and filled with excitement. They were super happy to have went diving and so excited over all the turtles – you couldn’t help but smile. Getting divers who haven’t dived for years comfortable again in the water and get back into diving is a wonderful feeling. That was an amazing day. I’m looking forward to more of those days here at Two Fish in Bunaken. A part of being a Divemaster Trainee is to always be smiling and able to answer any question the guests might have. This means that you get to know a lot of people from all over the world who has the same passion as you; diving. You have some really interesting talks and you hear people telling about diving in the most amazing places – your bucket list just gets longer and longer!
In a few days, I’m going to Lembeh to stay for a week for my DMT, before I finish with the last two weeks at Bunaken. I’m really looking forward to experiencing some muck diving and seeing some of the funky creatures that Lembeh is famous for, as well as experiencing how a different dive center is run, but for now, let’s continue the good times in Bunaken.