Belizean Diving Paradise

I just spent 8 days at the most incredible place in the Caribbean – the St George’s Caye Dive Resort right in front of the Barrier Reef off the coast of Belize.

This picturesque resort is located on a caye that is 1 mile long and 30 feet wide, with palm thatched bungalows in the sand overlooking the sea and the reef on one side and “over water” bungalows on the other side (like you see in Tahiti pictures).

This unique resort specializes in diving vacations, including the famous Blue Hole, and has the huge advantage of having dozens of dive sites without any other boats or divers in sight. It also specializes in Destination Weddings and is the perfect romantic spot for someone looking for a honeymoon “off the beaten path”. The food was unparalleled – how that chef could create our meals and add his secret sauces and spices, and the camaraderie of every guest in the resort was a feature I have not found anywhere else in my travels.

We had a group of about 20 all go down together. Most of you know I am slightly claustrophobic and absolutely terrified of fish, but with the help and unending patience of their Master Dive Instructor Jose Flores, I managed to overcome my fears and become a Certified Diver while I was there. Everyone in the group kept “razzing” me about my “fish fear”, and how I could be scared of a fish, and what did I really think a fish was going to do to hurt me… bite me or something???

o[;’lWell let me tell you… while we were 47 feet down, diving on the reef at the edge of a crevice, watching a hovering 5 foot barracuda, I suddenly got bit on the forehead by a 3 ½ foot Remoray (this is a long, skinny, slimy fish that looks like a small shark – see picture on the side)

I whipped up my hand to try and get him off my head and suddenly got water in my mask and could not see. I tried clearing my mask but when I opened my eyes the mask was full of saltwater. Blinded, I inhaled the seawater through my nose and started choking. Then I started feeling what I thought was more fish attacking my leg and back, and started panicking and heading for the surface.

Now after Jose’s painstaking training, I remembered I could not go all the way to the surface without running the risk of decompression sickness, so I managed to readjust my mask, clear the water so I could see again, spit out all the saltwater and get a grip on my fear and stop flailing after rising about 20 feet.

My WORST nightmare, my biggest fear had actually happened – I was bit by a scary fish while deep underwater !!!

But I feel triumphant that I was actually able to overcome my panic and fear and regain control of my situation.

I think this also happens to us in our daily lives and our businesses – sometimes things happen out of our control that cause us to panic, and instead of dealing with the problem logically, we tend to make rash decisions and huge long term mistakes. I have seen a number of my successful business partners panic and make rash business decisions, only to realize what a drastic mistake they made later on…

Despite my catastrophic experience with the remora, I really have to tell you that diving opens up an entire new world – peaceful, silent, incredible beauty everywhere you look on the reef.

I will never forget the great adventures and bonding our group experiences in Belize or this incredible little island – a true piece of Paradise…