Location: Falmouth Harbor, Antigua
Today was our first full day in Antigua, and we were all busy with diving, studying, and continuing to get Argo nice and shiny for Classics. We started off with a breakfast of scrambled eggs, baked beans, pineapple, and toast. Some people don’t think that baked beans should be rinsed off before eating (Freddie and Ben), but the chefs (Brina and Gabe) disagreed. Our British staff was quite dismayed when they saw the naked beans stripped of their normally saucy outfits. When I suggested that maybe they could make their own sauce, Freddie said that I might as well try to make my own Coca-Cola. I’ll admit I wouldn’t know the complexities of the baked bean sauce because I’ve never eaten baked beans and didn’t start today. Anyways, after breakfast, dive group one got ready for their first advanced training dive – fish identification! By 9:30 am, Elene, Gabe G, David, Katie, Nick Beau, Emma, Ellie, and Audrey (led by Amanda S. and Ben) had descended with slates and pencils to identify some fish. Fish identification may seem tricky, but not if you’ve been paying attention to Ben’s marine biology lectures. I’ve heard great things. Luckily dive group one is fantastic students, so they had a great dive and saw some really nice fish. Once we got back to Argo, I brought Nat and Elene along on an adventure to the fuel dock, and after the dinghies got topped up, it was time to eat.
Lunch was less controversial quesadillas and guacamole, followed by a quick clean up and dive group two getting ready to go. Brina, Elisabeth, Will, Nolan, Zoe, Natalie, Tim, MG, and Freddie were led by Amanda C. on what I’m sure was another amazing fish identification dive. When group two returned, I got to inform the crew that there would be a surprise Oceanography lecture, which they were all jazzed about. (Some probably would have preferred to continue napping, but we gotta keep them on their toes). For dinner, our chefs served meatball hoagies and salad, and in theme with the dives of the day, we all went around and said our favorite fish. Now you might be thinking two dives in one day is plenty, but not for us! After dinner, dive group one got ready for round two and their first-night dive! It was a little chilly, but that didn’t distract us from seeing lots of cool life – squid, worms, eels, a ray, and lots of tiny fish that seemed confused and kept swimming into us (one even jumped out of the water to hit Amanda S. in the face, which was hilarious). It was a long but super fun day, and don’t worry, dive group two will get their chance to night dive tomorrow.
Hi Mom and Dad, can’t wait to see you guys in May and give Sachi a hug for me!