Asian Dive Site

[serendipity]

Hi Silverelf

The reason is because, in a crowded dive boat, when it stop at a dive site on a choppy sea, alot of people will stay at the rear of the boat where they will gear up and get into the water. To gear up, normally they will put the tank on the floor to mount the BC. And if the sea is choppy, the boat will rock. And when someone lose balance and drop the tank. That's it if it falls on your feet. This was what happened to me. Gearing up for night dive. Then the boat suddenly rocked when i was transferring the tank to the floor, then i let go the hand holding the bottom of the tank to grab for support, then the tank fell on my toe. Luckily my the other hand still holding on to the valve area of the tank. If not the hold weight of the tank on my toe, i think my toe will be crashed flat. End up i had a cracked toe nail, and some cracked flesh around the nail. Painful you know, especially when you see the crew of the boat busy cleaning the area covering with all you blood foot print, while waiting for the other divers to returned from the night dive.

Normally i only feel abit headache and eyes tire and dry because i wear contact lens. Therefore i will drink lots of water and take a short nap and apply some eye drop for contact lens (must bring along). Drink lots of water before and after dive, as the compressed air you breath is very dry. This will add on to the un-comfortness. But if you have some "pinky" feeling around the joints, better consult your dive master of what to do. Oh yes, don't eat too much before or in between dives. But still must eat a bit, like one or 2 slices of bread to give you energy. Can go with peanut butter, basically because (according to one dive master) the vomitted peanut butter taste about the same as the "before-eaten" peanut butter, then you don't have that sour taste in your mouth. And if you know some people eat too much shortly before a dive, stay close to that person when diving, as he might vomit to feed fishes, and you can stay around to all the fishes in one go. Just joking. And for those who vomit on the boat into the sea, get ready your camera for the "merlion on the boat" shoot. Also joking.

 

[coozie]

Originally posted by serendipity

1) If you do wear contact lens, then good news, you can dive with the contact lens on and use a normal mask. But remember to close your eyes when doing mask clearing. And also don't rub your eyes when get out of the water.

hey serendipity ..

i'm wearing contact lenses and my asti is more than 100 deg !! so guess i v to stick to my lenses during dive ..

besides headache and dryness of the eyes as mentioned .. will there be any discomfort to other parts of our body ?? my fren's wife always bleed from her nose and ears whenever she dives .. y is this so ?? scary sia .. might attract the sharks leh .. heheheh .. ;p

so we can't eat too much before or in between dives lah .. chey .. initially tot of pigging out on the boat as a celebration of me fulfilling my resolution .. looks like i ve to hold back till we reach the land .. :cry:

 

[serendipity]

Hi Coozie.

For myself. Beside abit headache and eye dryness, I sometime also experience clamps of toes and back of thigh during dives. But OK for me so far, as i swim alot, so used to swimming with clamps. And it might not necessary happen to other people.

As for nose and ears bleeding, never experience before. But according to friends, might be due to in-proper equalising. And maybe some other problem. But those who experience it and still alive one always said it is OK. Maybe those who are not OK one can't talk liao. Just joking. But if you have weak nose (can get running nose easily), make sure you have enough warm clothing for sleeping at night, as most resort are air-condition. And plus you stay near to the sea, during dawn it is cold. And plus the dust from the blankets and stuff like that might make you have running nose in the morning. And if you have a dive in the morning, the running nose might be a problem to equalising.

Don't worry about sharks lar. Infact other divers might get excited for sighting sharks. Infact when i hurt my toe, my friends jokingly ask me to dip my feet in the water to attract shark. Must be crazy.

If you are hungry in between dives, must eat abit. Don't dive with a empty stomach. The food at night should be nice, save some space for the night. But for me, i eat like a pig whenever there is a chance. But funny, i never vomit before. During one lunch on Tioman, my friends were shocked by the amount of rice I ate. Not because of there is a dive after that, but because for a normal lunch, i ate more than anyone of them .

