November 2, 2014 - Enter Burma

We are sitting at the entry point to Burma at Kawthaung awaiting stamps for our passports so we can dive Burmese waters.  The sun has risen and it's spectacular looking at the town.  Off the port side of the boat is a little shrine where monks can pray and John saw one there.  On the starboard side is the town itself and there is lots of activity with longboats coming and going, the fishing fleet, hotels, scooters, and stilt based houses. There is a monastery on the hill with eagles soaring nearby.   Definitely feels like we are somewhere else!!

The sun is warm, but the heat of the day is yet to come.  A pleasant breeze blowing through as returning squid boats roar by with their lights all wrapped around the top of the boat.  They use the lights to attract the squid to their nets. 

Breakfast was yummy and included a Thai soup.  Cheri lapped that up!

Now we've finally been cleared to enter Burma and we have a Burmese person on board.  We are sailing on placid waters heading 6 hours west to reportedly good diving.  The sea is nearly flat and huge thunder heads are formed in the distance, reflecting off the sea a very blue, grey scene...everything hazy....islands and shoreline all around.  Tanning my angel’s wings.   

High rock and 3 Islets were our dive sites. 

Common Lion Fish

Christmas Tree Worms

Anemone Crab

soft coral

Enjoy!

Cheri & John

Cozumel Mexico - November 29, 2010 - Day 1 Dive 1 - Palancar Bricks

Max depth of 77 Feet for about an hour

The light was wonderful with sun streaming down the whole dive.  Not once was it interrupted by clouds above.   We were overwhelmed by the health of the reef.  We'd been living in London for the past two years and found it too difficult to get to Mexico.  So now were were back in the US and back to Cozumel!  In the time we'd been away, the reefs had begun to flourish. 4 years ago a massive hurricane sat and spun on the island for 36 hours.  Now it is as if the hurricane had been a master gardener, pruning away the dead reef and allowing it to become way more beautiful than it had been since the early 90s.

Enjoy!

John & Cheri

June 3, 2010 - Muck Diving

We motored from about midnight last night until 5.30 am this morning where we awoke in a bay. It was time to start muck diving! You'd think we were crazy flying half way around the world to dive on dirt and trash - but no! It's an amazing place filled with all kinds of cool, little critters. On the first dive, John shot some amazing video and images of lion fish. There was a pair, maybe mates, who were hanging together and he got some unbelievable shots! Cheri shot a little goofy octopus and a leaf fish amongst other cool things! Off in the distance was an eagle ray! John shot a great lion fish and a blue sea star!

Today was a 4 dive day....

Dives 1 - 3 were amazing and we were both getting pretty good with our cameras. Dive 4 was the night dive. Yes - we get into zodiacs (like Navy seals use to transport themselves) and motor off into the pitch dark. On the count of 3 it's over the side and descent into the murky darkness. Usually you are immediately filled with a sense of awe because night diving is so very different from day diving. A whole new set of creatures emerge from their hiding places. It's like a giant treasure hunt!

Unfortunately, this night dive was a failure - very murky and lots of current. Sometimes that's the way it is at night - so we'll try again another night.

Enjoy!
Cheri & John

June 2, 2010 - Diving at Last!

Well - the long awaited day finally arrived. Wake up at 6 am...toast if you like and then into your gear and onto the zodiacs! Once you arrive at the dive site, you finish suiting up...fins, mask, regulator, weight belt....1...2...3...roll over backwards and splash!

As you descend into the deep the magic begins! You are surrounded by the sea and all the critters who call it home. This first day was full of wall dives with large gorgonian fans, anemone fish, soft and hard coral and little fishes! We dove 3 times and elected to skip the night dive.

Today was the first time we used our new cameras, housings, strobes (flashes), and nitrox computers; it was a big learning day!

The first dive produced alot of crummy pictures, with some flashes of brilliance, as we were getting used to the equipment and getting the settings correct. The second and third dives yielded better images and videos. So far the cameras are performing pretty well and offering a lot of flexibility for shots from macro to wide angle all on the same dive.

Enjoy!
Cheri & John