Sint Maarten: Day 10

For some reason, presumably his early departure, my father decided not to wake me before he left. It turned out that this wasn’t really all that problematic as I ended up waking up at about 8:00 AM on my own.

I spent much of the morning on computer related tasks, but was also able to throw in some eating and relaxing. While it was a less productive morning that I might have hoped, it certainly wasn’t unpleasant.

Shortly after I finished lunch I received a call from my father. We decided that it would be best to try and take a snorkeling tour that afternoon, rather than try to fit in later in our rapidly filling week. The advantage of this snorkeling tour is that those taking the tour get to pilot their own dinghies to the snorkeling site, which is an underwater wildlife reserve.

Upon learning that there were a few slots let we gather our snorkeling equipment and bathing costumes and set off for Simpson Bay. Fortunately, on our way there we didn’t encounter serious traffic and we were able to cross the drawbridge with no delays.

Once on-site we stashed our belongings, but on sun screen and sat to wait for instructions. Shortly, someone that could have been the owner came out and gave the basic safety run down and described hand signals that would be used during the trip.

Oliver (from France) and Ryan (from Guyana), our guides, then took over the presentation and explained where we would be going and what we would be seeing. Their presentation was peppered with a number of prepared jokes and humorous moments (the sort of which my father is particularly fond).

After the presentation we were able to board our boats, which while dinghies are configured more like jet skies. This means that directly behind the steering wheel is the only seat, which is shared by both individuals as if they were on a motorcycle. While this is likely part of the attraction for couples that take the tour, I would have preferred to have a seat back.

Soon enough we were off, but not before the company photographed us. We made our way through the lagoon and then under the drawbridge on the French side. Once we were in the Caribbean Sea we were able to go full speed while following one of the tour guides. At various places along the journey out we stopped and were shown things such as nude beaches and communities of interest (it also served as a way of letting stragglers catch up).

We reached our final destination after only about 35 minutes on the water, which is pretty remarkable as it was almost at the most northerly tip of the French side of the island (and we started in the south of the Dutch side). While traveling we were able to spot several flying fish as they bounced across the water.

Once everyone had been tied together and provided with beverages (of the non-alcoholic variety) we were encouraged to hit the snorkeling grounds. The only warnings and instructions were not to go aground, not to stand-up (or touch the corral), and to watch out for the sea urchins.

Once in the water it became apparent that the water was clearer than anywhere else we had yet been snorkeling. As we swam from the boats towards the shore it also became apparent that the density of fish was much greater here than anywhere else we had yet been snorkeling. Seemingly dozens of fish came into view almost simultaneously.

Not surprisingly, most of the fish, and other forms of wildlife, were to be seen while floating over the rocks by the shore. While many of the same types of fish that we had seen in other locations were common, there were also many new types of fish that we had not seen in either of the two other locations were we have gone snorkeling. Unfortunately, I am not familiar enough with the identification of tropical fish to list them all here. The few things that I was able to identify, and that I am glad that I saw, included a cuttlefish, something that resembled a juvenile swordfish, a brightly coloured eel, a conch, sea urchins with large spikes, corral, and a few sea anemones.

At one point there appeared to be a sedated feeding frenzy near the top of the water. Somehow I found myself in the middle of these fish and their food (I am not sure that I want to know what the ‘food’ was). It was really remarkable to have all of these fish swimming around me, acting as though I didn’t really exist.

At least I thought they didn’t think I existed. I am confident that a few minutes into this experience that one of them took a bite of my leg, or the leg hair attached to my leg. This freaked me out and caused me to decided to leave the center of the action.

After about 45 minutes of snorkeling we returned to our boats and prepared to head back. Within a few minutes we managed to change from our snorkeling gear back into our life jackets and sunglasses. And unlike most of the couples on the trip, my father and I switched positions on the seat, meaning that I would be in control of the boat on the way back. Actually, this has been a very noticeable trend when it comes to couples and transportation. In basically all two-person forms of transportation that we have seen, the male will be driving and the female will be in the back (or in the passenger seat).

Just before returning to the drawbridge, and as we were about to enter the no wake zone, one (progressive?) couple actually did switch positions (but presumably only when the male knew that the better part of the trip was over).

As the boats arrived they were tied to the dock and the tour members made their way to the waiting area next to the dock. Once we had all been gathered, the boss (the same guy that started the presentation before the tour began) explained that the pictures of us had been taken and could be purchased along with a ‘certificate of achievement.’ While the photo was pretty good neither of us was inclined to spend $15 to acquire it (though the certificate was tempting).

While some of the individuals on the tour stuck around for a beer afterwards, we started to make our way home. But before returning home we stopped at the grocery store to try and acquire the ingredients that we needed to attempt to re-create our meal of the night before.

Almost as soon as we returned home my father started preparing our meal. I, on the other hand, took a shower to remove any remaining traces of saltwater. Within a few minutes I too was working on the remaining elements of the meal (mainly the cutting of the green beans). Once fully cooked, the meal was basically as good as that of the previous night. The major improvement was the cutting of the cassava (yucca) into more uniform pieces so that they would cook more evenly.

Shortly after we finished eating my father went back to work to continue preparing lectures and writing test questions. I stayed in the apartment and did the dishes. Soon after I had finished the dishes I spent some time online before finally finishing the evening out by reading anecdotes about former SNL cast member Chris Farley.