I have to say that now, when I take my regulator out and start talking underwater, Chris puts his fingers in his ears! He says that one of the great things about scuba diving is that you can’t talk underwater! I do love proving him wrong. When I try and talk to Stu underwater, he normally takes his regulator out and retorts with the same response every time. I can’t write that response here, as you can imagine from a lad from South London, it is something that would be bleeped out on the tv! And I know his mom reads this blog, so perhaps she can tell him to watch his language down there, there are young fish present!

So, why am I telling you all this?

Heather, a great scuba diver and lover of marine life, prefers to snorkel then dive. She came to visit us in St. Martin and we would go out to Creole Rock and she would choose to snorkel instead of diving. She would say that it felt more natural, that she just enjoyed it more. I just never understood it.

Here is Heather, Chris and I when she came to visit us in St. Martin.

Now, I haven’t been diving in awhile, so I try and get all the water activity in that I can as I am missing diving terribly. This means that I have been snorkeling a lot. This means that I have been giving some great snorkeling tours in fact! I’ve been thinking about Heather a lot while I’ve been snorkeling; what is that she prefers so much? And I think that I am starting to get it.

First of all, there is no cumbersome equipment. Just fins, mask and snorkel. Everything seems softer without the weights, the tank and the regulator. There is also no noise. Scuba diving, although we are underwater, can be a little noisy. The sound of the bubbles in the water cuts through the otherwise silent world. With a snorkel, there are no bubbles, no sound. Also, and this may be why Chris doesn’t really like snorkeling that much, you can actually TALK to the people you’re with. For me that is a bonus, as I like to share.

“Do you see those purple patches on the sides of that rock?” I’ll tell my snorkelers. “Well, those are the eggs of the Sergeant Major Fish. You know? The one’s with the black, yellow and white stripes. The male sits on top of them and attacks anything or anyone that comes close… watch.”

Then I will take a deep breath, swim down under the water, and point out the purple patch. Then I make fists at the Sergeant Major and shake them, so that they can see this brave little fish swim violently at me.

Try communicating all that without words! It normally comes across as me pointing frantically at a Sergent Major and the the purple patch and then rocking my arms back and forth like as if there was a baby in them and then making fists at the fish. People rarely understand. Who knows how many ways that can be interpreted…. Most of the time we get to the surface and they say “What the heck where you trying to tell me down there?”

Also, while snorkeling, the fish don’t seem to react the same way as they do to someone on scuba. The other day at Anse Marcel we had two Eagle Rays swimming underneath us for almost 20 minutes, super close, just feeding in the sand and gracefully flying through the water. On scuba, the Eagle Rays take one look at us and say “Dude, let’s get outta here!” With snorkelers, they don’t seem to mind us.

I am also appreciating the challenges of free-diving. Getting deeper and staying there for longer. Although I don’t like that feeling of panic that sometimes hits when I am out of air and on my way up. Another friend from the Bahamas, Leon, taught Chris a trick, which he then taught to me. Breath in through your nose on the way up. The air in the mask expands as you ascend and even though it isn’t enough for a proper breath, it takes away that Help-I’m-out-of-air-and-going-to-die feeling.

Another great thing about snorkeling is that the colors are all super bright because it is so shallow. The brown corals are actually red and orange, the blue spots on the Juvenile Damsel Fish are crazy bright, and the sunlight shimmering on the rocks is hypnotizing.

Last things, there are no limits to snorkeling. You can snorkel for as long as you like. You are never going to run out air, build up any decompression time, or worry about holding your breath.

I’m not saying that I don’t love scuba anymore, I’m just saying that I am starting to understand what Heather was talking about. It is only now, because scuba diving isn’t an option for me, that I am truly learning to appreciate snorkeling.

So come sign up for a snorkel tour and get me out of the office!!!

