Did Ya See The Turtle??

Day 4, Happy Birthday to me!

Today was the day where we stopped at Lizard Island to drop off the 3 Dayers and pick up the 4 Dayers.  We woke up to our normal wake-up call and, you guessed it, we skipped first brekky.  I got my first “Happy Birthday” from Andy and later Risa.  She’s too tired in the mornings to figure out these things… We hopped into our tenders and headed towards Lizard Island where the shoreline was beautiful.  Big boulders, fine white sand and crystal blue waters with friendly elderly people.  As we began our optional hike lead by Andy, Risa and I wondered why it was called Lizard Island.  Just then, we approached a large Monitor and simultaneously registered the answer: “Oooooohhh.”  The view from the top was just gorgeous.  I took several thousand pictures and we both agreed we did not want to leave.  I think this has become the theme for our adventure: We don’t want to go home.

After our fun on the island, we were treated to a brand new dive the crew had never done before: a muck dive off Lizard Island.  Because Risa and I did not want to be embarrassed again, we braved the waters in only board shorts and rash guards.  Yup.  That’s right.  NO wetsuits.  Yes, we are crazy.  We were sure to take pictures to prove it to you all.  We were guided by Maty and ran into a giant Remora.  For those of you wondering what the crap a Remora is, think of a shark and the little fish that “follow” them. Now this Remora was giant which lead us to believe there must be colossal sharks in these waters.  Well, we never saw one, erm, I never saw one.  Only Risa did.  Another White Tip.  Don’t get us wrong, we LOVE our White Tips, but we were hoping for something a little bigger than a 5 foot reefie.  We also saw 2 Striped Belly Puffers (which reminded us of work) and lots of purple Sea Stars and a giant Crown of Thorns.  Not too much on this dive, but it was still fun.

(Pre-dive!  Venturing into the waters sans wetsuits!)

(Maty, doing the strong kiwi man.)

The next dive was my “Birthday Dive.”  Andy promised me that having your birthday on Spirit was good luck.  After all, he saw a Hammerhead on his.  We dove The Monolith and saw heaps of Nudies, including a special one with 3 Lungs!  Very cool!  It was then we saw one of “The Americans” splayed out along the coral.  This man was literally lying on top of several types of coral trying to get a picture.  Now in the introduction of Spirit, they are sure to tell us not to touch the coral or any animals.  What was this fool thinking??  Risa and I immediately shook our heads and watched as Andy scolded him.  Seriously.  We were so upset, but were sure to thank Andy for rebuking him.  (This is where “Team America” began to form… ) Because we were freezing in this dive, we were air pigs and sucked all our air real quick.  We still lasted 63 minutes and dove 27.2m.

After another meal, Risa and I decided to dive the same site without a guide.  There were about 26 people (not including the crew) diving so it got a little congested at times.  I cannot tell you how many times we were kicked or ran into by these supposedly professional divers.  I swear, we’d find something cool and they would immediately barrel into you to catch a photo instead of being patient until you were done photographing.  And so, we dove it on our own.  THIS was fun because we saw, for the first time in our lives, a Loggerhead Turtle!  He was apparently following us for a bit but when I went to get my camera, he got shy and swam on.  We also saw more White Tips, Sweet Lips, lots of beautiful reef fish and Nudies.  There was one point where we saw this gigantic Triggerfish.  I thought he was eating and I apparently swam into his personal bubble and he attacked me.  Luckily, I escaped but I cannot say the same for Risa…  She got bit on the calf and has a bruise to prove it.

(Sweet Lips.)

                (I swear she's not petting him...  This was after the attack and she was swatting at him..)

After this dive, we see the Special Ed case, that is yours truly.  We logged our Deco’s and were talking with Chantes when she started talking about how she could have stayed at her safety stop forever.  She said she turned around and stared into the eyes of a turtle!  I don’t know where my head was (well, I have a pretty good idea) but I decided to ask her the most idiotic question I could:  “That’s awesome..  But did ya see the turtle???”  Really Hollie?  REALLY??  And that became my phrase…  Until Risa and I told them about our giant Triggerfish attack…  Risa peeled off her wetsuit and there was already a bruise forming as Chantes took a look.  Andy overheard us and apparently asked if it was a Triggerfish bite and of course, I come back with, “No, it’s a Triggerfish bite!”  REALLY???  And this is where I became the dumb girl on the boat because right after that Andy told me he had just asked if it was a Triggerfish bite.  Of course, Chantes had to retort with “Did ya see the turtle??”  Rumor has it that I left my brain at home.

After hot showers we headed to the dining room for dinner.  Mmmm, our chef Andrew was the best!  We ate so well that whole week!  Risa and I, as usual, tried to escape into the lounge where the crew eats since we don’t really get along with the other guests.  Well, I wouldn’t say ‘don’t’ get along,’ but they only give themselves enough room to eat, so we’re kinda shafted.  Go figure.  It’s “Team America.”  The crew agrees with us when we say we are not part of that team.  We have our own ‘special’ team.  Or at least I do…

(Trying not to get burned from the sparklers.)

Anyway, Chantes came in and said we were needed for dessert so we moved into the dining room again.  Suddenly the lights went out and the sparklers flew!  Everyone broke out into song as they wished me a happy birthday and presented me with a giant chocolaty trifle!  It was amazing!  I’ve never had a cake with sparklers as the candles!  It was brilliant, not to mention delicious.  Even if the sparklers did burn my knee.  Andy then came over and as he wished me a happy birthday, gave me a Spirit of Freedom t-shirt – just the one I would have picked out to buy too, with sharks and Osprey Reef on it!  It was definitely one of top, if not THEE best birthdays I’ve ever had!  

(Yay sparklers as candles!)