Today was the first day of scuba bootcamp. We spent the first part of the day in the classroom having lots of information thrown our way about ecology field research methods and advanced scuba. It is going to be a challenge to keep all of these assignments straight. Once we had gotten everything passed out and explained to us in class, we all headed out to pass out swim test. This included a 400m swim, 25m underwater swim, two minutes of treading water without hands, and a 25m tired diver tow. The wind picked up this morning so the ocean actually had some turbulence to it and I ended up drinking a lot of seawater today. At least we all suffered through it together. It was a good bonding experience. After a brief lunch break, we finally got to get underwater. Fortunately, the wind had died down at this point making the water as smooth as a mirror. I have never seen such a calm sea. For today and tomorrow, we are completing open water dive skills and helping two people get certified. One of the two, a girl named Rachael, was my dive buddy. I was really excited to finally get to breathe underwater instead of having to snorkel like was all did the first two days. I was ready to go! My buoyancy was perfect and we got to see a bunch of creatures only a short swim off shore. There are way too many things to get all the pictures together but I shall give at least a little list. Green sea turtle, spotted moray eel, four squid, stoplight parrotfish, french damselfish, lots of coral, trumpetfish, and queen parrotfish, just to name a few. We got back and did our dive log for class only to end up going to another meeting to talk about the research project schedule for the next 15 weeks. I have no clue what I am going to do and am worried about not being able to come up with something interesting and exciting to do. They are expecting a lot out of us which I can understand, but I hope that I can live up to that. At least I get to dive.
P.S. If you are curious about what I am up to, here's a link to the CIEE calendar with all of our activities:
http://www.cieebonaire.org/book.html
It sure sounds like an informative day. I can't believe how many interesting things you saw in the water today. Is the water as clear as Hawaii? If you can't figure out a research project, consider speaking with your professors and ask for guidance as often they have topics that they can't wait for someone to research. We love you and are so proud of you. Love, Jen and Reg
ReplyDeleteThat stoplight parrot fish is unbelievable! I echo Jen's comment; think about talking with your professors about research topics. Have a great day today; of course, if you're under water with stoplight parrot fishes and turtles, how could it not be a great day!?!? LYM!
ReplyDeleteAnd just to pile on as a Barnes woman - i agree with "what she said." Do something that you feel a spark about and think will be interested in learning about. There are a lot of people that aren't as good at coming up with the initial ideas, but are really good at making the idea a reality. I'm good at coming up with 100 ideas and then can't figure out what to do with them. We all need each other! So excited for you, Q!!! I wish i had a million dollars and could go travel to all these amazing places to see our gals! Love you!
ReplyDeleteLove your blog. Dianne suggested that I send Arnaldo the link to your blog, via email, and ask him to give you guidance on your project. He is all over it and will be posting to you soon. Love U.
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