The sky was over cast, the temperature was nice and mild and the water was choppy. As the boat sped across the waves we were lifted off our seats and landed with spine crushing force. I held on for dear life and prayed that I didn’t succumb to sea sickness like so many others do. The ride lasted 45 minutes. When the boat stopped our instructor informed us that we would be diving at reef called “Abyss”. The more experienced divers all got into deeper water first and took off. Mike and I suited up, opting out of wetsuits since the water was so warm we didn’t need them, strapping our weight belts, defogging our masks and slipping into our BCDs (Buoyancy Control Devices) and fins. We prepared to exit the boat, feeling clumsy and heavy with all that gear on. We stood on the side of the boat, held onto our mask and regulator and did a simple scissor step into the water. We floated for a bit getting familiar with the equipment above water before Kammali adjusted our BCD so we could start sinking. Luckily I took to it right away, I had been a bit nervous about what I would experience, but all went flawlessly for me. Mike had a bit of trouble equalizing at first, his ears hurt. But after taking it slowly and finding his groove, he was swimming with the fishes and I in no time.
It was like being in a giant aquarium, coral and fish were everywhere. It was really incredible. Our instructor Kamalee tapped me on the shoulder, pointed at his eyes and then pointed out into the distance where an enormous, and I mean it when I say it, ENORMOUS spotted eagle ray swam past, waving its fins as though it were a bird flapping its wings in flight. The beautiful creature was perhaps 8 feet in diameter, much larger than I expected to see and once again I was humbled by my Belizean experience.
As we approached about 35 minutes under water, we began to surface. We got back into the boat with huge smiles on our faces and headed for a nearby island to have a break, some juice and cookies.
Dive #2 was at the long ridge reef and felt even better than the first. We were more comfortable exiting the boat, were allowed to control our own BCDs and didn’t have to stay too close to Kamalee, though I wanted to since his eyes are more in tune with spotting neat things!
The first thing we saw was a turtle, no sooner had I taken a picture of it than Kamalee pointed out a sting ray gliding across a crisp white backdrop of sand, perfect for photography. No sooner had I taken a picture of that than Kamalee pointed out a large nurse shark resting on the bottom in some coral. The nurse shark was about 6 feet long and I just couldn’t get enough of him.
I chased big schools of fish and took pictures of everything I could and before I knew it, our 35 minutes was up again.
With a huge grin on my face I got back on the boat and we headed back to Hamanasi, each of the divers telling a different story about what they saw. Some saw giant lobsters, some saw three turtles, some had difficulty with gear, everyone had fun.
We worked up a pretty good appetite diving so we came back, had a cocktail and sat down to lunch. Mike had a club sandwich and fries. The bacon was really great and the bread was the same, dense bread that we’ve been having at breakfast. I had a traditional Belizean chicken stew made with coconut milk and a curry-like blend of spices. It was served with what looked like plain white rice, but when I had a bite I was treated to the flavor of coconut. It was the best lunch yet which is really saying something.
After lunch we napped. The bed seemed to rock back and forth like the choppy boat ride.
Boy did we nap! For about 2 hours actually. Who knew that vacationing took so much out of you. We awoke, freshened up and went down for happy hour. When we booked this secluded honeymoon destination I was really looking forward to being anti-social for a couple of weeks and just enjoying my new marriage, but the people that come to Hamanasi are so varied and interesting that it’s been an absolute pleasure to be around them.
Tonight, as Mike sat next to Chris and Paula, I sat with a lovely woman in her mid-50’s named Peggy. Peggy, an avid birder, was traveling by herself. Born to a Chinese father and a southern bell mother, Peggy and her brother grew up in Arizona. Her father died when she was so young that she has no recollection of him. Peggy was educated in geology and had a successful career in that field until her mother became ill with pancreatic cancer several years ago. As she watched the care that her mother received until she died, Peggy decided that she needed to be in the medical field as well and help families the way that the doctors had help her and her mother. So with her inheritance, she went back to school to become a doctor. She’s in her 3rd year right now and seems to be enjoying it immensely though it’s grueling and her younger piers are physically more up for the challenge.
We talked for two hours straight with no lull in the conversation. We talked about birding, the Canadian vs American health system, the war, the next American president, food, travel….. so much. I instantly liked her and felt a strong connection.
Mike and I invited Peggy to join us at our table for dinner and the conversation and wine continued flowing. We all started with a tomato soup. It was rich and complex, made with both fresh and sun-dried tomatoes and a dollop of crème fresh. I enjoyed a jerk chicken dish with a potato gratin side dish. It was lovely. Mike had a bowl of Belizean chili which was seasoned differently than we would have expected but it was perfection served with fresh corn tortillas. Peggy had a vegetarian ratatouille that made her go “Mmmm” after every bite. We finished off the meal by sharing a slice of banana cream pie that was the freshest, most delicious banana cream pie I have ever tasted.
Peggy went off to bed after dinner since she had to be up at 5:00am to go birding. We met up with Chris and Paula whom we promised to whoop it up with because it was their final night at Hamanasi before heading home in the morning.
Whoop it up we did. We sat at the bar singing songs and laughing for hours. Finally when we realized that King (our bartender) likely had enough and wanted to go home, we ordered two more buckets of Belikan beer and headed back to our tree house where we listened to music, drank and laughed for a couple more hours. When I could no longer stand, I sat, and when I could no longer sit, I hugged them goodbye, wished them safe travels and passed out in beautiful oblivion.
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