Caulker's Bonnets (and more)
Hats! Huge, wide-brimmed, enormous floppy hats! A quick zoom down to the South of Belize, a fake, mind numbing, "indigenous" story about the moon and the sun who ends up killing his adoptive mother… and we were… Wait. Where was I? Oh, yeah - Stingrays! Gracefully floating through Caye Caulker's waters these fish reserved to the shallows, allowing sunrays run radiant streaks across their silver-gray skins, adorning them in electrifying costumes.
Due to Caye Caulker's steep prices, we only dove twice. The underwater wildlife was not nearly as abundant as in Honduras, but the visibility was so amazing I was nearly forgetting we were underwater. We were taken to a site called "Raggedy Ann". When I heard the name I couldn't imagine how the red-haired doll would translate to coral studded scenery, but when we descended it all made complete sense: the seemingly endless dreads of the reef, shaggy with colorful coral and aquatic flora, stretched beneath us in ridges and folds, very much resembling tatters. I swung and swooped from crevice to crevice, probably really annoying the dive-master, first for pointing out more interesting things than he did, and second, having him chase and grab me by the fins as I setoff after a turtle of fish far in the background. I must give my respect to the man. He must have gotten slapped around pretty badly before managing to grab on to my flipper, but never said a word about it.
Snorkeling around Caye Caulker I couldn't understand why most people kept staying in the boat. Yes, I was getting sunburned and a little queasy too, but this is what sun-block and stamina are for. And didn't you just pay twenty dollars over what we paid, to do the same thing we are doing, only that you are not doing it? Oops, I wasn't supposed to let that last one there slip. As usual we managed to reach a lower agreement with the boatman and did give him the known-all-to-well promise not to say anything to the rest of the people joining in.
It was their loss, but better for us. The less people were in the water the more sea creatures felt comfortable coming up closer. It was Shurik who at the last moment, just before handing up his mask and fins, noticed a very big turtle and a spotted eagle ray scour for food on a shallow, grassy patch. They collided and scurried in different directions. I feel selfish saying this, but I was almost glad to be witnessing this alone. It made it all that much more special. Oh well, I guess it figures. We have been spending so much time in the sea that I was bound to become a some sort of fish.
Due to Caye Caulker's steep prices, we only dove twice. The underwater wildlife was not nearly as abundant as in Honduras, but the visibility was so amazing I was nearly forgetting we were underwater. We were taken to a site called "Raggedy Ann". When I heard the name I couldn't imagine how the red-haired doll would translate to coral studded scenery, but when we descended it all made complete sense: the seemingly endless dreads of the reef, shaggy with colorful coral and aquatic flora, stretched beneath us in ridges and folds, very much resembling tatters. I swung and swooped from crevice to crevice, probably really annoying the dive-master, first for pointing out more interesting things than he did, and second, having him chase and grab me by the fins as I setoff after a turtle of fish far in the background. I must give my respect to the man. He must have gotten slapped around pretty badly before managing to grab on to my flipper, but never said a word about it.
Snorkeling around Caye Caulker I couldn't understand why most people kept staying in the boat. Yes, I was getting sunburned and a little queasy too, but this is what sun-block and stamina are for. And didn't you just pay twenty dollars over what we paid, to do the same thing we are doing, only that you are not doing it? Oops, I wasn't supposed to let that last one there slip. As usual we managed to reach a lower agreement with the boatman and did give him the known-all-to-well promise not to say anything to the rest of the people joining in.
It was their loss, but better for us. The less people were in the water the more sea creatures felt comfortable coming up closer. It was Shurik who at the last moment, just before handing up his mask and fins, noticed a very big turtle and a spotted eagle ray scour for food on a shallow, grassy patch. They collided and scurried in different directions. I feel selfish saying this, but I was almost glad to be witnessing this alone. It made it all that much more special. Oh well, I guess it figures. We have been spending so much time in the sea that I was bound to become a some sort of fish.