Jenny, Philippa, Sarah, Megan, Leiann

As a dive instructor, there is one thing that will never get old. Coming up with a group of students after open water dive 1 and hearing them all, in union, state how unbelievable it was. Ohh’s and ahh’s and every once in awhile someone going (my favorite) ‘why couldn’t we stay down longer?’ (Mmmm, I wonder why?) It’s even better when it’s a group of classy English ladies, who spent days prior to the course (between their hours of scheduled sunbathing rituals) asking you every question imaginable and who were terrified that something might go wrong. They almost had me stressed out more than them about the course, and it hadn’t even started yet. Who would have guessed, that group of girls would have ended up becoming one of my favorite groups of Open Water students to date and also some great friends that I hope I can meet up with later in life. Well start with the introductions. First off we had Jenny, the fun loving (but sometimes forgetful) student who liked to share stories about her travels, especially when she had a near death experience with a coconut. Then there was her side kick and best mate Philippa, also known as Flip, eager to dive with a love for The Foo Fighters. Leiann, who was traveling with her father (also a fellow PADI diver) and wanted to see what all the fuss was about, then Megan, who had tried diving once before (well just say it wasn’t the best experience) and was very nervous about giving it a second go. The first day started out with a pool session, which ended up not only being one of the longest one’s I have ever done, but also the funniest. It began with 4 very nervous but excited girls all asking multiple questions at once (sorry girls if I got a little snappy with you, it was out of love I swear), continued with many skills, some easy, some difficult, and some (to their surprise) a piece of cake. No tears were shed during the almost 4 hours spent in that pool, but there were a few times when we all had to come up to the surface for air, not because they were having a hard time breathing from their regulators, but because we were all laughing so hard underwater our ribs were starting to ache and we needed a breather. I felt like a mother hawk watching her chicks take that big leap into the air the next day, as all 4 girls plunged into the open sea and I watched them descend into a world that they would never forget. The fear of the unknown ocean was turned into a love for it, right before my eyes, and it made me remember why I loved my job so much. After surfacing and hearing what use to be uncertain questions turned into ‘OHMYGAWDDD (that was brilliant, that was amazing, that was unreal, ect, ect.) I knew they were hooked. I couldn’t help but laugh, while briefing about the second dive, I explained about the family of clown fish we would go visit (ok girls, all together now, ‘OHHHH NEMOOO!’) and my smile only got bigger when at the end of the day, their complaints about getting up early the next day to have to finish the course became complaints of how they wouldn’t be able to sleep, since they were that excited to go diving again. The last day of the course went as planned, lots of excitement with some more ohh’s and ahh’s, but ended with the satisfaction of taking what started as 4 terrified and nervous girls and certifying them into PADI open water divers. Its times like these that make me love what I do, to be able to watch people grow within themselves as they conquer a new task that is in front of them, sometimes scary at first but in the end very rewarding. And to be honest, if these girls can do it, anyone can (again, I say that out of love).

IDC and staff instructor candidates koh tao

INSTRUCTOR DEVELOPMENT COURSE- JUNE 2011 WITH DAVEY JONES’ LOCKER KOH TAO, THAILAND
COURSE DIRECTOR: PETER NIEUWHOF
The IDC course started with an extra two days preparation course, which consisted of a pool session, demonstrating all our skills (including rescue scenario), followed by an afternoon sitting all the divemaster lectures and exams. This enabled Peter to see what our strengths and weaknesses were before the initial course started this I personally thought was an excellent idea, also it broke the ice between the class before the whole course started.
The IDC course structure itself was perfect; we started our days at 8.45am, had plenty of breaks and were always finished by 4pm (5pm at the latest). This gave us plenty of time in the evening to prepare for the next day’s presentation, whether it was confined; open water; or academic. There is a lot to cover in the 2 ½ weeks, but I felt that there was ample time to practice things that I felt were not my strong point (i.e. physics).
Peter is a very relaxed instructor and is always open to questions, and definitely explains all your queries thoroughly and doesn’t mind if it takes hours, his teaching skills and diagrams make your learning more visual and this way I found worked for me. He was very supportive throughout the whole course and very positive towards his students, which I feel is detrimental to his role as a Course Director.
The DJL experience as a whole was amazing. The staff are very friendly and always talked to us and enquired about our progress. The resort itself is was situated perfectly and clean and tidy.
If I was to do this whole course over again, I wouldn’t even consider going anywhere else. I am so happy with the completion and even scores the examiners gave me, that I owe all this to Peter and have since completed my MSDT with him, gaining more experience from him with respect to speciality courses. I will definitely be recommending any of my friends considering doing their IDC, to go straight to Peter at DJL. The smaller class size means more personal tuition when it’s needed.
OVERALL EXPERIENCE 5*

