Go on to Part 2: Hawaiian Dive Boat >>
Everybody who dives has to have a first diving experience. Mine was about twenty years ago of the Big Island of Hawaii with a group of my friends. None of us were certified. How could we be, since it was our first time? If we had been certified, at least we could have said we had previously dived to the bottom of some community pool back on the mainland.
Tourist diving is a big industry in Hawaii, but it would not be nearly as substantial as it is, if all tourists who went diving were required to be certified. I must say that I hope the young guys on the boat who worked for the dive company were certified, but I simply do not know. In some senses, you leave a lot to chance when you go on a novice diving trip in Hawaii, the Caribbean, or any other tropical tourist destination. I guess the best assurance you have is that the news is not filled with a large number of diving tourist deaths.
Well, as usual, the first day I went diving it was beautiful. My girlfriend, Tina, and another couple, Steven and Tabatha, paid our fees and climbed aboard the diving boat with about four other couples. There was a crew of four and three of them would be diving with us. We had received some elementary instruction in the parking lot next to the dock, so we had [...]