Wednesday, Bert acquiesced to taking a day off the explore the island. After all, when staying at an all-inclusive resort, you could almost be anywhere if you never step out of the front doors! A car was dropped off for us and we took off after he returned from the morning dive. We headed over to the southern shore and drove through the little towns of Coxen Hole and Frenchman’s Quarter. Not much going on, but lots of little convenience markets that measured about 16 feet long and 12 feet deep. People walking everywhere, attending to their business, and schoolchildren in uniforms laughing in little clusters. We stopped at one point to watch a local pickup soccer game. Some things are the same everywhere in the world.
Stopped at Tabyana beach in the West End for some wicked good snorkeling. Sometimes when going to a beach to snorkel, you paddle out and circle a couple of heads of coral. That was not the case here – the coral kept on going and going and there was at least as much life at this spot as at any dive site we’d been to. After about an hour, we agreed it was time to eat, so we changed on the beach, hopped in the car, and headed back up to a lighthouse-looking restaurant called 360 degrees for lunch. Our boat driver recommended it and the view off the back deck was incredible: over the jungle and all along the coast, a view we enjoyed immensely as we munched on our lobster.
Next stop was a little area called West Bay. A funky little beach town with a dozen dive shops, gift stores, bars and restaurants. Reminded me of a smaller Bocas del Toro (the beach town I visited in Panama earlier in the year).
Ran into an instructor from the resort and chatted with him about the local goings-on. Headed back to the resort in time to enjoy the sunset (behind the clouds) and the evening fiesta. Hungry to dive again tomorrow!