Interpretation of Love

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This is our second crack after a detailed and sublimely written entry from San Ignacio - our understanding is a tree fell on a powerline, blacking out most of Belize and our beautiful work was lost. So, take two!

After a long but largely uneventful flight we arrived on the little island of Caye Caulker, hello Caribbean!!! It's just as you would imagine it to, reggae music playing from every little bar and cafe, no-one moves fast - although we seemed intent on setting a cracking pace. Straight up we did what any good traveller does and headed out for beer. Sitting at this awesome bar - where the tables are in the water, we had one guy come up trying to sell us "the green stuff" when another guy approached offering to sell us a snake - which he was carrying with him!!! Thinking it couldn't get any crazier until another local sits down next to us sporting the nastiest black eye I've seen (pretty impressive on a black guy) and a fair sized cut to the cheek. His story was he got whacked by a girl because "she did not understand my interpretation of love man!!" We shudder to think what his interpretation is, and didn't have an overwhleming desire to hang around and find out.

First morning on the island and we're up at 5.30am - crazy I know - and on a boat heading out for three dives, the first being the famous blue hole. 45 metres of sheer terror I tell you!! Now while Mike has dived hundreds of time, never to this depth though... this was to be my very first since being certified and about 30 metres deeper than I've ever been. Crystal clear water he promised me, like hell!! We jump in, my weight belt falls off and then we spot two giant 12 foot Bronze whalers. Still on the surface and I can't breathe properly. Still I descended with the group, well started to... but all i could see was darkness below, no coral just a limestone cave wall. I got about 5 metres (Mike says it was more like two) and had a meltdown. Back on the surface, the instructor just grabbed my hand, says "she'll be cool baby" and dragged me down.... I've gotta say in the end it was pretty awesome. Mike was darting in and around the stalagtites, trying to coax me to do the same, but all I could do was stay in one spot, hold onto my regulator for dear life, suck back air - I was in survval mode!! Our next two dives though were just amazing. In the crystal clear water I'd been promised - we spotted massive sea turtles and rays, loved it!!! Such a huge day, even the promise of karaoke, an audience and rum punch wasn't enough to keep mike up past 8 o'clock that night!!!!

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Comments

[Susanne]

punch drunk
Miff singing karaoke must be more frightening than a couple of little bronze whalers....

[Ally and Mike]

loving the feedback suz - i fear tonight will be the night, he's found the bar and I expect the warm up exercises will begin shortly!!!! how you feeling?