My Little Diver!

This past weekend my mom and I took Pacen to Casper so he could participate in Bubblemaker's, an introduction to scuba diving class. I've been diving for about a year and half and I really want Pacen to have an adventurous and fun life so I thought it would be great to get him involved too. Pacen was super excited about Bubblemaker's and was pretty much bouncing off the walls with excitement. He had to watch a short video and then he got to do about an hour of pool time. He did really well and only had problems with a couple of things...the main problem being his "perma grin". He couldn't quit smiling so his mask kept flooding and his Instructor was afraid he was going to spit his regulator out and breathe in some water. Luckily he was able to keep his regulator in his mouth and he learned to clear his mask (a skill that you need to be able to do to pass the Open Water Diver course). The other problem he had was that he couldn't quite get used to being neutrally buoyant. His Instructor would get him neutral and he would be okay for a second and then realize he was just floating there and then he'd start flailing about. I think pretty much everyone goes through that at first...it's hard to get used to swimming with huge fins on your feet and trying not to use your arms.

Next year Pacen will be old enough to become a certified Open Water Diver. I hope to get him certified and then take him to Kids Sea Camp (they have them in The Bahamas, Grand Cayman, Bonaire, Belize, Fiji, The Galapagos, Costa Rica, Palau, and Silver Bank). I think it would be an experience of a lifetime and something he'd never forget. I also think more parents should introduce their kids to exciting and adventurous hobbies (scuba, rock climbing, etc.). These kinds of hobbies can open up a whole new world of opportunities.





"As a diver you are weightless and can move in all directions. You approach the freedom of a bird as you move in three dimensions in a fluid environment." ~ Dennis Graver

Paradise

Well, I've been back from The Bahamas since Saturday and I miss it so much! I fell in love.

I fell in love with the crystal clear water.

I fell in love with the sea life.

I fell in love with sailing (I already loved sailboats, but now I know for sure that sailing is definitely for me).

I fell in love with almost everything about The Bahamas. (The traffic is something to be desired and Nassau is a little dirty, but everything else I saw was amazing.)

I've been obsessed with the Ocean since I can remember and I've always felt that I was meant to be near the Ocean. Now I know for a fact that I want to be near the Ocean. I want to move somewhere warm that offers great diving. Some place that has the crystal clear water, the abundant sea life, and that's oozing with personality.

As for the trip...it was AMAZING! I lived on a sailboat (The Morning Star) for a week and it was great! We headed South from Nassau along The Exumas (some out islands). The furthest South we went was Staniel Cay. Staniel Cay is home to Club Thunderball. For those of you who are James Bond fanatics, you know that Thunderball was filmed in various areas of Staniel Cay. We spent port night at Club Thunderball watching one of the NBA Finals games. While at Staniel Cay we got to snorkel in a cave under an island...it was awesome! We mostly stayed on the West side of the islands, but a few times we went East of the islands to do some wall dives. The first couple times we did this we encountered very rough seas. Only one person got sea sick...and it wasn't me! I got "rocked" to sleep and sunburned my back bad! As long as we were on the West side of the islands everything was smooth.

Here's a map of The Exumas

I made 12 dives the whole trip and saw numerous kinds of sea creatures, including an Eel, Sea Turtle, Sharks, many Grouper, Angel Fish, Flamingo Tongue, Conch, Rays, and the list goes on! I made my first night dive, first wreck dive, first drift dive, and first dive over 60'. All the dives were awesome, but my favorite was when we saw the Sea Turtle. She was beautiful! Some other things we got to do were feed the Iguanas on Allan's Cay and feed the swimming pigs near Staniel Cay. I saw the most beautiful sunsets and the stars were absolutely breathtaking (on the nights it was clear) as was the full moon reflecting off the Ocean.

Pretty much everyone on the trip was cool. There were a couple people who were annoying, but I guess that to be expected. The crew was absolutely amazing! Grayson was our captain, John was the chef, Adam was the master diver, and Jamie and Mike were engineers/mates. They all made the trip very enjoyable and made sure we all had a good time.

Thursday night when we got back to Nassau the crew took some of us to a bar called Crazy Johnny's. Crazy Johnny's plays mostly 70s and 80s rock and we danced our butts off! It was a BLAST! I was sad to leave and if I didn't have the responsibility of a child I think I would've stayed! It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, thus far. I can't wait to go back!

The Morning Star!

Crystal Clear blue waters in the Exumas.

The water was like glass this day!

Beautiful Bahamian Sunset

Captain Grayson doing a trick with an orange. He made it float & spin in mid-air using a SCUBA tank.

Grayson with a Grouper he speared while free diving.

Isn't she majestic

Pretty fish

Shark dive!

This is in the cave at Staniel Cay. The sun was shining through a hole in the ceiling onto the coral. So pretty!

"The reason I love the sea I cannot explain — it’s physical. When you dive you begin to feel like an angel. It’s a liberation of your weight." ~ Jacques-Yves Cousteau

"It is not the ship so much as the skillful sailing that assures the prosperous voyage." ~ George William Curtis

2 days!

Two days left until I'm here.
Nassau, Bahamas. (Thank you sumolounge from flickr for the use of the picture.) I can't wait. I will be living on one of these for a week!
The company that owns those boats is Blackbeard Cruises. I found out about this trip through Western Divers. Western Divers is where I became SCUBA certified. If you haven't ever gone SCUBA diving before I suggest you try it sometime! It is so fun and relaxing. I'm hoping this trip helps to get Kurtis off my mind for a while (at least a week anyway).

I'm ready for sunshine (it's been dreary here). I'm ready to feel the ocean breeze on my face. I'm ready to feel the sand on my feet. I'm ready to see the full moon reflecting off the ocean (it's suppose to be full while I'm there). I'm ready to relax. I'm ready to dive. I'm ready to sail. I'm ready for fresh sea food. I'm ready for Rum and fun! I'll be sure to post pictures after I return.