 

[coozie]

so am i rite to say tt if i kena flu during my diving trip .. it's advisable not to dive ?? wahh must bring some cold pills then .. it's always gd to be kiasu abit .. ;p

tink i'm worrying too much hor ?? hehehe .. better dun tink so much .. JUST DO IT man .. the more i tink .. the more jitters i ve .. hope i wun back out in the last min .. wet blanket sia ..

hey i eat like a pig too if i want .. can take part in competitions one leh .. hahahah ..

will refrain from doing that if i want to ve a vomit-free trip .. hate the yucky taste ..

hey serendipity .. REALLY thanx for all the info .. u can compile a 'Dummies for Diving' liao .. heheheh .. THANK U GURU !!

 

[sbs99]

i would love to see sharks or manta rays....didnt see any tat time when diving. Oh yah....like seren mentioned....corals/rocks are really sharp underwater. Got punctured on the hand when a fellow diver pushed me towards an outcrop of rocks close ranged, in her clumsy attempt to swim (which you shouldnt be doing with arm and legs flailing).


p.s. tat website's forum....where's the post button? Cant find leh...maybe im silly...pls enlighten me where it is? thanx! haha

 

[serendipity]

Hi Coozie.

Don't mention it. I am just sharing my experience as a newcomer to diving. one more thing, if you think you will get sea sick, prepare some sea-sick pills. As the journey to Tioman is almost 3 hr from Mersing. Unless you go by Tanah Merah. But more expensive.

Don't backout, it is nothing as long as you are careful, know your limits and watch your back.

Don't call me guru around here. I will be marked for future attack one you know. Just joking. But seriously, any newcomer who like to continue diving will have more or less some stories to tell about themselves. Hopefully you will be next. Will be waiting for your chapter 1.

 

[coozie]

Originally posted by sbs99
i would love to see sharks or manta rays....didnt see any tat time when diving. Oh yah....like seren mentioned....corals/rocks are really sharp underwater. Got punctured on the hand when a fellow diver pushed me towards an outcrop of rocks close ranged, in her clumsy attempt to swim (which you shouldnt be doing with arm and legs flailing).


p.s. tat website's forum....where's the post button? Cant find leh...maybe im silly...pls enlighten me where it is? thanx! haha

hope i wun be that clumsy buddy .. :embrass:

sekali kena blacklisted by all diving clubs .. hahahah .. :bsmilie:

 

[coozie]

Originally posted by serendipity
Hi Coozie.

Don't mention it. I am just sharing my experience as a newcomer to diving. one more thing, if you think you will get sea sick, prepare some sea-sick pills. As the journey to Tioman is almost 3 hr from Mersing. Unless you go by Tanah Merah. But more expensive.

Don't backout, it is nothing as long as you are careful, know your limits and watch your back.

Don't call me guru around here. I will be marked for future attack one you know. Just joking. But seriously, any newcomer who like to continue diving will have more or less some stories to tell about themselves. Hopefully you will be next. Will be waiting for your chapter 1.

hey serendipity ..

thanx alot .. u ve been V HELPFUL :thumbsup:

tink i will bring the whole first aid box there .. me kiasu .. kiasi and kia deep water ahhh .. hahahah .. ;p

dun worry .. will share my experience wif u folks .. ve got my pen and paper ready liao .. heheheh ..

 

[serendipity]

i would love to see sharks or manta rays....didnt see any tat time when diving. Oh yah....like seren mentioned....corals/rocks are really sharp underwater. Got punctured on the hand when a fellow diver pushed me towards an outcrop of rocks close ranged, in her clumsy attempt to swim (which you shouldnt be doing with arm and legs flailing).

That why i recommend getting a pair of gloves. As anything happen, you will most likely use your hand to tahan one. Also when doing decomp stop after deep dive, you can hold on to the site marker rope which might be full of bronicles. Also when waiting for others to get into the water, can also hold on to the anchor rope of the dive boat. So a glove is very useful sometime.

Another idea i have is to bring along a extendable pointer. Cheap one. So that if you see anything funny, can use that as a tank banger to alert others or use that as a pointer to show others what you have seen and also to fool around with organism like sea urchin. You know if you flip a sea urchin around, the fishes around will go for the exposed soft tissue below. Crude right.

