30/10/2007 - Rain

1/10/2007 - Friends

12/9/2007 - some beautiful pictures

4/9/2007 - Me, beavis

10/8/2007 - Teaching children

It is highseason here on Koh Tao. The summer holiday in Europe started and more than ever is Thailand a holiday destination. More than ever families are enjoying Thailand and Koh Tao. A couple of weeks ago 3 families from Holland came to Koh Tao to dive. In total there must have been about 7 kids. All of the kids, ages from 12 to 16 were divers. They all learned diving on Koh Tao, always at the same school. The school where I work.

The youngest to learn this year was only 11 years old and tiny. Her name is Isa. I became her instructor.

I really love teaching children. They are honest, and as an instructor you have to work hard to keep their interest and make it a lot of fun. You first have to become their friend and they have to trust you completely. And  then children give  you so much positive energy.

For Isa it must have been very difficult to be the last one to learn.

Everybody was already a diver. All her life she heard dive stories at home.

All the parents and all the kids. All of them with great stories and Bob, 12 years old, had the biggest mouth. He had no fear and was already working on his advanced course. Can you feel the pressure?

The first day was fine. I took her into the swimming pool for the confined session.  All the other kids surrounded us in the swimming pool. They were playing around, trying to make airrings and Isa couldn’t be bothered. She kept on being concentrated on the skills.

The second day we went into the sea. After some trouble with her ears and being unlucky with shit viz, she managed. She told me then for the first time the pressure that she felt from everybody.

But she did it and she was great!!!

I was really proud of her.

It was so cute to see this tiny girl in extra small equipment, with a half size tank, going scuba diving. I am sure I wouldn’t have done that at her age, especially not with all that pressure on her.

Isa, I am proud of you.

Also, I had a great time to take all the other kids to Chumphon Pinnacle, to go see the sharks. All the kids saw the big ones. The grey reef sharks must have been about 2 meters. About 1,5 times the size of the kids. Although kids can be tiring (asking questions all the time) the kids were excellent. So comfortable in the water.

So I was thinking of starting a kids program on the island. Kids diving from the age of 8, kids snorkeling, kayaking, tressure hunting etc etc. Not a bad idea. Anyone interested?

xxx

25/6/2007 - Desperate call 4 attention

I could have written that I got eaten by a shark.

Maybe then someone would have reacted on my site. What is it? Is anybody at all reading my blog?

Come on friends, I need to know If you read my stories!,

And sometimes have a look at my pictures (the other site, I placed some new ones)

Did you know you can react on my blog, underneith the story?

My leg is healed and  this is our new Pet

Big hug from him and me.

So about the Triggerfish, ofcourse it wasn't that bad. He attacked me, sure. About 15 times. I am one of the unlucky instructors on Koh Tao. But then again, don't sit on someone elses eggs.

Have a look at the size of the teeth. They are reel. Our boatboy killed a Triggerfish (food food I suppose) and saved the jaw. Het gave me one of the teeth for on a necklace.

Wraaaaaah!!!!!!!

17/6/2007 - Triggerfish attack Part 2

For all you readers, read the Triggerfish attack first (the story before this one) and then read Triggerfish attack Part 2.

Where were we? Oh yeah, my leg had to be chopped off.

Debby was at the scene and she didn't agree with the doctors choice to chop off my leg. The bite was actually very small. Deep though, but no reason to chop off a leg. Maybe it was because the doctor only spoke Thai and she didn't understand.

I was in a coma and later found out that Debby had taken my leg back home. She took it out of the bin and sewed my leg back to where it belonged.

See pictures.

That's that. Thanx Debby.

5/6/2007 - Triggerfish attack

dear friends,

My shft function is not always working, so sometimes no capitals or questionmarks.

But, there is a lot more interesting to tell than shift functions.

Before I start telling about my experience I need to tell you a little bit about the dangers of the sea.

Here in Thailand where I work we have sharks. Reefsharks. They are cool en you don't have to be afraid of them. They won't hurt you.

We als have Triggerfish (see picture)

Every teacher has a love and hate relationship with this fish. They are cool fish to look at, they are quite big (max 75 centimeters) and very, very strong. With their teeth they can break corals and lift heavy and big rocks. Titan Triggerfish on Koh Tao do not like divers.

If they are nesting they actually hate divers.

They will give the diver a big warning to stay away from their territory by swimming rapidly towards you, head back and do that again until you leave.

Occasionally they bite you in your fins (always make sure you have your fins between you and the fish)

Rarely something else happens.........