(Sally wrote this blog )

So, what are my reasons for not writing a blog in a really long time. The main reason is that I haven’t been diving in almost 3 months ! Can you believe that ? I can’t. 3 months. This is the longest that I haven’t been in the water for about 5 years, not since we took a break and Chris and I were in NY for awhile. Although, we even dived when we were there. Yes, it is driving me crazy. Yes, it feels like I am an addict and I am crabby and not so fun to be around when I haven’t been diving in 3 months. However, I have a good reason. Chris and I are expecting a baby in October, so…. no diving for me or the baby.

I was debating whether or not to announce this on the blog, whether it would be a pro or a con. Part of me was thinking that some people reading my blog would think that it was a con because if they are coming to St. Martin then I won’t be able to dive with them. Perhaps they may think that I won’t be working as hard, or making mistakes (I have made a couple lately, I have to admit… but apparently the fuzzi-headed fogginess goes after the first three months, so I should be good to go now.) Then I talked to my good friend Soc, from Island 92, and he said that I was crazy. He said that it could only be a good thing for business because people are supportive of growing families and would be happy for Chris and I, just as we are so happy ourselves.

So, there you have it ! No diving, because I’m pregnant. It doesn’t seem fair that Chris gets to continue to dive, but I’m not really complaining about that as he is working so hard at the moment.

I think that I was especially sad this last week because the diving was so great. It was one of those rare weeks when there was hardly any wind. The waves were tiny and the visibility outstanding. People were seeing sharks, dolphins, turtles, and I was stuck in the office or on the boat watching bubbles. I did have a good snorkel a couple of times, but as those of you that are divers know, snorkeling just isn’t the same thing as breathing underwater !

I should also mention that I had a really successful time at Beneath the Sea this year. It was all thanks to my wonderful helpers; Steve, Ellen and Peter. Steve gets the gold star as he helped me out everyday, but Ellen and Peter also get little stars as well. This year I was much better prepared and ordered a larger backdrop for our stall. Last year it was only 6 ft by 3 ft and this year it was 10 ft by 5 ft, so it covered the entire back of the stall. I needed lots of help this year because Chris and Michelle weren’t there to help

I stayed at my Uncles house in Weehawken (Thanks Uncle Clay) as I did last year, but this time Steve came to pick me up every single morning. It stared on Friday when we first went to set up, and it was just so much more relaxing now that I knew where to go, what to do, and Steve was helping me out. Steve’s neighbor just happens to be the supplier of plants to the convention (weird coincidence, huh?) So, on Friday afternoon they came over and dropped off two extremely attractive palms for our booth. Steve also brought not only one table, but two. Which was to the benefit of our neighbor stall (The Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) ) who didn’t realize that if you wanted a table you had to either rent it or bring it. Then I think they were surprised at the cost of renting a table ! So, we lent them our extra table (points for Octopus Diving!!!). Steve is also a diving instructor in the New York area, and he knew loads of people. This meant that people would come by the stall and hang out, making us look really popular. He also introduced me to lots of important people in the Tri-State diving industry, which was great.

Then that evening it wasn’t too eventful, lots of talking to people, telling them to come to St. Martin. In the beginning it is always difficult approaching people, but by the end of the weekend I was jumping out in front of strangers singing the praises of St Martin and Octopus Diving.

“Did you know that St Martin is one of the most easily accessible islands in the Caribbean?”

“Have you ever been to St. Martin?”

“Hey you! Yeah you! Get over here and let me tell you about St. Martin!”

(Well, perhaps I didn’t use the last one )

It is surprising how tiring it was! Or perhaps that was just the whole being pregnant thing… but really trying to be up beat, talking to everyone, answering their questions, it takes it’s toll. Luckily on Saturday we had Peter as a reinforcement. This meant that I was able to do some schmoozing, meet owners of other diving centers, look at new equipment, and just the normal networking that takes place as well. Peter was great at approaching people and telling them about St. Martin and us. He is not a shy guy which is what you need at a convention.

Then on Sunday, Peter walked around the convention with his wife and Ellen helped us out! Ellen dives with us once or twice a year, with Elliot and Thomas, although Thomas STILL HASN’T gotten certified yet! (He has done about 14 discover scuba dives. We are hoping this next year is the year he actually takes the course).

