I grew up influenced by the well-known fairy tale “The Little Mermaid” (Danish: Den lille havfrue) by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, about a young mermaid willing to give up her life in the sea and her identity as a mermaid to gain a human soul and the love of a human prince. In contrast, when I was a child, I used to dream about the opposite. I can’t remember how many times I was swimming in the ocean wishing that I could stay deeper in the water and follow the fish forever. I can’t imagine a place where I feel more peaceful, comfortable and relaxed than underwater. For me the water is like being at home. The only thing that annoyed me was that I needed to go to the surface to breath. That’s why when my mom bought me my first snorkel, I was the happiest kid in the world…

Years later I started scuba diving and I loved the feeling of being in the water like a fish! I enjoy floating in the water exploring the ocean but scuba diving has lots of heavy equipment and there is something about having less equipment which gives me feeling of more freedom. Luckily I found a group of people that introduced me to another world: Freedivers! Every time I meet a person who enjoys freediving, I find a friend. I did a course in the beautiful Caribbean Sea and since then I haven’t found a better physical activity. Being in the fourth element reminds myself I’m a single unit, an individual, and my life depends just on me. On land, limits are normally established by others, because we share space. In the water if I want to go deeper, it is my personal decision.

There is a theory that I really like that attempts to explain why we, humans, are so different from the other apes. When I first read about it, everything made sense for me! I remember going to the pool or the sea with my best friend: my boxer dog. I tried to enjoy the feeling of being in the water with him, but for him it was just not so easy. I couldn’t understand why, until I realize he couldn’t control his breath consciously as I and all humans can. Practically all other mammals are like my boxer, their breathing is autonomic. The only other mammals that can control their breath so well like us are those who dive: such as dolphins, whales, and seals. This is just one of the many arguments of the aquatic ape theory. It proposes that humans (after our evolutionary split from chimpanzees) first went through an aquatic stage. We walk upright all the time, we don’t have fur, we have bigger brains and are less robust, and so on. We are different and for me, an amateur freediver, this whole theory makes a lot of sense and explains my passion and addiction to being in the water. My beloved skeptical evolutionary professors laugh at me every time I mention this idea because there is a lack of fossil evidence. I respect their point of view and stop discussing and worrying from where we come from and continue enjoying the feeling of being in the water. 

When I came to South Africa I wanted to meet one of the most well-known group of passionate freedivers in the world: I Am Water Ocean Conservation Trust. Their mission is to make people understand their deep connection to water. I had the opportunity of spending a few incredible days and a wonderful short trip in the water with Beth Neale. Her awesome shark scientists friends, Clare and Ryan Daly, took us in their boat to drive around Umkomaas, South Africa! Beth really looks like a fish when she swims and I tried to capture some of her graceful moments through my lens. Seeing people with such a huge passion for the water encourages me to continue working in and for it. We had encounters with humpback whales and Beth almost cried with excitement when we came back to the boat! It was just a very beautiful moment I will never forget. Thanks to her I met other water lovers that day. Olivia Symcox invited us for a delicious dinner at her beautiful place in front of the sea. It is such a pleasure for me to meet freedivers from all over the world. A couple of weeks later I went to Simonstown where I finally met Hanli Prinsloo the founder of the I Am Water Ocean Conservation Trust. She is a truly inspiration for those who want to start a career related to the water. I learnt many important life lessons in just a dinner with her and her friends. 

Later on I came back to Durban to catch my next flight and continue my round-the-world-trip and Beth invited me to go for the weekend with her group of friends to freedive with one of the most beautiful beaches of South Africa: Sodwana Bay! I couldn’t say no, so I changed my plans and joined Beth for four hours driving in her car to the north. The place was full of monkeys and scuba divers. We were the only group of freedivers. I met the organizers: John and Daniela Daines, owners of Cape Town Freediving. We took our masks, snorkels, fins and buoys and got prepared to go into the deep! Tropical clear water made our stay peaceful, fun and relaxing. I watched how my buoy buddies disappeared into the electric blue water after one single long breath. 

I prepared myself to descend into the ocean. At the start I couldn’t see the bottom, so I didn’t know where my goal was, but I certainly knew in which direction it was. After a few meters I could see the sand and then I started hearing humpback whales singing. It sounded like they are very far away and their melody is just delightful. I stopped thinking about how many meters I was going down and just started enjoying the sound of the whales. That makes it easier. For me, freediving is about improving my underwater skills in order to be able to have better interactions with the wildlife for a longer time. When I am free diving I can swim and move faster, and the other species are not so afraid of me. I realized this with the seals. When I was wearing the scuba gear, the nearly came close to me, however, when I was was freediving I felt as though I was one of them, but a very big and weird one. They even came and bit my camera! If you are interested in trying this, please do yourself a favour and contact Steve Benjamin, owner of Animal Ocean. He specializes in the interaction with this fantastic animals in their environment and on their terms!

Freediving is also about challenging yourself, beating your own records and demonstrating that you decide your limit. I wish I had more of that passion. When I see people like Hanli, Beth, John or Daniela I admire their determination, conviction and courage. They are sure they can do it and no one else can stop them. I am not like them yet because I am still afraid of running out of oxygen. I have to continue practicing with discipline in order to train my body -and most important, my mind- in order to be able to have more natural and peaceful shark encounters. Also freediving equipment is very important. I asked Beth if I could try on her super long freediving fins, which are a precision blend of ergonomics and hydrodynamics, and I felt a great improvement in my underwater performance.

When I freedive I feel part of the marine environment. I feel I am waking up my internal aquatic ancestor and being in the place I belong. I am so happy I met this wonderful group of mermaids (and “mermen“)! Their hospitality, generosity and lessons were tremendous! Thank you so much for letting me into your world. See you again for sure, in the water.