A couple of days ago I was diving, teaching an Open Water course to a guy (really talented for diving) and his girlfriend (already certified). It was the second dive of the day and quite shallow. I was looking under some rocks for the small stuff like shrimps.

I then suddenly felt a bang against my head. Looked up and there was the basterd. Have swam back and ran into my head again!

I tried to swim back, but got trapped. there was everywhere corals and rocks around me. Where the sand was, was where he and his beloved wife were. she just looked and in her eyes I could read, he's just beginning darling.

And there he came again. He fastforwarded towards my leg and jummy, took a bite. aaargh!

My only thoughts were to stay calm and told mister Trigger not to go for my head. I protected my head with my hands and put my feet up so he would choose to attack my fins.

My students told me he attacked me about 15 times (luckely only one time he took a bite). Then I got a wise idea to blow air out of my alternate airsource (for non divers, it is an extra airsource for emergency occasions). So much air came out, it scared the basterd and I could finally take off.

I think with my ass I was actually sitting on his eggs.....

My students watched the whole scenery, we continued the dive (cool as I am with blood coming out of the wound) and after the dive I had a good check at my leg.

It had to be chopped off......

My next dive I take my gun down.

xxx

Jazz

If you feel like reacting please do so

25/5/2007 - Whaleshark 2 and surfing surfing

A bit more than one week after my great experience with the whaleshark something incredible happened.

It was not really the season anymore for whalesharks. And to be honest, you don't spot them so much at Koh Tao. So I didn't brief anything about the whaleshark to my students that morning.

We were the first ones to enter the water (6 am at the diveshop, 7 am in the water) and not even 5 minutes into the dive I heard that same banging on tanks again. Something interesting that means.

I learned from my other experience and looked above me. And there she was......

A 6 TO 7 METER BIG WHALESHARK!!!!!!

What an incredible big shark! Image a land animal from that size, it goes further than your imagination. We dove with her during te whole dive. She was graciously moving trough the water, but for us it was swimming as hard as we could. I was exhausted when I came out of the water, but happier than kids that go to Disneyland. And it is all filmed, including my friend and college Karen who cut of a robe that was tied to her fin (some asswhole tried to catch her, we think). A moment of ahh's and ohhh's.

That was my last dive until now.

I left Koh Tao to go to Bangkok to pick up my friend Debby who will also live in Thailand (yeah!) and to say goodbye to my parents. I will not see them for a long time again. They are finally back in Holland for a little while.

Debby and me went to Phuket to visit a friend. He has a diveshop there and I used to work with him on Koh Tao. We didn't dive but learned something new.

Wavesurfing!

My father was a wave surfer and I grew up with looking at it, listening to the story's and watching a lot of movies about wave surfing. But, I never tried it myself. And after so many years, I finally went for it.

In the off season the waves are good for learning at Kata Beach.

We took 1 hour lessons for the basis technics (and a little push to catch the wave) and after that it was up to us......

Oh my god. After one hour already my whole body was one big mess. Broozes everywhere from the board, muscles hurting at places I didn't know I had them (like wrist muscles and rib muscles) and cuts, also from the board.

After two hours I felt that getting through the waves was getting harder. Ater 5 hours that full day, I walked like a crippled with a big smile on my face.

But, that feeling of catching the wave, that feeling of standing on the board, that one second of fame. That is the best feeling. Or just sitting on your board chatting away with a local surfdude and staring into the ocean looking at a catchable wave coming. It's definitly very addictive.

I wish I had more time and money to have learned more, but am also glad my body got a little rest now.

I think my best ride was a ride of 1 long second if you count twentyone slowly.

Now we are at Koh Lanta where te sun keeps on shining!

Lot of love,

Jazz

Sorry for no new pictures, but something is wrong with my laptop and internet. Coming soon!

30/4/2007 - Whaleshark

There was no morning boat going out from our diveshop. It was bad wheater and probably high waves. But the wheater wasn't that bad.

It was around eleven in the morning. Our captain said other diveshops spotted a whaleshark. The biggest fish in the sea!

It is only around april and september that there is a slight change of seeing them. Some people have made 2000 dives on Koh Tao and never saw one. Others were lucky in their Open Water course.

I was suppost to teach Deep en Peak Performance Buoyancy for the advanced course.

With just 8 of us (including vdo camera) we went to Chumphon Pinnacle where it was seen. There were no other boats, what is amazing here on Koh Tao. We went in the lunchbreak from the big shops. We were all very exited on the boat. I got the nerves, my heart was going rapid and was crossing my fingers for good luck.

