Semester 10 Chapter VII: Flow Like A River

What’s good everybody, your boy taeb is back with another installment of this piece of something. Greetings to my regular readers, greetings to those who check this shit occasionally, shout out to the first-time and deuces to the last time readers. I hope everybody’s doing beautiful.

 

Last week was pretty cool. After the Sunday incident, I gave my ears some time to recover. The middle ear squeeze isn’t the worst thing in the universe, it’s just not super comfortable. At least for a day or two. So the first two days was mostly walks, doing my classes, taking things easy. Tuesday evening, I met up with my dad’s friend, his wife and their doggie (yeah, they’re still on the island) and we walked down to Puerto Colón to grab some drinks. Good talks, good vibes, nice evening.

Wednesday, I hopped into the Fiat Panda we rented the last week and drove to the dive shop I used to work for to drop some of their gear I still got at home. Then I picked up my friend and we went for a road trip. First, we took it to Santa Cruz where she wanted to visit some fucking ham shop. Cause believe it or not, in 2021 some people still eat meat. Crazy, huh? Anyways, she was also nice enough to google a spot with some vegan ice cream so we had a bit of that too. After that we proceeded up north and stopped by in Garachico. I’d been there once before to do my SSI crossover but I didn’t have a chance to properly explore it. So we did it justice this time around. Nice cozy town with a big square a bunch of restaurants a cafés. We stopped by in one for a bit and then wrapped the trip up. Through Santiago del Teide back to Adeje.

Friday, I joined the Medano guys for a dive in Punta Prieta - my first diving there. Since I had shit to do in the afternoon, I did only one dive so I followed their van with the Panda. The dive was awesome. You can tell that the guys know the sites very well. We went about 35 meters deep but we had 15 liters’ tanks so we got quite a lot of time down there. Oh, and there was a Czech customer joining the dive too. How random.

Sautrday, I picked up my friend once again to finish the Advanced course with her in Abades. I’m so happy I got the plug for tanks and gear over there. That woman is absolutely awesome, fun and super nice. When we were leaving her shop to do the first dive, I noticed the Czech girl from the day before drinking coffee in one of the cafés by the square. What are the odds, right? We chatted for a bit and I offered her to join us for the second dive. All she had to do was rent a gear around the corner. So we all did (and we did see a massive ray and two turtles) and then hung out for the rest of the afternoon. In the evening, I did the last dive of my friend’s Advanced and sometime after 8pm I was home. Oh, and I managed to check out the Abades church once more in the afternoon. While my friend took a nap in the car, I climbed the rooftop and enjoyed being on top of the world. Throughout Saturday, I ran into like 5 different people I know by accident. Shit like that makes you feel like a local. Been here for a minute.

Sunday morning, I was sitting in the Panda once again, I picked up my friend once again and we went to Abades to pick up tanks and gear. Once again. Unlike the day before tho, we took it to El Puertito. I did the site only once before and the conditions were shit so I was hoping something better this time around. It did look a doable but I didn’t really like the waves so we gave it a pass and went to Alcala instead. I was forced to fucking parallel park there. Managed. We did only one dive as I had some work later on but it was good. Not the best vis but not horrible neither. We grabbed a drink at the town square nearby afterwards.

So yeah, last week was quite a lot of diving and hella driving. Plus tons of online classes. My departure of Tenerife is approaching and I’m in peace with that. Wheels keep rolling. Stay positive, stay safe and don’t entertain bullshit. Sending some love everybody. One!

Highlights:

• Meeting people by accident. The best
• New Rod Wave.
• My confidence as a driver. I feel I’m real good now.

