Primates

Shonny Loh    PADI IDC STAFF INSTRUCTOR #488013 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor Enriched Air Instructor Emergency Oxygen Provider Instructor Wreck Diving Specialty Instructor Deep Diving Specialty Instructor Digital Underwater Photography Instructor

Before embarking on what he terms "the best job ever", Shonn has spent numerous years in the advertising industry and a little more than a decade in a corporate company doing what normal people do, climb the corporate ladder! His work background has given him the experience to be a good and responsible leader; a hardworking team player; and to his students a patient teacher. Besides being a PADI instructor, he is an avid photographer both top side and underwater. Some of the pictures in the website were taken by him.

Fulfilling a teenage ambition, he achieved his goal when he took up Scuba Diving. He loved it so much, he didn't look back, moved on from one level to another and eventually became a PADI professional and is still loving it! What started as an ambition is now a passion. He co-founded a diving group a few years back and recently teamed up with some close friends who are also enthusiastic divers with a keen sense of adventure and officially formed the Marine Monkees. His aim is to grow the Monkees in numbers and make sure they do what monkees do "have fun!"

Tristan Low   PADI IDC STAFF INSTRUCTOR #488012 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor Enriched Air Instructor Digital Underwater Photography Instructor Emergency Oxygen Provider Instructor Deep Diving Specialty Instructor Night Diving Specialty Instructor

Being able to explore the ocean has been Tristan's life long fascination. Water is no stranger to him as he has been swimming since the age of 4. In 2003, his love for the water encouraged him to complete his PADI Open Water course. It is the beauty and peaceful environment underwater that capture his heart and he has been actively diving ever since, extensively travelling the diverse dive sites of Malaysia.

Tristan holds an MBA and currently works in the highly competitive broadcast industry. He is an adept business person and has good communication skills. His academic background and also the years of working in the corporate world have mold him into a patient and approachable person in and out of the water. Being an accomplished photographer he does freelance work for corporate and private functions.

Combining his passions he spend his time underwater (when not working or teaching scuba) pursuing underwater photography and videography, capturing exotic marine life.

Shazriman Sulaiman PADI MASTER SCUBA DIVER TRAINER #261619 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor

Though he had yearned to swim with the fishes for so long, it wasn’t until he came back from service in the deep jungles of Borneo that he managed to sign up for a scuba course in 2008. Since then, Tioman became his second home, travelling there every single chance he got. In a flash, Advanced and Rescue diver followed. It was a very nice wet dream indeed.

But it was on a fateful journey to Tenggol in July 2009 that changed everything. There, he met up with Shonny and William. There, he also met the whale shark and manta rays. From what it seemed like a calling, he went on for a divemaster internship spell in Tioman and soon after an IE in Phuket. Now, he is proudly one of the teaching members of PADI, gladly sharing his passion and joy for the underwater world with those he meets. He is also an avid macro hunter, scouring the seabed for tiny critters. Amusingly, he has managed to do all this while keeping his regular job in the ‘rumah sakit’. Yep, he is a certified medical officer, a profession he heartily enjoys doing as much as diving.  So, have no fear, whenever you’re with us, a free consult is always just a shout away.

Favourite line “trust me, I’m a doctor,”

Hafiz Nizamuddin PADI OPEN WATER SCUBA INSTRUCTOR #266150 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor Enriched Air Instructor

Hafiz started his career in the media/ broadcasting industry. Now, 8 years later, meeting people and selling ideas is pretty much the center of his daily job. Of course, this comes quite easily for Hafiz, who is a natural people person and, no doubt, he has come a long way from his first gig as a truck driver.

The driver then became a diver and now a boat driver.

Always challenging himself to go further, Hafiz first picked up diving in 2005 to overcome his aquaphobia, a condition that most people know as "fear of water/drowning". Going underwater did not come as naturally to Hafiz as compared to others, but he took that giant stride and has not looked back ever since. Currently a divemaster, this Marine Monkee is determined to share his experience and help other divers conquer any doubt they may have, in a way that not many can.

His motto "If I can do it, so can you!"

William Lim                         PADI OPEN WATER SCUBA INSTRUCTOR #261294 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor Enriched Air Instructor Search and Recovery Specialty instructor

William has always been fascinated with the exposure to a whole new world that diving could offer him. However, being driven to make a career and better life for himself has kept that experience away from him for the longest time. When he finally took the plunge (literally), he’s become like a kid in the playground and has gone diving almost monthly to make up for lost time. To date, he has gone diving in some of the most breathtaking locations throughout Southeast Asia. Currently a Divemaster, he has no intention of stopping and is still developing his diving career. And having been smitten by the dive bug, he would gladly share his experiences and love for diving with anyone with even remote interests in exploring marine environments.

For over a decade, William has played diverse roles in various industries, from being a financial consultant to heading a trading business unit, with a smattering of other vastly different roles in between. These experiences had made him an all-round people person and he has proven himself to be friendly and approachable whether on land or in the water, with an eagerness to share and guide. As a Marine Monkee, he strives to help others get as much fun out of diving as he does and maybe even more. Ask him, and he’d tell you that there’s nothing like the freedom you’ll feel when you’re gliding effortlessly through water, surrounded by denizens of the sea. He also highly recommends digital underwater photography, which has become one of his passions since he started hitting the deep blue.

For him, "There's never a bad time to really start living (and diving), but earlier is better than later, and later is better than never"

Jolyn Gasper                      PADI OPEN WATER SCUBA INSTRUCTOR #266151 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor Enriched Air Instructor

Meet Jolyn. Community worker and diver J. But it wasn’t always like that…

Jolyn was an IT graduate who started her career surrounded by a bunch of machines. Having decided that she much rather talk to people, she moved to a media company to do publicity and press relations. It wasn’t until about a couple of years ago did she receive the “calling” to do corporate social responsibility – not the spiritual kind though; it was more of her being “called” by the boss and told to do it. So now, after almost a decade of working, she is doing something that she truly likes.

Diving, on the other hand was not a calling, nor was it part of her career. It was a passion that was sparked by a Monkee and some friends. This passion has brought her all the way to pursue her Dive Mastership this year. So now, after 3 years in the water, she is doing something that she truly loves.

And with some luck, it will always be like that…

Riz Ismail PADI ASSISTANT INSTRUCTOR #290684 Emergency First Responder/Care for Children Instructor

From law to business restructuring to corporate finance to strategic management - it doesn't get more corporate than that. Then along came the Monkees (and jellyfish) and Riz’s life changed.

Dreaming of underwater encounters from age 7, scuba diving remained elusive for a long time. Even when she could dive, buoyancy and equalizing problems followed her around and there were always funding priorities and inability to take leave. Thanks to William, a maiden diving trip with the Monkees changed all that. An unhappy experience with hundreds of jellyfishes tried but could not deter her. Encouraged by her dive buddies, she agreed to one more trip - it was a trip of a life-time - transforming the paper pusher into a serial dive junkie. Diving has been a constant joy ever since.

And teaching? “I am here today because of the patience and support of my friends and instructors, helping me overcome my fears, take on new challenges, and making me a stronger person in and out of the water. That and the beauty of diving is always something I hope to pass on to future divers”.