Birthdays, Goodbyes, and Good Fun!

Is it already the end of another phase?! This past month has flown by. It feels like it was only yesterday that we welcomed Becky, Christine and Ryan and we’ve already been forced to say goodbye. We miss you guys! We also lost veteran Cai who is now travelling through Mexico and the region and then going on an incredible sailing adventure up the coast. At least new phase brings new volunteers and this time there are 6 new volunteers joining base. Great to have you guys!

All the interns have chosen their respective dive shops where they will be heading off to in a month. Over the weekend a group of interns went over to check out Cozumel before starting their internship. They got the opportunity to meet all of the instructors they will be working with and started making a list of excellent eating and drinking holes. If you are heading to Cozumel any time in the near future we heartily recommend visiting the Love bar. Name has nothing to do with the  scene. Really it’s just a great place where the locals hang out and listen to one of the best live bands in Mexico.

A few of us hired cars and went on an amazing road-trip up to the beautiful, culturally rich, historic town of Merida, where we discovered the true  Mexico. It was refreshing being somewhere with very few tourists. The sights, sounds, smells, colours, music and endless markets made for a fantastic weekend. We also discovered an amazing cenote in the centre of Valladolid, which is well worth a

visit.

Esther's birthday on Tuesday was a washout. The day was brightened up by an angry bird Piñata filled

with lots of delicious Mexican candy!! The angry bird proved to be the toughest Piñata around, taking forever to get into! This week has been filled with many exciting activities such as Volleyball, cycling, challenging Divemaster fitness. A second round of Human Cluedo is being played and there

are two new projects underway as well, one of which is to paint a wall mural around the communal, and the other is to make a video for you-tube about life on base, so keep an eye out for this. We have a month to complete them.

This week has been very strange as a much-loved, key member of the staff team has left base to travel for three months. Everyone misses Valeria a lot already, have fun travelling, everyone here is looking forward to when you get back. On a happier note big congratulations go out to Sancy who has been made a scholar, she has taken over responsibility for the community work at Punta Allen. She is doing a really fantastic job, this week the volunteers and the kindergarten kids painted a beautiful wall mural.

Finally, don’t forget that the Mayathlon is taking place this Sunday, the triathletes are all prepared and ready to go. Good luck everyone, mind the crocs!

Many thanks for all your donations so far, we have raised a fantastic $1150.00, the target for Sunday is to achieve about $2000. Remember all money goes to the recycling centre in Punta Allen, which not only help the townspeople but helps ensure that the Sian Ka’an biosphere will remain a Mexican paradise.

Birthdays, Goodbyes, and Good Fun!