Diwan's Description
(2012) Have you ever wanted to jack it all in, travel abroad and start a new life in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt? The scuba diving resort of Sharm el Sheikh has been one of the world s best kept secrets. It only hits the news in times of mishap but behind the scenes of this hugely popular and vibrant city are hundreds of ex-pats living the dream of a life in the sun. John Kean's hilarious book, Lost Wife, Saw Barracuda True Stories from a Sharm el Sheikh Scuba Diving Instructor is an inside fly-on-the-wall look at the ups and downs of swapping the rat race for an alternative lifestyle in Sharm el Sheikh. This extremely rare diving book can be enjoyed by divers and non-divers alike. It is frank, honest and gripping in sometimes epic proportions, but the humour and magnetic appeal of Sharm el Sheikh and Egypt shines through every time in this beautifully written true story. Over a decade, this mild-mannered, ex-stockbroker has been chased by aggressive sharks, had a 737 airliner drop from the sky into his dive site, broken four bones, been arrested three times, been caught in an earthquake and finally, blown up by terrorists. On the plus side, Sharm el Sheikh s outstanding natural appeal, year round sun and amazingly talented and friendly community of Egyptian and ex-pat residents has made this place a home from home. Unlike other fly on the wall or inside books, John actually takes you along with him for the ride. His accounts are genuine, highly informative and very funny. Turning tragedy and mishap into humour is the book s strength and you ll find a laugh on nearly every page. Pleasingly, he avoids hype, bravado and the typical scaremongering of an ignorant readership in what is often perceived as a potentially dangerous sport. Alternatively he shatters media-inflated scuba diving misconceptions such as shark infested waters and in doing so loses no dramatic effect. This true story is a highly entertaining and gripping read in its own right. John tells us exactly how scuba diving instructors become scuba diving instructors. The one constant running through the book is a five chapters, come and go intrusion of student divers in training. It features Victoria, who s an attractive but air-headed New Age hippy girl requiring, much encouragement if not the odd light kick up the backside . Highlighting the ups and downs of learning to scuba dive this progressive section is almost a scuba diving course in disguise, but heavily upstaged by the comical antics of five highly entertaining characters coming to terms with neutral buoyancy, hangovers and Egyptian taxi drivers. The legendary exploits of the latter are awarded an entire chapter where we re introduced to, Airbag, Sharm el Sheikh s worst driver and in contrast, Joseph, who takes up the offer of a job swap, gives John his taxi and becomes a scuba diver for the day! The most dramatic chapter of Lost Wife, Saw Barracuda is the vivid, minute-by-minute account of dive staff and ex-pat involvement during the Sharm bombings in July 2005. This rare civilian insight of a grand scale terrorist attack shows the human cost of those caught up and the tremendous resolve of unlikely rescuers in preventing further loss of life. Despite occasional tragedy, Lost Wife, Saw Barracuda is a positive book that will thrill and entertain, portray scuba diving as an engaging and enjoyable sport and show readers the brighter side of the extremely popular and fun-loving city of Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt. Anyone can read and enjoy this wonderfully funny story. It s a must read if you ve ever been even remotely near water!
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