Maldives – diving with ScubaPro Yang

Ari Atoll / the Maldives.  Night dive with sharks – 16 meter under…

I sucked heavily on my regulator while the current made my flippers  work overtime to make me stay in the same place. Sharks, grey and white tipped reef sharks,  up to two meters long, shot into the light of my torch only to disappear out into the darkness a few seconds later. The sharks were bold in the darkness, opposed to the distance they had kept during the daytime dives.  My big night time challenge was to see the shark, get it into the frame, make the camera focus and shoot the picture, before the shark was gone. It was a great experience.

 

Manta diving – Big fish close up.

– If the mantas are not around, there is nothing to see, divemaster Mox said..But we were lucky. Five big reef mantas turned up. For twenty minutes they took turns, swimming around the top of an underwater hill, while they were being freed from parasites by cleaner fish. It was like being just underneath an B52 when one of the big fish passed right over my head..All right, a small B52 – the mantas were about three meter across, but they seemed big.

Diving with ScubaSpa Yang was a luxurious way to dive the Maldives. The cabin was big and the big window gave plenty of light ( good for nursing under water photo equipment). Between dives you could relax on the sundeck, cool off in the Jacuzzi or get a massage.

Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa – time to relax on solid ground

It has everything  you dream of for a tropical paradise island : white sanded beaches with palm trees, water in the right color and a perfect temperature and a long list of fun-activities – from canoeing and wind surfing to snorkeling and scuba diving. A young woman posed for a photo on a  SUP ( Stand Up Paddle) board. She had never tried it before, but managed to get her balance – and smile. Later on I decided to give it a try, thinking “how difficult can it be”…I very soon became wiser and a lot wetter.  I`m glad no one was around with a camera to capture my repeatedly returns to the wet world and clumsy climbing back up on the board.   I`ll give it another try some day.