Semester 10 Chapter VI: Major Moves

Microphone check one two, what’s up everybody! Okay, saying that the last week was eventful would be an understatement. Let me start with differences between PADI (the initial organization I did my dive instructor certification with) and SSI (the one I crossed over to recently). Now, I don’t wanna act like I’m an expert or anything but it’s pretty interesting listening to people who are certified or have experience with both... Everybody prefers SSI for some reason. Now, I’ll see what my experience will turn out to be but so far so good. So get this... After I did my crossover last weekend, all it took paperwork-wise was to do like 3 e-signatures on the guy’s tablet. Next day I was an instructor in their database. With PADI, the poor guy in charge had to collect dozens of papers from everybody and it took them like a month to process them. So that’s one. Two, once I got certified, I got to acknowledge how good their website is (no disrespect to PADI but theirs is crap). So there I am, browsing jobs in the SSI database, sending out CVs and what do I find? A Czech guy posting a job for his dive center in Croatia. CV sent. Next day I get a phone call from this 57 years old diver, we had a great chat and two days later I got the gig in the city of Rabac starting May. Now, I don’t wanna say that SSI is this much better but it took me 3 months of blood, sweat, tears and slaving my ass off for free to accomplish absolutely nothing with PADI, and it took about 3 days of doing very little to get a job with SSI. Maybe it was just luck but fuck it, who cares. Couple of blogs back, I said that one of my goals for this year was to get a job in diving. So unless covid’s gonna fuck this up for me, this box is ticked. It feels major, it feels good and I’m super excited about it. I told my host that I’m leaving mid- April, I’m doing a quick stop in the Czech Republic to see my fam and them I’m off to new adventures.

Telling my Indian hosts that I’m leaving was a bit sentimental. We really made friends here and they jokingly refer to me as their adoptive son. I’ve loved staying with them and who knows... Maybe I’ll be back at some point. I like it here. I also booked my flight back home. Booking anything these days feels like a gamble as you have no idea if the flight’s gonna take place or if they gonna let you from or to the country and under what conditions. But here I am. I also got reminded that my days of travelling with carry-on only are gone. Diving gear ruined it all. Oh well... I think I’m ready to bounce tho... Most of my favorite Tenerife people have all left the island and the last one is leaving next week. And as there hasn’t been a diving job anywhere around, I’ve started feeling it’s time to move. Not because it’s bad over here but because I’m getting to neutral. And I hate neutral. I need shit to move, I need things to evolve, I need people to meet and vibe with... And the way shit fell into place with this SSI is crazy.

I went diving with the Medano guys on Wednesday too. They brought me along with another instructor, their divemaster and a customer. We did Las Eras and the instructor led took us to places I haven’t seen there yet. Great fucking dives. Positive vibes only. Even got to get my shit off with this German girl. We dug a bit into feminism and some other of my favorite topics... Real nice day.

Then there was weekend. So my friend wanted to her Advanced. Since for a somewhat freelance instructor it’s way easier to do this through SSI, I decided to do just that. The Medano guys would process the paperwork and get the e-learning and we would just get the gear and a car somewhere. I got a contact of this lady in Abades renting gear at very reasonable rates and I got a reservation for a car. Now, I’ve booked a car here before and it went smoothly. So I didn’t expect any complications. Boy, was I wrong. Turns out most companies over here require drivers to have their license for 1-2 years to rent them one. So the last time was probably a mistake on their end. I eventually found one that seemed not to care and made the booking. When I got to the airport to pick that motherfucker up, they sent me right back. Not enough years on my fucking card. So for a moment, the diving weekend was in jeopardy. However, Saturday morning, my friend figured it out and we got a nice Fiat Panda for 12 days. So we were back on. We spent the day diving in El Poris. I did Perfect Buyoancy and Navigation with her. Two great dives.

Sunday, we went to Tabaiba to do Deep and Wreck. I felt I sequenced the whole training well. I didn’t start with Deep and left it for the second day. I made sure the vibe was okay, I was paying attention to the overall energy is and I repeatedly stressed that in case of any discomfort during the decent, I want to know. Been taking notes on all my courses in the past and I felt really confident and happy hitting the water.  We made it to the wreck and when we were at the deepest point, my friend went straight into a panic mode. We’ve dealt with it and besides a bit of an ear squeeze, there’s no damage done but it’s an interesting thing... Later on, I learnt that she didn’t feel good on the descent but kept giving me an OK cause she thought it might pass. Now, dealing with shit at 15 meters is a bit better that dealing with it at 30. And I specifically asked to signal any level of discomfort prior to the dive and I was checking like every 10 seconds. Point being, sometimes you can’t control everything. And another point, with diving there’s no faking shit. You either feel good or you don’t. And trust me, if you don’t feel all good at 12, you probably not gonna feel amazing at 25. Well... Another experience. We brushed it off, did a coffee, stopped by at Abades to return the gear and tanks, and grabbed a drink over there. I got myself a knife and a reel while at it. Last two things I was missing.

