My first week.....

Hi everyone - it's been a hell of first 8 days......1st impressions? This place is dire and I won’t survive! But you know, after a week you kind of don’t see it anymore and get on with it...but craving hot shower and meat! Highs and lows in this first week – lows mainly due to some Italians. Great diving everyday, though visibility dire due to plankton, which means sharks…yes seen two already. I'm trying hard here to upload some photos, but failing....my brain seems to have emptied itself of everything other than names of copious amounts of fish...had forgotten all my passwords to my email and other accounts so this is taking me ages.  So you will have to make do with my almost daily ramblings for now and I'll see how much time I've got left to work out how to get some photos on here.

Byeeeeeeeee  xxxx





Friday 6th August 2010


Well it’s certainly not the Hilton, as you can see from the photos.


Third mistake (first: losing travel/sudoko book, second: not buying compass), regret being stingy with myself and buying tesco value range sheets and pillow cases. The mattress and pillows are rank! Yugh, yugh, yugh!

So, seven of us in our suite (!) – Monica (Brit), Joanne (Brit), Giovanni & Claire (Italian and yes they’re a couple), Jade & Sammie (cousins, South Africa). There’s two other dorms here but won’t bore you by naming everyone, and haven’t remembered all the names yet anyway. All young ‘uns, except for me and one other – a German, named Andreas. He’s also the only one in my group who is an advanced diver like me so we’re dive buddies which is good.


Oh Suzanne, I miss your kitchen and delights that you served and it’s only day one. The good side is that all that weight that went on after the endless round of eating and drinking before I left will fast evaporate. Rice, lentil mush and carrots for lunch! Mind you, have to say it did taste OK but probably that was because I was so, so hungry.


Spare compasses here thankfully, so all I have to do now is learn to use it!

So today, we have had our orientation tour of the base, which is in Cap Ternay, on the north west side of Mahe Island for all those sad enthusiasts that are following my whereabouts. We are in an old and mostly derelict school/youth village. They definitely need a ‘Lee’ out here, almost want to get my paint brush out myself. A hideously boring health and safety briefing which nearly sent me off to sleep (didn’t pack my pro-plus). Lots of duty rotas will kick in from tomorrow, so anyone that still believes I’m on a holiday, think again!


Well, saying that, we have our own private beach here overlooking the bay (sorry no photo yet… was too busy swimming), we start diving tomorrow, so maybe it is a bit of a holiday after all. First whale shark seen yesterday here so here’s hoping for sighting.

No internet access here so will write blogs on netbook and then post when I can access.


Saturday 7th August


Well it’s 8.30pm and it’s fair to say I’m exhausted! The day started at 9am, which of course for me was 4 hours after I woke up, but did have a wonderful paddle in the bay on my tod, except for hundreds of crabs scurrying around.

After ‘granola’ for breakfast, it was into lectures on the reef, coral, dive routines, kitting up, how to do surveys and loads of other things that I have forgotten. Ha, ha, guess what one of the duties is I have to do… using the compressor to fill the air tanks… first time I’ve ever looked at an engine and compressor in my life.

A ‘feast’ of chilli bean casserole and rice for lunch and then at last we were diving. Well a skills check really, as there is a vast difference in experience here between the group. My weights were all wrong…..must have something to do with those extra curves I’ve acquired recently….. and I kept popping up to the surface like a champagne cork. Eventually weighted down, the skills began, only to find that I was breathing in water not air…..minor problem, mouthpiece had come apart. Minor panic ensued until I remembered to swap on to my alternate air…not a good start. It turned out my mouthpiece was missing the tie needed to keep it together – will check thoroughly for tomorrow! Rest of dive was OK, visibility very poor but that was because the sea is full of plankton – which means sharks! But not seen today.

Lentil burgers for tea – I am being turned into a veggie, can’t wait for days off next weekend when I am going to gorge red meat all weekend!

I feel like this is one of those TV shows that I despise, where people from different walks of life are thrown together. If anyone thinks I was extravagant bringing some hair dye with me then check this out – the girl in the bed next to me, who is lovely but rather posh, has got glass bottles with little corks on delicate strings of lotions and potions all laid out on the table (generous description) next to her bed.

So, now I’m ready to go to sleep, but everyone else is busy reading up and testing each other on their advanced diving skill tests tomorrow (me, I’m already advanced so don’t have to do it – swot!) and now a gecko has just landed on posh girl so she’s squealing and jumping around the dorm now. Forgot to tell you that the Italian couple, who are very amorous and keep trying to find moments alone – there is now a concerted effort by the rest of us to interrupt…. kept talking on their phone once we’d had lights out last night. And phone’s ringing again….boy those Italians can talk!

Monday 9th August


Well the curse of Nicky with technology continues – my phone, which was working fine on my first 24hours here is now not working….. so trekked for 50 mins to the nearest shop today (which was no bigger than an 8 x 6 shed), and bought a Seychelles sim card, and a 100 rupee top up… only to find it still doesn’t work in my phone. Aagh! Anyone who has my phone number that I was using please note that I can receive texts but cannot reply or ring!

