In Toulon , where he was serving on the Condorcet , Cousteau carried out his first underwater experiments , thanks to his friend Philippe Tailliez who in 1936 lent him some Fernez underwater goggles . In Toulon , where he was serving on the Condorcet , Cousteau carried out his first underwater experiments , thanks to his friend Philippe Tailliez who in 1936 lent him some Fernez underwater goggles , predecessors of modern diving masks .