🤿 Under the Sea🦈

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It was scuba diving that drew us to the Mexican coast as we revisited PDC. Per the suggestion of friends, we tried out the Reef Marina Dive Shop on the beach just in front of the resort, Reef Playacar where our friends also generously afforded us for our 25th anniversary in the midst of Covid. It was also then that Dave received his Padi open water certification 🤿

Sidebar: I had one major goal diving this time around…. Back in 2021, I really struggled to manage all my own gear. Worse, I could not make the step up onto the bench, by myself to sit & fall back into the water. Not one but two boat hands had to hoist me up ⬆️  I made the promise to myself that that would not be the case this time around. Thankfully I made good on that promise 😊 I still needed a hand, just one & no hoisting 😂

So, it was to Playa del Carmen & Reef Marina, we returned in early January to do a dive I had long anticipated & one I would come to realize truly terrified me!  

We did two morning drift dives to reboot our skills & get reacquainted with all our gear, before sitting down for the most thorough dive briefing to date… In his French accent, our dive master wanted to get a head start, there would be no time on the boat for briefing, time was of the essence. We had a scheduled slot to be in the water & under the water descending into the mama shark rodeo. If we dilly dallied, a Mexican Coast Guard would veto our dive. So the short of it, get on the boat, gear up, get in the water, grab the rope (DON’T let go of the rope!) & get under. We had a thirty minute window to get to the bottom, be terrified, I mean amazed – actually, I wonder if there is really a difference 😉 Let go of the rope & ascend to the surface. WAIT, let go of the rope! We weren’t even on the boat yet & I was beginning to panic. I interrupted, “you said DON’T let go of the rope?!” Well apparently, you have to let go of the rope… At which point we would ascend to the surface where our boat would be waiting. Stay together while ascending, because one lone human looks like a snack, several humans together looks like too big a meal to be interested in 😬 Whose idea was this?! 🤦‍♀️ 

Having been briefed, we were off to the boat. Mid way into the water I realized I had left my backpack on the deck of the shop, my phone, wallet, life, there on a chair. I must have had something else on my mind… Quite possibly, it was the comments of another dive master from Australia who expressed her lack of interest in shark dives due to her experience with too many she had seen gone wrong. REALLY! I asked her if maybe she could save her thrilling stories until after our safe return!  🦈 

Too late for the bag. If I went back for it, I was out. The boat captain called back to the shop. I watched intently as I thought I saw someone come out & retrieve my bag to put inside. On we went, onto the boat. Off the boat & into the Bull shark nursery. Doo-doo, doo-doo, doo-doo 😂  So here is the deal. Bull sharks are some of the most, if not the most aggressive sharks in the wild except when they are pregnant. The warm winter waters of the Caribbean have long been where these fierce giants come to give birth. 

On the floor of the ocean, anchors & ropes have been installed to give divers a hold against the current. We followed the rope down & took up position amongst other dive groups. There were four of us, our dive master, another guy, Dave & me. As I felt the most snack size of the group, I nestled myself in between the three guys. We were down at 27m or about 80ft for just under 30 minutes.  

I am not sure if there were three sharks or thirteen, but they seemed to be everywhere – in front, behind, overhead. Our dive master said if one got too close to exhale hard to make forceful bubbles. Well, that’s all I did! Underwater everything appears closer & bigger 🦈 So at 9 feet long & 500lbs, I wasn’t taking any chances 😉 

My whole life, I have wanted to swim with sharks. I got my open water 🤿  when I was sixteen & wanted to be a marine biologist when I grew up.  Well, that didn’t happen but this did. I hope the next sharks we see will truly be in the wild (at a distance) 🦈 Dave was over the moon! If you know him, he isn’t overly excitable but he could not stop talking about this adventure! Thankfully this was the first of several more dives we would do, only one other coming close to the exhilaration…

Our adventure would not end when we returned to shore. Thankfully my bag was accounted for & we headed for “home” exhausted from the excitement.  This would turn out to be the evening we got unceremoniously evicted from of AirBnB by the British douchbag, a different kind of shark 🦈 

We came back to the coast after a few weeks, having escaped to a housesit to regroup & collect ourselves. We wasted no time jumping back in 🤿 We spent our last month in Akumal 🐢 

Akumal is known for the turtles that come to nest & feed there. You won’t be surprised to know that I got in trouble for trying to swim over to the “paid” turtle watching area without paying 😬 So I made my way back under the ropes only to be greeted with my own personal turtle friend 😊 I followed it around for a while as it chomped on the seagrass that is native to the beaches there. 

