Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
31st-1st September
After another sleep in an airport we finally arrived in Santa Marta. Our hostel was really nice like a mini hotel with a pool, restaurant, kitchen and bar area. We didn't do much on the 31st as we were very tired from our night in the airport. Santa Marta was not a very exciting town and I was keen to get me PADI completed. We sussed out Taganga and watched the very boring 3 hour video but it was in an air conditioned room which is needed here. I fell asleep about 5 times so I am hoping the diving information have come to me in my dreams.
2nd-6th September
The dive company we chose was Octupus and my instructor was Desde. For my first dive I had to complete my exercises which obviously I completed very quickly as I am a 'gifted' diver-mahaha! After a short break I went for a dive with Emerald (a girl on her second day of PADI) and we practiced some buddy checks and then enjoyed the dive. We saw lots of different fish including sting rays and lion fish. The afternoon James and I wandered up and down Taganga, had Menu del dia and a great evening meal at Bitacora.
The next two days James came with us and snorkelled and scuba dived. The best dive was the last where a turtle swam between James legs and we got to lie in a current as it swept us around some beautiful coral filled with so many different fish, I didn't know where to look it was so amazing. The practical side of the diving was great it was so much better than I had expected I was so pleased to have chosen Octupus, some of the other companies did the first two dives in the swimming pool! The afternoon I spent revising for my test and it paid off I got 100% and I am hoping tomorrow I will get a free T shirt. The evening we went out to celebrate with Emerald and Bennett (her boyfriend) and a few others from their hostal. It was a fun night we didn't get to bed until gone 3:00am and the bar we went to had a great view over the whole of Taganga, from what I can remember!
The next day I went to collect my T shirt and was told that my reward for getting 100% was a free night dive, we couldn't believe it I was excited about a T shirt I couldn't believe it was a free dive instead. We booked James on as well and I spent the whole day getting excited. We went onto Parque Tayrona to relax and then got ready for our night dive. As we were putting on our wetsuits the sky got darker, a storm was brewing. By the time we got onto the water the storm was in full flow. Thunder right over head and lightning so close and bright it lit up the whole sea. We had a quick briefing about the differences of diving at night and got in-James Bond style. It was like a different world, even more so in the night. The thunder and lightning made the experience even better, in particular when we turned off the torches and saw the plankton alight with lightning filling the sea with light, so so amazing. We were buzzing afterwards and it is something we want to do again.
- comments
Gdawg The diving sounds amazing! So glad you got yet another chance of a lifetime! Water scares the living daylights out of me so I take your word for it! Well done on 100% ! Not that I would expect anything else! Xxx