Here at last...

Here at last (06/04/2015), 

I'll start with a picture right away this time...

Above: XTC Dive Center Peer, the peer to paradise.

Well here we are again... been a while, I know, but that's mainly because a lot of things had to be done for my departure.  It was all a huge hassle, and I can assure you, there was a lot of planning to do in terms of everything. The decision I made came with all kinds of arrangements to make.

I don't know where to find the inspiration at the moment ... because I am so overwhelmed with all kinds of new experiences. These experiences are totally new. A new environment, a new weather to threat with, new people, a new...everything really. So I'll just continue this when I feel like it I guess.

Ok well, I think I'm going to write some more. (09/04/2015)

So what happened once I got on the plane? I flew from Brussels to Munich and from there to Cancun. Once arrived I got my luggage and got a taxi towards Tulum around 2100h. Initially I didn't want to take a taxi because they are way more expensive than the busses but I hurt my back that bad when taking my luggage from the carrousel that I didn't feel like spending two or three hours on a bus and stopping several times along the way. I just wanted to check into my Hotel Latino in Tulum City Center and relax and get a good sleep. I got there around 11 o'clock in the evening.

My back was killing me so I didn't do anything else than settle in and lie on my bed. Bit sad to be honest, I was so hungry to see the town at night and have a walk to check it out but that didn't happen.

The day after I got a physiotherapist at the hotel, Julian, who gave me a one hour massage to loosen all my muscles. The problem according to him was stress and probably overloaded lower back muscles. I thought I had a nerve stuck somewhere like a hernia. But according to him I was stressed and seen I had done so much hard work to get the apartment ready for selling, getting all furniture out, amongst other things. Basically it all stressed out the muscles that much that I had an inflamed lower back. Great hotel by the way, in the center of Tulum, Hotel Latino.

Above: Hotel Latino outside room view and the pool.

The pool at Hotel Latino, pretty good for a quick refresh and with my back inflamed and muscles all stressed out I did get some water therapy. I love the 'BE FREE' tile writing in the pool. That's entirely what I am trying to achieve... some form of freedom. And above all, doing what I want to do.

Above: Tulum City Hall

Some more Tulum stories first (15/04/2015)

Above: This Mayan Circle is close to Tulum's City Hall, a lot of people gather here for encounters - A lot of people see the Mayan Culture as being dead, but that is entirely incorrect!

I met these two Canadian girls (Meagan and Morgan to the left) at the Hotel Latino and we did go for supper in the evening, since they had been there for a few days already they knew where to go and where there was great foods.
To be honest the food in Tulum was awesome. It's a pure Mexican city, where commercial tourism hopefully will never come. I really enjoyed the city of Tulum.

Taco's with seafood, pork or veal, quesadillas, tortillas, ....everything was super delicious and yes, very cheap indeed. I also had a delicious Mayan meal, picture below. This one really impressed me, so simple but soooo much taste. Nice and spicy but that's the way I like it. I think when food is used with the appropriate spices, nothing can be too spicy.

I always say: Well at least you feel your mouth is alive - after a good spicy meal!

Traditional Mayan dish: Pozole with pork meat. 

It didn't feel comfortable for anything I was wanting to get to do in Tulum.

Luckily the massage helped enough to be able to have the two dives I planned at the Cenotes. So on Sunday I dove two Cenotes: Dos Ojos (Two Eyes) and The Pit. Both of them were amazing and I never dove in a cavern before. Finally diving again! And look where at.

 

Cenotes are freshwater pools connected with each other through underground rivers, finally ending up in the sea. So a lot of them have fresh water on the upper side and salt water deeper down. This combo of two waters creates a cloud between the two different waters that actually don't mix. It's amazing to see.
The Pit has it since it goes down to 65 meters more or less, and somewhere in between at 25-30m the salt water meets the fresh water and a very distinguished cloud is visible. Sublime! I have a video that I will upload showing this cloud formation. The link will follow. The picture above is not me, it's taken from Google Pictures, Cenote The Pit. 

Nothing could beat these two dives at that particular moment. It felt as a total relief from all work and sorrow I had gone through for the past few weeks, maybe months really. I don't have any pictures from the diving, but I do have a movie which I haven't uploaded to YouTube.

Anyways, happy to be where I need to be for my Dive master formation. In Mexico, Quintana Roo, Xcalak.
I passed my EFR (Emergency First Responder), and at the moment I am doing my Rescue Diver. Once I'll be done with that I will start my 3 months internship for Dive Master.

One more picture for you all... XTC Dive Centers' Pier to eXTaCy, the gateway to heaven under water.

PS

You should see the stars here at night... I mean in Belgium, you can easily find the Pole Star and the two Bears but out here, it's a different ballgame... very hard to locate any of the systems I mentioned. I still haven't worked it out to be honest. :-)

According to plan

The way is long and I feel at times impatient, but everything is going according to plan! The stuff I'm selling is slowly but surely getting sold. I informed myself with the Mexican Embassy and the Italian Consulate and know what to do when I leave. Everything is set.
My ticket is bought for 3rd of April 2015. The dive center I am going to is also set, and I might already have an interesting side-job we talked about. 