We also had a guest visitor to our booth, and that was Jo Bean from Saba. I let her sell some items from our booth and have a little display as well. She is a real hoot and sold a lot of necklaces. Well… actually…. I think that Ellen and I sold a lot of necklaces for her, plus Ellen couldn’t help herself and ended up buying like three just for her!

It was also a really nice surprise to see previous divers that knew I was at the convention and they came to say hi. Here are some out of focus photos! I borrowed my dad camera and for some reason it wouldn’t focus! Anyway… Octopus Divers are still beautiful, even if they are a little blurry!

It was such a great weekend, I only wish that I had a photo of Peter, but I didn’t snap one.

I can’t thank Steve, Ellen or Peter enough. I really couldn’t have done it without all of you, thank you, thank you, thank you!

So, this turned into a long blog, I hope that it makes up for not having blogged in awhile. I will try and remedy that, whether or not I am actually under the water, I know that you all still want to find out what is going on here in St. Martin! Plus, I’m sure I will have lots of funny pregnancy stories too!

(Sally and her little one wrote this blog )

Just thought I would share this to make everyone smile! Check out seconds 22 – 24.

Enjoy!

Sure, a lot of them I can delete immediately, but quite a few of them require a lot of thought. I get emails from people that have been diving with us before (which I LOVE) and one of the most frequently asked question is: “I am visiting some place different, can you recommend a diving center there?”

Sometimes I do know a reputable diving center, but more often than not, I don’t. So, if you can’t find someone that has been to that small island in the middle of nowhere, how do you know who to dive with?

Here are some ways to figure out the best diving center.

1) Get online and do your research!

The way that the world is today, everything is at the touch of your fingertips. Just type in a simple search to find a diving center where you are going. Most of the time you get a feeling at first glance about a diving center when you first click on their website. But be aware the diving instructors and dive center owners aren’t necessarily website designers or experts in search engine optimization (except for me, obviously!!!). This means that you may need to spend some real time searching for a diving center. Try “Scuba” “Dive” “PADI Dive Center” “Diving” and other various combinations.

2) Once you find a diving center email them.

So, now you’ve found a diving center on line, and you like the look of their website (or not but you are taking a chance) send them an email. In that email you want to ask some important questions.

1. What is the maximum amount of divers that they take out in a group?
2. What is the rental equipment like?
3. Are the dive trips guided?
4. If you are taking a course, ask them how many students they take out per instructor?
5. What are the boats like?
6. When did they last change the air filter on their compressor.

For me, these are the most important questions, and I certainly get asked these questions by divers. The last one not so much, about the air filters. The other though, quite frequently.

3) Wait for the responses and see what you think.

You can also search online for reviews on places such as tripadvisor.com, or scubaboard.com or post a question on Facebook to see if anyone has any info on where you are going. But I would also look at these sites with caution. On line reviews give a lot of power to the reviewer, and sometimes they shouldn’t be completely trusted.

If in doubt, email me and I will help!!!

(sally wrote this blog )

Chris left for the walk and all was good, and then about an hour later I got this phone call.

“Hey Chris, what’s up?”
“You’ll never guess what I have in the car.”
“OK…. what’s in the car.”
“A baby goat.”
“Why do you have a baby goat in the car?”
“I found him on the path at Guana Bay. He was just laying in the sun, I thought he was dead at first, but then when Roger went over and it moved. I just couldn’t leave it.”
“Ok… what are we going to do with it?”
“I don’t know, it probably won’t even survive, it looks like it has just been born. I’m on the way to the vet now.”
“OK… Let me know what happens.”

So, Chris, Billy and lil’ Rog went to the vet together. Roger wasn’t so happy as his walk stopped pretty short when Chris found Billy. The vet said that Billy was probably only about a day and a half old and that mom’s often leave their kidd’s if they have more than one, or if something is wrong with the baby. Billy even still had his umbilical cord attached. He got some vitamins and the vet gave Chris some instructions, but also warned him that maybe he wouldn’t survive.

