Location: Port St Charles, Barbados
While the second set of soon-to-be-certified divers were doing their confined dives today, the first group got a chance to explore the island. Although we did not go to the same places, we all came back with stories of adventure, friendly people, and of course, ice cream.
The horseback riding group took a 2-hour tour of the island on horseback. Cantering through the hills and walking along the beach offered a new perspective on the island. With our incredible tour guide, we learned about the local agriculture and were serenaded with some ad-libbed reggae music. After a lovely ride back to the marina from one of the owners of the farm who offered to drive us, we had a relaxing 3-course lunch at the yacht club before returning to relax onboard.
‘Team mermaids’ started their day at the Animal Flower cave. There they swam in the ‘magical’ waters of the cave, hoping without hope that they will wake up tomorrow with tails and scales. After lunch on the cliffs, they headed back towards town to stock up on snacks. Loaded up for our upcoming passages, they took the ‘bumpy bus’ back to Argo to relax before dinner.
Others headed off to go shopping at local boutiques. After a picnic lunch, they relaxed on the beach in the shade of an umbrella and swam in the turquoise waters. On their way back to the marina, they stocked up on more snacks and then came back to relax on the boat and swim in the marina.
The trainee divers spent the morning learning about breathing underwater. After putting together and breaking down their kit five times, they moved on to their confined dives off of the beach across the marina. Dives complete, they returned to the boat for lunch. Popping into the yacht club for ice cream, they then went off in different directions to find snacks and get in a bit more exploring before returning for dinner.
After a dinner of black-bean burgers and an interesting Squeeze telling obscure facts about ourselves, the uncertified divers took their quiz and final exam for the recreational dive planning portion of the course. Luckily, we all passed!