The jellyfish are here

This last weekend has not been a good one for the beach goers, the reason behind this is that there has been an infestation of jellyfish in our beaches. If you have read my last post that I went diving on Sunday, please note that there were still loads of jellyfish in the sea but with all our equipment on it was very had to get stung by one because we were all covered up.

I don’t know why they have all come and decided to stay for the weekend but it has caused a lot of hot and unhappy people at the beach as swimming was a no go, unless you wanted to look like a person who has been given a proper lashing.

I guess this time we are lucky that the jellyfish that have come in can only give a nasty sting but nothing major. A few years ago we saw the Portuguese Man O' Wars come into Gibraltar waters, now these can pack a punch to be honest and sometimes they can even kill.

So I recommend to keep an eye out for the jellyfish and keep safe and hopefully they would go away soon - preferably before the weekend.

The diving season is picking up

This last week my underwater habits have picked up with not only a proper dive on Sunday morning but also by doing some try dives at the pool last Wednesday. Anyway the try dives were a new experience for me since this time I was the instructor – this is something I have always aspired to do.

It was bit of a grey area to start with because at the end of the day, when you do a try dive it is a make or break experience for the person trying it out. My 1^st trainee was a bit nervous about doing a dive, but I think I was more nervous than him. But about 8 try dives later I was very comfortable teaching people.

On Saturday my mind was made up to buy a new wetsuit as I have grown a bit fat and my current one was not stretching as much as it should and it was proving to be quite the squeeze to get into.

So I went down to Decathlon to get myself a new one which I was going to try the next day at the dive I had planned. Now if you have never tried on a wetsuit in a store changing room it proves to be quite the challenge. The wetsuit itself has to be a right fit, if it is too tight you won’t be able to get in, or if it is too big you will be cold in the water. So once you find what you think is your size then you must try it on which is the difficult part.

The dive on Sunday came and again I was up early in the morning to go do the dive somewhere out in the bay. The site chosen for us was Seven Sisters which is just at the end of the South Mole. The area is a set of rocky outcrops which rise from the sea bed, some break the surface and others don’t, but the area is known for the abundant sea life. 

My new wetsuit was going to have its 1^st sea trail, and the performance was much better than my old – it was much more comfortable. The only down side that it is only 5mm thick so this winter it could get a bit cold but I have been looking to buy a dry suit for the winter dives.

For all the scuba divers out there - enjoy your diving season and let’s make it a good and safe one.

Roll on the summer

The beaches are packed, the weather is hot and the Euro 2012 is over. Not that I am a big fan of football but most people seem to be and even if I don’t watch it I always get caught up in it. Also, last week has been one of the busiest and most stressful ones that I have had in a while but I am glad that is all over now.

Now the reasons why I have been so stressed out has not been work even though I am much busier at it than the old job, but this time it has been Scouts. Last Saturday the Group’s patron decided to visit us after 29 years since his last visit. So I have been running around and getting all sorts of things in order, apart from the management of the kids and other leaders. The climax was before the visit as it was all hands to the deck to get everything done before his arrival.

After a full day of rushing around and waiting for the Marquis to do his round with the kids you would think it would be all over, but I also needed to go to a party which my workplace had organized on the same night.

The party was being held at what I consider the best and most beautiful venue to throw a party at. The venue was the Mons Calpe Suite which is at the top of the Rock. Now you would think you will need to drive up to it but you don’t - you just need to go up in the cable car which leaves you  right at the doorstep and also gives you a sense of excitement -  it is also a novel way to arrive at a party.

Like I said before, I am glad that this week is over and I am looking forward to viewing flats as we might be looking into buying a flat soon.