SCUBA DIVING AT BIRD ISLAND

Started off my day with butterflies in my stomach and some fig blueberry bars too! Everyone woke up excited and nervous for the day ahead! For me I was going into it with nonstop inner-jitters because today meant that I was about to become a certified SCUBA diver for open water! We headed out from the dock and I have some pictures below to show how beautiful the water looked. We had our lovely Ericka there to help feed us and give me some encouragement before jumping in! Dr. C and Glenn both came along during the dive and it was just an overall fantastic experience. When we first jumped into the water, I felt a rush of energy just overtake me and I started breathing a little too quickly and definitely very shallow. But after a bit, I got the hang of it and started calming down. We saw lots of beautiful sea lions, they were so curious with us, I even had a couple swim past me by a few inches. During our first dive, I saw a juvenile swim across my front and it looked like she was dancing, it was so funny to me I ended up laughing underwater! And then I had a rush of salt water into my mask, my eyes did not like that AT ALL. The next morning I woke up with a lovely swollen left eye, it gave everyone a good laugh!
Some other organisms I saw while diving were sea cucumbers, lots of fish, sun stars, brittle stars, and lots of algae. The birds on the island were an incredible site to see! The biggest miracle for the day had to be when Paige spotted some dolphins racing our boat at the bow! There were three of them having lots of fun turning on their sides to see us! I couldn't believe how fast they swim! I had never encountered bottlenose dolphins before, and that was absolutely the cherry topping for the day! By the end of the trip, everyone was so pooped out from all of our adventures, we finished off the night with a delicious dinner at La Curva. Drea was given a recommendation from Aaron to try a unique dish called Molcajete, and I had a small bite but it was unbelievable tasty! I wish I had bravery with trying diverse dishes, but I had order chicken which was still equally yummy. Next time I come back, I will for sure be more adventurous in the culinary sector!