Over the Moon(s) to be PADI certified divers!

This very rarely happens and it's amazing when it does......

Last year, John and Robin came into the Dive Bus shop to buy a mask and left having booked a Discover Scuba Dive class with Dive Bus instructor, Chris. They loved their first dive experience so much that they took the PADI Open Water eLearning program back home, and returned to Curacao to complete the much more fun part of the course: the divin'!

So, Frank takes them for their first day of diving and all we can hear is fun and laughter from the classroom. A good sign, we like happy divers.

I'm teaching them on their second and final day of the course. As we stroll into the ocean and start to put our fins on, John mentions nonchalantly that he spotted a Seahorse on his first dive the previous day, with Frank. Thanks, Frank, for conveniently forgetting to tell me this fact during this morning's hand-over briefing - so much for me just being able to point out Parrot Fish to these guys!

Mouth wide open, I clarify with John that it was in fact a seahorse he had spotted and not a trumpetfish, which he duly confirms. THEN, as we're casually finishing our gear checks, John lifts his head from the water and equally nonchalantly mentions that there's a juvenile Flying Gurnard to his right! Huh? 2 major cool spots before he's even certified?

Me and the PADI spies

This was just the start of what was to be a highly memorable dive with two highly memorable people we instructors refer to as 'PADI spies'. These are those rare people who are so natural and comfortable in the water, that they complete the diving skills we teach with such passion, excitement and ease that you can't believe they haven't been employed by PADI to make sure we're doing the best job we can and following PADI's strict dive training safety standards. (But of course, PADI spies are just an urban myth. Aren't they..?)

On the actual dive, in a bizarre role reversal that I could get seriously used to, John pointed out his Seahorseto me (I owe you a beer for that one, John!) and between us all, racked up an impressive list of cool spots including Peacock Flounders, Music Volute (ANOTHER one!) Scorpion fish, Baracuda.....the list goes on. I reckon I'm beating you on the Spot-Off now, Frank.


So a massive thanks and congrats to John and Robin for achieving their PADI Open Water certification - we're all really looking forward taking them on some fantastic Dive Bus trips, starting with the consistently awesome Tugboat dive site. Perhaps they'll spot a whale shark...? Hope so!

(Frank: just fyi, you're teaching any Dutch Navy aikido masters who may happen to come by this week; I'm going trippin' with the PADI spies.)