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Cafetalk Tutor's Column

Tutor David 's Column

The Earth is a BLUE (青) planet!

Nov 11, 2017

Good morning friends of Cafetalk!

Over the last two days I have been away from teaching, as I had 5 tests and dives to complete, for my 'Padi Advanced Open Water' Scuba Diver Certification.

This has been something I have wanted to complete for years, and I thought that Okinawa would be an ideal location for it!

The qualification involved a lot of home study prior to these two days, as well as 5 tests and then 5 scuba dives to complete, with some practical assessments and teaching on each one.

Out of the 5 dives - two were mandatory (I had no choice in these), which were

1. Navigation Diving - Learning how to effectively use a compass to navigate under the water, as well as 'natural' navigation, such as the tide, the shape of the underwater land, and my natural kicking cycles to get me to certain locations. 

2. Deep Diving - Deep diving involved learning about how to safely dive to a depth of around 30 metres / 100 feet.

And then I had a choice of 3 further dives which I wanted to develop my skills in, from a list of around 30 different subjects.

I chose :

3. Boat Diving - Learning all of the boat regulations, and how to dive from a boat safely and properly.

4. Underwater Photography - Learning how to take the best photo's and video's of life underwater, and then being given a camera to put my studying in to practice!

5. Night Dive - Diving in the night! This dive involved carrying a small spotlight, and diving in the dark. All of the fish and creatures which are awake in the day time are asleep in the night, and many creatures who are awake at night and asleep during the day (nocturnal) come out! 

Of all of the 5 dives - the Night Dive was undoubtedly my favourite, and was a dive I will never forget! It felt completely magical to be deep down under the water at night time, and whilst feeling a bit spooky and mysterious, it was a wonderful experience!

Many of the creatures in the night have glowing eyes and skin, and the tiny plankton in the water which are food for many whales and other sea creatures, glow and twinkle like stars!

Overall this was the highlight of my Japan travels so far, and an experience I will remember forever. I am now a qualified 'Advanced Open Water Diver' and plan to continue refining my skills, and diving wherever possible.

Have a lovely day everyone!

P.s - My schedule will now be back open as per normal. I am getting booked up very quickly these days, due to working for three English Teaching companies, and teaching Yoga in Japan as well. Please book well in advance to avoid disappointment, and remember if a particular time slot suits you, but is not open on my schedule - you can always send me a message to see if I am able to switch my plans around.

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I am a highly experienced professional English teacher, Yoga Instructor, Tai Chi teacher ***please check back for my Tai Chi lessons. Coming soon!*** Nutrition Consultant and Personal Trainer from London, UK. I recently left London to work and travel around Japan on a Working Holiday Visa with my girlfriend Ashley (who is also a teacher on Cafetalk : https://cafetalk.com/tutors/profile/?id=54542&lang=en ). We love sharing adventures travelling, teaching, exploring and understanding new cultures. We hope to speak with you soon!

Please check out my lessons if you are interested in learning real, authentic British English, or have an interest in Yoga, healthy eating or general health and fitness.

Feel free to send me a message if you have any questions, or if you would like to schedule a lesson at a time in which my schedule is not open. I will always do my best to accomodate every student.

This column was published by the author in their personal capacity.
The opinions expressed in this column are the author's own and do not reflect the view of Cafetalk.

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