At Emperor Divers we are incredibly proud of the amazing women we have working with us.
So proud in fact, we want to share their stories and tell you more about them. In a series of weekly ‘Ladies Day’ features, we will highlight a few of the fantastic women who make us the great organisation we are.
Having started the series with our inspirational founder, Theresa Simpson, we talk to the ladies who continue to drive Emperor forward. This week it’s our multi-talented Wadi Sabarah dive guide, Joe Roberts.
Joe has so many strings to her bow, she probably needs another bow!
Her main role with Emperor Divers is in our stunning centre at Wadi Sabarah where she is a dive guide. But, much like Wadi Sabarah itself, she offers much more than that.
Look at the dive centre walls and you will see wonderful pieces of artwork – handpainted by Joe.
Join in the evening talks about Red Sea marine life and Joe will quite probably be the one explaining what you have seen or will see.
And, when not in the water helping our divers experience first-hand the topics discussed in the presentations, Joe can be found guiding our guests to a different method of calm as a yoga instructor.
Indeed, Joe will tell you the two experiences are very similar.
“Diving IS yoga for me,” she says.
“From the first time I experienced going underwater, I was amazed by the yogic qualities of scuba. It was like skipping 20 years of yoga practice (I’ve been a practitioner for 26 years) and dropping straight into meditation!
“I was also surprised when I started to explore how I might professionally connect the two practices, about the number of advanced yoga practitioners who are also scuba divers and recognise the qualities of meditation inherent in scuba.
“I’m interested in exploring the intersection between the two. Breath awareness and control are foundational aspects of both yoga and scuba, to improve flexibility and buoyancy control respectively.
“I’ve used yoga techniques to support anxious divers and I find scuba is like yoga in three dimensions where you no longer have the limitations of gravity.
“Yoga and diving are both practices that help you expand your awareness of the environment around you. An hour on the mat and an hour underwater is the most precious time – and the benefits of relaxation and regeneration that both practices offer are felt long after that hour ends.”
With such a wide range of skills it is no surprise Emperor are keen to utilise Joe’s talents. But what was it that first drew her to us and to Wadi Sabarah?
She says: “Emperor just shone for me. I did my Divemaster internship with the team in Sharm and the standards they have are just second to none.
“I’m really proud to work for Emperor. They have a great reputation, with both guests and employees, for a reason.”
And Wadi Sabarah?
“I was already working here, teaching yoga in Marsa Alam, and the place is magic. Really, really special.
“The Red Sea is always extraordinary but Wadi Sabarah brings the very specific qualities of the area and the environment together, and celebrates the space and lightness of being in the desert, where it meets the reef-fringed sea.
“It is a golden spot to connect with yourself and reset.
“Wadi Sabarah is really what I would dream of if I was to create a space of diving and yoga, a celebration of nature, connecting ecology, education and exploration.”
Why not join Joe at Wadi Sabarah and experience for yourself the very special aura the place has. Visit our Wadi Sabarah page or contact our team on [email protected] to find out more about the packages on offer. Also, follow our series of Ladies Day posts all the way through to PADI Women’s Dive Day 2024 on July 20 when we will have something special for our female divers