I have had a dream of living someplace tropical and teaching scuba diving for most of my life. As you may have read in the introduction, this began from TV shows I used to watch as a child. The time of dreaming had come to an end and it was now time to catch the dream; to go from open water diver to scuba instructor.
My goal of becoming a SCUBA Instructor with the training agency known as RAID began with me boarding a flight on Etihad Airlines on 25 November 2017. I landed in Abu Dhabi on Sunday 26 November. I did some research before coming to this country so as to not offend anyone or land myself in jail. That being said, this is a wonderful country rich in tradition stemming from Islam and the harsh desert environment.
Upon boarding the plane I noticed I was one of maybe five Caucasians on-board. This made me feel quite uneasy as I had never really experienced anything like that in my past. I wondered how I would be received; the obvious American with a backpack having military morale patches on it, one which states "Drive Fast, Shoot First."
It was not long before I realized that many of those around me couldn't care less about me or where I was from and what I looked like. I found a smile, without even a word being uttered, went a long way; something that I found out later to be quite useful and part of the local culture. The 16 hour flight, which in my mind was going to be as bad as the seventh circle of hell, was not all that terrible. The food came often as did snacks and drinks and I had my own screen which I could choose from many movies and TV shows. The new movies were quite limited but I made do and slept on and off through the flight often taking half hour-long naps followed by a movie. However I was looking forward to landing so I could get to smoke but the lack of nicotine was not as bad as I had felt prior on flights from Ohio to Hawaii. The last two hours was very agonizing as I was getting sore and was also feeling the rise of excitement about the journey, sights and sounds ahead of me.
We finally landed in Abu Dhabi around 8 PM on Sunday the 26th. I was expecting to get off the plane and walk into the airport from the plane but that was not the case. You get off the plane and there is a bus waiting there which you board and takes you to the proper immigration and passport control terminal. The ride was maybe 7-8 minutes but felt like an eternity. Once there I followed the signs to passport control where my nerves kicked in full force. I had heard many tales of people not being allowed into the country and being asked many questions, having to show proof of a flight out of the country and even being drug tested upon arrival due to your appearance. I wait in line and when it comes my turn to step up, all I was asked was if my name was what was listed on my passport. I stated yes, smiled and was told to step to the left and have my picture taken. My passport was stamped and off I went to get my luggage.
I asked for assistance from a porter as I had three heavy bags plus my backpack and I had no idea where I was going. The porter was very kind and wouldn't even let me touch my own bags, insisting that I point them out and he would pick them up and put them on the cart for me. Once the luggage was loaded we headed towards the end of the terminal where my friend/SCUBA instructor (@RainPilot ) was waiting for me. I think all is good until I made an error that had one man, presumably a police or military man, yelling at me with obvious anger on his face and in his voice. I had broken the threshold of the airport and the arrival terminal however looking back I noticed my porter was well behind me. I tried to walk back towards him so I was with my luggage but clearly this was a huge mistake. I tried to explain I just walked out and was coming back to find my porter. He didn't seem to care so I stepped back across the open entrance and allowed the porter to come to me and the crisis was averted. The man was just doing his job and protecting the safety of the airport and the people in it. My dumb mistake and I do not hold it against the man at all. First lesson learned!
As soon as we stepped into the parking structure I got my nicotine fix and then a second round once we loaded my gear in to the Land Rover. Our first stop was the petrol station where I was introduced to one of my new favorite drinks, Karak. It is a tea spiced with cardamom, ginger and saffron. I am not nor have I have ever been a tea drinker but this stuff was incredibly delicious. I was also told I needed a bottle of sweat. Yes, I said sweat. Pocari Sweat is a staple here due to the intense heat and UV in the summertime but is consumed all year-long. "Pocari Sweat is absorbed more quickly than water as it contains both electrolytes and sugars that accelerate fluid movement. It is able to re-hydrate your body quickly and effectively because it has electrolyte composition similar to your body fluid." My friend/instructor, Brendon said he uses it after long flights and my first thought was it would also be a great hangover cure. Basically it is like an electrolyte IV drip that you drink. It is a bit sweet and slightly thicker than water and I have found myself drinking it practically daily here.