We also did a dive in Akumal. It was nothing to write home about (no pun intended) but it did teach us a new skill, ascending on our own without our dive master. He was signaling us from below. We had not  been very deep, so our safety stop  was pretty simple. It did however solidify our need for a dive watch/computer. 

From Akumal we would head over to Cozumel, where we met our incredible dive master/instructor, Luis who runs Cozumel Divers. It had the potential to be another exhausting day but we signed up for four dives anyway.  The first two were more like lessons in maintaining buoyancy as we glided along the cliff walls of coral 🪸 This was also the dive that confirmed I needed to buy my own scuba mask 🤿 I spent the first dive clearing the fog from the inside of my mask by flushing it with ocean water, trying to remember to keep my eyes closed so I didn’t lose my contact 👁️  Thankfully, Luis was to my rescue again. Back on the boat, he offered some mask alternatives. I chose the Cressi Calibro with the duel frame. What a huge difference!!! I wasn’t constantly fogging the glass & having to flush. The second dive went so much more smoothly, giving me more confidence & time to enjoy the scenery.

After lunch we geared up again. I told Luis I was a bit nervous about what was next. I didn’t love the idea of being in an enclosed space underwater. Luis was so calm & encouraging. He told us exactly how we would approach the shipwreck. How we would swim around it & then through it. Thankfully it was just us, so I didn’t have to worry about other divers, either holding them up or them being in my way. 

Was it terrifying, no. Did it give me anxiety, yes! But just as he said he would, Luis guided us around the ship, checking in on me at every turn. We swam through the short length of the ship. Then with a thumbs up 👍 we swam down into a port hole & through rusted hallways & rooms. 

It was a look back at history. This ship did not sink here but rather was placed here in 2000 after a long career on the water for both the US & Mexican Navies. You can read more about the C-53 shipwreck.

I wasn’t breathing as hard as I did with the mama sharks 🦈 but I definitely wasn’t breathing efficiently.  I struggled with invasive thoughts of death & some giant under water creature leaping from the shadows 😬 All I could say to myself was, “You did some crazy ass shit as a young woman, you are stronger & fiercer now. Be brave!” So I was…

Back on the boat, we received excellent concierge service as the first mate changed our tanks & served us a light snack as we did our surface interval & waited for the sun to go down 🌅 

I think I would have been more apprehensive on our last dive had we entered the water after dark. Instead, a sliver of sun was all that was left & we followed it down to the ocean floor. The reefs come alive at night! Far less terrifying, much more amazing… I kept Luis in view. As the darkness enveloped us, we turned on our lights. It was more magical than I can even describe. Huge lobsters 🦞 Turtles, from above & below. Sharks in caves 🦈 and the octopus 🐙 We saw one that turned from blue to orange to translucent, beyond incredible! The time passed so quickly I failed to notice the black abyss that surrounded us. Until, of course, we began to ascend. In that moment, as if knowing I needed a distraction, Luis pointed out the tiniest jellyfish 🪼 swimming in front of my mask. Bravery restored, we broke the surface of the water & there was the boat 🛥️ I cannot rave about the captain & first mate enough! They were so friendly & helpful & most importantly, there when we needed to be picked up 🌊 

Over all, we did nine dives during our time on the coast 🤿 Solidifying that yes, we do now officially have another expensive hobby 💵 I will gladly take any advice on where to dive next or gear we need to acquire. We will definitely get our own masks, possibly fins & at least one dive watch to start. I am also considering my own wetsuit or thin rash guard. I think we still fall far too much into the novice category to think we need (to travel) with BCDs & regulators. Oh, & a GoPro, gonna “need” that!!! 📸

🤔Learning & a List of my Favorite Things 🧳

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Somewhere along the way, we seemed to regain our composure. Perhaps it was being back on schedule, returning to our original plan & heading back to the coast, or just knowing our time in MX was coming to an end.  The British douchebag nightmare was behind us, our rental car agreement was renegotiated for no extra cost, we had taken a break from each other to spend time with friends coming to MX, and we had a real feeling of resolution to let the past be the past; funny stories to tell but not on which to dwell. 

