The closest feeling I'll ever have to being on the moon....

The video above is from our wreck dive Saturday morning. I also have a few videos from our night dive Friday night, but I am waiting for a friend we met in Utila to send them to me. When I get the videos I'll make sure the post them :)

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I’ve been sitting here now for the last 5 minutes trying to think of the words to describe our night dive last night without lessening the experience from what it actually was. The feeling was like nothing I have ever encountered in my life, but is definitely one that I want to have again. We left the dock, with all of our gear hooked up in the boat, just before dusk. As the sun continued to lower Sascha gave us a quick briefing of what we were about to experience, neither Alisha nor I have ever been on a night dive before. However, even with the briefing, I could have never truly been prepared for what was about to surround me. Night diving, if you are blessed with a clear peaceful night, is compared by many to being on the moon.

As we back flipped off the boat it was just about dark. Just light enough to spit in my mask and rinse it once to prevent my view from being fogged. A minute later we were descending down into the dark, equalizing every few feet to stop the pressure from causing a pain in our ears. Our torches (aka flashlights) were on, but unless you shine the light on the object directly everything else around you is dark, except for that small stream of light that seems to go on forever beneath the water. Most of the fish are sleeping at night, but certain aquatic animals are more common to be out and swimming about. We were lucky enough to see a stingray, a lobster, a barracuda some nocturnal fish, a sea biscuit, the beautiful coral reefs, and a few anemones sticking out from the ocean floor.

Seeing these creatures was awesome, but that wasn’t my favorite part of our nightly adventure, as we had seen many of these creatures in the daylight as well. My favorite part about the night dive was when we turned off our torches and swam around in the pitch darkness. It was then where we experienced the bioluminescence of the Caribbean. You would never guess that you are under the water while night diving, as it seems as though you are looking at the stars. It seemed as though the galaxy surrounded us. Tiny bright pieces of light were everywhere, similar to what I imagine the view of the stars would be if you were standing on the moon. If it weren’t for the lack of air that comes with passing time, I could have stayed beneath the water all night. That view could never get old; just darkness with a tiny bit of spermatic light surrounding the 3 of us beneath the water. Almost like a colony of fireflies back home in Wisconsin. Sascha enlightened us, as our flashlights were off, that if you move your hands in a quick motion the bioluminescence looks as though it is seeping from your skin. It was like magic. The whole experience seemed like an illusion; something that couldn’t be possible in real life. But it was, and it is 45 minutes that I will never forget about our journey to Honduras.

This morning we went on our final dives here in Utila; a wreck dive and then another fun dive through a few caves beneath the water. The wreck was awesome. It looked like straight out of a movie. Maybe Pirates of the Caribbean? The ship used to be an old cargo ship that all the dive shops purchased when it was time for the ship to retire. There was not a good deep wreck dive off the shores of Utila so the diving shops bought it for the simple purpose to sink it and make it a cool place to dive. I’m glad they did because it was awesome. Again this dive was just Alisha, Sascha, and I. It was my first deep dive, up to 130ft, so I was able to mark off another 2 steps of my next diving certification; advanced open water. With a night dive, wreck dive, and deep dive I am now 3/5 done with my AOW. Crazy how fast it all adds up. Who knows, maybe I’ll get my dive master someday. After these 9 dives in Utila it seems a lot more realistic than I ever thought it would be. I think I may have fallen in love with the element that comes along with being beneath the sea.

After our dives this morning Alisha and I went to a coffee place that a friend recommended to us. Rio Coco Beans Cafe is a little coffee shop with a greater cause than just selling coffee to caffeine lovers. It is also a ministry, with a purpose to raise money for the Indian children who live on the river between Honduras and Nicaragua. This coffee shop is non-profit, completely run by volunteers, their profits going to the education of these children. When we had finished our coffee and banana bread we were able to have an amazing and inspiring chat with the founders of the shop here in Utila. This couple was two of the most inspiring and encouraging people I have met so far on this island. Their passion for sharing the love of Jesus with others was so contagious, reminding me that when we live in the image of God we are telling people about Jesus with our actions. As we were saying goodbye the lady at the coffee shop left us with their monthly Bible verse; 2 Corinthians 3:2-3. Below I have typed out the verse as to inspire others, as she reminded me of this simple way to spread the love that Jesus has for the world.

"You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts."

It's our last night in Utila. BEACH PARTY tonight :) Until next time....

#honduras