Session II Into the Blue!

By Fatimah Fair

    It is our 3rd day in Bonaire, and our venture to become open water certified scuba divers has officially commenced. We started the day off with scuba theory class, which honed in on the mechanics, physics and important skills to be aware of when diving. We then walked to the beach for a group snorkel, and practiced the skills that we had been introduced to the day before. This included mask clearing, diving without the mask to practice breathing out of our mouths, and partner guiding. Breathing continuously out of your mouth sounded simple, but it took a lot of concentration to get used to it. Luckily, our instructors helped me every step of the way so I was eventually able to do every skill. After the group dive, half of the group went on their first scuba lesson, while the other half went on another snorkel. I was with the snorkel group, and we swam out into the clearest blue water imaginable. We saw various forms of marine life, from coral to hundreds of baby fish to a stingray! We practiced “duck diving”, allowing us to dive deeper and get closer to the marine life rather than simply observing from overhead in awe.  Although snorkeling was phenomenal, I am beyond excited to start diving tomorrow!

Ayo pa awor! (Goodbye for now!)

Enjoying a view from the afternoon snorkel