‘I’d been working in London for a year when I realised I wasn’t being fulfilled. I’d get up every day and trudge to work on the tube, jostling next to a million other sweaty office workers desperate to get to their desks before 9AM. I’ve never been a city-lover, and I just felt like there must be more out there than the daily grind.
Bored in my job and fed up of London, I got in contact with some friends I’d made on trips to Mexico a few years before, and started making arrangements to go out and work with them as a spearfisher.
By February 2014, I was on a plane to Cancun, and leaving my dreary office job far behind me for a life on the ocean.
I have to admit as I sat there ready to arrive in a country where I didn’t speak the language, had no friends and no family for support, I was nervous - but those nerves quickly gave way to excitement for this new chapter in my life.
I trained in free diving and spearfishing on my arrival and I can now hold my breath underwater for over 3 minutes. I can also dive over 20 metres underwater without a tank - something which I still can’t quite believe given that this time last year I was in the worst shape of my life.
Since June I’ve been operating my own Spearfishing franchise and take groups of people out most days, then they are free to take the fish we catch back to their accommodation for dinner.
I spend all day diving, meeting people from around the world, and then by the evening I head for some tequila and beer with the locals.
Being an animal lover by nature, I’ve also adopted a stray dog from the neighbourhood where I live, fed her up and absolutely dote on her. Zoltana has been a great companion while I’ve struggled to learn Spanish and find my feet in a totally different culture.
I couldn’t be happier I made the decision to move here, and although I miss my friends and family back home – I definitely don’t regret swapping my desk for an office on the ocean.
