About

My name is Francesco Pipino. I’m a scuba instructor (PADI Staff Instructor and SSI Assistant Instructor Trainer), former bank executive, and full-time traveler.

After 19 years in banking, I changed course entirely. Today, I live mostly between Sharm el Sheikh and Indonesia, following the seasons, coral reefs, and stories worth telling.

My hometown is Oria, in Salento, southern Italy — a medieval hilltop town I always return to with joy, to embrace loved ones and welcome curious visitors to the family dairy, Caseificio Pipino. There, mozzarella and burrata speak their own dialect of tradition.

This blog was born from a desire to share not only diving adventures, but also my way of traveling: slow, curious, and off the beaten path.
I write about underwater biodiversity, yes — but also about colonial forts, fishing villages, tropical spices, ancient maps, and quiet conversations around a table.

I don’t carry a GoPro or camera underwater. I prefer to live each dive as a form of meditation — and then, later, write it down.

Sure, I enjoy the freshness of reels and stories — I watch them, I share them — but deep down, I still love to write.
I like slowing down, connecting the dots between nature, history, and culture, one story at a time.

Pipinoroutes is my logbook — of dives, yes, but also of journeys by land, people met, routes retraced, daily life as an expat, and small things noticed.

If you love the sea, slow travel, good stories, and the feeling of being in the right place at the right time — welcome aboard.
divepipino@gmail.com

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