Isaac, Makenna and I did our beach dives (open water dives 1 and 2) in Jebel Ali. It was an early morning for us just because we were told we were starting at 8. Turns out only a few of us showed up on time, despite it being local and we didn't actually get going for another hour. So by the time equipment is gathered and assembled and we trudge down to the beach with all our heavy gear, it was almost 10. Matt took the morning off to stay with Jess.
Al Boom Dive Center has sunk 11 catamaran boats within the large dive area. During our two dives, Makenna and my group saw 3 of them. It was a much more exciting and nerve wracking experience going down in the open water versus the pool. We had to watch out for sea urchins. We saw one huge grouper and lots of big angel fish and a dozen other species that I can't yet name.
The next week we were supposed to meet at 6am to catch a bus to Fujairah. Fujairah is another Emirate, but on the other side of the "triangle" that is the UAE. It lines along the Indian Ocean side. The water is clearer. I was talking with another scout mom who is getting her advanced certification and she told me about the time they saw 6 huge sea turtles diving there. We were also told that if you are lucky you can see rays and barracudas Wow?
Well, after compulsively packing the night before and jolting awake twice in the night to check the time, we missed the bus because I had set my alarm for 5 pm instead of am. I ran to Isaac and Makenna and told them to be in the car in 5 minutes. We were going to drive ourselves and hope to find the place before the boat left. I had a tense 1 hour and 45 minute drive, with many phone calls with Matt who was trying to look up addresses and phone numbers for me. We ended up beating the bus since they had left Dubai an hour late due to meeting place complications.
So after an hour of going through paperwork and taking ANOTHER test (over 200 multiple choice questions by this time!) We went out on the boat. We learned how to properly fall back into the water. We had to pass off a few more skills like using an underwater compass, taking off and replacing your mask underwater, and hovering above the bottom. We went down to 11 meters this time. That's deep enough to allow schools of fish to swim over your head and mess up the sunlight. We saw a lot more fish, more sea stars, crabs, urchins, but no turtles.
Makenna: The urchins clogged up the crevices in the rocks and coral. There was the opposite of a clown fish (black fish with white and orange stripes) hiding around anemones. There was some fish that was about as long as a foot that was skinny as a pencil and shiny/see through. Others were shaped like blue triangles.
Isaac had equalization problems. He had to stop dive 3, but fixed his ears in time to go down with us on dive 4. He was grumpy going home having not passed off the course yet. I took him to the site on Atlantis a few days later so he and another boy could have another try. Success! The water visibility was really crumby, but he is certified. We just really hope they are more organized with all the scouts and their families paperwork so we get our official cards back soon. We want to go back to Fujairah soon and get more practice. These last pictures are of Isaac, the other scout and their instructor coming back to shore and then Isaac back on land. We are on the end of the Palm (man made island) looking back towards Dubai Marina.
Al Boom Dive Center has sunk 11 catamaran boats within the large dive area. During our two dives, Makenna and my group saw 3 of them. It was a much more exciting and nerve wracking experience going down in the open water versus the pool. We had to watch out for sea urchins. We saw one huge grouper and lots of big angel fish and a dozen other species that I can't yet name.
The next week we were supposed to meet at 6am to catch a bus to Fujairah. Fujairah is another Emirate, but on the other side of the "triangle" that is the UAE. It lines along the Indian Ocean side. The water is clearer. I was talking with another scout mom who is getting her advanced certification and she told me about the time they saw 6 huge sea turtles diving there. We were also told that if you are lucky you can see rays and barracudas Wow?
Well, after compulsively packing the night before and jolting awake twice in the night to check the time, we missed the bus because I had set my alarm for 5 pm instead of am. I ran to Isaac and Makenna and told them to be in the car in 5 minutes. We were going to drive ourselves and hope to find the place before the boat left. I had a tense 1 hour and 45 minute drive, with many phone calls with Matt who was trying to look up addresses and phone numbers for me. We ended up beating the bus since they had left Dubai an hour late due to meeting place complications.
So after an hour of going through paperwork and taking ANOTHER test (over 200 multiple choice questions by this time!) We went out on the boat. We learned how to properly fall back into the water. We had to pass off a few more skills like using an underwater compass, taking off and replacing your mask underwater, and hovering above the bottom. We went down to 11 meters this time. That's deep enough to allow schools of fish to swim over your head and mess up the sunlight. We saw a lot more fish, more sea stars, crabs, urchins, but no turtles.
Makenna: The urchins clogged up the crevices in the rocks and coral. There was the opposite of a clown fish (black fish with white and orange stripes) hiding around anemones. There was some fish that was about as long as a foot that was skinny as a pencil and shiny/see through. Others were shaped like blue triangles.
Isaac had equalization problems. He had to stop dive 3, but fixed his ears in time to go down with us on dive 4. He was grumpy going home having not passed off the course yet. I took him to the site on Atlantis a few days later so he and another boy could have another try. Success! The water visibility was really crumby, but he is certified. We just really hope they are more organized with all the scouts and their families paperwork so we get our official cards back soon. We want to go back to Fujairah soon and get more practice. These last pictures are of Isaac, the other scout and their instructor coming back to shore and then Isaac back on land. We are on the end of the Palm (man made island) looking back towards Dubai Marina.
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