Location: Savanna Bay, VIrgin Gorda
Our first anchor watch was successful. Spencer and I got the 04:00-06:00 am shift, where we were able to watch the stars and the sunrise. We and a few others, including Suzette and Emily, got in an early morning swim. Soon after, others were woken up to start their day. First was breakfast, a classic bacon, eggs, and potatoes. Then the most exciting part of the day for most! We were able to try on our BCDs and get our gear set up for dive training. The non-certified divers went out on the dinghies to land first. We separated into groups. Meg had Madalyn, Maya, Eric, and myself. While Ben had Lucia, Maddie, and Spencer. We got into our gear and then finally took our first breath underwater. What a crazy and thrilling experience.
Following this, we then started our training for the PADI open water diver certification. With many skills completed we were all hungry and ready to head back to the ship for lunch, meeting up with the certified divers. After lunch, the certified divers went out for their first dive. Meg and Ben were the dive instructors again, with Hana, Skye, and Ellie in one group and Nick, Weston, and Ethan in the other. Tevon went to the “Different Drummer” and dived with our other friends. Once they were back, we refilled tanks, and the non-certified divers went back out to finish the training while the rest of the crew went zesting, sailing on small sailboats. A while after, we headed back to the ship, where we all rinsed our gear and took ocean showers. Dinner was ready! We had chilly and cornbread, which everyone was a fan of (thank you, Nick). We ended our meal with brownies and sang Happy Birthday to Ethan. Wrapping up the night with our squeeze circle, saying our appreciation and our favorite movie!
Now we’re on deck, and Nick is teaching us swing dance and salsa dance!
(EDITORS NOTE: Today, we were in the water for most of the day, making photos difficult, but diving photos are to come tomorrow!)