I want to write so much about this. Please do give it a read before you skip on to the next.
I know I might be hyping a thing or a situation but this has been the best experience of my life. Or should I say this is just the beginning of the wonderful experiences that I am going to have in my whole life.
Since the time I returned from that trip to Maldives, I am in the nostalgic fever. It's already been 4 months and still I remember the day with the date so clearly. That's why I call this as a memory that is etched forever, no matter how many times I do it further but the first will always be special.
I don't say that 2019 was the best year for me in terms of travel just for the sake of saying it. It was indeed the best. Our first international destination and that too a place like Maldives which is stereotyped for honeymooners but I went with my parents. And ticking the first item from my bucket list was Scuba Diving and what better place it can be than in the crystal clear, blue waters of the Indian Ocean along the Maldivian shores.
A day before diving - We went to the diving centre of the hotel, to enquire about the package. We enquired about the rates,the timings, the instructor who will be assigned for me, basically about everything that a first timer would have done with a pinch of fear evident in my eyes.
Then came the instructor in the picture. He, after seeing our dreadful faces assured my mom and dad that he is gonna take care of me and would only concentrate on my pics and videos if I am comfortable in the skin. I mentioned pics and videos coz of the social media bug that's trending. We had a good long discussion about all the aspects of it for about 1 hour and then we left after booking the time slot for the next morning at 9am.
The day of the Diving - I had butterflies in my stomach since morning on the day of the diving. I was always this brave, full of life type of a child,a water lover (though I don't know how to swim) but that day I was a little scared but excited at the same time and surprisingly my mom was this chilled type. She came with me in the boat while I was being escorted with my instructor and other divers on board to a place deep enough to dive in.
While we were on board I was given the instructions about the sign language, the guide to how to use the equipments and most importantly how to dive in the water from the boat (the most difficult part). The time while we were on the boat I had imagined myself in the ZNMD avatar and I thought it would not be that much difficult that I was thinking it to be.
Now it was the time to take a big step and jump in the ocean, as instructed. But I was damn scared to do that myself and asked the people on board to push me into the ocean😅 And the moment I entered the sea the first sentence that I uttered was " I quit, I want to give up and go back to my mom ". As I thought it would be a cake walk for me as I am not a water phobic person, but I was totally wrong there. I had immediately given up on it. But thanks to my instructor to have that patience with me and giving me ample amount of time to get habituated with it and then take me deeper. Though I did not go that deep as other divers would have as I was the beginner in the lot.
And once I reached the surface, saw the colourful creatures (that we generally see in an aquarium) live, swimming in front of me, that was the moment that I realised what I was going to miss if by any chance I would have gone back and given up on this lifetime experience. Now I know for the fact that wherever I dive further I will not be able to gain that experience that I had in Maldives.
This was my story about #MyTravelFirsts.
