The second destination in Malaysia after
Kuala Lumpur was Tioman Island. The main goal for our visit was for me to take the beginners course for scuba diving and getting the so-called Open Water Diver License. My friend recommended me to do this in Tioman, because this island supposedly is less touristy than the more famous islands such as Langkawi and Penang, and thus cheaper as well.
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| Learning about the diving basics |
For diving, PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) is the leading scuba diving training organization in the world today, and they have schools all over the world. Through their webpage PADI offers an online learning package, which means that you can basically go through all of the theory online in your own home before you leave for your diving destination. This saved me a lot of time, since I was able to finish not only the theory but also the theory test before leaving Japan. Normally it will take you between 3 and 4 days to go through the diver’s course, which is valuable time particularly when you’re on holiday. However, I managed to go through the whole course in 2 days, thanks to the online theory I had taken beforehand! :)
B&J Diving Centre was the school I decided to use; it's history goes back to 1987 (they're even older than me! Haha..) and they seemed to be very professional. I had a great time with them, and can recommend this school to anyone willing to try out diving in Tioman;)
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| Pool exercises! |
The first day my instructor Sammi showed me all the basic stuff such as how to put on the diving equipment. After that there was a lot of practical training, and all these exercises were done in a small swimming pool next to the dive center. This took most of the morning to get through, since there are a lot of skills one needs to practice. If you don’t feel comfortable being under water it might take quite some time to get a hang of it too, but don't worry if you can't make it at first; apparently it is quite normal.
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| Sammi ready to show me how to dive |
After an hour-long break I had my second dive for the day, which included practicing some more skills as well such as using a compass under water.!
The second day we went in a large group to go diving by some smaller islands about half an hour away from Tioman. I have to admit I didn’t feel too energetic that day, but once I got into the water I forgot all about that. The underwater world was so beautiful:) Since I was little my family always spent the summer holidays in my grandparents’ cottage by the sea, so I have always liked activities such as swimming and snorkeling. With the diving equipment it felt like taking snorkeling to a new level.
This day we had two dives as well, with a lunch-break in between. We saw a lot of pretty fishes and even a sea-snake. I have to admit though that the other groups were luckier; they saw a turtle as well..
Soon we’ll be in Bali, and hopefully we can do some diving there too. Because by finishing the diving course I now officially have a diver’s license, which means that I'm certified to dive again also in other parts of the world!
About Anette
Anette came to Japan as an exchange student in 2010, met the love of her life and got stuck. From her base in Tokyo she writes about her experiences as a full-time worker in Tokyo and about her travels in Japan and abroad. She's a free-spirited adventurer who enjoys both the great outdoors and her urban lifestyle.
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