Anna Proudfoot
PADI OWSI & EFRI (250060 MSDT pending)

We had a lot of fun hanging out with these guys, and although the big storm at the start of their course put things on hold for a week or so they made some fantastic videos when everything got back to normal.

Robbie doing a great job as Divemaster Trainee

When I first met Robbie I liked him immediately. Here was a guy who had gone through a traumatic experience which had left him with a fear of deep water. I have the greatest respect for people who attempt to conquer their fears head on and Robbie was determined to beat his fear of deep water by taking his Padi Open Water Scuba license.I liken this to those who beat a fear of heights by doing a bungee jump or sky dive and find their bravery incredible. Robbie had attempted his Open Water certificate in Australia but could not finish it for a couple of reasons and came to DJL a little nervous. My boss, Tim, asked me to finish course one on one so he would have my undivided attention. He was a pleasure to teach. After successfully completing his Open Water with flying colors, Robbie decided to take his Advanced course as he was still a little nervous in the water. We started this a couple of days later and it now appears like he has been doing it for years. In fact, he enjoyed it so much, Robbie is now doing his professional Divemaster qualification at DJL and has already assisted myself and a few other Instructors in various courses and alongwith being a great help, is on his way to becoming a top class Divemaster! Well Done Robbie and keep up the good work!

For all the lectures we use our air conditioned IDC classroom with flatscreen TV to give you the best environment to study and our private swimming pool gives you a better way to practice skills instead of the ocean.

Most of the Divemaster Course will remain the same, however we will introduce more work shops like: “dive site set and control”, “scuba review”, “skin dive and snorkeling supervision”, “Discover Scuba Diving”, “taking out certified divers” and “how to use a Surface Marker Buoy” because we think that this will benefit you once you’re certified as a Divemaster.

We also teach more skin diving skills in our skills circuit because once you’re a Divemaster you can independently teach the PADI Skin Diver Course. If you don’t have your Deep and Search and Recovery Specialty we include workshops/dives for it in your Divemaster course so you have more experience in deep diving, navigation, liftbags and knot tying.

At the end of your course you will be a “Divemaster of the day” under direct supervision by our Divemaster/Instructor. You will organise the boat and conduct boat/dive briefings and lead certified divers around the dive site. So once you are a qualified Divemaster you already have plenty of experience.

Also the two runners up get a discount! No previous dive knowledge necessary. The warm waters, tropical fish, sharks and white beaches have made Koh Tao has over recent years become one of the best places in the world to learn to dive. Adding to this Thailand offers cheaper diving courses than anywhere else.

So become a professional diver today and work all round the globe in some of the worlds most exotic and unique places. No previous diving knowledge is needed to take part in this chance to become a Divemaster for free. Plus most importantly there is no obligation to work for us for free after like with most free Divemaster Internships.

The draw will be held on the 30th of August so those who are just finishing and those who are just starting both get to see it take place

BOOK BY: 29th August 2011
STARTING BETWEEN: July 2011-August 2011

Smiles all round as Chris & Bobby collect their Certificates

Congratulations to the latest PADI Dive Instructors, Bobby & Chris from England.

Both were ex-Divemasters at Davy Jones Locker and passed their final Instructor Exams with near perfect scores!

