Location: Bali, Indonesia
Our first full day was filled with information. My job title for the day was skipper which meant I was responsible for a variety of tasks throughout the day such as waking everyone up at 7am. I slept great for my first night on the boat! After a group breakfast (Kyler is an awesome chef!), we began going over SeaMesters policies. After a long talk about whats expected of us, we tried on our Gumbie suits which are located on our beds. They are suits we would put on in case of an emergency, so we dont get hypothermia in the ocean. We did a Gumbie race to see how fast we could put on these suits. It was way harder than expected. My time was 50 seconds. Imagine a bunch of us in giant red suits with nothing but our eyes showing. We then had an awesome lunch (Greek salad, chicken, potatoes, and hummus). After lunch, we had a full walk through of the boat. It was interesting getting to see some of the hidden spaces on the boat. For example, we got to see where all the food is stored in hidden compartments in the salon. Also, getting to crawl into the engine room. Students then started watching PADI videos for their open water certification. I began working on my advanced certification by reading the PADI book and answering the knowledge checks. We did get some free time after this, which I spent journaling on the bow. More and more of us joined in and it was so much fun getting to sit and journal together (although not too much journaling got done). We put our journals away in time for dinner and enjoyed each others presence. The sunset lit up the sky as we ate. I ended the meal with my question of the day: what is something on your travel bucket list? I enjoyed listening to my peers share some of the incredible things they hope to experience. It is so cool how we all have a desire to see the world! We are now cleaning up. Some students are watching another open water dive video. I know we are all grateful to have gotten through most of the information and are excited to start some hands-on learning in the upcoming days!