We finished our PADI Certification and booked our first real dive, a Cozumel scuba diving day trip

If you read our post about our little run-in with bull sharks during PADI certification, you might wonder why anyone would be crazy enough to go scuba diving..

But, Should We Be Worried?

First of all, we’d like to clear the air… Although we’ve been conditioned for decades to fear these large predators of the deep, via terrifying JAWS movies and crazy Shark Week marathons, our dive instructor assured us that bull sharks are MUCH less dangerous than widely believed.

Wikipedia says they “may be more dangerous to humans than any other species of shark”, but the instructor explained: The bull sharks are simply looking for food… Since they have poor eyesight, live primarily in shallow, murky waters, and feed on large fish or small mammals like seals, a human might be confused for food… In the remarkably clear waters of Playa del Carmen, where bull sharks feed primarily on fish, they can clearly see that we aren’t lunch. They may stop for a curious look, but will generally just carry on their way… Because of the ideal conditions, numerous dive shops in Playa del Carmen offer bull shark dives daily without problems…

Cozumel Scuba Diving

With this bit of reassurance, we showed up the next day and conquered our PADI open water certification! A week later we put our skills to the test, booking a Cozumel scuba diving day trip. Just a short ferry ride away, we headed to Cozumel and had an absolute blast… We even saw a couple more sharks, again making it back to tell the story… Big thanks to Sonny, Nicky, and Klaus of Playa Scuba!

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