Have spent the last two days, learning names of loads of fish (using good old flash cards) and yes, am teacher’s pet as have mastered them all so far. Saw a whale shark today, just as about to get in the water, but didn’t see it underwater, but have to say, it does give a dive an edge when you know they’re out there!

At the moment the dives I’m doing are ‘fish spotting’ where you are marked on correctly identifying various fish – not doing too bad, but it’s definitely easier with flash cards!

Duties have kicked in, so was on boat rota today, which involves lots of carrying everyone’s kit around, cleaning up, rinsing, and on walkie talkie duty for 2 hours, which I was very versed in having had a great grounding at FCA.

Tomorrow is tanks, ha, ha ….should be interesting.

Getting fed off with people who don’t show up to do their bit in the duty groups, same people each time who always happen to be absent when needed, Italian mostly!. No-one says anything, so trying to keep my mouth shut and not lick people into shape.

Getting used to cold showers, manky bedding, bugs everywhere, carbohydrates for breakfast, lunch and tea, no alcohol, yucky tasting water, sleeping under a mossie net with bugs creeping all over it, and worst of all, climbing into a damp wetsuit for the first dive of the day at 8am.

Can someone remind me why I am doing this?

Tuesday 11th August


Today has not been a good day – one of those days that I knew would come where I wonder what the hell I’m doing, and why I’m putting myself through this! The dynamics between some of the people here is dynamite – far too many woman! Have seriously considered leaving the project and trying to start the Mombasa placement early perhaps. Fed up also that my dive buddy Andreas has decided to chuck in the towel and leave this Friday. That will leave me as the oldest person here. Realise what a vacuum I’m in at the moment – don’t have a home to go back to, or a job. Never been like this ever in my life – what is it all about?

The diving was good though – able to ID so much more now. And have used the compressor and now know how to fill tanks! Amazing!!

And missing all my family, friends and colleagues that I’ve spent so much time with over the last few years. Clearly things not out of my system yet at all. I’m sure in time things will get better, but not today, that’s for sure.

God give me strength, Italians now back in dorm, and G is doing his press ups on the floor. Have also had a headache all day…I’m sure this was because I got really cross last night when trying to get to sleep, but Italians had bugs in their net and couldn’t sort it quietly, and then their phone went off just as I was drifting off. But did manage to do some washing, and have a good sort through and re-organisation....simple pleasures!

Wednesday 11th August

First dive ever without a guide or instructor today, and we were on turtle spots.  Was diving with two others, Joanna and Sylvie, both relatively new divers, still doing their advanced, but hadn't actually dived much as open divers.  We had a maximum depth of 16m, but Joanna was down at 20m straight away, using the ocean floor as a guide rather than her depth gauge.  Pulled her back up once, but then she did it again, and frankly had no idea about anything, so took decision to abort dive after 10 mins.  Not pleased at all!! But better safe than sorry and there was no way I wanted to dive for any longer with her.

Thursday 12th August


On kitchen duty today, which has been great fun actually, porridge and pancakes for breakfast (did I tell you that I have the lazy Italians in my duty group?). Then vegetable wraps for lunch – yes more pancakes, and then a superb potato curry with flat breads, and enough to go round which was a rarity!

Dive was amazing, although again with mad Joanna, (yes, she landed on my twice underwater!). 100% right on fish spot, and saw a turtle ….twice! First dive group say manta ray as well as whale shark 6 metres long – they were buzzing when they came back!

Have ended up as dorm rep, so had to go to meeting last meeting which other reps and base leader. Same issues that are getting at everyone – people who don’t pull their weight, so in some ways it was good to hear that the 10 weekers have the same issues. Made a few suggestions, and I think they will have a daily duty meeting after supper so day can be reviewed and new day planned for. Trying not to organise them too much though!

A good day –enjoyed it!

Saturday 14th August 2010


Sat in a restaurant in Victoria (capital of Seychelles). The city is so tiny you can walk round it in about 15 mins…. Very quaint. This is my first day off since last Friday when I arrived, and it’s so good to get out from our base! I’ve just gorged on pizza for lunch, loaded with sausage, bacon, eggs and mushrooms – you have no idea how good it tasted after 8 days of porridge, pasta, rice and vegetables. A group of us have booked ourselves into a hotel in Beau Vallon for the night so we can have a hot shower and eat more meat. I am so looking forward to not sleeping under a mosquito net, lounging by a pool and on the beach…. paradise!

Forgot to say, could no longer keep my mouth shut re. the lazy Italians so had my say last night…..not sure it will do any good, but the whole camp is complaining about them behind their backs and they just have to do their bit otherwise there will be a riot here soon!

Off now to the internet café so I can post all my ramblings for you all to get bored with.