ESL Blogs

Seriously? Not exactly! I'm referring to a recent summer adventure that I participated along with my family in Boracay Island, in my country, the Philippines. This is called Helmet Diving.

What is helmet diving?

This is becoming one of the popular out-door activities among foreign and local tourists in the island. This activity allows you to climb down a ladder to reach the seabed while wearing a helmet made of glass plates. The helmet itself has an air compressor connected by a long hose up to its main oxygen tank. This will help you breathe normally under the water. Once the helmet is worn, you can be assisted by the diver to go down the ladder, walk on the seabed, feed the fishes and have your photos taken. The souvenir photos, plus a short video are included in the package.

According to the instructor, the actual helmet weighs 25 kilograms. It becomes 2 kilograms once you're under the water. This is quite true because I felt its heaviness as I wore it. It suddenly became lighter when I was on the ocean floor. We were fetched by a speed boat going to the flat-surfaced boat where the divers and their equipment can be found. The divers accommodated us and a short instruction was given. Prior to the activity, a waiver was signed. It's important to pay enough attention to the instructor since he'd give you the proper gestures during the activity, as well as essential hand signals that you can use to communicate with the divers.

When the helmets were filled up by air, we started going down one by one. As I went down the ladder, I could feel the coldness of the water. The divers assisted us until we were able to reach the ocean floor. I felt a little discomfort in my ears because of the pressure, though. There's also a large rope to grip on so we wouldn't be carried away by the current. Though the water was freezing, it didn't ruin my excitement!

It was a different world down there. The experience became sweeter when I saw different, colorful fish in front of me. I was looking for Nemo, but I couldn't see him! Maybe he's with Ariel. : ) The diver gave us a tiny, round bread to feed the fish and have them included on the photos. Imagination kicked in and I felt like an astronaut under the ocean. The fish was dazzling like stars in the sky. Feeding them was exciting! They're so untamed as I tried to catch them. My co-participants were also enjoying the activity.

The helmet diving lasted for more than 10 minutes. We had to climb up back to the boat. While waiting for the speed boat, I started to feel extreme coldness, probably because of strong wind and wet clothes. But it's all worth it!

This adventure was truly memorable and exciting! I took it as a breather after weeks of stress caused by the super typhoon. I'm grateful to experience this marvelous event with my loved ones.

Note: Please be warned that this activity is not for everyone. If you are hydrophobic, I suggest you not to try this activity. You should take caution and assessment if you're capable of joining in.

Do you have a memorable summer adventure? Please do share it here! Thank you very much for reading my blog.