Adventures By the Sea
A quiet windy day by the pool. So windy that slaDE~ wasn’t able to get his 2 scuba dives in due to the strong current and waves. Patiently he waited, studying for his scuba quizzes and Padi final exam. And with flying colours, he excelled to the point of only needing to finish his remaining dives. Because of my difficulty with mask clearing in the ocean yesterday, I borrowed a mask and snorkel and spent a bit of time in the pool intentionally testing my limits of comfort. Not easy to empty the snorkel with a full mask and a snort of water. But progress I must if I am to be safe on our dives. I think I’ll do much better with a scuba tank and octopus. At least if I snort a nose full of ocean salt water, I can breath unencumbered with a self-clearing regulator. The trick is NOT to panic!
Another day in paradise, hanging by the pool, soaking up the sun, free to roam and pursue whatever whim might blow my way. A daily ritual for me seems to be evolving … visiting the local bakery to buy sweet breads for my sweetie, buying some fresh fruit and vegetables where I can find it, looking for the least expensive but yummiest dish of rice and stewed beans amongst the many small restaurant vendours (an inexpensive but nutritiously filling and hearty staple for me here in San Pedro), return to the Sunbreeze pool via the beach, escaping the golf cart fumes and traffic.
On San Pedro time, the days melt in to each other with the ever-brilliant sun and wind caressing the body in to a relaxing seductive trance that leaves me breathless at the beauty of the Caribbean, forgetful of the world outside and all the deadlines and distractions that it may hold for me otherwise. My computer lays dormant and my blog unattended with so many options (or not) to pursue. I feel very blessed to have this opportunity, especially as I see my fellow skydiving friends return home after their week long vacation comes to an end. We set aside three weeks for such a luxury. And it’s important for me to honour what time I do have here. Who knows when / if we’ll be back? Rich had a surprise announcement for us at the closing evening to the Tsunami Skydivers Boogie. With the birth of his new drop zone in Oceanside, this Boogie would be on hiatus, perhaps indefinitely. So much work and effort, with little return on his part. I’m keeping everything crossed (fingers, hands, arms and legs) that we’ll have the opportunity to skydive in to the Blue Hole with the European Boogie. it may be the last ever opportunity. HuzzaH!
The evening brought with it plenty of surprises. slaDE spent a good amount of time meeting an interesting new friend on the porch of the local dive shop. Johnny B. Eccentric and a fellow skydiver who lives for his hop and pop jumps at Lodi, California. 
We chose to join him for a night taxi boat ride to “The Green Iguana” restaurant. Fine dining at its best, with watermelon Mojitos that were startling (so refreshing!) to begin followed by delicious savoury sweet potato mash topped with freshly grilled Ahi Tuna that had me salivating for more (main course). Apart from the food, I think my favourite part of the night was becoming one with the night as we sped from dock to dock in the two-engined 300 horsepower taxi that was skillfully backed in to each jetty point, offloading the passengers at their chosen destination. The night air was crisp, salty, vibrantly clear with stars that dreams are made of (perfectly pitch black, universes beyond ours visible by way of the refracting water). The coastal San Pedro Island sparkled with light dotted between docks lit up with their faerie lights. It felt very surreal as we jetted at full speed in the shallow waters. Magic in Belize, truly.