Down at 30 meters I did the narcosis test with my 2 students. Came up more shallow and I don't know why I suddenly looked up, but there she was.......... Almost at the surface and from down at 25 meters it looked like a boat.

The whaleshark!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I stole this picture from internet, for you to have an idea.

I had no tankbanger to warn the others and she was too shallow to follow. After a couple of minutes  she was gone. Beautiful creature! Come back please!!!!!!!

Steve (a divemaster) said on the boat that he would bang on his tank 3 times when he would spot the whaleshark.

Later in the dive I heard his tank banger and he didn't stop banging! I couldn't  find out where I heard it. Sound is hard to determine where it comes from underwater. Then I heard a scream. Above me. It was Ali the VDO man who tried to get my attention. I worked.

I looked up and there she was. We followed her for at least 15 minutes. She cames so close, I went under her, next to her. She came straight at me and then over me. IT WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!! And the great thing was, us 8 were the only ones. That almost never happens on Koh Tao.

What a beautiful animal. So peaceful, so graceful, so big (although it was a baby about 4 meters)

Yesterday I saw her. We did another dive there and we saw her again. It was the second time for me.

2 years ago today I saw my first one (on Queensday).

Yesterday night we saw the VDO. Great VDO and ofcourse I get a copy.

This is my office, people. The sea. How great is that!

Love,

Jazz

21/4/2007 - Songkran and more

Thai Newyear, the 13th of april. Just one day after my arrival back on the Rock. Aslo called the waterfestival.

April is the hottest month in Thailand, so getting wet is not an issue. Only this year most of the water came from above. But, the party kept on going.

As soon as you get out of your bungalow you are getting wet by your neighbour, best friend or the owner of the resort. It's the best party and everybody is a child again (ok, kids shouldn't combine it with alcohol, adults do a lot on this day). Trucks are passing by with many people on it, making people wet by taking buckets with water out of big buckets on the truck.

Kids standing on the side of the street with the biggest water guns and also the oldest are enjoying the ****. Even my father started liking the festival  and shot some people. And for the first time in her life my mother asked if someone had seen her gun. We had cold water and with cold water everybody is afraid of you. You are the master with cold water and so was my mum. 

At about 2 pm the party at Simple Life starts. The whole island gathers there and people are dancing, getting rougher in the 'making each other wet' thing and taking a rest in the sea, sipping along on their buckets with alcohol.

Take a look at the pics on Esnips (link at my profile, under my photo)

For me, Songkran was even more of a party. I met all the lovely people from Koh Tao and I had the warmest welcome. It felt like a warm bath filled with love.

The day after Songkran I had a hangover.

The day after that I went diving for the first time after 8 months. Great to be back!!!

Jacq, Malu en Bjorn joined and many, many other divers (they spotted a whaleshark, we only saw divers and fins)

I assisted a German Open Water course and have more confident to speak now. Ich bin deine Tauchlererin. pffff.

It's great to have my parents with me here. Or maybe It's the other way around. They come here almost more than me. Luckely we still have 3 weeks before they temporarly go back to Holland.

Today I go on the motorbike to look for some houses for Debby and me. That's about it for today. My back got burned from snorkeling with sharks, so no sun for me....

Pfff, it took me about 3 hours to upload pics and make this story. Everything is slow here, so is internet.

xxx

Jazz

IT IS GREAT TO BE BACK!

24/3/2007 - Back to the Rock

From the 12th of april I will walk over the pier of Koh Tao again. That pier I've been walking on so many times to go to work, that same pier where I said so many goodbyes to people. That same pier where I've been picking up my loved ones. The pier from Koh Tao.

Koh Tao, 25 sq. km. Not much, but big enough. It's a rocky island with hills in the middle and secluded bays.

The island where dogs hike for lifts on motorbikes.

An island where everybody knows eachother. Where you can't hide for who you are.

An island where everybody stays longer than planned.

That same island where the roads are so bad, that the scar of a motorbike accidents is called a Koh Tao tattoo.

A small island where you can order home delivery pizza's.

That island where trafficlights don't exist, and taxidrivers the richest people of us all are. 

The island with it's own rules. Where you suddenly have to pay to go on the beach, where jalousy sometimes goes too far, and people fight over their succes.

How we realise the perfect world does not exist.

An island with so many beautiful individuals.  

An island I love.

4/1/2007 - Diving with my brother

I am still in Holland doing my job as a secretary. I hate the cold, so diving in Holland is out of the question. I just dream and read about diving.

