Today was Monday. For most people, this is probably a bad thing. But, not today, not for me! First, we don't have Histology on Mondays (or Thursdays). Any day that we don't have a class is a good day! Also, i didn't have lab. Again, any day without lab is a good day. Lab does go by much faster and is not nearly as much of a waste, now that we've finally got bodies, but I still don't particularly like going. I would probably like it a lot more if we had twice the number of bodies and less people in the room!
But, I decided to go SCUBA diving today with Matt, which is mostly what made the day good. We got out at 10:30 today from class, so there was a little time to study before going diving at 1:30. I went to a place called Dive Octopus on the French side in Grand Case. The diving is supposed to be better over there and I figured I'd check a new place out. Overall, I think I like this dive shop the best so far. It's owned by a husband and wife from Canada who just decided to up and move here years ago. It's not a very big shop and you have to walk out in the water to get to the boat, but I think it's worth it. The water is only about waste deep and it's only as far as you'd walk out on a dock, so not too bad. Apparently, getting permission to build a dock on the French side is not easy. And, to be fair, there were none to be seen close by.
The boat that they use is much newer and faster than any dive boat I've been on before. It's not a very large boat, but it's got two 150hp motors on the back which propel it very fast. And, although it's a pretty small boat, they only take a maximum of 6 divers, which is very nice. Today, the owner was the captain and divemaster. He's very friendly and knowledgeable of the reefs around St. Maarten.
The place he took us today was a reef in Grand Case bay, since it's a pretty shallow reef and we had a snorkeler coming along. He guaranteed us to see a turtle, and we wound up seeing two. They didn't seem to be at all scared and I got the best pictures that I've gotten yet of a turtle. There was also a very large sting ray, but it swam away before I could get a good picture of it. The visibility wasn't amazing since it has rained recently, but it was good enough and there was plenty to see close by.
After diving, Matt and I went to a small restaurant close to the dive shop that the owner (John) recommended. The food was good and fortunately, the local employees are not aware of the horrible exchange rate of the dollar compared to the Euro!! So, they just told us it was the same price, dollars or Euro. Needless to say, we made out very well because of this and a plate of ribs with 3 sides wound up costing $8! The menu actually had prices listed for the drinks the same in dollars or euros, but were assuming this was either a mistake or was for drinks only.
After lunch, came back and studied Histology. Since we didn't have histo today, I am now officially caught up in that class. By Wednesday night, I will hopefully be solid with the other two classes. Only 3 days left until I'm back in Baltimore for the weekend with the girlfriend and family!!! Can't wait for fast internet, good service, and big roads!!
Link: http://flickr.com/photos/slevit1/sets/72157602444848615/
1 comment:
Scott, many restaurants in Grand Case do the dollar and euro the same, to keep business comming from the dutchside. But not all, so its good to ask about it when you go in. Some times they will have a sign stating so, but still ask.
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