I was up at the crack of dawn again the next morning and wandered to the north of the island this time. Secluded high-end beach front hotels contrasted by shacks and humble homes just on the neighboring street. The tropical flowers didn't seem to differentiate and adorned both places equally.
In the afternoon we joined a group of adventurous tourists for a couple hours of wave running on a speed boat and snorkeling at the Hol Chan Marine Reserve and Shark Ray Alley. This was only my second time donning a snorkel and the guys at SEArious Adventures did a great job of helping me learn the ropes and made sure I was safe throughout the swim. I am not so much a sport swimmer as I am a "know how to not sink" kind of swimmer. But that didn't seem to matter once the flippers were on and the water was blown out of my snorkel.
Using "flipper" muscles never before tested, I was in awe of the wonder I saw just below the water's surface along the Western Barrier Reef. For the past few days I have seen the waves crash several hundred yards out and now I know what is actually there. Amazing! We encountered barracuda, grouper, moray eel, enormous turtles and 4 kinds of angel fish - happily mated for life.
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| Boat ride to Altun Ha Marine Reserve. |
We got back in the boat and went a little farther out to Shark Ray Alley. Our guide got the nurse sharks into a frenzy with fish bits so they would swarm around the boat. I wasn't so sure about jumping into the water this time, but once my courage was mustered, I left the flippers behind and joined the sharks. I was even brave enough to "pet" the shark one of the guides wrestled into his arms. The sting ray skimmed the bottom of the ocean floor and looked more like alien ships than marine life. Our new favorite treat, coconut tarts, awaited us after the swim. Lovely!
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| Dani taking a swim with the nurse shark. |
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