June 20 – 26, 2013
My PADI dive course took place over six days. Helena and I would do the practical dive classes in the water near the shore, and when we weren’t diving I would study. (For anyone thinking of taking a resort dive course, I would recommend buying the PADI book and learning as much as you can ahead of time.)
It’s always nice to have a teacher who’s not only a good instructor but someone you want to emulate. Helena has such beauty and grace underwater, and I’d watch her all big-eyed as she’d move effortlessly around like an underwater Tinkerbell while demonstrating the next skill we’d be working on. Of course I was nothing like her. I was clumsy and slow and sometimes awkward with the gear. I was surprised to have trouble with buoyancy control, something I’d been good at in the past. Now when I attempted to float in balance, my butt would go right up over my head, leaving me floating upside down like an underwater vampire. I didn’t mind hanging upside down, but the idea was to float horizontally. It was something I had to work to master over the next few days. It was ironic the relief I’d feel when she’d signal me to remove and replace my mask: my former nemesis had now become my easiest skill.
Five days later I was thrilled to pass my final in-the-water test. Helena had picked a neat spot in the outer bay with lots of interesting things to see; so it was a nice dive, along with being a test. The day after that I passed my written test. I was finally a certified diver! Helena took my picture and e-mailed all my info off to PADI, who would issue me a card. I had a temporary card to use until I could get the permanent card mailed to me.
As it turned out, Viani Bay was a great place to learn to dive. The bay itself has some interesting things to see but not enough to be distracting. Within dinghy distance were areas with more interesting coral and fish, good for the final dive and test. Once certified, I was ready to dive the Rainbow Reef, one of the premier dive spots in Fiji. The best thing: being able to do all of this in warm water. California has some beautiful underwater scenery, but it’s just too cold for me! –Cyndi
