Your Internship Experience - Our Team
Blue Season Bali employs the most active professional development staff in the region. You will be learning directly from our senior staff during your internship in order to gain the maximum skills and knowledge during your time here in Bali. Please allow me to introduce some of the key members of our team.
Everyone you see here is a full time employee of Blue Season Bali. We do not employ part timers for our professional development programs. Our candidates deserve- and receive- 100% dedication.
Platinum PADI Course Director - Jonathan Cross
CD Jonathan Cross is one of the owners/directors of Blue Season Bali and has been diving in Indonesia for over a decade. He is directly involved with all aspects of professional training here and loves to find any excuse to get out of the office and into the water!Originally from England, Jonathan's educational background is in Chemical Engineering and he applies his analytical skills to help identify strengths and weaknesses in each developing candidate. A counseling session from Jonathan always leaves a candidate inspired, motivated and well-informed about the work which needs to be done.
When he is not diving or watching the football, Jon can likely be found at Sanur Beach with his wife, Ai Cross, and their two young children, Hana and Kai.
PADI Course Director & Technical Diving Instructor - Tom West 
Yep, that's me. I'm a lifelong geek and I can probably answer that crazy question you have about decompression theory or dive physics. As I mentioned in the introduction, I'm responsible for running our professional development programs here at Blue Season Bali. So, I'm the guy who will be guiding you throughout your progression from where you are now into what I like to call a truly "sexy diver." That part will be explained later!I grew up in the United States and have lived in Asia for the past four years- diving, traveling and teaching. It's a tough life, but someone's gotta do it. My educational background is in Mechanical Engineering and Philosophy. (yes, geek). I started my first business in 2000 and exited that venture before leaving the country in 2005. I'm 30 years old. I've been called "mental" when it comes to wreck diving as I love getting into cramped, rusty passages at the bottom of the sea. The deeper, darker and dirtier... the better!
When I'm not teaching, I enjoy playing guitar and trying to beat Jon Cross at pool. If you can beat him, you're a better man than I!
Master Instructor - Wakaba Toyoma
Wakaba-san is another owner/director here at Blue Season Bali. She founded the business in 2001 with a small budget and a big dream. Wakaba has worked hard with the help of her partners Jon, Mark and Maxine to see it grow into Bali's top dive operator. Wakaba-san coordinates our Japanese internship participants, IDC candidates, and daily diving guests. Usually found in the office, Wakaba can assist with all manner of logistics and the ins-and-outs of living in Bali. She is also responsible for being the primary contact point for our female interns. Wakaba understands that sometimes a woman just needs to speak to a woman- she's here for you.
Wakaba is married to company director and veteran boat skipper Sila. They have a beautiful young daughter named Kotoha.
Specialty Instructor - Mark Giles
Owner/Director Mark Giles hails from sunny England. After working for years in the casino industry, he joined the Blue Season Bali team in 2009. His passion for diving and his fresh insight into operations make him a real asset to the business. After working several years as a Casino Manager in Moscow and Armenia, Mark and his partner Maxine decided to bow out of the rat race and join Bali's finest dive center as owner/directors. Mark's managerial experience marks him as an excellent communicator and he can usually be found at the dive center greeting guests every morning.
Mark is an avid (rabid?) Manchester United supporter and rarely misses a match. During the season, you can find him most Saturday nights down in front of the big screen at Lazer's Sports Pub.
IDC Staff Instructor - Phil Tait
Phil is our most talented photographer and many of the underwater shots you see across our various websites bear his mark. His favorite course to teach is the PADI Digital Underwater Photography (DUP) course. Phil is currently writing his own Advanced DUP course complete with Photoshop seminar. Don't tell him, but I'm actually looking forward to taking it myself!Originally from Newcastle, England, Phil came to us already certified as a dive professional nearly two years ago. After proving his mettle and surviving a few seasons with us, he has grown to be a valuable member of our professional development team.
Phil speaks Geordie and supports Newcastle United. Yes, I think it's funny too.
Plus many others!
The individuals listed above comprise our senior professional development staff. Our total professional dive staffing numbers vary throughout the year, but it averages at around 20 at any given time. This includes professional instructors and divemasters from Indonesia and all over the world. Each one of these members has something special to add to our business- and your education. Remember, you will be working side by side with our team to learn what it really means to be a scuba diving professional during your internship here at Blue Season Bali.Heard enough?
Contact me now to get things started! I'll get back to you straight away and will try to answer any questions as thoroughly as possible.If you're still not quite sure, just click to see what your day-to-day scuba diving internship will be like! We are here to answer any question you may have about our internship courses.
