Discover Scuba

I've wanted to learn SCUBA DIVING for almost as long as I've known what it was. I've always been a water baby - it never mattered if it was a pool, lake or ocean, I always wanted to be in the water. Unless of course it gave me a rash, and although that often happened, it rarely stopped me, rather it just slowed me down a bit.

I remember my Dad's dive gear hanging in our laundry room as a child. I don't actually remember him go diving all that much, but I remember touching his suit and imagining all the wonders of the world beneath the sea.

Despite this obvious desire to take up the sport of SCUBA, the truth is I've been avoiding it: 100% due to economics and funds. It's just over $300 to get certified, but of course you need your own mask and fins, and that's just the beginning. I've avoided doing my PADI Openwater purely because of all the money that it will cost the more I like it.

I even have a very close friend who teaches SCUBA and still, I haven't enrolled.

BUT...Enrollment MAY JUST be in my future.

Last night I had an opportunity to act as a female chaperone for the youth at my local community centre as they took the "Discover Scuba" course.

Discover Scuba is an introductory course that is meant to get you excited about SCUBA. You get a bit of classroom theory, followed by a little bit of time in the pool. I learned about clearing a regulator, clearing a mask, a few hand signals and the like. The cool part is that if you choose to get your PADI openwater you can use Discover Scuba as your first module and they will deduct the price off of your package price... Uh - Oh!

So here's the truth - I LOVED IT...Just like I knew I would. I found the breathing easy (although I constantly have allergies and a stuffed nose, so mouth breathing comes pretty naturally to me), cleared my respirator on the first try and loved swimming around and watching all the swimmers doing laps. I only wish my sinuses weren't clogged and I could have made it to the bottom of the deep end.

They call it DISCOVER SCUBA...and discover scuba I sure did.