• WHO IS MARYHOP?

    Who is Maryhop?
    Hi, I am Mary, a five-star lady who lives, breathes and dreams travel! Follow my hops around the world, as I wander and experience the finer aspects of life! 


SCUBA DIVING IN SAINT LUCIA

SCUBA DIVING IN SAINT LUCIA
Christmas Eve
Saint Lucia, Caribbean Sea 
 
And while Europe was Christmas caroling, somewhere on the other side of the Atlantic I was picking diving gear. And even though I was always saying that I would never attempt this, I found myself filling out a questionnaire for a Beginner’s Scuba Diving Course. The appointment was set for 08.30 at Fair Helen’s on the Marigot Bay.
 
Oh, my goodness! Oh, Jesus! Oh Holy Mary! Ι am gonna di(v)e!

 

The questionnaire was clear and precise, and Helen was very strict.
 
"Mary, be honest! This info is important before you dive!" (Or die, I kept thinking)
 
-Ears and Eyes
Perfect (I only wear one lens on my right eye, as if it matters)
- Heart and Lungs
Beating and pumping just fine!
 -Injuries
None. Except for a strain and a backache (Just joking) 
-Emergency number
What do they need that for? What’s happening here? (Sorry sis, you’ve been added to every single list in the world)

All set. Step by step towards the boat, and I am wondering: How am I going to breathe? What if I drink water? What if I don’t make it to the surface in time? What if I’m sucked by some coral, or eaten by a shark? What if they forget me down there and I die an agonizing death with Nemo staring at me? What if I bump my head on the boat on my way up?
 
“What the heck,” I thought. I am always in the air. Why don’t I try the water for a change, get to live like a fish for a while? And on that thought, I took a deep breath, and with one hop I landed on the boat. But how could Ι say goodbye to the prettiest bay in the Caribbean?


 

We loaded the equipment, we wore our flippers, checked our masks, and with eyes and ears wide open we listened to our instructor Mary repeating over and over again,
 

“Don't forget to breathe! Don't forget to breathe!”


The more she said it, the more I was seized by panic. I could not loosen up! But it was too late - I was condemned to dive…
 


 

And at last we reach the bay and I set eyes to these gorgeous waters and I think, “Well, I will dive! There must be something down there. Something I must see. After all, it must be quite an experience for a bird like me to dive to the bottom of the ocean, no?”
 
 
“Com’ on Mary! Jump!”
 
“What on earth are they talking about?” I thought. “How can I dive with an 80-kilo tank on my back, plus the flippers, plus Zorro’s mask?” It took me some ten minutes to make up my mind, pretending to adjust my bun, supposedly trying to un-tangle it from my mask strap - because I simply had to…
 
Here I am, before the mask:


 

 

I mounted the tank on my back, got a lift from Tim and suddenly,
 
HOP!

Yes, yes! With one step, like Bolt the superhero, I ended up in the water! Thirty minutes of training, and the ocean was ours. Mary was leading the way and we were following, with a shark on our tail, and Nemo tagging along.




 

Going to the Caribbean and not scuba diving is a huge mistake. A wondrous world is lying down there; a world worth discovering without, however, disturbing it. Mary was very emphatic about that:

“Do not disturb, do not touch! Just Enjoy!”
 
The good thing was that I kept breathing and I didn’t drown in the end (obviously). But I did bump my head on my way out; because during the instruction I kept thinking of Nemo, that’s why.
 
After the dive, a Caribbean lunch was waiting for us on the boat; just what we needed after such exhaustion. I ate all my food and I was blissful. But not for long; I didn’t manage to hold my food in…yep, bon appétit!
 
The ride back was immensely relaxing and colorful, with a cool breeze and a rainbow across the sky that started way over in Barbados and ended in Miami. How lovely it was! I was feeling like a flying fish…
 






Scuba divers, are you many out there?

 

**Translation from Greek to English: Maria Coveou

 

Maria Kalymnou

Creative Commons License
The content on this blog is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

You may not republish, copy or modify the content without my consent.

scuba diving caribbean marigot bay saint lucia
Share

READ ALSO

Saint Lucia
MY CARIBBEAN ADVENTURE
MY CARIBBEAN ADVENTURE
06 January 2014
Saint Lucia
SCUBA DIVING IN SAINT LUCIA
SCUBA DIVING IN SAINT LUCIA
02 January 2014

COMMENTS


comments powered by Disqus




We use cookies to provide you with a better service. By browsing you agree to this. View our cookie policy.