Saint Lucia Vacation 2017 (page 8 of 10)

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Greta's blog (Day 8, February 23rd 2017):

Dive day! After the eggs scrambled with bacon & hummus in the room (vacation note: chutney works OK as an offset to peanut butter on toast), we were off to the Saint Lucia Dive for our first “real” dive – one where we just would enjoy the dive and no exercises of any kind (removing gear & putting it back on in the water, mask fill underwater, emergency CESA ascent, etc). We got there quicker than expected, but that’s fine. We wandered the shop and the dock outside a bit. There’s a new hotel going up next door and it’s interesting that a lot of the trees & plants are already in place, yet the whole building is still set up with scaffolding at this point

Once we headed out, it sounds like the dive spots were to be the same as last Friday. But that’s fine – it was all new to us then and Greta’s mask was so foggy she didn’t see that much anyway. There were just 7 divers, plus snorkelers on this trip although one guy had his PADI logbook in hand so we’re guessing he was a rather newly certified diver as well. Right before heading out, we asked about diver computers, and our guide went back and got some for us – unfortunately the other guy didn’t hear that part, but he was buddied up with the guide, so it worked OK for him. I suppose once you become a diver, even if you rent your tank & such, it’s common to have your own computer so we’ll have to keep this in mind for future dives.

Fantasia was our first stop. It was very beautiful. We saw numerous fish, as well as coral and various plants. Mike’s air got low, so we had to go up a few minutes ahead of everyone else – but not much. It’s a consequence of his running – large lung capacity is great for everything but diving – then you go through your 3000 PSI of air faster than the average person. Back up at the surface we had another great meal – chicken legs in a tasty sauce, salad, lentils & pasta baked with cheese.

The second dive was in Turtle Bay. We hoped to see a sea turtle but did not – usually to see them you have to be the first boat of the day. But we were far from disappointed. Hundreds of different fish were seen everywhere. Plus, we came across a lot of lobsters, hiding under shelves of rock/coral – one was HUGE. They don’t have the big pincers like the cold water lobsters – just very long whiskers/tentacles/feelers off their heads. At one point, we were surrounded by a giant school of small, metallic blue fish. Later, Mike was trying to record a small blue fish and she kept charging the GoPro – she did the same to another diver in our group. We think she must have had eggs nearby and was trying to get us to leave. It was just an amazing dive the 2nd time around, it’s hard to describe. The pictures & video do some justice but nothing like what we experienced. We all made it through the dive w/o anyone going up early – and it was a whopping 52 minutes. Both dives that day went to 60 ft – the max we are certified for – but it never really feels like you are that deep.

After getting back to shore, we filled out our log books and had our guide sign off on the them and Julia gave us our Dive Shop Stamp as well. We also posed for a picture with her as we’d forgotten last weekend.

On the way back to the villa, we stopped at the grocery store to pick up a bottle of the yellow West Indian Hot Sauce that we have come to love. Now the challenge will be not to open it before going home (but it sure would taste good on the eggs in the morning).

Once we got back, we relaxed for a bit and read, and watched the dive videos. Then off to town again for supper. But we were leaving right at sunset so a quick return to get the camera got Mike some nice sunset pictures. It’s always amazing down here how quickly the sun sets – in under 5 minutes it goes from above the horizon to being gone completely. In less than 15 minutes later, it’s black-dark outside. It definitely is not the leisurely MN sunsets in July that last for 30 minutes with another 30 minutes of waning light! Apparently, the sun is the one thing that is NOT in island time around here.

This time Matthew’s was open, so we were successful in going to the restaurant we picked out for once! It’s in the upper level of a mall, and we got a window seat overlooking the street below. It was interesting to people watch from up above and we have a nice breeze the entire meal. We each ordered a fruity drink (Dirty Banana for Mike, Saint Lucian Flag (striped layers of white, blue & yellow) for Greta. The Saint Lucian Flag was the winner of the two. For supper, Mike had a jerk chicken sandwich with fries. Greta ordered Conch (called lambi here on the island) which was shredded and served in a broth – it was excellent. It was accompanied by vegetables, rice & a piece of fried breadfruit. The food was great and the restaurant was laid back and not overly expensive. We also saw some locals there, which always bodes well that it’s not just a tourist trap.

On the walk back to our car, we stopped at an ice cream shop that we’d eyed on our way in – Elena’s. That was the perfect way to end the night; cherry Cheesecake ice cream for Mike, and Pistachio for Greta.

Once we got back to the villa, it was a bit of reading and then off to bed.

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