The guys intend to further their PADI diving education to Master Scuba Diver Trainee levels.

Good work again Pete (DJL’s course director) who helped the lads through the Instructor course & exam. I know the lads both speak very highly of Pete and would like to say a big thank you!

Bobby, Chris & Pete celebrated in style with one of the biggest bar tabs ever known at DJL Pool Bar and having now recovered both lads are already undertaking speciality instructor courses in order to become highly employable scuba diving instructors.

If you are interested in becoming an PADI Instructor with Davy Jones Locker, check out www.djldiving.com

Davy Jones Locker offers BSAC Boat Handling courses that are internationally recognised and accredited by the maritime coastal agency. The aim of the Seamanship Package is to give students with little or no skills & experience, the theoretical and practical ability to operate a small powerboat safely. This license will allow you to run a boat up to 10 metres long and is accepted in Australia.

For more information on this course, check out our website;

http://www.davyjoneslocker.asia/en/bsac-courses/133-skill-development-courses/164-bsac-seamanship-centre-no-____484-seamanship-a-boat-handling-package.html

Enjoy your new careers in diving guys, all the best from everyone at Davy Jones Locker.

Congratulations to Thomas, Ross & Michael on becoming the latest PADI Instructors here on Koh Tao. Thomas (from Germany) plans on travelling to the Philippines to continue his dive career, Ross (from England) is jetting off to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and Michael (also from England) plans to find work here on Koh Tao. Everyone here at Davy Jones Locker would like to thank Pete our course director on keeping up his exceptional pass rate and would like to wish the three new instructors all the best in their new dive careers.

Ex Davy Jones Locker student Harry Smith is jetting off to the tropical islands of Vanuatu to continue his dive career as a PADI Dive Instructor.

Harry came to DJL early last year and undertook the Divemaster Internship program. From there he completed the Instructor course and Master Scuba Diver Trainer course. Only 2 weeks after completing these courses with DJL, Harry was offered a job through the PADI website.

Vanuatu is a chain of around 80 small volcanic islands located between Fiji and New Zealand, we are sure Harry will excel in his new dive career in paradise and wish him the best of luck!

Mike, Pete & Ash

Drongo & Canada

Congratulations to the latest PADI instructors Mike (Canada) and Ash (Australia).

Both were ex-Divemasters at Davy Jones Locker and passed their final exams with flying colours!

The guys intend to further their PADI education to MSDT level.

Again well done to Pete, our course director who keeps up his amazing 100% pass rate. I know the lads both speak very highly of pete and would like to say a big thank you!

See you all in the DJL bar later guys for a big celebration party!

Jules, Damien, Frankie, Nigel & Ross

A BIG Congratulations to Jules, Damien, Frankie, Nigel & Ross who have just completed their Power Boat Handling course with Davy Jones Locker.

The BSAC Boat Handling course (which is designed for divers) taught the guys chart work, position fixing and navigation over a one week period.

With all 5 students passing their final exam all finish with an internationally recognised boat handling qualification, which is authorised by both the Marine Coastguard Agencies (MCA) and Combined Diving Association (PADI, BSAC, SSA).

The celebrations went on well into the night at DJL’s pool bar where the 5 new skippers were welcomed in the traditional way of 3 shots of rum after they were presented with DJL dive coxswain caps.

Well done guys and good luck from all at Davy Jones Locker!

For more information on the boat handling course see http://www.davyjoneslocker.asia/en/component/content/article/158-internship/286-boat-handling.html

A big Congratulations to January’s IDC candidates, Harry (England) and Bastiaan (Holland) on becoming PADI Instructors. The guys passed with flying colours clocking up the highest IE scores to date. Both are continuing their dive careers as Master Scuba Diver Trainees and we wish them every success. Thanks to Pete, DJL’s course director for training Harry and Bastiaan and maintaining an excellent pass rate!

