SCUBA

Instructor Omi and me after a successful pool session

First Breath

Today I found myself at the beginning of a journey to a whole new world, a world down under.  After a long childhood and upbringing in the New Mexican desert, I now find myself surrounded by water in every direction.  From this view it becomes clear how 70% of the earth's surface could be covered by water.  That means, to remain on land limits oneself to only 30% of earth's natural beauty.  Today I took my first plunge toward exploring that other 70%.  I attended my first SCUBA lesson with my own private Mauritian instructor, Omi.  Omi spent 2 hours with me in a resort pool completing preliminary contained dive skills.  After successfully clearing water filled goggles, assisting out of air divers, and dealing with malfunctioning equipment, among other skills, I am now ready to head to the ocean for my first exploration dive.

Joining the Family

Today I joined my parents in our "home" (this is the first I've ever been) on the beautiful island of Mauritius.  The island lies in the middle of the Indian Ocean, 560 miles off the east coast of Madagascar.  After 30 hours of traveling on planes and through airports, I officially arrived as a part of my world traveling family.  I hope to have many wonderful stories to tell over the next 3 months here.  This will be my first blog of many over this summer and beyond.