Two watery  grave mishaps

 

Have you ever had an experience when you happened to see death before you? 

Two times in my life I was about to get killed. Interestingly, both times it was water that would have become my grave. It was in 1978 or 79 that I and my two friends were on a road trip. It was afternoon when we reached the Alleppey beach. The beach was neat, the sea was calm, and mild waves washed the silvery sand. We had tender coconuts and just sat on the beach watching the sea. 

Since we were all young and enthusiastic, we naturally wanted to try our diving prowess. Every time we surfaced after a dive, we had a handful of seabed muck in our hands. I was going deeper and deeper into the waves without recognizing the risk since I was so happy. I was separated from my friends by roughly two hundred feet in the sea. I saw that I was about in line with the sea bridge's apex before I dove. I tried one more dive, but it seemed to be several fathoms below the surface, and I was unable to reach it. I experienced an odd terror. My legs were abruptly trapped in a horizontal wave of water. The flow was moving at an incredible pace, and in an instant I found myself being drawn in and carried away by it. I was afraid I might end up to the icy, dark bottom of the ocean.

I had the impression that someone was telling me not to give up and to make every attempt to avoid drowning. I had a tremendous surge of energy coursing through my arms and legs, and before I knew it, my head was dry. I plunged toward the coast without wasting a second. My pals were waiting under a canopy. They were worried as there was no sign of me over the water for some time.! I told them of the danger I had to experience underwater. They were quite relieved that they didn't have to carry me to Elapully!

We stopped at a little tea shop on our way to the car to have hot tea and some nibbles. I struck up a conversation with the hotel owner, bringing up the topic of the sea and the little ships moored near the sea bridge. I finally told him about my underwater encounter. With his eyes wide open, the tea shop owner remarked to me,

You dived in the canal dredged for ships.  There's a strong, continuous current over there. It's a blessing that you survived without drowning. You are one among the very few people who have escaped from being carried away by the current."
I requested that the hotel owner post the following message on a board outside his establishment before I left:

“DO NOT SWIM IN THE SEA. IF YOU DO SO, YOU MIGHT NOT SEE THE LAND AGAIN”.

After 45 years,  I want  to  see how the sea bridge looks. According to the news, the bridge was abandoned by the port authority because ships considered it unsafe to berth by it because it was beginning to break apart.  

 

     

                                         This is what is left of the bridge now.

Even though the bridge is practically gone, the strong current ought to continue running unhindered.

In Zurich, Switzerland, at "Lake Zurich," I had my second brush with death. Two years had passed since my last encounter with death. I am appreciative of my friends for having invited me to Zurich and setting up my tour of the country.

It was June if my memory serves me well. For almost a week, the weather had been frigid, with light snowfall occurring at night as well. The weather soon changed, and the sun came out.

Two more days of the same bright weather were in store. It appears that the sun was the one who persuaded me to dive into Lake Zurich. My friends asked whether I would like to go swimming with them in the lake because they were thrilled about the weather change. Whenever I had the chance, I would never have hesitated to go swimming.

                                                                Lake Zurich

We arrived at a lakeside swimming area not too long after. After putting our shirts and pants in lockers, we headed for the lake. Children were running around and some people were sunning themselves on the bank. I saw that the building where we left our clothing was next to a restaurant.

My companions grabbed two beach chairs and prepared to slather themselves in sunscreen and enjoy some sun exposure.
"I don't need to tan anymore as my skin is already brown and tanned," I said as I made my way over to the diving board stand. My pals waved back to me as I stood at the edge of the diving platform.

I dived in. I initially thought the water was chilly but not frigid. As I descended further, the water's temperature abruptly dropped. I felt as if my body was being penetrated by needles from all directions. I made every attempt to get to the surface, but after plunging from a considerable height, I continued to descend into the frigid waters like an arrow.

I sadly decided  that Zurich would be the location of my "watery grave." I tried to calm my thoughts by picturing that I would have to pass away eventually and that it wouldn't matter if I died in Zurich or at home. I should have worked hard to surface –I don’t remember how- and it was a great relief when I surfaced and breathed the cool air! I told myself I was still alive as I glanced at the bustling shore!

I swam to shore like someone fleeing a forest fire. I was surprised to see everyone's eyes turned toward me as I emerged from the water. I didn't know why people were staring at me at first. When I discovered the cause, I was truly taken aback. My skin looked bluish-yellow and wrinkled like an elephants’ from the icy cold water! (My friends commented that I appeared like an alien with my wrinkled skin after we got back home!)

I was shivering and extremely fatigued. My pals and a few more hurried over to me. They carried me into a heated room and covered me with a blanket. I was asked to consume French fries and hot coffee as quickly as possible. My skin took about an hour to return to its original colour and the wrinkles vanished.

I got out of the blanket roll, gave my thanks to all around me, and we headed back home. My pals had given up on the concept of going swimming—possibly because the water was so cold—and showered at home to remove the "sun lotion."

In conclusion, I learned the following after the two life-threatening events: 1) never swim near shipping routes. 2) In colder nations, consider twice before jumping into lakes on bright days. The sun's heat causes the snow on the peaks of the mountains to melt, allowing the icy streams to cascade into lakes and rivers. You will undoubtedly become cold if you dive while estimating the water's surface temperature. Because icy cold water is denser, it fills up at the bottom and pushes warmer water to the top. Even in tropical oceans, divers claim that the water becomes chillier if you dive deeper and deeper.

I would have just enjoyed a hot cup of coffee while watching the beauty of Lake Zurich from a beach chair if I had realized the two factors earlier!