The Riviera Maya is full of places to visit and things to do, the number of attractions and parks are a good example of it. Family activities are the most famous, but even adventurous travelers can find the perfect activity to enjoy this paradise. This time we are presenting “Bull Shark Encounter” Few people have the courage to enjoy high-risk activities and these experiences are never forgotten.

The story that you are going to read belongs to a collaborator of Palladium Travel Club:

The reaction of every person when I told them my desire to dive with sharks was,” You’re crazy! Be careful!, what if anything happens to you! And my sincere response was a simple: “I’m not crazy, I’m alive!”… as long as the body allows me I’ll do everything I can to live feeling joy every day.”

The simple but incredible idea of being able to immerse yourself in the depths of the ocean is an experience that leaves you astonished, I compare it to the similar feelings you experience when visiting other cities or countries with cultures and languajes, when diving what you feel and see is a completely different world.

As a Mexican Saying goes “En el mar la vida es mas sabrosa” (Life is richer at the sea), and under is even more!! You fill the sight, the soul and the internal motor ignites, feeding them with surprises and life at every moment.

Down below you can hear only your breathing and the inner voice that frequently is left without words.

I had been waiting for more than 1 year for bull sharks to come to the Riviera Maya and to see them in their own habitat which they choose to have their babies. And the day came, the forecast announced rain, but a radiant sun appeared from sunrise.

“We will leave at noon because at that time the sharks already had lunch, they are full and not hungry anymore”. – the instructor joked… Joked?? We hoped so!

So we met at noon, prepared the equipment, board the boat, sailed a few 700 or 800 meters and heard the captain said “get ready, we have arrived!” .. what ?? now?? So close to the beach! “Yes, that’s right … but don´t be scared, sharks do not approach to the coast, as they stay where it is deeper in this area, about 20 or 25 meters where the water is “cold.” (Consider cold in Caribbean temperature).

Everything ready, equipped and full of uncertainty … Splish-splash !!! The anxiety was almost uncontrollable, the smile did not disappear from my face until I swallowed some water, so I put a smile in soul mode … inhale, exhale … breathing trying to balance the calm, adrenaline and happiness.

A few meters down I shouted to get the attention of my friends “shark!”. Obviously nobody heard me hahaha but the emotion overwhelmed me. From the 3 meters you could see them swimming in the bottom!.

We went deeper around 23 meters, we knelt and out of nowhere 2 of them appeared, they left, then another one appeared, but it left some seconds after that, came back, and did the same many times, they come and go leaving us only a few seconds to capture them on the camera. Wherever we looked, there were at least 1, 2 or 3 sharks surrounding us. Besides this, the variety of other fish offered the perfect combo … even a daring and coquettish white and black Muraena fish appeared in a coral to astonish us.

From nowhere more sharks appeared … they surround us, they are so huge!! With the magnificence and elegance way they have to swim.

Their eyes seem to see everything, they have a very powerful look that could hypnotize you … curiosity is part of the personality in a shark, they could not avoid to get close to us wondering what type of strange creatures are these things that are coming to our home, always without getting too close and showing the radiance of its beauty.

With a smooth and tranquil “walk” they make us appreciate how marvelous and beautiful they are.

After half an hour of delighting us, filling our eyes with astonishment, flooding our interiors, appreciating this part of the immaculate nature, the instructor leads us to go forward, I was left behind of the line of the 4 of us, I turned my head to see if there was one more shark, the last one, and yes there it was, so that I knelt again and I stayed appreciating it. The shark came in front of me “it’s getting closer, why it doesn´t go the other way?” I wondered.

Inevitably I began to feel a little fear, I did not want to move, if I stay in my place I won’t scare it, and also because the adrenaline made my heart start to move faster, I opened my eyes as so big, my hands trembled, my blood became restless, I was paralyzed. He came closer and closer, the voice in my head begging “go away, please go away”.

Finally when he was about 3 meters away from me (that for me were centimeters), having his head so close, it seems that he heard me and turned to the left … ufff thanks God!.

Breathe, breathe, calm, calm … it’s his environment, he’s not going to do anything to me … I encouraged myself.

I turned around and continued behind my friends with a smile that stayed in my face for days!

We went up and we saw them smaller … thinking we had them on the sides, behind and up front !!! Hahaha I laugh now…

We reach the surface and drown in happiness! My soul was so full of joy, that I feel I could not fit more happiness on it.

Inside the water, climbing back to the boat, next to other divers, I could not stop talking about the magnitude of this experience!

We did a second dive in a beautiful area of the coral reef that runs through this marvelous Caribbean sea … we have seen many wonders such as a loooong trumpet fish, damsels, angel queens, shoals, barracudas, muraena, 2 sleeper manta rayas, a giant tortoise, hundreds of colorful fish and the beautiful corals that with their moving plants offer an incomparable landscape.

After 3 hours of being in the sea, we stepped on solid ground, the sand received us warm and bright, with a resplendent sun, as shiny as our souls, full of joy and energy that this experience gave us filling out our hearths.

Definitely To Live, Worth!

Marian.