So that was that. I’m excited about Croatia, I’m grateful for Tenerife and I’m super happy about the idea of seeing everyone back home for couple of days. Got new Lana Del Rey in my headphones, shit feels good. Oh, and I totally didn’t do any photos last week. So next time... Sending love to everybody out there. One!

Highlights:

• First real diving job secured!
• Driving around the island once more.
• Diving, diving, diving.

Semester 10 Chapter V: Air Share

What’s up y’all. It another Monday and you already know what that means. Your favorite blog back on. Everything is good over here, I’m enjoying life and I sure as hell hope you do too. Before I carry on with this motherfucker, let me share my two cents about my current relationship with hip-hop. I wouldn’t call it crisis cause... Well, that shit is deep in my DNA and it ain’t going nowhere. But I honestly do feel it’s time to for me kick out some artists out of my sphere. I like ignorance (to some degree), I like flexing, I like contradictions. Words are just words and I believe that the important shit happens between the lines anyway. So most of the shit don’t really phase me. On the contrary, I don’t expect fucking Migos to rap about politics (and I honestly don’t want them to). But... I also think there are very few reasons to be a straight up misogynistic pig and to blindly follow trends set by the system. So yeah... T.I. is out my playlists (and trust me, that hurts). I also feel it’s time to kinda address all this designer brands praising in raps. Often even the woke rappers flex whatever brands have been popular within the genre which leads to ridiculous situations. How are you to promote equality and black empowerment if you rock brands which have proven to be absolutely tone deaf when it comes to social issues (hi, Gucci) and are also completely owned by white people who genuinely don’t give a shit (this also connects to my issue with black community embracing capitalism which feels like shooting oneself into a leg; I’ll get to that in a different blog tho). I mean... Hip-hop is the shit. It’s the most influential and popular genre in the universe. It carries so much drive and style, generations of people have been affected by it. And its impact goes well beyond its own borders. So why the fuck would you support some overpriced bullshit that has nothing to do with you instead of creating new things. I mean, you could argue that it is not my fight (even though I feel that’s debatable) but it really gets annoying. Don’t get me wrong, there are still artists that I really enjoy. It’s just... Especially in these times, I would love to see some changes taking place in the culture as a whole. Maybe it’s coming tho... Who knows. 

Okay, so back to my life in Tenerife. Last week was pretty chilled. I accepted two new students both of whom I enjoy, I worked quite a lot, I extended my runs, I worked out, I swam. I also hung out with one of the few friends who are still physically at the island here and there in the evenings. Life has a very nice pace here. I’ve been also sending out my CV to bunch of dive shops hoping for the best.

On Saturday, I got picked up by this dive shop owner from El Medano, who drove me to Garachico where the in-water SSI Crossover took place. I wasn’t nervous at all. At this point, I’m pretty confident under water and this whole thing felt like a piece of cake. And it turned out to be just that. It was me, another instructor and the main SSI guy. I got to demonstrate and perform air share which is super basic. It all went real fast and around noon we were celebrating the success with a beer in a bar nearby. So yeah... I’m both PADI and SSI at the moment. Which still doesn’t guarantee anything but it kinda increases my employability. We’ll see how shit goes... I spent the rest of the day chilling, walking around and watching movies.

Sunday, I met up with a friend at the Costa Adeje bus station and we went to Santiago del Teide. It’s a lovely town I had passed couple of times before but never really spent any time over there. We walked around for a bit, dropped by in a café by the church and then went for a hike following a random trail. That’s something I enjoy here. Trails are really well marked. Reminds me of the Czech Republic a bit. We chose Puerto de Santiago which was about 8km away and the kike was beautiful. Throughout hills with lava rocks and cacti with views at the mountains and the sea... Real nice. We eventually made it to Los Gigantes where we parked it at one of the town’s beaches with a view on the massive cliffs Los Gigantes is famous for. Also my first time over there. I made it home around 8pm. Day well spent.

