Day 144 - San Juan "Workout"

Usually, two tanks in the morning are quite enough for me (diving makes me very sleepy), but today I couldn't say "no" to the afternoon dive - San Juan with Sharif. San Juan is my favorite dive. And Sharif says that he stays in Cozumel pretty much because of this reef. He dives it every time he gets a chance and knows a lot of hidden treasures of this place. That is why I have been trying to dive it with him forever, but somehow it never worked out until today.

Sharif is an interesting case. Egyptian, he studied finances or economics or something like this in Scotland and worked there for 7 years (luckily, did not acquire the accent), but diving had always been his passion and he had always wanted to be a dive instructor and live somewhere in Mexico close to amazing reefs. His mother, however, had never shared his life style vision and they had made a deal that he would try himself at a "real job", and if after several years diving would not evaporate from his head, he would be free to do whatever he pleased. Sharif toughed out his term, making it possible for himself to enjoy Cozumel in general and San Juan in particular. Needless to say, his mom is still not happy with this choice, but a deal is a deal.

Anyway, Sharif wanted to show us the "Crown" today - a huge pillar coral almost at the end of the San Juan reef. He kept saying that the dive was going to be a workout, because in order to get to this spot you have to swim against the current (and San Juan current is usually the strongest in Cozumel). He repeated this workout warning so many times, that for a second I even got a little iffy about the whole thing, but then Sallye looked at me and said with her eyes, "Come on, don't be a sissy, you can totally do it, just come!" And I went.

As usual, Sharif gave us a briefing before the dive, explaining which parts of the dive will be flying will the current and which, against the current. We descended. San Juan is gorgeous. The flight feeling is always sensational. I was in heaven. I did not forget the "workout" warning though. What I did forget is where exactly we were supposed to work out. We were zigzagging happily through the reef, and quite a few times we were swimming against the current, but nothing was too bad yet. I kept wondering, "When are we supposed to swim? Maybe after this part. Hmmm, no, this is still OK. Ah, maybe here. Not really, it's fine too. Damn it, how could I completely forget where the real swim will begin?" until I saw Sharif sharing air with one of the divers. A couple of others were struggling their fins and grabbing at sponges and rocks to help themselves through the current. This is when I finally realized, "Oh, we ARE, in fact, swimming already". This was just no workout for me at all. Yet again, thank you, Aristeo! I think, Aristeo's bootcamp should be obligatory for every diver on the island. :)