Yes, I’m aware the music is Brazilian (capoiera), not Mexican nor even Spanish.
It’s “É da Nossa Cor (featuring Mestre Camaleão)” by Maga Bo.
I have no logic behind as to why I used it except for that it felt right and sometimes with art, just as with Life, sometimes our intuition is all we need to keep us in our paths.
I’ve felt all kinds of things in these caverns which is why I keep going back though the biggest bit is probably my first time back sometime in the early 2010’s.
I don’t know if there’s an English word for it but my friend calls it “Fitrah” which in Arabic means something along the lines of (no direct translation) “original disposition” or “innate nature” which can also flow along the lines of “intuition.”
She introduced me to this word when I was listening to music that moved me so profoundly that I wanted to shed a tear as I felt like my heart was being lifted. She said, “That’s ‘fitrah!’ It loosely translates to ‘Woah!’ in English.” lol
Another good way to express it was when I watched, “A Trip to Infinity.” A woman described why she studied infinity. She says, and I quote, “We’re so small and yet we can touch something so explosively large that feeling of ‘I’m bigger because I know how small I am,’ I’ve been chasing that feeling my entire life.”
img courtesy of Gaines County Library
That’s how Dos Ojos made me feel the first time around when I pointed my flashlight into the darkness within those caverns.
I chase that feeling whenever I have the chance and so I keep coming back to Tulum.
Someday, I, too, shall pass and that’s a beautiful thing. I cherish my mortality. I’m not goth anymore so I have no further aspirations in becoming a vampire.
========================
I went in with the intentions of having 5 dive days as I had a total of 6 full days (8 days total vacation with 2 flight days).
I did an intense workout right up until before my flight. I had an inkling that might not be a good idea but I did it, thinking maybe I can pull it off anyway.
Wrong. lol
I popped by the shop on Dive Day 1. I already felt tired from the day before (intense workout + flight). Jamie, the shop owner of Flying Fish Tulum advised that his equipment are all new / well-maintained. Most dive shops have scraggly wetsuits lol with 3mm feeling like 1mm sometimes so I didn’t bring my own 3mm wetsuit.
Right then I told him that 5 dive days might just be 4, “I’ll see how I feel.”
Casa Cenote
We started off with Casa Cenote (“Cenote House”) which, as I was informed is a training / starter cenote. I didn’t have the chance to exchange currency before then so I wasn’t able to take my GoPro. All cenotes allow for it except this one; there was a MX$100 fee for using your own camera so here are random ones I got off the internet. It was pretty (but not quite as pretty as the others so defo a good teaser for ones who’ve never been to the cenotes).
I didn’t realize that this one was a lot of saltwater as most of the cenotes are mostly freshwater. I needed 10 lbs of weight to sink lol which was a lot. I’ve never had that much and the divemasters pointed out that I’m wearing a 5mm, which, I hated by the way. It felt so constrictive but I might also be in between sizes type thing.
In any case, we headed over to Dos Ojos – I was excited, albeit nervous. I almost drowned in the ocean a couple years ago. It only came to my awareness how much trauma that actually induced during my trip to the Philippines last December. It sucks because it essentially puts a dent in your anticipation. I’ve never done acid but from what I gather if you go in with a shit headspace then you’ll have a bad trip. It’s similar to diving, I think.
Dos Ojos – Bat Cave
On our ride to Dos Ojos, they asked me if I wanted to go to the Bat Cave Line or the Barbie Line. We intended on going again for one of the other lines anyway so I was pretty “meh doesn’t matter” … and so were they lol.
“Pick a number. 1 or 2?” I asked
“Two,” replied Miranda.
“Bat Cave it is.” I replied.
My main dive guide was Mario although Miranda (they’re a couple) would come here and there. She’s actually from Toronto and she started out scuba diving in drysuit because it’s cold out here in Ontario.
They’re also full-on cave divers. These places we’re diving that are easily accessible to the public (with the correct training and licensing of course), are caverns. Caverns are like caves except they have openings/access/exit points just within a few minutes for every spot or tunnel. Caves, on the other hand, are long tunnels and cave systems that have no openings for a looooong time.