 

This week I intend to focus mostly on work and I also got some diving planned. I spoke to some of my people back home and it looks that I might have some visits over here sometime soon after all. If covid allows. Got that Clever album playing now, got my hosts cooking some Indian dish in the kitchen, sun is shining, all is in peace. Hope y’all good too... Sending some love out there. One!

 

Highlights:

• I’m an SSI instructor!
• The hike.
• My new students. Super interesting people.

Semester 10 Chapter IV: No Bullshit

Hello world! Before we get to it, I feel like shouting out all my vegans, all my runners, divers, hikers and cyclists... Just because. Now, life is still good in Costa Adeje. After quite some time, I decided to make this weekend 100% me time and I’m enjoying the shit out of it. It’s yet another Sunday, I got the new Drake’s EP in the headphones, just finished my workout... Feeling good. 

 

So what’s happening here... Weather is still getting warmer (not that it was cold before), all the restrictions are still relatively soft compared to the rest of the world, I’m all tanned and I feel I’m in a good place. Physically and mentally. Last week I worked quite a bit and I also had a chance to hang out with some people. One of my dad’s friends is on the island and he shot me text asking if I’d meet him for a beer. We met up in the Coconut Bar on Tuesday and after a while we moved to the Temple Bar just across the street. Good talk, nice evening.

I also met a friend at this spot in Las Americas on Thursday. Made me realize how temporary everything in my life is. Covid has turned my social life upside down and I’m still processing all of it. I got people I love dearly whom I haven’t seen for more than a year, I’ve met whole bunch of new beautiful people that just came and went, and now I keep in touch with some of them through the screen... There’s people I would like to hug, go to a bar or fade out on a couch with... Shit, I miss hitting a club with my squad too. I’m not really complaining tho. It is what it is. It’s just something I haven’t really fully wrapped my head around and sometimes if feels weird as fuck. Anyways... The Thursday hangout was awesome. We had some great convos and the girl texted me the next day that she woke up feeling great after that. Shit was totally reciprocal.

 

I also got contacted by the dive shop I used to dive for. They are apparently in the phase of exploring new sites and since we haven’t really parted ways in a negative manner, they invited me to join them for a dive at Mar Azul. Real nice, genuine offer. I had literally zero reasons to reject. It was good to see Minnie the dog again and it was good to get in the water again. That’s always good. It was me, the shop’s owner and the guy I was diving the same spot with couple days before. Great visibility, cool dive... We discovered some new swim throughs and caverns, we did whole bunch of pictures. Happy days. It’s quite possible that I’ll be doing shit like that with them in the future too. We’ll see...

 

And then there was the weekend. I decided to take shit extremely slow and to enjoy myself. So yesterday, I did a proper workout, 2 long ass walks, I went for a run and I also hit the pool to do my 1km. That was the first time I did that this year. Water is warm enough for me again. I was catching up on music throughout all of that and I had a chance to talk to some of my people too... Chilling. And I have very similar plans for today.

 

Se yeah, another good week over here. I’m grateful for all the people and situations I’ve managed to throw myself into and I’m also grateful for all the bullshit I managed to avoid. I got to confirm that my bullshit radar is still fully operational. Sending love to all my people. You know what it is. Sending love to all my readers too. I appreciate all of you. One!

Highlights:

• Jessie Reyez. Got back to her last album and it still kicks.
• Finished this Bir Baskadir TV series. Fucking love it!
• Swimming in the pool again!

Semester 10 Chapter III: All Over The Place

Lately, I’ve been revisiting some older albums I felt I wanna hear again. Got kinda stuck on FKA Twigs and Brandy. Been in my rnb bag a bit more than usual. So that's music; outside of that everything’s been going well over here too. Weather is still beautiful, my work is still enjoyable, people I meet are still awesome... And it’s getting progressively warmer. The fucked up thing is that whereas Tenerife is still a pretty nice place to be, mainland Europe (Czech Republic in particular) is deep in shit with covid so at the moment so all the visits my people have been planning for the spring do not seem very likely to happen. We’ll see... 

