Originally published on Shut Up and Go: “Shut up and go diving”

Seventy percent of the world is covered in water. But you already knew that, didn’t you? Well then, why am I reiterating it? Because that is a WHOLE lot of world to explore.

When we traditionally think of travel, we think Paris, Buenos Aires, Tokyo, and New York maybe. But did you ever think about what the Paris and New York of the ~sea~ would be like? (how corny is that on a scale of 1-10?) You have all four oceans, rivers, lakes, caves, quarries, and more. THE WORLD IS A BIG, CRAZY PLACE GUYS. SCUBA 

SCUBA (Self-Contained, Underwater, Breathing, Apparatus) diving is a life long sport. Once you get your first Open Water Diver Certification, you are good to go for life! Also, don’t be intimidated – it’s not like you need to have Michael-Phelps-level-swim-skills. You just have to be able to tread water for 10 minutes and swim for 300 meters with a mask, fins, and a snorkel. 

1. Your beach vacation just got a whole lot more creative. The first time I went diving, I was in Mexico on a lounge-in-the-sun kind of trip and had no intention of going. If you end up enjoying diving, you can’t just go near the ocean and NOT wonder what’s underneath its choppy surface. It will call your name like it calls Ariel’s daughter Melanie. 
   
2. Any fear of the ocean will subside Once upon a time, there was a little girl who went on a cruise with her mom and sisters. She got very excited to see the ocean, ran in, and then screamed bloody murder at the sight of a needle nose fi sh. Hint: that girl was me – we have taken a full 180 friends! Yes, including your fear of sharks – sure they’re not fl uffy PUPPIES, but you’ll learn that they are peaceful creatures and to roll your eyes at dramatic movies like “47 Meters Down.” 
   
3. College Credit So I’m not gonna lie, diving can be an expensive hobby. PADI (the Professional Association of Diving Instructors) courses cost as much as a college course. But guess what? YOU CAN GET CREDIT FOR IT WOO! You’ll have to get approval from your university – but hey if my university in the landlocked state of Minnesota approved it, I’m SURE yours will too. Find how many credits you can get here. 
   
4. The travel sea bug Your bucket list will GROW. The SCUBA world is literally your oyster. That’s how the saying goes right? 
   
5. Ocean appreciation Seeing how beautiful the ocean is will inevitably make you care more about it. There’s a general consensus in the diver community to protect everything in the water. Meeting new diver friends means you’ll become more aware of world-wide issues such as coral bleaching, ghost fishing, and shark finning (don’t even get me started on that one). Luckily there is a very large community of divers that have come together to do ocean clean-ups. Notably, PADI’s Project Aware. Find a cleanup site here. 

Find out how to get Scuba Certified here