At 18 meters beneath the surface, we swam towards the ancient shipwreck. The hull, covered with a myriad of sea creatures, looked like something out of a movie. We floated with the current to the opposite end and spotted two black frog fish hanging out. They were remarkably still; they didn’t try and swim away, and they even stayed still for a few photos!
I was doing my PADI Open Water course and we were visiting Sabang Wrecks, one of the nearby Puerto Galera dive sites.
My first foray into diving began with the Discover Scuba Diving, or DSD for short. I wrote about my experience a month ago here. I was amazed by scuba diving, and all I could think was “why hadn’t I started sooner?”.
So it was with a great deal of excitement that I signed up to continue the adventure. Terry and the team at Scandi Divers were fantastic for the Discover Scuba Diving course, so I signed up straightaway with them.
The PADI Open Water course is made up of a few different components. Each component has a video and a chapter in the textbook, explaining various things relating to diving. You learn about essential safety skills, plus how to preserve the amazing beauty that lies beneath the water.
At the end of each chapter, you jump in the pool with your gear and practice skills. You’ll learn interesting stuff too! Ever wondered what to do if your mask fills with water when you’re under 20 meters of water? You can’t go to the surface… so what do you do? Or how about if your air runs out? What if you want to go to the surface – can you go straight up or do you need to go slowly? How does the pressure of water affect the air you breathe? How long can you stay underwater for, and can you go diving twice with little or no time in between dives?
These are things I learned on the PADI Open Water Course with Scandi. For some components, I studied with Terry. For others, I worked with Jenny, one of the other friendly dive instructors.
In between dives, I relaxed in the restaurant and enjoyed plenty of cups of their fantastic Starbucks coffee.
We visited a number of the best scuba diving sites in Puerto Galera, including Sabang Wrecks, Hole in the Wall and Monkey Beach. I had an absolute blast… I think I’ve caught the diving “bug”… I’m up to 10 dives now and I feel like the adventure is just beginning…
So if you’re looking for a fantastic place to go diving, check out Puerto Galera. Scandi Divers, one of the Puerto Galera resorts on Big La Laguna Beach can set you up with everything you need. You’ll have a fantastic time. Diving is, hands-down, one of the best Puerto Galera activities.