 

So where we at with this... Monday evening I met with two girls I was supposed to dive with at the weekend. They needed some help with organization, car arrangement and shit like that. One I know pretty well, the other I did not know at all. The plan was to do some diving with a guy they met and then just keep the car, do some night dives, camp by the beach and do some morning dives too. What’s not to love there... Turned out to be a nice little hangout, we went through everything that we deemed important... Wrapped it all up at the beach of Puerto Colón.

Wednesday morning I went diving with my Lithuanian friend. We did Mar Azul again. The visibility wasn’t the best so we decided to do one dive only and spent the rest of the morning at this spot nearby drinking coffee and talking. In the evening, I arranged a car for the weekend. Airport pick-up, solid big fully insured car for about 75 EUR for both days. The day after it was all work but I managed to do a night dive with Tabaiba with the same friend. Fucking beautiful. We did some drinks across the street from my compound afterwards...

Friday, the two of us met up again for lunch. See, as she left the island yesterday, this was kind of a goodbye meal. She made a reservation at this vegan restaurant in Abades which marked my first visit to a 100% vegan place on this island. Before we got there, we took a walk around the church area on top of the hill and hung out with some divers I know who were there for dives. The lunch itself was great. See, the business concept of the place sounds stupid as fuck. You open a restaurant in the middle of nowhere, you make it vegan, you open it for 3 days a week only and you make it kinda pricey compared to anything else around. But it works! It’s always full and there’s virtually no way of getting a table without previous reservation. They basically tell you what you gonna eat too. I mean there’s like 3 options but you probably wanna try them all anyway. And it’s beautiful. All the mock meat, cheese... The presentation, the flavors... Great experience. After that, I got dropped off at the airport where I met with one of the girls from Tuesday and got the car. See, on this island you have to be at least 23 to rent a car with most companies. And I was the only one out of the group who had both the license and the age to meet the criteria. I drove that car back to my place to do some work, left it with the girl, did some teaching and met with another friend for some drinks in the evening. She did open water with me while back and she finally completed e-learning so the certification is official and she wanted to celebrate. Overall a cool day.

Saturday I didn’t really feel like doing anything. For all kinds of fucked up reasons the vibe got really off and I decided to do what I gotta do and just go home. We went to Playa de las Vistas and it was kinda ok. I was probably the most experienced one over there and I feel I also vibed out the best with guy so I ended up focusing on bit more things than I initially expected. The experience wasn’t bad but by the end of it, I was bit tired of all the bullshit that preceded so I was happy to get back to my flat, wash my gear, happily skipping all the remaining stuff planned for the rest of the weekend. Cost me way too much, cost me some energy, wasn’t really worth it but it was an experience. You live, you learn. It turned out great eventually tho as it gave me a chance to hang out with my Lithuanian friend one last time. I invited one more friend and we had a great evening at this Coconut Bar. All love.

Sunday, I went diving with an instructor I’ve known for a while. He works for the shop I used to be affiliated with and he’s a nice guy. We’ve never dived before just the two of us and he has couple of years of diving on me so I wasn’t sure how it’s all gonna go. We went to Mar Azul again and man... Best visibility so far and we had some great dives. We have basically the exact same air consumption, we are both good at depths, it was super chilled. Amazing topography, swim throughs, caverns... Got tons of great pics from it and I sincerely hope we’ll get to do more dives in the future. We’ve been discussing it. Anyways, one weeekend plan didn’t really go the way I hoped but the universe immediately gave me whole lot of new amazing shit. Life is fucking good.

So there we have it. Another Monday morning, another beautiful day, Brandy on the deck... I’m still on my workouts, walks and runs. I’m still in touch with all my favorite people... And I still hope the global situation is gonna get better sometime soon. Sending some love to all of you. One!

Highlights:

• Bir Baskadir. Great TV series.
• These Sunday Mar Azul dives. Perfectness.
• FKA Twigs.