Continued in next post...
My goal of becoming a SCUBA Instructor with the training agency known as RAID began with me boarding a flight on Etihad Airlines on 25 November 2017. I landed in Abu Dhabi on Sunday 26 November. I did some research before coming to this country so as to not offend anyone or land myself in jail. That being said, this is a wonderful country rich in tradition stemming from Islam and the harsh desert environment.
Upon boarding the plane I noticed I was one of maybe five Caucasians on-board. This made me feel quite uneasy as I had never really experienced anything like that in my past. I wondered how I would be received; the obvious American with a backpack having military morale patches on it, one which states "Drive Fast, Shoot First."
It was not long before I realized that many of those around me couldn't care less about me or where I was from and what I looked like. I found a smile, without even a word being uttered, went a long way; something that I found out later to be quite useful and part of the local culture. The 16 hour flight, which in my mind was going to be as bad as the seventh circle of hell, was not all that terrible. The food came often as did snacks and drinks and I had my own screen which I could choose from many movies and TV shows. The new movies were quite limited but I made do and slept on and off through the flight often taking half hour-long naps followed by a movie. However I was looking forward to landing so I could get to smoke but the lack of nicotine was not as bad as I had felt prior on flights from Ohio to Hawaii. The last two hours was very agonizing as I was getting sore and was also feeling the rise of excitement about the journey, sights and sounds ahead of me.
We finally landed in Abu Dhabi around 8 PM on Sunday the 26th. I was expecting to get off the plane and walk into the airport from the plane but that was not the case. You get off the plane and there is a bus waiting there which you board and takes you to the proper immigration and passport control terminal. The ride was maybe 7-8 minutes but felt like an eternity. Once there I followed the signs to passport control where my nerves kicked in full force. I had heard many tales of people not being allowed into the country and being asked many questions, having to show proof of a flight out of the country and even being drug tested upon arrival due to your appearance. I wait in line and when it comes my turn to step up, all I was asked was if my name was what was listed on my passport. I stated yes, smiled and was told to step to the left and have my picture taken. My passport was stamped and off I went to get my luggage.
I asked for assistance from a porter as I had three heavy bags plus my backpack and I had no idea where I was going. The porter was very kind and wouldn't even let me touch my own bags, insisting that I point them out and he would pick them up and put them on the cart for me. Once the luggage was loaded we headed towards the end of the terminal where my friend/SCUBA instructor (@RainPilot ) was waiting for me. I think all is good until I made an error that had one man, presumably a police or military man, yelling at me with obvious anger on his face and in his voice. I had broken the threshold of the airport and the arrival terminal however looking back I noticed my porter was well behind me. I tried to walk back towards him so I was with my luggage but clearly this was a huge mistake. I tried to explain I just walked out and was coming back to find my porter. He didn't seem to care so I stepped back across the open entrance and allowed the porter to come to me and the crisis was averted. The man was just doing his job and protecting the safety of the airport and the people in it. My dumb mistake and I do not hold it against the man at all. First lesson learned!
As soon as we stepped into the parking structure I got my nicotine fix and then a second round once we loaded my gear in to the Land Rover. Our first stop was the petrol station where I was introduced to one of my new favorite drinks, Karak. It is a tea spiced with cardamom, ginger and saffron. I am not nor have I have ever been a tea drinker but this stuff was incredibly delicious. I was also told I needed a bottle of sweat. Yes, I said sweat. Pocari Sweat is a staple here due to the intense heat and UV in the summertime but is consumed all year-long. "Pocari Sweat is absorbed more quickly than water as it contains both electrolytes and sugars that accelerate fluid movement. It is able to re-hydrate your body quickly and effectively because it has electrolyte composition similar to your body fluid." My friend/instructor, Brendon said he uses it after long flights and my first thought was it would also be a great hangover cure. Basically it is like an electrolyte IV drip that you drink. It is a bit sweet and slightly thicker than water and I have found myself drinking it practically daily here.
Continued in next post...
