Have you noticed how fun it is to meet another diver? How, regardless of where you are and how you met, it’s so incredibly exciting? It’s as if you instantly bond, and will always have something to talk about with them.
When you meet a fellow diver, it’s as if you both start speaking a different language from everyone else and we don’t just mean that the actual words coming out of your mouth; it’s the hand signals too!
So why is it that we instantly bond with fellow divers?
You share an understanding of what matters
As divers, we learn a thing or two about ocean health, the state of oceanic life, and the impact of human actions. This leads to most of us developing a fundamental respect for the ocean that comes from experiencing and seeing first-hand the consequences of how we treat the planet. When meeting fellow divers, this knowledge and understanding make us feel extra connected.
You have experienced things only divers can experience
There are certain underwater experiences that are completely unique to diving. Actually, most of them are. Mastering your buoyancy, for example, gives a notion of being weightless that you can only experience in outer space. And since there aren’t that many NASA astronauts around for us to meet on the daily, it’s only natural that we will share this excitement with fellow divers instead.
You share knowledge that not everyone has
Just as PHD Students seem to hover slightly above everyone else when it comes to knowledge, divers also know a thing or two things many forget about after school. Once you’ve completed your Open Water Certification and passed those tests with flying colours, it’s almost as if you’re a part of a secret society; only a fellow diver will know the excitement of passing and becoming a certified diver.
You understand their excitement
I started my diving adventure in the Maldives, and during my confined water dives a blacktip reef shark calmly swam by me and my instructor, without a care in the world. To me, this was such an adrenaline rush, and a sure sign that I had made the right decision in signing up for the certification. When telling non-diving friends about the experience, however, all I got were shocked stares and surprised questions as to why I would even go back in the water. But my diving friends understood my excitement.
This just goes to show that there are certain experiences only a fellow diver will understand.
Feel like joining in on the fun? Head to your local dive shop, take the PADI Open Water Diver certification and join us!
