We had a few loose ends to tie up and hopefully we would have all the DM requirements completed today and tomorrow we would only have the infamous snorkel test to tend to. In the morning we met at the dive shop by 0830 as usual but this morning we did not have a planned activity besides studying for the final exam. We studied in the dive shop restaurant before and after breakfast all the way until it was time for our afternoon activities. While we were there we chatted with a new advanced dive course student Hana (the little blond Dutch girl with big guns). She was a little nervous about the navigation dive but we gave her some insight on how it is run which helped put her nerves to rest. She was a young blond girl that appeared very innocent but it was hard not to notice her gun tatoo which was located on her inner arm below her shoulder. Surely I would find out its meaning but this was not the time as I was busy studying.
Our afternoon was full of activites. First we were "students" for Adam and Ryan's discover scuba diving class (the intro to diving). Jeff, myself and either Adam or Ryan whichever was not playing the instructor, were the pretend students who had tons of problems. Mack does not take it easy on the interns. The toughest part about assisting in the DSD course is to not watch the instructor working with the student but instead watch the students that should be patiently waiting for their turn. Once the dive master starts to watch the instructor the other students start to bounce, flop, panic, and sometimes head for the surface. It is all mind over matter and a left alone student has plenty of time to get worked up and assistance is needed. Everytime Mack would question why Adam or Ryan did not have a handle on the students, the same reply was stated that they were watching the instructor working with the student and this distracted them from watching the rest of the group. Eventually they got the hang of it and then we all took turns practicing as instructors. We worked on maintaining control of the student while watching to see if the student was performing the skill correctly. Jeff and I had both completed this workshop already but the extra practice did not hurt. This was a very relaxed, fun exercise and eventually resulted in all of us becoming a little squirely. I for one became very distracted when the IDC interns "the instructor course interns" started heading over to cemetary in order to complete their skills assessment. Mack had to keep reminding me to stay focused. I had been a very good DMT up to this point but by today nearly the last day of the month long internship, it was hard to keep me on track. Any slight comment or shinny object would set me on a tangent. I was a whole lot of goofy that afternoon and was happy that I had kept this side bottled up as long as I did. Some of the comments that jumped out of my mouth made me also look a little silly since they were not exactly thought out and Mack's expressions in response to my off the wall questions were priceless. Soon the fun games were done and it was time for Jeff and I to get serious as we completed our last requirements. It started with me completing my BCD removal and replacement just one more time to show I had it down. Mack demonstrated the skill to me first but I was confident that after my practice yesterday I would be able to nail it. When it was my turn, it was spot on, except my alternate air source hose got buckled in between myself and the BCD. I completed it one more time and then nailed it for sure and with everything landing in the right spot. Mack seemed surprised since he had heard I was struggling with this skill and I demonstrated it to him with no problems. Next Jeff and I had to complete our emergency rescue of an unconcious diver. I went first and then Jeff. We both completed this with only minor suggestions and therefore were signed off. With only one more skill remaining, it was time to complete the dreaded stress test. Jeff had actually practiced this with Ryan one day and did not think it would be too bad. Technically we are not suppose to practice this skill prior to being graded to see how we would really respond in this stressful situation. The stress test consists of two divers exchanging BCD, fins, and masks while under water. The catch is that this must be completed while buddy breathing off only one regulator. Sometimes other stressors or obstacles are incorporated such as extra free flowing regulators with bubbles flowing everywhere or visiblity being intentionally stirred up by tossing sand around. The point is, we would not find out if other stressors would be added until it happened. We reached the bottom at about 3 meters below the surface and started with passing the regulator back and forth, taking two breaths each time. Once we felt comfortable with this Jeff would start by removing his equipement and I would try to do the same so that we were both at the same pace. Our plan was to only work on the equipment exchange when the other person had the regulator, this would keep us occupied and also make sure the person with the regulator was focused on breathing and passing. We maintained a pretty good routine and the BCD exchange was completed before we knew it. The fin exchange was even quicker. The mask was a little tricky since at some point both of use would have our masks off and not be able to see well before we were able to clear the mask. To clear the mask we would need to breath out of our nose which would be hard for both of us to complete at the same time since only one of us would have a good air supply. During this daunting task, we all of sudden had free flowing regulators added to the mix which made it impossible to see each other. I would pass the regulator through the bubble chaos and hope it was in the direction of Jeff's mouth on the other side. Soon our masks were exchanged and cleared, the extra bubble mess had subsided and Jeff gave me the ok sign to ascend to the surface. Since Jeff gave me the ok sign, I almost forgot to pass him the regulator on the ascent. Eventually I remembered and he appeared ok, he did not look blue. As the instructor would say, this skill was spot on. Afterwards Jeff and I discussed the equipment exchange and he reassured me I passed him the regulator far before he needed it eveytime. This could be a dangerous skill to complete with a significant other especially if I was an air piggy and left Jeff alone as an air hungry hippo. I am glad we passed the stress test without any complications.
I can not believe there is only a 60 question multiple choice test left between us and our snorkel test which is where we recieve our divemaster badges. As we sat to take the test I was unsure of how difficult it would be. The first ten or so questions were a little scary as they were about specific types of tides and currents. We had not really read that chapter we just skimmed it and answered the questions in the book. Fortunately after the first ten, the rest of the test was based on the final chapter in the book which we had studied rather thoroughly. We both passed the test with flying colors and in true PADI test fashion Jeff got a better score than me but only by a couple points. It was an excellent feeling knowing that we had completed all of the requirements for the DM course and now could have a relaxing day before our snorkel test tomorrow night.
We were chatting with some other interns in the restaurant when Mack called me over from across the room. A couple of the staff divemasters were at the bar and seemed in high spirits which caught my attention as I walked toward Mack. He handed me a tip envelope with my name on it. It was from the father of the two children who's open water course I assisted with. To my amazement, a crisp $100 USD bill was in the envelope. Mack congratulated me for a job well done. I realized later that this was tip day and that was why the staff divemasters were also having a bit of a high moment. It definitely feels good to be appreciated and this could not have come at a better time. It is Filipino tradition to treat everyone on your birthday and a $100 USD could provide a very nice evening for my birthday party guests. I had already decided we would check with July and see if they would have enough burgers at the other place so that the crew could eat there. I had also decided if she did not have cheese I would try to find some and tomorrow I would make sure to put in the order for my birthday cake. We are finished with all our skills, tomorrow is the snorkel test, the next day is my birthday and I had a shinny new $100 bill, what could be better?
The interns decided to go and eat at Ocean Vida for dinner. We ran into Hana at the dive shop and invited her to come along with. It turned out she was actually staying at the Ocean Vida hotel so she gladly accepted the invitation to join us. We had a very nice meal sitting on the bean bags around a table on the beach. We had eaten at Ocean Vida a couple of times before but never outside on the beach. It is amazing the number of stars that can be seen when there is limited lighting from surrounding buildings. The constellations can be easily picked out and even the milkyway galaxy can be pointed out by an untrained eye. The last time we were able to see this many stars was our trip to Fiji a couple of years ago. I would have to think that the reduced amount of pollution in the air would also have an effect on the clarity of the sky. After dinner, we headed over to Malditos for some games of pool along with discounted rum and cokes. Hana came along with us to Malditos and I got the opportunity to ask her about her gun tatoo. It turns out her and her friend were in Thailand and all of the guys were all about showing off their "guns" (muscles) so the girls decided to get their own guns to show off. It was definitely a unique tatoo especially for such a sweet innocent looking girl to have. After Hana's story, it was off to bed as we had signed up for sharks in the morning since it was our last opportunity for the shark dive.
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