The dive shop I went to these cenotes with 2 years ago actually coaxed me into taking cave diving specialty because they saw how much I loved it. I contacted the guy and he gave me a quick rundown of the course. It was already iffy (price: expensive, time: a month or something and it’s daily diving of about 8 hours each day) but he lost me at, “Learning how to stay calm in zero visibility with sediment and no openings for 3-4 hours.”
lol.
Fuck that shit.
“Wait a minute, you guys are full on cave divers? Like you go into crawl spaces and stuff?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Miranda replied.
“Holy shit. I’ve watched documentaries about you people.”
🤯
“They say it takes a special kind of crazy to be a cave diver.” said Miranda.
“Yeah. I would agree with that,” I replied. I started calling her “psycho bunny” because I can’t keep calling her “insane” etc; that’s boring. Plus she keeps her cute on despite the extreme sport she gets involved so it seems appropriate.
If you’d like to creep Miranda’s profile, you may check out her Instagram here.
Mario’s Instagram is here (they’re both cave divers so both their accounts are pretty juicy… well, at least to me).
This Bat Cave dive didn’t go very smoothly for me. I’ve never worn a 5mm wetsuit and I found out that I hated it.
Going in the bat caves was alright although I struggled with my buoyancy. The shallower the waters, the more difficult it is to control. The deepest we went on this was about 9 metres / 29 ft. If you look closely, you’ll see me struggling.
On most cenotes we went to, there would almost always be an opening within a matter of a few minutes. I think the tunnels on this one was a bit longer than that? I can’t do several hours of cave diving with no openings but I, along with many other tourists, are okay with a several minutes of no opening.
After going through the beautiful tunnels… (and yes, without our flashlights, it would’ve been pitch black. It was cool)
… we end up here (the actual bat cave)
I’ve been to Dos Ojos several times but I don’t remember coming here. I think we always went to the Barbie Line, prior?
In any case, we actually got out of the water pretty early onto the snorkel area vs where we entered because my buoyancy and my exhaustion was not fun.
Cenote El Pit
I was exhausted AF once we got back to the shop so I canceled for the next day.
I craved vegetarian food, which I usually don’t unless it’s so fricking hot that I have to force feed myself because my body then protects itself from overheating by holding my appetite (happened to me in the Philippines). I do force feed myself though when I realize that I haven’t eaten at all that day because I will inadvertently go into ketosis.
I asked the dive shop for some recommendations and the closest one was La Hoja Verde. This one was actually vegan. It’s right on the corner of Ave. Tulum and C Beta Sur. I’m not a vegan or anything but I highly recommend this place. I did some rough calculations in my head (because I used to be one of those obsessive people with my nutrition thanks to my injured spine) and you can actually get a good dose of your macros, including much needed protein, in some of their dishes.
La Hoja Verde Tulum
One the next dive day, we decided to do El Pit and Dos Ojos again for the Barbie Line.
We started off with El Pit. It was just Mario and I that day as Miranda was doing remote work.
Mario and I, on our way to the next cave dive 🤙
It was a good ride. Mario, as I found out, used to DJ and is very well versed with electronic music. We listened to some tracks on our way. I highly recommend these guys to dive with. Besides their technical prowess, you will also get some education, creative expansion, and overall enjoyable company.
During our setup, I asked Mario to take a video. I often get asked about diving and what it entails. It’s fun, sure… but it’s work. Everything in life takes work. As per a recent conversation with a friend, it’s about finding those things and/or people that make it worth it. Like, no, I don’t like overheating and walking under the sun in a suit with so much weight on me but to cavern dive and experience these things: to me, it’s worth it.
As for El Pit: I was still having trouble with my buoyancy so I wasn’t able to fully enjoy it, unfortunately. Mario had to hold me at one point because I kept, inadvertently, ascending. I canceled going in the little cave at the back of the pit because I couldn’t control my buoyancy. Granted, I still enjoyed the earth matter accumulated over the years, on the bottom of the pit, as well as the view. 😍
There was also visible signs of the halocline effect (when freshwater meets saltwater, it gets blurry. Heads up: it can be a little disorienting though it only lasts a few seconds on certain parts where the waters meet).
