SCUBA Diving Archives - Page 3 of 3 - ETB Travel Photography

Manta Rays in the Maldives!

Dive Sites in the Maldives

Moofushi Kandu

This morning, we went back to the same dive site as yesterday afternoon, Moofushi Kandu, to try our luck with the mantas again. This time they were slightly more cooperative. One came in from the left and a little while later another came in from the right. They glided around elegantly for a few minutes before they decided that was enough. We were not in the best place for viewing. A huge school of blue striped snapper were right in front of us. Continue reading “Manta Rays in the Maldives!” →

Octopus, Giant Clams, and Turtles at Fish Head Reef…The Maldives

Well, we were up by 4:30 am. The time adjustment has been poor at best for us. We certainly haven’t needed the 6am wake up call! Today our dive briefing was at 6:15 instead of 6:30 so that we could beat a few boats into the water.

Dive Sites in the Maldives

Hafza Thila in North Ari Atoll

We dove Hafza Thila in the North Ari Atoll, that is once we found the site. Our group of 6 dropped into deep blue with our dive master and didn’t find the pinnacle so we had to surface, board the boat, and drop again. At first the visibility wasn’t that great, but that seems to be the case where there a slight current. The trade off is usually for a few shark sightings as they like to rest in the current. We spotted a giant moray as we circled around the reef and other divers but the best part to me was on the top of the pinnacle. Here we found countless seastars and anemones with their clownfish counterparts. The table coral was lovely and large enough for two baby white tip reef sharks to rest beneath its ledge. Overall it was a pretty nice dive though still a bit chaotic with multiple dive groups in the area. Hopefully we won’t be competing with boats on every site. Continue reading “Octopus, Giant Clams, and Turtles at Fish Head Reef…The Maldives” →

White Eyed Eel, Sharks, and more at Kurumba House Reef and Maaya Thila

I believe I have only been on one dive boat live aboard previously, but have been on similar excursions for whale watching and sailing where we stay on a big boat and drag a dinghy behind us. I’ve never been on a live aboard when another flat decked dive boat the size of ours with tanks and a cover follows along. Though nothing fancy, it is nice to leave all our wet gear on the Dhoni.

The group of twenty four divers were broken into four smaller sections. Ramona, Michael, Julie, Dustin, Rootie and I comprised the “American” group who was led by Akko. There were also Asian, International, and German/Asian groups led by Chris, Ian, and Russ, respectively. Continue reading “White Eyed Eel, Sharks, and more at Kurumba House Reef and Maaya Thila” →

On the Dive Boat, MV Orion

Boarding the MV Orion

Today was one of anticipation and relaxation. While our B&B was nice and breakfast good, we didn’t have a whole lot to do but wait to get to the boat at 1pm. This afternoon couldn’t come fast enough. The wonderful hotel staff arranged a transfer for us back to the airport where we met up with Ramona, Michael, Dustin and Julie who we met a little over a year ago on a whale watching excursion. It was fun to reconnect in the air-conditioned Burger King at the airport as we waited for the rest of the passengers to arrive.

It wasn’t long before we boarded our transport to the MV Orion. I thought the local dive boat was acting as a ferry, but as it turns out the Dhoni is the boat we dive off while we sleep on the plush Orion. The Dhoni stays with us for our week-long journey.

Our room is spacious with twin beds, a bedside table, vanity, closets, and one nice bathroom with real toilets. No pumping the head required. The boat was constructed in 2009 and most of the crew have been with it the whole time. If only they got the A/C working a little better. We are told the rooms will cool once we start moving, but we are waiting for more guests to arrive later tonight. We shall see. As Rootie exclaimed, “I wonder if the beds with only one sheet are any indication of how cool our rooms will get.

The boat features a hot tub, bar, salon, massage parlor, spotty internet service for a $20 fee, and a great upper deck with magnificent views and a nice breeze. We spent most of our time on the deck today while enjoying the sunshine.

Rice seems to be a staple in these parts. Actually, perhaps starches in general as pasta and potatoes and rice were served with lunch and dinner along with mixed veggies, chicken, and another generally a type of beef. Nothing terribly gourmet.

Our dive gear is set up on the Dhoni for tomorrow. We have a 6am wake up call, a briefing at 6:30, and then our first dive in the Maldives (pronounced Maldeeves). ETB

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Fire Worms, Scorpion Fish and More….SCUBA Diving Sosua, Dominican Republic

Traveling to Sosua

After one heck of a day of travel, we finally reached Sosua, Dominican Republic after 11pm at night. I actually started my travels on Wednesday, made a short stop in Dallas to see my family, and left for DFW with my friend Rootie at 6 in the morning. After connecting in Tampa and Miami, we eventually landed in Santiago around 9. Santiago, unfortunately is a two hour cab ride from Sosua! We normally would have flown into Puerto Plata, but the airline connections were even worse!

The people here are extremely nice! Our cab driver found Rootie’s sweater in his car, and he brought it to her while we were checking in. Our hotel, Sosua by the Sea, is right on the beach. I look forward to exploring tomorrow afternoon. For the immediate future we had a challenge with the A/C in our room. After an hour, it hadn’t cooled and eventually we realized, while the fan was blowing, no air was coming through the vent!

We planned on melting through the night, but called to have someone fix the problem tomorrow. The staff was extremely attentive and a worker was knocking at the door in a few minutes! They ended up carrying all our unpacked items to another room! We enjoyed a cool, deep sleep night until 5 am when an alarm began beeping in the hallway. Thanks to Rootie’s and the staff’s efficiency, the beep was gone in a few minutes.

I suspect, so far, this sounds like a dumpy hotel and several complaints. Frankly it didn’t really bother me, as the staff is fantastic! And who can complain about a hotel right on the beach, with beautiful views, a great buffet breakfast, and a nice pool area! It was just a short night! Continue reading “Fire Worms, Scorpion Fish and More….SCUBA Diving Sosua, Dominican Republic” →

A Fun Weekend of Diving and Dining in Cozumel, Mexico

Dining in Cozumel

One would probably not expect to hear we enjoyed a good weekend of fine dining in Cozumel, but we did. We have found a hidden gem, Sorrisi. A part of me wants to be selfish and keep it hidden and to ourselves. The other part of me thinks maybe I should share it with a few people because I want it to be open the next time I go, and we hardly ever share the restaurant with more than one other table when we go there. It is some of the best Italian food around. I’d eat there if it were in Denver or Dallas!

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