When the wifi gods are cooperating with me, I’ll have to upload photos. I’m on a tiny little island called Gili Air near Lombok. It is part of an archipelago of three Gili Islands – Gili Trawangan (party island), Gili Meno (fairly deserted), and Gili Air (still very quiet but a bit in the middle).

I had considered coming here at the beginning of my Bali trip, but due to full boats and other considerations, I had crossed it off the list. When I was in Amed, I met a German family, and we snorkeled together. Afterwards, the father, Neil, approached me and told me I should go to Gili Air, to Manta Dive, and complete my open water certification. I really didn’t give it much thought except that I remembered SCUBA being on my 2016 New Year’s resolution list (well, less of a resolution and more of a strong interest). I decided to go for it. My full moon meditation/drinking sessions were wearing on me a bit, and I was ready to move on to a place where I could be fully alone. The next day, I was on a boat to Gili Air.

Gili Air is beautiful. Crystal clear turquoise waters, white beaches, and sandy pathways with directional wooden signs listing lodging and food locations. No cars or scooters – just horses. Several times a day, you will hear the haunting call to prayer in the distance (Bali is Hindu, but the rest of Indonesia is Muslim). While most of the island is populated with tourists – largely Danes, French, and Germans – it maintains a relaxed vibe.

Yo, check out that blue water in the background.

And those sunsets…hello-o-o-o?!

Long story short – I have my open water scuba certification! It involved:

• Several 1-hour video sessions (boring but bearable)
• Pool time to learn skills like practicing taking off your mask and putting it back on, air-sharing with your partner, retrieving your regulator, how to hover and bounce
• 4 dives over the course of 2 days
• Final exam

It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. On my first real dive day, the boat took us offshore. I entered the water in a rollback flip (and I’m scared of water!), and then we fiddled with our equipment and huddled. Then we all simultaneously pulled our dump valve on our right shoulder to release the air from our vests and bam…we were sinking! Terrifying. I let myself go down, and after a few minutes, I felt…okay. It was better than being at the surface.

The underwater life was incredible. We swam around coral and saw MANY sea turtles, a sting ray, many many tropical fish, an octopus. As we approached one coral mound, I was stunned – truly, I think my heart stopped – at the shimmering and changing colors. I had to hold back tears and put once hand on my heart as I spun around and looked upward to not only see the coral and density of fish right in front of me but the layers and layers of fish beyond looking like florescent magical floating feathers – so many feathers – in the background. I vocalized under the water from the experience, seeing it as the pinnacle.

I continued to float above the coral in wonder and as I looked over the top at a crater, I saw a giant sea turtle – GIANT – resting in the crater. Just when I thought I had seen enough to no longer be able to feel pure wonder and newness of experience (vs. pattern-matching and adjusting to past experience). That was the moment. I screamed underwater. I couldn’t believe this was all real.