While my spiritual home is Provence, Mexico is also a very special place to me. I have been fortunate enough to travel there multiple times and to various parts of the country over the years. It’s almost impossible to believe it’s part of North America, it feels like another world. A stunningly beautiful and bountiful world.
What’s not to like about a place that can grow every possible delicious thing there is to eat? Coffee and cocoa, pineapple and papaya, and avocados the size of your palm. A large part of the produce we eat in Canada comes from Mexico, so it’s important to support their economy when we can. And of course, the reason they can grow all this wondrous stuff is because it’s warm. Heavenly warm and sunny pretty much year round. For someone who generally only likes summer, it’s a nearly perfect place for me.
But for me, one of the main reasons I love being in Mexico is for what lies beneath the surface of the big blue ocean. Mexico has the Pacific on one side and the Atlantic on the other. And the Caribbean Sea. It’s surrounded by beautiful, warm, turquoise waters. And what lives in those waters are some of the most fantastical, magical creatures on the planet. I have had the privilege of seeing thousands of colourful fishes, humpback whales, eels, sea snakes, giant lobsters and crabs, southern rays, spotted yellow rays, nurse sharks, majestic giant eagle rays, and my absolute favourite, sea turtles.
Now, I am not a swimmer. In fact, I would say I can’t swim. I have spent endless hours over the last two decades trying to become a swimmer and overcome my fear of water with little success. It’s a conundrum: I love the water, but I am scared shitless of it. However in the last few years with more ongoing time in the ocean, I am finally turning a corner. I don’t think I would have ever been motivated until I saw what beauty is in the blue depths, it’s the entire reason I keep trying. Finally, I feel like I might just be on the cusp of a mental shift allowing me to trust myself and the ocean. I can’t stop now, a whole new world has opened up to me, and I am beyond excited about the possibilities. For an old lady, I am pretty pleased with what I’ve accomplished so far, and I have Mexico to thank for that.
Jason free diving.
Our very skilled and talented guide in Cozumel, Paty.
Me, not so skilled!
