Monday, February 19, 2007

Feeding the Belly of Mr. Big


Tomorrow is our last day diving with only four out of the fourteen descents left. We have had the most incredible dive today, encountering a school (pack? den? gang? flock? murder?) of manta rays. The biggest was the 12-footer we had seen a few days prior, whom Peggy subsequently named Manuel. There were up to six different rays, with a few juveniles amongst the group. The entire 30-minutes was spent gaping in awe after them. One would do a majestic fly-by after the other, while I'd be trying to match the undulation of their wings as a non-sensible means of communication. We were within arm's distance on several occasions. Amazing creatures, so graceful and big. As all of the divers came back up to the boat, the group was just buzzing with excitement.

One of the rituals here amongst the crew is the daily sacrifice to Buddha. The cook prepares a little meal for Buddha and they place the offering at a makeshift shrine creating at the bow. Last night, we saw Mr. Buddha receive a meal of a whole chicken and some bananas. Good to see that Buddha is keeping low on the carbohydrates with an ample supply of potassium. Puttin the 'diet' back in deity. Something must be amiss, however, because the size of his belly is very prosperous. I wonder what the sacrifice needs to be for a whale shark encounter?

After we get back tomorrow, we'll spend the night decompressing in Phuket and then fly up to Bangkok that afternoon. Three days there will involve a sightseeing tour of the city, perhaps a meditation and cooking class thrown in for good measure.

posted by ncawthon at 12:09 PM