Mika joined ReefCIs Marine Conservation trip from 2nd-6th April 2012 and thoroughly enjoyed her time with us. She wrote the following about her week diving on our remote Caribbean island in Southern Belize!

"Jo definitely made the whole reservation process effortless. I really appreciate that she answered all of my (numerous! tedious!) questions and made me feel completely at ease.

The conservation training was good- I have to admit, I felt a little useless since I was sick for the first couple of days, but I hope (like Polly said,) to come back just to do some conservation dives. I was nervous about spearing lionfish, but I know that it is necessary. I’m glad ReefCI is doing something to protect the environment in a sustainable way (introducing lionfish as a food source)

I did my advanced courses- deep dive, night dive, fish id, underwater navigation, peak performance buoyancy. I think the deep dive and my PPB dive were my favorites. Polly briefed us really well and I felt completely relaxed the entire time since she kept a watchful eye on us. The constant supervision made me feel really comfortable and well-informed.

With the diving I think Polly did a phenomenal job- I am a nervous person and I get easily seasick, but she was with me every step of the way and made sure to push me just a little outside of my comfort zone. She constantly checked that I was OK and made sure that I felt comfortable at all times. She is a GREAT dive leader.

I was often partnered with Kim- another great dive leader/buddy. She was completely relaxed in the water and constantly monitored me to make sure I was OK- She was really fun and didn’t take anything too seriously, so I was able to enjoy my trip. She was professional and very helpful.

The diving was amazing; WHALE SHARKS, remoras, angelfish, butterflyfish, lobsters, rays, octopi, puffer fish, hogfish, groupers, snappers, parrotfish….the list goes on. I will definitely be coming back.

So, what did I like best about my time with ReefCI? Besides the whale sharks? How easy everything was. There was a schedule, but I didn’t feel pressured to do all the dives, especially if I felt sick. I love that everyone was really concerned about safety and made it a priority. Everyone really bonded well and by the end of our (short!) one week trip, we felt like we really knew each other."