After which, we headed to Dos Ojos to do the Barbie Line.
Dos Ojos – Barbie Line (Take 1)
I still couldn’t control my buoyancy, which I was thoroughly irritated with.
Mario and Miranda were very nice to remind me to not be too hard on myself. It’s funny that they mentioned it because I often get that. I had a pretty militant upbringing which I’m currently healing from as an adult.
Sometimes growth is about unlearning in order to re-learn just like how I want to unlearn that trauma so I can rejig my mojo.
I tried Dos Ojos again, this time on the Barbie Line, because I was super excited for it but my buoyancy, was not. This is why I decided to make this “dive” a buoyancy correcting trip instead. I insisted with Mario to just stay in the snorkel area because I wasn’t confident enough to go in… and practice we did.
I actually managed to get my buoyancy down. I just needed a little bit of practice… but I lost my mother.effing.GoPro. 🤬
I was pretty upset. The camera was attached to an unsinkable stick so when we couldn’t find it (we asked everyone in the area including the gatekeepers), I assumed it was stolen and that I will never get it back though I kept trying.
I gave myself another rest day at some point, making it 4 dive days instead of 5. I just don’t remember if it was after this one or the next one.
We came back here on the next dive day though.
Dos Ojos – Barbie Line (Take 2 and 3)
So I don’t have any footage of Take 2 because I was camera-less.
We searched and asked around before going in and then right before we ascended, I insisted on searching for it around the entrance area once more… and he found my GoPro. I was so happy 😭
The Take 3, however, did not pan out either. I specifically went back in to get footage but no dice.
The Barbie Line is beautiful. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to finish this dive as I canceled it because I was exhausted. I mean, I was already thinking of what to eat and what to do when I got home and such. I specifically craved nachos and margaritas as I dreamed of blasting my AC in my comfortable, budget room 😂
Since Mario was so well-versed on the geology, I went ahead and asked questions because I actually find these things interesting especially when I’m there. Experiential learning (vs plain theory) still takes the cake for me.
Cenote Aktun-Ha (also known as Cenote Carwash)
I specifically asked to do this one because when I attempted to do this 2 years ago, I couldn’t equalize my ears properly so I had to ascend early.
It was gorgeous.
Here’s about 50 minutes of unedited footage (after a few minutes of intro). I kept the camera on the entire time, mounted on my head. In case you want to experience an entire dive, this would be the video.
Cenote Nicte-Ha
I think we dropped off Miranda after Aktun-Ha? If you guys are reading this and you remember the timeline of events, let me know so I can correct it.
Mario decided to take me here because my buoyancy was good. As I found out during the dive, this one had tight spaces (well, tight for recreational divers like me and probably nothing for pro cave divers). One could easily hit the stalactites and cause too much disturbance to the elements if your buoyancy is a hot mess.
This one was has a special story.
img by Descubro.mx
There are seemingly many versions of it as legends tend to be, but the one that was narrated to me, personally, was about Nicte-Ha, a beautiful maiden who was bound to be wed to a prince.
Apparently, however, the priest who was appointed to wed them, fell in love with Nicte-Ha and have decided to kill her instead (if I can’t have you, no one can, sort of serial killer vibes). The Prince, in mourning and very heartbroken, prayed to the Gods for help. He was heard by the Gods and they told him that they would help… by killing him and then turning him into a red cardinal bird.
You can see these birds visit the water lilies, which the Gods have turned Nicte-Ha into, everyday.
Beautiful 💕
I would argue that these legends are glimpses to our subconscious in the ways the stories unfold. As an old friend once said when things happen, “It’s the paradigm of the situation that matters.”
Everything is ultimately transient including the motions we experience. What stays? The lessons? Our characters? Our lives?
It’s such a mystery, isn’t it?
the view underwater
And so we went on to further explore the caverns, perhaps, with a nuanced intention of hoping to further explore ourselves.
The water was actually pretty chilly although you stop noticing it once you start the dive. I didn’t feel any dive fatigues or post dive hunger during this trip aside from this one and Aktun-Ha. I think it was because we were down there for a little over an hour (!). The waters were shallow enough (about 6 metres / 20 ft maximum depth) that one tank could last that long. I still had a little air left when we ascended.
