ShakaZulu
Contributor
A Japanese guy goes to Mexico on vacation and while he's there he decides to take a diving course . He signs up at the local diving school and they pair him up with their best instructor. The instructor doesn't speak Japanese and the Japanese guy doesn't speak Spanish. The instructor says "can you speak English" to which the young tourist nods politely and smiles. During the lessons it turns out that the Japanese fellow doesn't speak much English at all but he seems to understand and listens attentively, nodding in understanding at everything the instructor says. Finally convinced that his student is ready for the real thing, the instructor takes him to the pool.
During the first in-water session the instructor shows the young man the mask clearing exercise. Mask 1/2 full....and clear..... now your turn. The young man nods politely and follows instructions. Mask 1/2 full and clear. No problem. They repeat the exercise a number of times and the young man performs the exercise with ease.
The next day they're back in the pool and the instructor demonstrates mask removal and clearing. Mask full, strap off, mask off, mask on, strap on and clear. The young man nods politely and tries to imitate. However, unlike the previous day he can't perform the exercise. The instructor is patient and tries many times to get his student to do it but with no success. Perplexed he asks the shop to find someone who can speak Japanese. After some time a member of the staff arrives with a tourist plucked out of a cafe who can translate. The instructor explains what happened and asks the tourist to ask the student why he can't clear his mask.
After a short conversation in Japanese the tourist turns to the instructor and says "he tells me that drinking 1/2 a mask full of water through his nose is easy but a whole mask full is too much"
During the first in-water session the instructor shows the young man the mask clearing exercise. Mask 1/2 full....and clear..... now your turn. The young man nods politely and follows instructions. Mask 1/2 full and clear. No problem. They repeat the exercise a number of times and the young man performs the exercise with ease.
The next day they're back in the pool and the instructor demonstrates mask removal and clearing. Mask full, strap off, mask off, mask on, strap on and clear. The young man nods politely and tries to imitate. However, unlike the previous day he can't perform the exercise. The instructor is patient and tries many times to get his student to do it but with no success. Perplexed he asks the shop to find someone who can speak Japanese. After some time a member of the staff arrives with a tourist plucked out of a cafe who can translate. The instructor explains what happened and asks the tourist to ask the student why he can't clear his mask.
After a short conversation in Japanese the tourist turns to the instructor and says "he tells me that drinking 1/2 a mask full of water through his nose is easy but a whole mask full is too much"
