A day of diving
No trip to the Mayan Riviera would be complete without a scuba diving excursion. I swore I was done with diving, but I still brought my certification card along just in case.
The lure of the clear, turquoise waters of the Caribbean called my name and beckoned me to give up the thought of never diving again and to sign up for a day of diving.
You can ask Irv, my theory on a dive experience is directly related to the quality of the dive boat. When our dive boat was over an hour late picking us up because it ran out of gas and two guys in a kayak had to deliver gas to the boat, I should have had my first clue that it wasn't going to be a great day of diving.
My second clue was my first glimpse of the boat. Hmmm....I was kind of spoiled by the dive boats in Australia which were top notch. This boat was not quite the bottom of the barrel, such as our dive experience in Acapulco, but it was close.
Next clue, getting ready to dive and being told entry would be done with a back somersault over the side of the boat. Although was trained to do this type of entry during my certification, I've only ever done it on that Acapulco dive trip, and it's my least favorite. Sorry guys...I'm doing the giant step off the end of the boat.
Perhaps I should have gone with that back somersault because I lost half of the weights on my weight belt when I jumped in the water. Without the proper weight I float like a giant floaty on top of the water. But no, the dive master stuffs his weights in my BCD pockets, tells me exhale, and drags me down 100 feet. One thing he forgot...before the dive I mentioned I have to descend slowly because I have a hard time equalizing my ears. My attempts to signal that I was having ear problems went unheeded, or unnoticed, I'm not sure which. Result: ruptured ear drum and not a great first dive.
Never before have I seen dive masters take harpoons along on a dive. They did warn us to stay away from them if we saw they were loaded. They kill Lion Fish if they see them to help protect the natural species in the area. Plus, they excitedly told us, the fish's blood will attract sharks. "Oh, you mean the calm and gentle Nurse Sharks?" No, they told us--Bull Sharks. Oh great...another reason to enjoy this experience.
Even after all this stress I managed to do very well with my air consumption and we had to surface when Irv started to run out of air. I don't leave my dive buddy alone so I ascended with him. Now I'm looking forward to the fruit and snacks that are always served between dives. Divers have to be re hydrated after a dive because breathing that air really sucks the moisture out of a person.
Hmmm...no snacks. Why am I not surprised?
Second dive went much better except that the dive master decided I didn't need so much weight. Guys, I've been doing this for years. I know how much weight I need. Anyway, once again he stuffed my pockets full of his weights after I jumped into the water and was unable to descend with the amount of weight he thought I should use. Ear drum was already broken by this time so the dive went much better. We saw some beautiful corral and fish--really enjoyed it.
No sharks, thank goodness.
Time to go back to shore. Only one motor is working now. Should have known.
Now I am resolved to stand firm in my decision to give up diving for good (unless we go back to Australia).
I have just one piece of advice. Check out the dive boat before the dive. The quality of the boat ALWAYS relates directly to the quality of the dive experience.
The lure of the clear, turquoise waters of the Caribbean called my name and beckoned me to give up the thought of never diving again and to sign up for a day of diving.You can ask Irv, my theory on a dive experience is directly related to the quality of the dive boat. When our dive boat was over an hour late picking us up because it ran out of gas and two guys in a kayak had to deliver gas to the boat, I should have had my first clue that it wasn't going to be a great day of diving.
My second clue was my first glimpse of the boat. Hmmm....I was kind of spoiled by the dive boats in Australia which were top notch. This boat was not quite the bottom of the barrel, such as our dive experience in Acapulco, but it was close.
Next clue, getting ready to dive and being told entry would be done with a back somersault over the side of the boat. Although was trained to do this type of entry during my certification, I've only ever done it on that Acapulco dive trip, and it's my least favorite. Sorry guys...I'm doing the giant step off the end of the boat.
Perhaps I should have gone with that back somersault because I lost half of the weights on my weight belt when I jumped in the water. Without the proper weight I float like a giant floaty on top of the water. But no, the dive master stuffs his weights in my BCD pockets, tells me exhale, and drags me down 100 feet. One thing he forgot...before the dive I mentioned I have to descend slowly because I have a hard time equalizing my ears. My attempts to signal that I was having ear problems went unheeded, or unnoticed, I'm not sure which. Result: ruptured ear drum and not a great first dive.Never before have I seen dive masters take harpoons along on a dive. They did warn us to stay away from them if we saw they were loaded. They kill Lion Fish if they see them to help protect the natural species in the area. Plus, they excitedly told us, the fish's blood will attract sharks. "Oh, you mean the calm and gentle Nurse Sharks?" No, they told us--Bull Sharks. Oh great...another reason to enjoy this experience.
Even after all this stress I managed to do very well with my air consumption and we had to surface when Irv started to run out of air. I don't leave my dive buddy alone so I ascended with him. Now I'm looking forward to the fruit and snacks that are always served between dives. Divers have to be re hydrated after a dive because breathing that air really sucks the moisture out of a person.
Hmmm...no snacks. Why am I not surprised?
Second dive went much better except that the dive master decided I didn't need so much weight. Guys, I've been doing this for years. I know how much weight I need. Anyway, once again he stuffed my pockets full of his weights after I jumped into the water and was unable to descend with the amount of weight he thought I should use. Ear drum was already broken by this time so the dive went much better. We saw some beautiful corral and fish--really enjoyed it.
No sharks, thank goodness.
Now I am resolved to stand firm in my decision to give up diving for good (unless we go back to Australia).
I have just one piece of advice. Check out the dive boat before the dive. The quality of the boat ALWAYS relates directly to the quality of the dive experience.
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