The 8th of april I am flying to Thailand. About the 10th I'll make my first dive again! And my brother will be my first student (how do you make your brother listen to you?). The last time I tought diving was in august, but it became second nature to teach (you'd better believe it, Tije)

It is great but also strange to teach family or friends.

My brother did some DSD's with me (try out dives). He is a big guy with an even bigger mouth, but scared shit he was when I took him down the first time.

We were doing some skills and all I saw were these huge eyes staring at me, asking me for help. I have never seen him so dependant, so helpless.  

He also gave me the giggles. Such a big, tough guy, being so helpless. My own little brother with all that scubagear on. My mask flooded all the time because of my giggling, but my brother suddenly changed his mind.

I saw the look in his eyes changing, thinking; allright, let's just do it and as a little child in the zoo he crused through the ocean.

The next time I took him it was like he had done it all his life. Perfect buyoancy, pointing out fish to me and when it was time to ascent he shook his head. He didn't want to end the dive. I was so proud!

Now he wants to go deeper and I told him he has to do some study...

It will be tough to have him in the classroom, but he will be my pride underwater.

Be carefull, brother. I warned you, It's an addiction!

8/12/2006 - party's, beauty and Sinterklaas

As it has been all my life, from the moment I turn another year older, the party month starts. My birthday is on the 23th of november.

For years I didn't celebrate my birthday. Why celebrate if I only get older?

But, I like the party's and it's a a good excuse for another party.

Because I am temporary living in Holland I live at my friends house. Her name is Debby. She is also sexy, blond and tall. And she is also a single 30 plus. We are getting along very well.

I celebrated my birthday together with her. Good party with lots of happy people. We ended with the hardcore gang at our house at 5 am.

It was there that Debby tried to solve the hickups by drinking water out of a glass, upside down, with a self made crown (plastic see through cover from a present) on her head.

Debby and me are like twins. Everything has to be done together. Everything needs to be talked about and we always have fun. Actually, we are like a happy couple. Ofcourse its pure platonic (so guys, no more 2 girls thing fantasy).

The laughter starts early in the morning when both of us just got out of bed.

It is the out of bed look that makes us laugh. It is the comments about looking in the mirror and being confronted with a folded and wrinkled face.

Ofcourse after a shower I fold out my face and back is the beauty...

And ofcourse I always talk about my own wrinkled and folded face, not hers. She does that herself.

We try to work on our shape.

Here in Holland we have Sonja Bakker. She is the diet queen.

Very boring food to eat for weeks and weeks and weeks.

Ok, I could do that if I really wanted (ok Debby, maybe I could do it one week).

But, in her book she says you can only drink 1 glass of wine.

1 glass of wine, yes. She is nuts.

And she is not talking about 1 glass of wine a day.

It is one glass of wine per week!

And that is why I am just a little itsy bitsy too fat...

I am returning to no fat country Thailand soon, so there the kilo's will dissapear. And I will look good again in my wetsuit.

Tonight we are gonna celebrate Sinterklaas with some friends. Only girls.

Sinterklaas is Santa Claus, but this one comes out of Spain. Well, originally from Turkey but the kids don't know that. He takes you to Spain if you are naughty (I'd love to go to Spain and have been naughty a lot, but he sais I am too old, the dirty old man).

He doesn't work alone. He's got Zwarte Pieten (Black Peters). In Holland many people want to stop this tradition because the Black Peters are black and help Sinterklaas. Isn't that the same as slavery? But, this year Sinterklaas and his Black Peters are still doing their job.

After the Sinterklaas (wich is for us girls actually just a reason to come together) Debby and me are going to a Champagne party. I LOVE BUBBLES!

More about Jazz's life later

20/11/2006 - Pictures from Thailand and more

Hi divers,

Since I am out of the water for a while (return to cold and rainy Holland) I have some time to sort out my blog.

Check out the pictures from Thailand. There is a link at my blog.

I just bought an underwater housing, so next year (I will return in april) I will update more pictures.

I love taking pictures and hopefully next to the teaching I will have to time to take them.

In the meantime I am trying to keep my money in the pocket and save as much as possible, so I can buy some equipment for taking best shots.

if anyone is using a Canon S80 and has some advise, please let me know.

For the ones that are interested in some pics from above, there will be some from tropical Thailand soon.

Jazz

8/11/2006 - Welcome to Jazz's scuba blog

I have no idea how blogs work.

What I am doing now I really don't know. Does this text appear somewhere on my site?

We'll see.

If it will; Njoy my blog!

Jazz