19 July 2006 - Learning to dive

Lynne says..


Our day started at early at the Poseiden Dive Centre in Taganga. Mad Max from Munchen, our tattoo covered dive instructor, greeted us in the customary curt German manner. Why are they always so serious?

I felt like the new girl. The courtyard was full of experienced divers strutting around with their wetsuits hanging around their waists. I felt nervous yet excited at the prospect of realising one of my many lifetime ambitions.

The three of us sat down together and Max showed us how to assemble a scuba unit. It all seemed simple enough although I was more concerned about how to get into the wet suit. It had taken an age for Max to find one that he thought would actually fit me - after a good rummage he produced an ancient looking thing stuffed behind a crate.

After struggling into our wetsuits and donning the equipment we headed down to the beach. I was amazed at how heavy the gear was and as we walked towards the sea my nervousness began to surface. Almost before I had chance to think about it we were in the water and after a few instructions from Max it was time to go under.

The very first time I breathed underwater was a truly bizarre experience. It felt so wrong, so unnatural. Strange sounds surrounded me and loudest of all was the sound of my own breathing. The second time I went under I started to panic slightly and returned to the surface taking deep breaths. I quickly learned that the best way to stay calm was to take long, deep breaths from my regulator. Every time I felt a rising panic I concentrated on my breathing and the moment passed.

For the next few hours we practised a range of underwater techniques. I had been particularly nervous about taking off my mask to clear it but it was actually much easier than I had imagined. Time flew by and our first day of lessons was over.

The next day we headed out into open water. The thought of diving to 12 meters so soon filled me with dread. At this point I could easily have given up but I was determined to conquer my fear - it was only a fear of the unknown after all.

It took around 40 minutes to reach the dive site alongside Park Tyrona's coastline. The water was a deep blue colour and not the clear, turquoise colour I had imagined. It was also fairly choppy and the boat rocked and swayed as we carried out our pre dive checks. I was finding it increasingly difficult to control my nerves. The feeling wasn't helped when Max announced we would be going in backwards, James Bond style. Along with clearing my mask underwater, I had an irrational fear of this part too.

As it turned out, entering the water backwards was as easy as clearing my mask underwater. We practised a few techniques on the surface before descending for our first open water dive. I forced myself to stay calm by taking deep breaths and concentrating on my buoyancy. Max was by my side as I descended and held my hand as he could see how nervous I was.

At first I was too busy concentrating on my breathing and controlling my nerves to take in my surroundings. I began to relax when we reached the bottom. Tropical fish darted around. Matt floated above me and above him I could see the distorted sky. We practised more techniques until Max gave us the go ahead to simply dive.

Over the course of the next few days we dived half a dozen times and each time my confidence grew. Gradually I started to enjoy myself and take in my surroundings instead of concentrating on my breathing.

Mad Max from Munchen is a fantastic dive instructor and my complete confidence in him helped me to overcome my fear and pass my PADI. On our last night we went out for a meal with him and his Colombian wife and celebrated with a bottle of neat rum and a fabulous steak in Santa Marta. To dive with Matt at my side above a Colombian coral reef was a complete joy and a lifetime ambition realised.