Also if you want to feed fish, can bring some bread along. But don't use your hand to feed, as you might not know what bigger fish come from behind, then you lose a finger or two. Squeeze and fill half a 1.25litre empty mineral water bottle with bread. Then when in the water remove the cap and let sea water in, which will soften the bread. When you want to feed fish, just squeeze the bottle to force the water out and the soften bread will flow out together. Then you can keep your fingers safe. So get a bottle that has handle for easy carry, and not very hard type so that easy to squeeze. Enjoy feeding fish. But remember to take the empty bottle out of the see. It is not bio-degradable.

 

[Silverelf]

Originally posted by coozie

besides headache and dryness of the eyes as mentioned .. will there be any discomfort to other parts of our body ?? my fren's wife always bleed from her nose and ears whenever she dives .. y is this so ?? scary sia .. might attract the sharks leh .. heheheh .. ;p

so we can't eat too much before or in between dives lah .. chey .. initially tot of pigging out on the boat as a celebration of me fulfilling my resolution .. looks like i ve to hold back till we reach the land .. :cry:

Well, it depends on the severity that you are talking about. We have a whole bunch of stuff all lined up waiting to happen. However, as long as you keep to the dive profile, you'll be ok. Therefore I think it is best that you know the dive profiles and not just follow the dive master. They are probably so used it that it makes not much of a difference to them but wil make a big difference to you.

*How many people know all the happening stuff?? *

Also, it is NOT advisable to drink before a dive... so keep off the bubbly!

 

[Silverelf]

Originally posted by serendipity
As for nose and ears bleeding, never experience before. But according to friends, might be due to in-proper equalising.

You got that right. It can happen both during descend and during ascend.

During descend, if you don't clear your ears properly, you'll find that you may have bleeding ears. Also, if you happen to do Valsalva (clear ears by pinching nose and blowing into your nose) during ascend then that's a sure ticket too!

 

[serendipity]

Hi all.

I am also against drinking alcohol before any dives. Strongly not advisable. But on the way home from Aur/Dayang or Tioman on the boat, because you travel by day, it is quite hot. So one or 2 can of ice cold beer shouldn't be a problem. But don't get drunk.

Also i think for those who do Valsalva (clear ears by pinching nose and blowing into your nose) during ascend, there are no other words to describe them except "really blur". Doing the reverse. And don't know the real purpose of "Valsalva" as you had explained It is very serious mistake to commit.

 

[Sin]

I think drinking water is ok. "Drinking" is not advisable for some people.

Vomiting: happen more because of seasickness for me (four hour choppy ride to Aur...."bleh" in the end) Eat alot during dive, no problem for me. :dunno:

as for feeding fishes.... dont know about that, but i personally dont believe in changing their diet or upsetting their ecosystem...

jus me lah.

 

[Silverelf]

Originally posted by Sin
I think drinking water is ok. "Drinking" is not advisable for some people.

Oops... I didn't make myself clear. I meant drinking alcohol. and it is inadvisable for EVERYBODY, not just some people. The reason is alcohol predisposes you to Decompression Illness... so.. save the bubbly for when you get back....

 

[rochkoh]

dive season starts in a coupla weeks! *rubbing hands* *can't wait*

 

[Sin]

Originally posted by Silverelf
The reason is alcohol predisposes you to Decompression Illness... so.. save the bubbly for when you get back....

Hey, I learnt some thing today!
(Must have not been paying attention when this was taught)


And yeah, like Roch, my gang is so excited we're already trying to plan something for early march....

 

[Silverelf]

Urrgh.. Dive season.... :biglaugh:

Anyways, much as I understand that the underwater world is beautiful and you guys want your money's worth, please don't do multiple dives (like 3 or 4) in a day! Unless you telling me you dive to 1 meter.

You DO NOT want to find out how much more money you can spend by making this monry 'worthwhile'

Other than that go enjoy yourselves!

P.S. If any of you had not take up diving insurance, please do! unless you are very very rich.

 

[sbs99]

nobody has the answer as where the post button is?

 

[Sin]

Originally posted by sbs99
nobody has the answer as where the post button is?

there's a "log-in" at the top
u might wanna explore that before even thinking about "post"?

 

[serendipity]

Hi Silverelf.

I always wanted to buy some insurance when diving. May i know roughly how much and from which agent? I am refering to those for only one trip only.

Thanks.