In July this year, I did a trial diving course in the diving center in Esslingen. They will provide you the necessary equipment, and after a really well-explained briefing, it starts.

Packed with bottle and regulator, it goes off into the 5-meter-deep diving tower. Pressure equalization, breathing, well-being.

It was such a great experience that I signed up for the last free ‘Open Water Diver’ course this year. I had absolutely no idea, that it would be sooooo very cold.

First of all, I went to the Marienhospital. There are doctors who are familiar with the diving medical examination and issue a health certificate after the necessary examinations. Once you got it, you are lined up for the next three years and I am now officially dive-ready (and 90 Euros poorer).

The first date for the diving course was more of an organizational nature. It discusses how to sign up for the online learning material, where the different learning units are to be processed. Afterwards, the other dates are identified in agreement with all participants.

Four pool dates and four open water dives are required for certification.

At the pool meetings, we did a lot of interesting exercises, and it really is something quite different, if you can only communicate underwater with your hands. This tranquility is glorious, but also leads to understanding problems from time to time.
It is practiced how to behave when you are out of air. It is practiced to completely remove the mask under water and raise it again, as well as to accidentally lose and regain the regulator in the exercise. Astonishingly, I had my difficulties with the seemingly most easiest exercise: the blowing out of a Boye, so that ships will not overlook my body when surfacing. The inflation itself was not the problem (Damn I can blow), but the rising Boye always tore me up to the water surface.

During the pool appointments you will study the theory in the online tutorial. Time-consuming, but really interesting.

At least now I know why there are no professional female divers. They would be too expensive (as women always are). The body absorbs nitrogen during the dive – more than usual. And the body needs time to break it down again. Similar to a half-life after nuclear accidents… Since we women have more fatty tissue (even in the breasts), and fat just like chocolate just better stores, women do need longer breaks between the dives. This would simply be too expensive. So once again a male job…

The exam was well done and so the first step was done towards certified divers.

The dates in the open waters did made me more ‘headache’. Meanwhile it was the end of November and fucking cold in the lakes. Therefore, I reasonably decided to dive in a dry suit (I know I am a pussy sometimes).

Since this contains an additional layer of air between body and suit, the buoyancy with such a suit must be practiced separately. So the four pool meetings, became five.

However, a very strong freezing miss.beenee has only become a freezing miss.beenee.

The anticipation of diving in the open sea was so gigantic…

…until I held the little finger into the water of the lake that day and realized:

This is going to be fucking cold. Without waterproof gloves, it is going to be even more fucking cold. I had absolutely no idea how it would work to swim more than one hour with my head in this cold water without a waterproof helmet.

But it was a fascinating experience to dive under real conditions for the first time. Although it is reassuring that enough instructors are available, the real conditions are very close. Awesome!

The water is cold but the excitement makes me forget that immediately. We drove to a lake near Rastatt, the Deglersee. There is a very nice underwater world, so that the infantry or diving people have something to see. The visibility is limited, there are real fish and the exercises are of course more difficult than they have been in the pool.

Nevertheless, it is a lot of fun and it was a great feeling to have survived the first dive. Diving with the dry suit has to be practiced even longer, but I feel now also optimally prepared for everything that may come in the sea.

Why diving is fun and you voluntarily put yourself at risk?

Because it is simply wonderful to enjoy this silence.

Just to look, without talking everything to death.

Floating.

Just focus on your own breathing and the otherwise hidden world. See what else the world offers to discover.

71% of the earth is water, This must be worth a look! You definitely have to try it yourself to feel that indescribable feeling. I never thought that it could be so nice. And yet I was only in a lake with visibility of 2 meters and a few gray fish.

I can not wait to discover the world and I would like to thank the TauchsportCenter in Esslingen for giving me a snack for my hunger and my curiosity about this beautiful planet.

Many thanks to the wonderful team, which took care of us. You are dear to me and I hope to see you all again! Whether on land or in the water.

I can highly recommend and say: THANK YOU!

Tauchsportcenter Esslingen, Marie-Curie-Straße 5, 73770 Denkendorf

http://www.tauchturm.com/