I felt the fatigue, literally, as soon as my head surfaced. I gave myself a good break after that: had a cigarette, ate good food, had a beer at home, blasted my AC, and chilled, chilled, chilled.
I do recall this being my last dive though I didn’t really pack up until the next morning.
As to what I brought (people ask):
– GoPro + accessories (unsinkable stick, screws, head mount, hand mount + extra batteries)
– 4 tops, 2 or 3 bottoms + 2 summer dresses
– 2 bikini pairs
– toiletries
– passport, ID’s, phone, wallet etc
It took me like 15 minutes to pack so it wasn’t a big deal. I stayed at a hostel in a private room at Che Tulum Hostel & Bar.
Note: Don’t book the shared or dorm-like rooms unless you’re in your 20’s, looking to party all night, and not sleep until 4 or 5 am. The private rooms are actually right across the street from the hostel and bar itself and oh man, the party never stopped there. You can hear the music even when you’re outside the complex. Again, if you’re looking to par-taaay, the shared rooms would be the place for you.
These days, I just want my peace and quiet. When I travel, one of the things I like to do is to try and immerse myself in cultural things because part of doing this, for me, is to expand my consciousness. We never really get to know a culture until we feel (subconscious/instinctive) how they see the world. All this talk is just theory (conscious/executive) without the immersive experiences and real talk that both contribute to our emotional intelligence and self-expansion.
I didn’t really get to do that here though. I came to Tulum specifically to dive the caverns and when I return, it’ll be the same thing. Tulum has turned somewhat bougie as people caught on the caverns I suppose. I first came here over 10 years ago when it was all just jungle. Granted, there weren’t as many food options or other convenient touristy things (I got a manicure and an in-home massage myself).
El Carro de Pecho (street vendor near my place – delicious burgers)
If I had it my way, I would’ve kept it communal and low key although, as some expat Belgian I met in my early 20’s a long time ago when I was travelling had said, “It’s my fault too.”
We were talking about how an island in the Philippines was getting too industrialized and polluted. He interrupted me at one point and said that yes, it would be nicer if it was a small community which is what we all actually want but we also want air conditioning so in a sense, we paved the way for its ruin though it wasn’t our intention.
Everything is a double-edged sword and he’s right: we’re all part of the problem. I think the key is making efforts to minimize damages as we try not to compromise our standards and quality of Life. I mean, scuba diving in the ocean and even in these caverns alone are already disturbing the elements in itself. Try not to ruin anything when you’re down there. Remember that we’re just passing by and humans are the species on this planet that have caused the greatest damage. We’ve successfully abused, trampled, and destroy so much of Mother Nature and we can barely afford to pay her back.
We, as humans, in my opinion, aren’t entitled at all.
The conversion rate (if you’re talking about USD, CAD, EUR, GBP, AUD or other developed economies’ currencies) doesn’t really work in our favour anymore either. The pricing is listed in MXN Peso but when you convert it, it’s the same price as it is back home.
Gas prices are the same everywhere I go. It blows my mind because I complain about the same gas prices in Toronto.
I just hope the locals know and understand what beauty they have because I, myself, didn’t appreciate the beauties of my own country (Philippines) up until we left and saw it, objectively. I grew up in close proximity to some of the most amazing beaches in the world and it was just my “normal.”
Apo Island, Philippines
There’s this film with Childish Gambino and Rihanna called “Guava Island.” At one point, Childish Gambino’s character was complaining and Rihanna was asking him what his problem was. His problem, as he so eloquently put, is that they’re living in paradise but they don’t have the time nor the money to enjoy it because he’s working for a factory, which is polluting their island.
Please be a responsible adventurer. I’ve heard so many stories of divers straight up stepping on corals, polluting the waters, and not caring about what mess they might leave = not cool.
While I don’t have answers to the woes of the world, I hope that I was at least able to give you something worthwhile to see, read, laugh, and think about – and perhaps even something to be inspired about – fellow traveller.
Until next time.
Gelene 