Gili Air, Gili Islands, Lombok, the place to be!

Kanapa Tidak.Why Not? Yes! why not come to Gili Air, wonderful people, wonderful Island,Wonderful Diving. That is the reason we are back here in this friendly and safe environment. For me ! my personal experience of Gili Air is full of the biggest and most genuine smiles of friendship and curiosity Ive had the pleasure to witness over many places i have traveled to. What makes Gili Air special for me... hahahahaha many many things ! So this small island has been populated by local families for many years, creating a lovely close knit family feel,giving much respect for each other and for the many travelers who come to get away from the hustle and bustle of Bali or the western world. Kanapa Tidak ? Why not? A much slower pace is found here and if like me you are easily distracted there is many things that will distract you, forgetting the time,forgetting where you left things,forgetting where you were going,changing plans,meeting new people, locals ,dive shop staff,Diver trainees etc, UNTIL ! What ever it is you do, it will be a most memorable an unexpected time to be had. especially forgetting how you made it home last night.. oh dear ! Because of the wonderful feel ive seen many travelers extend there time here from days to weeks to months! because its NICE here! tentu sajaa! of course! My love for diving was the 1st reason I came here back in 2004 to become a dive master , a great course to do! and i fell in love with the place. Sadly i returned to the uk and for the next 7 years or so i had a plan to return one day and take my instructor course (IDC) For sure ! during that 7 years i told many friends about my great time here and how one day i must return to see the local people i had made good friends with. And now after my second visit here! wey hey ! wye aye the magnetism has brought us both back. Egle my fiance who i told so much about diving to !she said "Naaa im not diving" ! Well i needed someone to teach after passing my padi instructors,so with a little persuasion and her self seeing many smiling faces as they arrive to the harbour at Oceans 5, returning back from there 1st dive, was all it took to get her kit on and take her 1st breath underwater, although i was thinking i would not get verbal abuse from her under water as we cant talk, how wrong was i ! hahahaaha, i had forgotten about body language and she has a pretty good punch. But don't be worry she is probably the most dangerous thing in these waters. For sure, like some people they have a fear of diving, and for me its a lovely feeling to see a person overcome this fear and continue to be great divers. So for both of is it was an easy decision to return to the Gili's, but to leave Australia and the chance of a good job offer was a very hard decision,but here we are.;-) back to the Island of Smiles Here at Oceans 5 you will probably arrive from the fast boat and be greeted by many smiling faces wanting only to give you help,from horse carts to looking for a room, maybe some instructors wanting to say hi and offer some friendly advice or tell you about diving, then! huplaaaa ! can often be heard as you look around and see a Dutch sting lookalike(Sander the owner) playing his air guitar with a huge smile on his face. The vibe at Oceans 5 is often a good vibe! until someone leaves ;-( leaving parties are quite common and very entertaining, same like the dive master snorkel test party a vital part of completing the course. Snorkel test you ask ? often a lot of beer and shots poured carefully into your snorkel while a very encouraging crowd will cheer you on your way to your final test. WARNING !wooop woooop WARNING! Simone partner of Sander has a reputation for making sure the correct amount of drink is applied, often a drop too much hahaha. Don't worry this will be in the safety of a local bar with many instructors and fellow divers to look after you, one big happy family! Also often heard is our long time served instructor phillo the geeeeeza letting out a huge out cry of laughter often heard as far as gili meno the next island along. This can be heard many times a day around the dive center. So if your looking for fun and diving or just fun then this place is highly recommended for people of all ages,everyone is catered for and when it comes to diving yes we have fun for sure but all the instructors and dive shop staff take a very professional approach to teaching or for divers going out for fun dives,where we have very experienced local guides with a good eye for finding some of the smallest and unusual creatures while diving these waters. For me! this dive center works well because all the staff do a great job, from the guys in the bar, kitchen,laundry,compressor room,boat crew, instructors dive master trainees. And a big thank you to sander and simone for letting us be a part of it. So its a tidak choba tidak tou and a kanapa tidak from me! never try never know ! why not ? is the question. Gili Air the place to be!!!!!