Quirkbag Collection #43 – 10.05.26
You probably have heard people say that there is a whole other world under the sea. It’s likely said by an ocean-lover. But like a typical person who has never been near oceans or marine life, I felt that to be exaggerated. That’s until the typical person tries scuba diving in the ocean. I can say that you will gain a whole different perspective, literally and metaphorically.
Scuba Diving In Thailand
I recently received my PADI Open Water Diver course certificate after 3 days of practicing diving skills and ocean diving. Being a certified diver, I can better access and discover a new world underwater. As this was my first time diving (as part of the certification), my eyes were opened wide when I plunged 12m below the water surface. Now thinking back, I am glad I took that plunge.
At Racha Yai, Thailand, I went for 4 ocean dives. Each dive was about 40 – 50 minutes which means I was underwater for around 3.5 hours in total. The location had several interesting sights. I saw a shipwreck, natural and artificial coral reefs and plenty of fish. From parrotfish, to pufferfish, starfish and barramundi, they all started looking exotic to me. But that’s where my PADI instructor explained our sightings after the dive. Seeing these fish underwater up close and personal truly leaves you amazed at just how diverse and colourful wildlife is.
Diving is an intimate underwater safari, one without barriers. There are few other ways to be more connected to nature’s wildlife.
Experiencing The World Underwater
Thalassophiles (the fancy word for ocean-lovers) aren’t lying when they claim that seeing the beauty of the ocean underwater can change your perspective. For just about everyone, scuba diving for the first time is surreal. Compared to snorkeling, you get to be so much closer to the fishes, move with them and observe them more clearly. It’s your private visit to their home where you can see them swim in the corals.
There is a very personal element to seeing all the wild marine life up close with your own eyes instead of in the aquarium. The way fishes slow down as they notice you and vice versa gives you a magical moment with nature.
Being at literal “point-blank” range leaves you in awe of just how vast and populated the ocean is. And once you see how beautiful the world underwater is, you can’t easily ignore it. All of a sudden, the environmental threat to oceans and its inhabitants feel so much more real and personal. You now know what is at stake, because you have seen it yourself.
On one of my dives, my instructor led me into a school of fishes. Instead of swimming away, the fishes (two-spot barramundi) encircled me entirely, observing me observing them. It was a perimeter of fish. How absolutely surreal!
Seriously, how could you not feel heart-wrenched when you see or hear about threats to oceans after this experience?
How A Dive Feels: First-Hand Experience
When I sunk into the ocean for the first time, it felt like I was going way too deep. And it is, because I was not used to the depth (even at 5m). But when you look around underwater, there is a vastness that makes you feel tiny.
As I descend, the most important skill is to equalise ear pressure often. If you master this and the habit of slowly breathing only through your mouth, the majority of the dive will be easier than you think. Breathing only through your mouth for 40min can be tricky the first time as your throat gets dry. Apparently this is very normal and divers just get used to it. It does get better in my experience towards the last dive.
Of course, water will go into your ears. It went into mine many times when I instinctively turned your head sideways or at some angle. And yes, you can’t get rid of it, obviously. But eventually, on the boat, you just try to keep shaking it out.
After the dive, I was extremely exhausted. It’s physically taxing to stay underwater for a long period. Most recreational divers would be tired, and so many people just fell asleep on the boat during rest time. Some did not even continue. Indeed, diving is not for the faint of heart. Like me, you might even get a headache and dizziness after the dives. Having a motion sickness pill helps partially.
How Did I End Up Scuba Diving?
Going scuba diving in May is kind of random, no?
No! You can dive whenever you want. Only the sightings would vary over seasons.
Months ago, I looked into how I can broaden my horizons, expand my life experience. Scuba diving was just one idea. It caught my attention because I wanted to travel while trying new experiences.
It was not an impulse decision (although it would not be that bad as far as impulse decisions go) to try scuba diving. Of multiple adventurous experiences, scuba diving felt like an achievable one, not to mention how the PADI certification makes future dives easier. With a PADI certificate, I am now freely able to dive with a buddy (or alone, though discouraged) anywhere safe when I am ready.
The underwater world is now your oyster.
The PADI Open Water Diver Experience
The serious ones will simply look online for the course outlines, skill details and of course, watch YouTube videos. But going in completely blind, I was surprised by how the skills were more psychologically and mentally challenging than physically tiring.
The skills are based around safety-related situations and practical scenarios that can occur. One of the most useful skills is clearing water from the mask – seawater is bound to enter sometime. You will be tasked to flood and clear the mask. Other useful skills were navigation, retrieving the regulator (the thing you breathe from) and emergency ascents.
Once training began, it was tiring, but always worth the time and energy. The dive centre I went to was ‘Sharkey Scuba’, which came as a recommendation. There’s your no nonsense, highly structured and practically 1-to-1 teaching style. The pace of lessons can be modified, but following it, you’re almost assured to obtain the certificate. And when you do, it feels like you unlocked a new level in the game of life.
Diving Into The Future
The ocean holds the chance of our long-term survival. I can’t say if I’ll have the chance to go diving again, though I gladly welcome any opportunities. Knowing how threatened our marine ecosystem is due to ocean acidification and rising water temperatures, we may not even be assured of the same beautiful underwater world in future.
It’s hard to know just how much we’re losing in our oceans as they suffer until we actually see what animals and life exist in the ocean. But from a non-thalassophile who has seen a fraction of the beauty underwater, our oceans are far more worthy of protection than you think.
Not everyone gets a chance to scuba dive in the ocean. But everyone deserves a chance to see what lives and ecosystems our oceans sustain.
In the words of Robert Swan:
“The greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”
The ocean and its wildlife are part of our home planet. Scuba diving in the ocean is just a way to visit this lesser-known part of our Earth, a part that’s naturally beautiful, worth seeing and protecting.
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Hi! I’m Zac, the guy behind this serendipitous, quirky blog. I’m currently on a quest to find out more about myself before Uni begins – who I am and what life has to offer. This blog is my little space where I step out of my comfort zone to share my thoughts and life experiences. I hope you enjoy reading the weekly posts. Share them if you like, or not.
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