The last day.....

I have now been back in the UK for several days and thought it was about time to tell you about the last day and the journey home from the CDTC.

The last day...

The last day started in the break out rooms with our final IDC presentation, where we are "IDC candidates" giving a presentation from the curriculum.  Our evaluator was Alan and all the presentations went well.  I was evaluating Antonio who used the IDC in Italian, but luckily his translator was on hand to provide the translations needed for the evaluation.

After the presentations, we had some lunch and a presentation by Johnny on the "role of a course director".  Then came the final counselling sessions where we found out if we were course directors!  One by one we were called into the room were the representatives from our region were waiting to give us the news.  The team members were like a CD at IE we were not only wondering what we got but also how our team members and friends in other teams had got on.  The tension in the room was high!  One by one we went in and when one of the three doors opened all heads turned to find out and a cheer rung out!

I was about third to go in to see Suzanne and Robby to find out I had completed all the sections needed and was a PADI Course Director!  I tried my best to do the sad face not completed act when I came out of the room but the grin was too big contain! Filippo congratulated me and said I was now a Course Director whilst he was still a Master Instructor, so I asked him to get me a coffee.  :)

The rest of the team went in one by one and came out with big broad grins until only Antonio was left. I am not sure who was more anxious to find out the result him or his brother and translator Fabio.  He went in and we waited with bated until he emerged with a big smile.  All team Satsuma were now course directors!

Now it was time to get ready for the cocktails and the grand banquet with Malaysian dignitaries.  I went back to room and tried to skype John, no answer :(

So I put I was a course director on Facebook and ask a friend to let John know and to tell him to get on skype asap.  We eventually got to talk and I told him he was the last to know!

The Banquet was supposed to be outside under the gazebo but the weather that had been unpredictable  during the course had shown its hand again and forced the banquet inside.

It started with a cocktail reception which was a great opportunity to get photos of teams, the females of the CDTC and the "Brits".

Once we had found our team table we were treated to traditional Malaysian/Sabah dance routines and invited to take part in some them.  We were shown a slide show about the Sabah area and I wished I had more time to explore the surrounding area.   The speeches were next and then the presentation time were we called up one by one by team to get "the envelope" this contained the certificate, PIC, CD badge and cloth badge.
We also found who had won the marketing challenge and it was team Satsuma!

The food was buffet style and the alcohol was free flowing!

Once we had said our goodbyes we took the certificate etc to our rooms and I skypedto the people who were going home that evening it was off out to one of the bars in KK.  Were we had towers of beer and danced to live band.  I started to flag at 1.30pm so got a taxi back to the hotel.

The next day started with a goodbye to the people off to Sipadan for the side mount course and some of us spent the day chilling by the pool between saying goodbyes to everyone going home.  Brad and I ended the day taking photos of the sunset in the sunset bar, something I had been promising myself to do for the two weeks!

The next day was my turn to say goodbye and go home!  Gianluca and I shared a taxi to the airport, but then wondered where to check in, Gianluca for Singapore and me for KL.  We asked at a desk where and were given the information.  There were two young men waiting near the desk and with all the PADI branding Gianluca and I had, one said to the other "there must have been an IDC".  I said to them "no it was CDTC, a course director training course", so they said "are your a course director?" and I replied "I am now".  "Congratulations!" they said in unison.

Gianluca had planned to wait together at the airport but he was an international flight and mine was a domestic flight so we were channelled into different areas of the airport!

In KL though I met up with Imad, he had spent teh day in KL and was on teh same flight as me to Dubai!

So three flights and travelling for 27 hours saw me picking up my luggage and meeting John in the arrivals lounge at Manchester,

So now the journey truly begins!!!