Whatever the reasoning, we doubled down on the next six weeks to rediscover why we love Mexico so much, even being surprised by a couple of places to which we will have to return.

Here are a few things we learned along the way about packing, travel planning & how long one can leave a towel on a longe chair in reserve before others get annoyed 😉

Resort life etiquette learning: It is common practice to get up early & head out to the pool or beach & save your seat. A saved seat with a mere pile of pool towels appears to be a sacred totem of temporary ownership. It is easy to hem & haw when you decide to push the snooze button, after all, you are likely there on vacation why do you have an alarm set anyway, oh right, to save a chair!  Sadly if you do not hop to, you may have missed the ultimate four-post cushioned bed lounger or, depending on occupancy, the simplest of reclining chairs. 

It was one such day at our place in Akumal that I began to wonder, “How long is too long?” The pool was empty of people & almost every chair was unclaimed, except for 2… Yes, I had come out early & “reserved” my seat before heading out for a walk.

I returned to the pool an hour or so later, within what seemed to be okay time limit of my towel placement 🤔 The once empty chairs now filling with residents. As you may notice in the picture, some chairs have cushions, others do not. I settled in to my “reserved” chair with a cushion. The other two “reserved” chairs remained empty for some time, enough time that there began to be chatter among the more long-term residents. Another hour passed & someone in an un-cushioned chair said, “Long enough!” He went over to the “reserved” seat & took the cushion, not in complete defiance of the towel, but it was becoming clear that there was in fact a “too long.” Another hour passed & another. The pool was now fully abustle in the afternoon hours. A couple arrived to find all the seats occupied, well all but two, the two with the towels. It did not take much prompting from the peanut gallery of residents to also declare, “Long enough!” The towels were moved, the newcomers sat & order was renewed. Another hour later, 2 ladies arrived at the pool, looking somewhat bewildered & confused 😕 Neither made a scene or even a comment, which let’s not lie, was a bit of a bummer 😂 but rather they found their towels & laid them out in the grass & the day continued as if nothing had happened.

Learning has been our baseline. We are never quite sure what we are doing or how it is going to turn out. I usually learn best in hindsight 🤦‍♀️ But as I have mentioned before, we just can’t do everything. Turns out I also can not pack everything I “think” I “might” need, but here is a list of a few things I have decided I will not go without…

  • My no-flow-restrictor shower head 🚿 YEP! In an earlier post, I regaled you with the frustrations of lost luggage & Mexican TSA, thankfully my shower head was safely packed in our check bags. As of this posting, it looks like they finally have their supply chain issues resolved & all models are available, not on backorder 👍
  • Pink death back scrubber – I love this thing! It is super effective for the whole body, easy to use, takes to bar or liquid soap equally well, rinses thoroughly, dries fast, is laundry safe & compact for packing. Best uses: a good back scrub after a hot humid day, slathered with sunscreen by the pool or on the beach 🏖️ do not use if you forgot the sunscreen 😬🥵 Great for a thorough leg exfoliation prior to shaving your legs 🦵🪒
  • Ella pee – For the ladies, gents you may want to skip this one because I will not be holding back on this darling’s functionality 😉 After trying several others at the toilet & in the wild, this was hands down the easiest to use. The rigid cup fits snuggly around the pubic bone giving confidence against overflow.  The tube is long enough & slightly slanted to direct the flow out & away from your shoes 😊 The Ella pee comes in a plastic-coated zipper bag. (I also carry a small spray bottle of alcohol to disinfect the Ella before storing while in the wild – then wash it & the bag once “home”) The Ella pee has been a game changer on hikes, at the beach, waiting in line for my immigration card at 6am, when nothing is open (hypothetically 🤷🏼‍♀️) I no longer have to pull my pants all the way down & squat to get the job done ✅ 
  • Noise machine – I have 2 of these & can’t decide which one I like better. One has a light feature which is nice & I have used but not often. The other is much more basic but totally does the job, that is the one I have chosen to travel with because it is smaller. Many places we have stayed have had complaints in the reviews about nighttime noises. Using a noise machine has completely eliminated this issue for us, unfortunately, now I can not sleep without it 🤦‍♀️
  • Hair towel – I honestly can not remember which of these specifically because I have been using one for a very long time. Doesn’t everyone with somewhat long hair use one of these by now?! Mine helps reduce a bit of frizz and keeps my hair up & out of the way for skin care. It dries my hair better than a regular bath towel, and is smaller & less cumbersome, so traveling with it is not a problem. It is laundry safe, dries quickly & is easy to pack.
  • Knife sharpener – This is really a Dave thing as he does most of the cooking 🍲 There are few things in the world that annoy him more than dull knives 🔪 Nothing special, this one was pretty inexpensive & has done the job for our life on the road 😊
  • Columbia water backpack – I have several other water packs but I specifically bought this one at the Columbia Outlet on our Portland leg because the water pack was only part of the overall backpack. The water bag goes in its own zippered area & then it has an additional zipper compartment for other stuff,  like a snack, extra battery, hat, or whatever. Plus that section has a small mesh bag for keys or cash 💵 I have also found I can freeze water in the bladder, which is a bonus!
  • Cooler backpack – This was a Christmas gift from my mom 🎁 I needed this to be my carry-on personal item, holding my Mac, iPad, headphones, passport wallet et al & have a place for pens & gum & snacks. It also had to be our on-the-go cooler for balloon rallies or beach jaunts & finally make it to the grocery store with all our other grocery totes. I recently returned to using a “regular” backpack for my digital crap & am missing the ease of this one.
  • Merrell Women’s HYDROTREKKER – I may finally be a convert. Knowing these travels would include many different terrains, city, mountains, beach… I wanted to make sure my shoe choices were well thought through & didn’t take up too much space. I brought 5 pairs of shoes on this adventure (these Merrells, Keen low-profile hiking boots, Merrell strappy sandals, Chaco slides & some basic flip flops for the pool) These versatile Merrells have been the clear front runner. They are super comfortable with & without a little stocking sock (depending if we are going for a city stroll or sweaty hike.) The inserts come out easily to rinse them of silt & sand. They dry quickly & are pretty lightweight for packing.

