Big Bubble – The Team
Klaus – The Staff Instructor of Big Bubble
As the Dinosaur in the shop, Klaus has worked for 10 years in Big Bubble and taught a bunch of people how to breathe under water.
His diving career started in 1996 right here on the Rock (Koh Tao) where he was so hooked after his Open Water course that he decided to make this job to his new profession.
Coming from a water polo team it wasn’t so easy to keep him out of the water and as a Divemaster and later instructor he could be sure that his gills didn’t dry out.
After 9 years intense training of all levels of recreational diving, he started to manage Big Bubble and he turned into the whitey of the gang as he is now mostly in the air conditioned office. Mostly he is playing on the computer to assure that everybody is up to date on what is going on and what will happen.
Every now and then you have the chance to see his exceptional diving skills in his rotten wetsuit.
Lorena – The friendly Divemaster of Big Bubble
Lorena comes from Switzerland and she is living her dream. As a Divemaster at Big Bubble, and meanwhile also as a diving instructor, Lorena will take you on a super cool underwater adventure. Lorena speaks Italian, German and English, so no matter who you are or what you are doing, she is going to have fun with you on the boat and in the water. She is passionate about fish species and is always trying to find something new. In the morning Lorena is like speedy Gonzales you can really see here Italians roots. She worked before as nurse and she brings this professionalism from nursing to diving. Come and join Lorena at Big Bubble and you will see that she is a happy bubbly person and then you will be on a super cool underwater adventure too.
Chill The Chilled Out Diving Instructor
Coming from Grimsby, in England, Chill “knows” fish! (Albeit fried in batter and served with chips and mushy peas!) He is a real Grimbarian! After traveling the world for 12 years and working in any job that would pay for the next part of the journey, Chill settled here over 4 years ago, when he came to Big Bubble and realized a career in diving would be far better than working for a living!
After 3 years as chief Divemaster, when he spent so much time under water that his toes were becoming webbed and he was on first name terms with all the fish, he decided he needed to spend a little time in the classroom to dry out.
Now concentrating on teaching Open Water courses, he gets great job satisfaction teaching his students to dive and sharing his vast knowledge of the underwater world and his rather twisted sense of humor with anyone who’ll listen!
Diving Instructor Jesse – The Clown
Jessie is our resident Dutchy and company clown. He was born in Holland and spent several years in Spain, accounting for his year-round tan. Jess has lived and worked in Koh Tao on and off for around 4 years. He started his diving career in Koh Phangan where he studied to become a Divemaster, then moved to work in Koh Tao. He has also worked as an underwater videographer.
After spending 2 years in Australia, he realised Thailand was home and returned to Koh Tao to join the team at Big Bubble as head Divemaster, and finally faced the inevitable and became an Instructor in September 2008.
Jessie is a complete natural in the water, and really does make diving more fun! He has over 2,000 dives on Koh Tao, knows every rock, coral and fish in its waters and has a wonderful understanding of the ocean. You won’t meet anyone with a better eye for weird fish and tiny sea creatures.
As an Instructor, he has great patience, and an ability to make you a relaxed and confident diver. Jessie delivers a professional and fun Open Water Course, and makes it an experience you won’t easily forget!
Scuba Instructor Kat – The Catfish
Kat did her Divemaster training in Koh Tao in 2001 and after becoming an Instructor she started a world-working- tour, teaching scuba diving in Thailand, the Philippines, in Mexico, Honduras, Egypt and in Indonesia.
Running out of options and missing a hammock on the porch, she returned to the Golf of Thailand. So there’ s no question… if you need to know anything about scuba diving here on Koh Tao or anywhere around the world, Catfish is the Girl to interview. Since almost 3 Months now, she’ s taking good care of our Advanced Diving Courses, teaching you how to dive deeper navigate or leading you through a thrilling night dive. Water is her life and she’s very skilled in any diving topic. When she’ s drunk, she’s apologizing for being German.
Tom – Former Bavarian Hill-Billy and Dive Fear Specialist
Afraid of Sharks ? HE WAS TOO!!! Tom, our Bavarian Hill-Billy came to Koh Tao the first time 1993 and stuck here since then. The first 6 years we had a hard time to get him in the water. He was very scared to get eaten by the numerous Great Whites around here Koh Tao. In 2000 we tossed him in the water and forced him to do his Open Water Diver Diving Course. And suddenly he changed, and his life changed too! – Sharks became his friends and his diving skills became exceptional and in 2002 he did his Diving Instructor Course. Since that time he taught more then 850 students scuba diving on different levels. Also his German improved a lot, but you can still hear his Bavarian roots. In Thai they say – Chai Yen – what means ‘cool heart’; he is calm understanding and very skilled. Twisting words is one of his favored hobbies. Today he says: “If you don’t want to see sharks.. just close your eyes”.
Mio – The Longtail Boat Driver
Mio is our Longtail Driver, he is the one who will bring you with our Longtail to the Big Boat. Sometimes he is a bit grumpy but he has a good heart and is one of the most experienced Longtail Captains on the Island. Mio works with Big Bubble since … nobody can really remember…! Since more than 15 years has he been driving scuba divers and snorkelers around Koh Tao.
If you are up for an extra bit of excitement and want to go snorkeling with Blacktip Reef Sharks, Mio is the one who can bring you to the exact right spot in Shark Bay!
Kwan – The Head of Office
Kwan is the good soul in our dive shop and travel office. She will arange all boat, bus, train or flight tickets to any destination to make sure you have no problems and can enjoy your holiday without any booking hassel. Kwan is also responsible for all administrative tasks in our dive resort. So if you want to pay your fun dives or diving courses she is the one who will take care of that too.
Deang – The Dive Boat Captain
Pi Deng is the captain of our Big Boat and he is the one who will make sure that you arrive safely on all dive sites we go to. He lives on the boat, cooks his food there and has his family is visiting him occasionally.
Please respect the privacy of his cabin because it is actually his living room, sleeping room and his little Temple is in there as well.
He is a very friendly man and has allways a smile on his face. Since he is a father as well he is good with kids and happy to show them around on the boat while their parents are diving.
Chip – The Dive Boat Helper
Chip is our boat technician, he is the one who is filling the tanks for your dives with clean fresh sea air. If you need help to get in or out of the water he is happy to be there for you. Since he is always smiling, Chip takes also a stunt part on almost every dive video.
Besides his entertainment skills, Chip is also our handyman on the dive boat; so if you need an o-ring or any other help on technical stuff he’s the one to look out for.