Watch out ladies, Dan's qualified as an OWSI today and so he's sure to be out celebrating tonight

OWSI completed next up for Paul the MSDT

Stefan receives his Instructor certificate

Congratulations to December’s IDC candidates, Stefan (Germany), Paul (England) and Daniel (England) on becoming PADI Instructors.  We had some great fun during the IDC and they all had excellent scores during their Instructor Exams.

Here's our Course Director Pete with three of the newest PADI Diving Instructors on Koh Tao

Tonight we’re gonna celebrate at our pool bar with a BBQ and DJ’s so leave your bikes at home! On the 19th we start with the MSDT Course intro and we have a group of 7, so this is gonna be fun.

Dan & Paul both completed the Divemaster training here with us at DJL and are both going to go on to take the MSDT here starting in a few days time, then who knows where they’ll end up, but as the season here is just about to start I’m sure they’ll both be looking to get straight into teaching their first courses as PADI Instructors here on Koh Tao and sticking around for a while.

Peter our Course Director here at DJL was extremely happy with the guys and they all passed which means 2009 is another year of 100% pass rate for his IDC candidates, keep up the good work Pete!

After working as a PADI Dive Master and Instructor for two years at Davy Jones Locker I’ve experienced many amazing trips on our high speed RHIB, from diving with the many bull sharks at Chumphon Pinnacle to searching the Gulf of Thailand for sunken shipwrecks. But I always wanted the chance to get behind the wheel, so when the opportunity came up for me to do the BSAC Boat Handling course, I jumped at the chance.
The course started out with an afternoon of theory, learning how to find my way around the boat, basic boat handling and some safety and rescue work. Then the fun part arrived.
Getting behind the wheel for the first time was a little bit scary but my instructors, Les and Tim made me feel really comfortable and with all their experience gave me the confidence to drive the RHIB for the first time. We started with some high speed turns and then moved on to more technical low speed maneuvers. It was a perfect day in the Tao for boat driving, the sea was as flat as a pond with no wind. As we progressed throughout the course I became more confident and learned about chartwork and position fixing using Seacharts and GPS. I got to put everything I learned into practice when my instructor Tim told me he had some GPS marks for some possible ship wrecks in the area. So, using my training we located the marks on a map and planned our day at sea. Sadly, nothing came of the GPS marks but Tim and his technical diving student, Jeremy did a dive to 50metres on a wreck called the Torpedo so the day was not wasted, I learned how to pick up marks using GPS and I logged valuable hours driving the RHIB.
The day came and it was time to take my driving test, I was nervous and admittedly I didn’t drive my best, but I was glad to hear from Les and Tim that I had passed. Now I’m looking forward to more shark dives and wreck expeditions and after gaining more experience driving the RHIB I aim to go on to become a BSAC Boat Handling Instructor at DJL Diving. It’s a great addition to any CV and will help to get a job in the dive industry, especially Australia. So, many thanks Tim and Les for the great course and if anyone wants to do something more than diving then I strongly recommend the BSAC Boat Handling course which is an Internationally recognized license, so you can drive anywhere in the world.

I highly recommend the Search and Recovery Speciality course and you can  give it a go here at Davey Jones’ Locker. See you soon…

We wish Peter all the best for his future with us, helping the next generation of diving instructors achieve their goals.

David comes from New Zealand and has worked for the search and rescue department in Australia for the past 7 years.
As our rib captain he plans to increase the services offered on the rib byoffering snorkeling tours, water skiing & wake boarding.

For all those of you looking for some excitment, or thrillseeker rib trips. We welcome you to the team Dave.

Image: New PADI Dive Instructor James Wynn

Following the completion of his scuba diving internship here on Koh Tao Thailand, we’re happy to announce that James Wynn [UK] has qualified as a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor.

After passing the PADI Instructor examination, James is now able to teach all PADI dive courses up to and including Divemaster level.

James is now going to reward himself with a bit of tech and wreck diving, before returning back to the UK early next month.

If you’re interested in training to become a scuba diving instructor, checkout our instructor developement course [IDC] package.

Congratulations James!