Week 6 in Pez Maya

Week 6- Tomorrow I will not get bitten, tomorrow I will not hear thunder…breathe….visualize

This week at Pez Maya there has been a lot of ups and downs (what’s new, aye). The week started with a trip to Playa for the ten weekers so they could give the departing five weekers a proper send off; they are missed! Meanwhile the new five weekers arrived in an empty camp to settle in to life with no toilets and warm beer (it’s surprising how easy this became normal). Soon though, the two groups were united and a lazy afternoon was spent recovering from saturday farewell and rescuing baby turtles.

On Monday morning the real Pez Maya life began. The new arrivals were shown the jobs and the all important fish and coral flash cards before going on their first dive on the Mesoamerican barrier reef. The weather throughout the week has been less than cooperative. We’re not allowed to dive within an hour of hearing thunder and ironically the thunder sounded every 55 minutes when the sea was so calm and blue! Momentary heavy rain showers were common and the kitting up area earned the name “Lake Pez.” Furthermore the compressor…yes you guessed it…broke down again leaving us with only one dive a day (thanks to our partners CONANP for lending us your compressor!). Despite these setbacks though, the new five weekers earned their open water diver qualification, congratulations and all the best for their advanced open water this week! Also, Shannon fiiiiiiinally finished her Advanced! Meanwhile the veterans carried on with their rescue diver skills, fish and coral spots, and monitoring. A manatee, nurse shark, and hawksbill turtle were spotted! After long, itchy, and hot days spent on land, these sighting made everyone extra excited and eager about going out on more dives.

Mornings, afternoons, and nights, were spent cursing every single sand fly, mosquito, and horse fly on base. After the daily rain showers and storms at night the bugs were out with a vengeance (currently I’m getting bitten through my shirt). Baby oil, mozzie spray, slapping, scratching and expletives became a common occurrence this week. Also Liz received a scare when she discovered a scorpion crawling up her leg while driving home in the truck. She reacted calmly whilst Steve cried (like a man).

We finished this week by volunteering at Tulum’s annual Green Expo and welcoming a new member of staff Gen, who is joining us from the Seychelles. Saturday’s Tribal themed party was a hit despite everyone being a little hazy on what it meant to be tribal. Louise epitomized it perfectly with her palm frond skirt and palm fabric top. Tattoos were painted on and headdresses were sported by many (Sarah’s tattoo became a bit more permanent when she got a sunburn – sleeping hung-over in a hammock – around the black paint that was still on her chest, much to everyone’s amusement). Ian made the most of his last party night and we are all dreading his departure this week. Lluvia cooked a delicious meal and there were two cakes to celebrate Rob’s birthday!

Congratulations to our new fish and coral geeks who passed their tests early. Yay Josh (fish passed first!) and Sam. Good luck to the others this week.

Lets all practice some PADI visualization and help us picture a week full of blue skies, flat seas, a working compressor, minimal itching, cold beers, bacon, and maybe a few more sharks, dolphins, whale sharks, eagle rays, manatees, and mermaids. We can dream can't we (in particular I’m referring to the cold beers and bacon)?

Week 6 in Pez Maya