No doubt this is not an exhaustive list. When we are traveling in the truck, the stuff expands to fill the space 😬 much to Dave’s chagrin. I have been able to work it down to 2 checked bags, 2 under seat carry-ons & 2 overhead carry-on bags (that sometimes get checked but I don’t pay for) when we fly ✈️ We will be headed back to Mexico 🇲🇽 in the fall, I wonder if I could manage with less 🤔 Probably, but why chance it 😉

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Underground Rivers 🌊

There are no above ground rivers in Yucatán, MX but there are over 6000 fresh water sinkholes or cenotes 😉 It is believed that the dinosaur killing astroid that impacted the earth bazillions of years ago, happened here & created the Chicxulub Crater. As the Earth rose up from the crater impact, the surface waters were sent underground into a labyrinth of limestone caves creating the Ring of Cenotes. We didn’t visit many in the end, mainly because the first one was so amazing & we had it all to ourselves. I just wasn’t sure any other could compare.

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Some cenotes are on private land, where local residents charge a small price, $20 pesos to get in & maybe also offer a snack stand & bathroom.

Some cenotes have been built up into much larger parks containing multiple other cultural experiences like a chocolate ceremony, being blessed by a Mayan priest or a swing up bar 😂

Still, others have yet to be discovered which is a real concern as progress makes its way through this precious landscape via the Maya train. Mexican geologists are racing against time & track laying to discover & map as many cenotes as possible, for both their cultural & environmental significance.

Culturally, a cenote would have been the main water source for a Mayan community. The Mayan knew to look for a specific kind of tree which meant an underground water source was nearby, making the land in this area more fertile & sustainable for a village. 

Environmentally, cenotes are still a vital water source for the Yucatán peninsula. There is great concern that as progress rolls through, these underground rivers will be contaminated or worse, the delicate terrain above them will simply collapse.

Cenotes are exclusively found in the Yucatan Peninsula (in Mexico), Belize & Guatemala, where the soil is porous & soft limestone, which allowed rainwater to seep in & create an underground system of rivers called the Sac Actun System. The largest underground river system in the world, located along the Mexican Caribbean, connects all the cenotes.

The life cycle of a cenote is unpredictable. There are open cenotes, partial cenotes & completely underground cenotes. Some were once moist caves growing stalagmites & stalactites that one day or over a thousand years flooded with water. Others, once flowing, dried up. 

Visit one, visit them all (well good luck with that) you could certainly spend a day cenote hopping in one general area. Bring a mask & snorkel 🤿 but keep your eyes peeled for Tsukán, the guardian & protector of the sacred waters 🌊