Tips for booking a cheap (intercontinental) flight: (also part of the plan)

Start by googling 'cheap flights' and google will give you some options, in the form of gathering sites who look up the best deal for you. After you have tried some you will see that prices differ from one gathering site to the other.
These gathering sites probably have good deals for intercontinental flights but longer flights seem to be a lot cheaper when you book them directly with the company itself. So now you know where you will take off and you have the plane details, you also know what companies will be flying you over.
Make your reservation with the company itself, call them to see if everything is settled. Make use of the extra services such as seat reservation, food packages, special extra luggage/sport articles (upto 30kg) are for example much cheaper than an extra suitcase (upto 20kg).
If  you are taking 2 flights, because you have to change over, it may be that you'll have to contact the other flight company as well to check in your possible extra bag and to see if they have room but once your flight partially booked with the main company (long flight) you will have the details needed to round up your reservation with the other company taking you to the main flight.
I saved about € 280 booking my flight. I did the simulation again on the cheapest gather site to check the difference and usually didn't have the special options I got booking directly with the main company. So yes it's totally worth the extra work and will save you a good amount of money.

Ow yeah, for those who don't know where I'm going yet: I'm going to Mexico. Swell different from Malta I know, but so much more adventurous right? Hehe yes yes, I'm very happy with my new decision. The dive center I am in contact with has given me a lot of trust and I can't wait to meet them. The region has a lot of at hand diving grounds with a maximum of beautiful paradise all around.

Last week, on Friday I received the diving gear order I made. I felt like a kid in a candy store for a bit. My first diving gear is a fact, until now I only had a diving computer but I am all set now and have my own gear. Oh yes, proud as hell. Can't wait to baptist it.

Ok well 1,5 month to go till the final countdown before the actual departure. Time that will be well spent and enjoyed. It will probably all get more difficult the 3 last weeks, when I will have finished my resignation period half March. At the moment, I am counting down for that day in particular. Once that day will be reached, the actual final countdown will emerge and will probably come along with more accentuated emotional changes.
Step by step, everything is coming along according to plan. But I know I am about to start dreading the day of departure. At some point of the countdown, that day will be hard to imagine emotionally.  

I am also planning on starting a new blog, with a new title, once I move to Mexico and at the same time when the real adventure starts. I think this blog will have served it's purpose.

First of all I hope it will have given people a good read and that it may give others a boost when they are looking in doing the same thing more or less as I am doing. Change your world, change your life, boost your overall hapiness.

Secondly it served me as an agenda in some way, every time a chapter needed to be closed in my head, I would do it here to let it go.  Or vice-versa. 

Thirdly I learned a lot blogging, I am very fond of writing and will take on my new blog differently. There will be a lot more pictures involved for sure. 


Above all benefits I got, one of the other benefit is still actually reading others blogs, they really help me with a lot of stuff I might be wondering about in my course or line of life.

Evolving is the way of doing things in life, living up to improving yourself, all the time. Well that's what keeps me happy really. It does work.

Some more blogs I liked during the past time:

The 20 best jobs for people who love to travel 

5 Travel quotes to live by 

10 minutes A day: Meditation for Beginners

What I learned from writing every day

10 Things that the people who love their lives are doing differently

 


  

Time to sell

I don't know but it sure is time now. Hence I 'll spend the next days putting my stuff on the net. I have a few candidates already for some stuff, but all needs to go.
In about 2 months, I'll have a plane to take. The day is coming closer and I can feel it every day growing. 

Btw I am not going towards Malta. Where I'm going is not yet completely decided but I'm growing closer towards a decision. I have two great options. I hope I can decide soon. I'll save the occasion of posting my destination till after my decision, in my next post.
For the curious ones: Yes, there will be white sandy beaches, and palm trees and above all a blue magnificent underwater paradise as well.

Rest me some work to do now, away with the materials that don't mean much to me and have some one else enjoy them, I won't be needing them anymore.
For a while I guess. Where I am going, there is no room nor time for this kind of comfort. And there doesn't need to be, does there? 

No no, where I 'm going, there will be plenty of different things attracting my mind, so much new things to explore, so much that I it's totally impossible to even start missing the comfort zone stuff and that for quite some time. That's without a doubt. 

My resignation time will be over in less than six weeks, you know how fast this is going? Well I'm realizing it more and more. I'll be having a good after work drink with the colleagues for sure.
And also I'll have to start setting up my last beers in Belgium party as well. For both family and good friends. Well it's not goodbye, it's supposed to be a see you later... :-)

I shouldn't think of this too much, and I'm also glad that I am taking this step, so it won't be that difficult, ... is what comes to my mind at times. For now, right? 

Anyways, so much for heads up. 







Some interesting blogs I 've come across this month: 

Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. 

The best travel apps for Iphone & android.