However our diving trip is not canceled. Moreover, our gear has arrived and we are more than ready. We get on a boat and head towards Esmeralda. It is on the other side of the reef and the waves are much bigger. We ride up and down like on a roller-coaster. We quickly gear up and go down. This is a much better dive. At 60ft nurse sharks come, our dive-master brought lunch for them. We pet them, ride on them and pull their fins. Given a few pieces of fish they get for it they take a lot of tourist abuse.
When the food is gone, we head out. There is a deep canyon at the bottom and since I am allowed to go to 80ft I check it out. I am sure Kasia is jealous but it is irresistible. It is beautiful scenery with a lot to see but I mostly float and enjoy being there. Sharks are following us but we have no more food.
Second dive is a straight path at 50ft. The bottom varies and there are nice coral reefs and lots of smaller fish. Kasia is certified as a diver and I am already thinking of blue holes and other underwater attractions that I might lure her into.
For dinner we head to San Pedro. The restaurant is called Victoria House and it is recommended in the guide. We make a reservation and when we arrive in a water taxi a car is waiting to take us there. It is a very classy place and the food is excellent. I am having a whole snapper made in a local fashion.
On the way back it is raining and the weather is deteriorating quickly.
Next morning the beach is no longer visible, everything is underwater. We find out that all boats to Belize City are canceled. Hotel people are inquiring whether we really want to go under such conditions. Since we put-off packing till now, we are actually quite busy. There is quite a bit of stress, and each of us have different ways of dealing with it. Kasia smokes, Joanna drinks, Ola makes sure that her make-up and hairdo are up to snuff, and I piss off everybody around. When the boat comes the conditions are making your blood-pressure to go up. It is windy, slippery and waves are making a lot of noise. We start and in seconds we are soaking wet. It is quite exciting, finally vacations are on track, at least according to my taste. We arrive at the airport in San Pedro, the plane is quite small and the flight is very exciting. It is low altitude so the view is great as well. It is less scary though that I had hoped for.
In Belize there is more excitement, it is possible that our flights are canceled. We already paid over $600 to change our tickets - a charge that I am planning to contest, so a possibility of more financial bleed is less welcome. "Jesus is the Lord" is a friendly shelter next to the airport where you can wait for your flight for days and perhaps get reprogrammed as well. While we map these possibilities, quarrel and stress out, again everything turns out ok. Furthermore, even though Matthew decided to sow destruction in Nicaragua our decision to leave early was correct. Ambergis Caye shuts down immediately after our departure and we are led to believe that Sunday departure would not have been possible. Overall, excellent adventure.
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