The Next Chapter: Day 508

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Day 508 - Tortola

Posted by Jill Marie

I LOVE a good dive day & today was no exception! In fact, it was my first wreck dive! Bronwyn, Leana & I went to Salt Island & dove the HMS Rhone. It sunk in 1867 - the same year Canada became a country!

The ship had quite a story to it - supposedly 'unsinkable' & well, you can read all about it here. The dive company was exceptionally efficient. They had all of our gear sorted out for us & our tanks were labelled with our names, already hooked up & ready to go. It gave me confidence in the diving crew! Additionally, the crew were very knowledgeable & the dive briefing was very thorough with a map of the wreck site, which also added to the confidence & comfort of what we were about to do!

I was thrilled to see the 'lucky' porthole, with glass still intact & the Captain's teaspoon lying on the wreckage. We swam past the propeller's & the mast, along with a few swim-throughs, which were enthralling! I haven't been in a tight diving space since the cenotés dive in 2005. It was beautiful to see the air bubbles trapped, shining like liquid mercury discs and the escaping bubbles streaming up from holes in the hull of the ship. It's a whole new world under the water. If you've ever wanted to scuba dive, go for it! It's amazing & I'm so grateful to have the chance to do it!

I was amazed to dive with a fellow named Roger. I don't know how he lost his leg, but he dove with one leg! There were strong currents & I could barely keep up at times with 2 legs! What an inspiration he is to overcome his disability & carry on making the most out of life! He buddy breathed with our Divemaster on the way up & I can understand why! He had to swim with his arms & with the currents, it is no wonder he used a bit more air than the rest of us! Respect to you Roger & happy diving in the future!

After our dive, we went for a bite to eat at a nearby restaurant where Nic found us. We finished our meal & headed to La Dolce Vita for gelato. Wow. I think they have the best gelato in all the Caribbean. It was the perfect post-dive treat. Bronwyn, Leana & Nic headed back to the ship & I swung by the British shop to pick up a few things for Jaco.

Weighted down with Ceres juice, jelly babies & wine gums, I made my way back to the ship. Jaco was already in the clinic, so I went straight to making taco meat for supper. It is yummy. Even Jaco thinks so! I'm so happy when he eats something that I've made & actually enjoys it! It's really quite simple. You take walnuts that have been soaked & dehydrated (to release the toxic enzyme inhibitor) & you blend them in a food processor with chili powder, garlic, bragg's aminos & I think that's about it! Then you slice up red pepper, cabbage, sprouts, carrots or whatever else you want in your taco & roll it all up in a lettuce leaf! Butter lettuce is my favourite to use. Let me know if you fancy the recipe!

xxxxMaria