Thanks to Kevin Costner we all know that a world of water is a distinct possibility for the future, but how would humans cope? The Bajau people of South-East Asia live in stilt houses and dive for fish for up to five minutes on a single breath.
These renowned free divers are often referred to as the sea gypsies of Malaysia and Indonesia, historically they have been born, lived and died at sea. They fish underwater at depths of 20 metres where the pressure is almost three times what it is on the surface.
You can watch a film made for the BBC where fisherman Sulbin outlines his techniques for free diving in Borneo.
“I focus my mind on breathing. I only dive when I’m totally relaxed”. Getting oneself into a relaxed state before a free dive is important to avoid hyperventilating. When you hold your breath the oxygen stores deplete and blood is diverted to the vital organs.
The Bajau people are so used to living on the ocean that many have claimed being on land made them sick. Amazingly their eyes have evolved to make seeing underwater much easier. Consequently due to the long time spent underwater their eardrums do not fair so well. Many have also died from the bends both due to a lack of formal dive training.
If you are interested in doing some diving on your gap year then why not get in touch and find out which project suits you best.
We recommend the use of diving apparatus…unless you’re this guy:
The Frontier Gap Year Blog 