Early rise

Romila is concentrating on driving the motorbike while I’m on the back seat slightly sheltered from the fresh early-morning wind. The dark road is lit by a full moon. It’s been 05:30; the guests have been picked up, the dive equipment loaded.

When we arrive at Radha Nagar beach, the divers get out of the car and walk up the beach to feel the first rays of sun on their sleepy faces. In a matter of seconds sleepiness makes place for excitement. Now we all are well aware of the unknown adventure awaiting us…

While the photographers prepare their cameras, Romila and I prepare the rest of the dive equipment. A little insecure I’m asking Romila what to include in my dive briefing, or should I say Elephant briefing? Romila tells me the story of Rajan. At the age of sixty years he has more life experiences than Romila and me together. At last Romila explains to me the procedures for the divers and snorkelers to follow.  “Rajan is late” she then says and she walks off to check whether Rajan and the Mahut, who has been his caretaker for 37 years, are making it all right. When she comes back and says: “Rajan ate his sugarcane breakfast last night already, so the Mahut had to find him something else this morning” we all had a laugh.

Showtime

Some minutes later we hear the far away noise of a wooden bell. Rajan!

We put on our dive equipment, do buddy checks and swim away from the beach, leaving the elephant plenty of space.

As he slowly makes his way into the water Rajan can now be seen partly in the water and partly on the surface, with the sun, the azure blue ocean and the tropical evergreen jungle revealing a stunning background. While he moves further into the water the divers swim along with him, keeping a distance of at least 3 meters. His giant feet come off the bottom and he knows very well how to keep himself afloat and moving. His trunk comes up, roughly every 20 seconds I’m counting. Observing Rajan, I realize both Rajan and me are strangers to the ocean and just visitors. But we seem to have one more thing in common: we’ve gotten so used to being in the ocean that we have started to feel at home.

The size, appearance and movement of Rajan underwater are an extraordinary sighting making up a breathtaking and unforgettable experience.

After 32 minutes Rajan starts making his way back to the beach and jungle. He stops shortly near our dive base on the beach. The divers rush out the water to thank Rajan and say goodbye to him. Rajan knows how to get hold of a few bananas, which we all agree has been well deserved after his early morning exercise. We watch Rajan slowly disappearing in between the trees while we enjoy a cup of hot chai and some irresistible ‘Hide and Seek’ chocolate cookies. It has been a wonderful morning for everyone and some of us wonder whether they have just woken up from an amazing dream… a dive with an elephant…