Then Chris came home with Billy. Billy was super little. We tried to feed him with a bottle, but he didn’t like it, so we sort of had to force his mouth open and then squirt in the milk from the bottle into his throat. He didn’t like it, but it was keeping him alive.

Here is Chris just after he brought Billy home.

This went on for a few days and then all of a sudden Billy started drinking from the bottle. A lot of people have been asking me “What do you feed him?” Well, the answer is…. Goat Milk. We get goat milk at the supermarket and then heat it up, put it in the bottle and Billy drinks it. Apparently you have to bottle feed baby goats until they are 3 MONTHS OLD!

Roger was a little perplexed in the beginning about Billy, but I think as soon as we showed that he was part of the family, he quickly accepted him. Here they are kissing on the coach and down by the boat.

Of course sometimes Roger chases Billy, he just can’t help it. Billy doesn’t seem to mind though, he is happy being chased and has started to ram Roger with his head. Which is really funny!


We are not sure what role Billy will take at the diving center yet. He is pretty good at landscaping… and also swimming. Just look at this video.

When you are here next, make sure that you come by and say hi to Billy. I will post some more updates about him soon!

Sally (aka mamma goat) wrote this blog

One of the things that I love about diving is that it is a time where I am truly alone. Sure, diving is a social sport. We always go with buddies, we laugh and make jokes together on the boat. We constantly watch out for each other, to make sure we are safe and close by. That is all true, but at the same time as we are doing this, we are totally alone. This is how I feel anyway. And I like it. To be left alone in my thoughts.

Sometimes I think about a problem I’m having and sometimes I have completely random thoughts; “Where would I go if I could travel in time? The future or the past?” “What if I could create an Olympic sport out of racing underwater with no fins on?” “What do fish think about all day?”

Or, when I am diving I get Sally business head on. I try to really figure out the right direction that the business should go in. Should we get another boat? Should we do a deal with the cruise ships? I think about budgets and advertising and scheduling and emails I need to do.

Then, there are those wonderful zen moments, when I think about absolutely nothing.

What do you think about?

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I am also thinking of the diving (time, depth, NDL etc), what I’m looking at, the safety of everyone, how cool it would be if a giant squid appeared or something like that… but I can think about those things simultaneously as I’m thinking my more abstract or personal thoughts.

In fact, I was talking to Chris the other day about thinking in general (not just underwater but also top side), and for me, I have this running commentary that sort of goes on in my brain all the time (it would drive Chris and Stuart crazy if they could hear it ). I was under the impression that this was true for everyone, but apparently it isn’t, as Chris doesn’t think this way at all.

For example, I will see something and I will think “That’s funny, that guy over there is being really funny. I wonder if Chris will think that it is funny too. Should I tell him? He doesn’t have the same sense of humor that I do, not really, so he probably won’t think that it is funny. Yeah… I’m not going to tell him. Yeah… I probably will tell him anyway.”

Chris said that he just sees something, laughs and then tells me about it.

Anyway… enough about all that nonsense. Chris went out this morning to dive Chris’ Reef and fix the mooring. Also had a nice dive at the same time, then a drift on the back of Creole Rock. It was a Spanish boat this morning, with Carlos, Andres, Santiago and Fernando. Carlos lost his camera at Creole Rock, which I feel slightly responsible for because one of my latest posts on Facebook was “Ever lost anything underwater?” To which one reply was “My ex-husband on a drift dive. Unfortunately he turned up again :-/” which really made me laugh. Then, next thing I know, Carlos lost his camera… anyway. It is a quiet afternoon now, so I’m off to work on the website!

(Sally wrote this blog )

The thing is, I’m not really a sales person, and I don’t really know what I should sell. Things that seem like such a good idea at first just aren’t selling. For example, I sent away for 25 Octopus Diving calendars, which are filled with some of my favorite underwater photos in Saint Martin. They are really pretty and are currently for sale in the shop. I thought as it was the beginning of the year, calendars is something that people buy. I also thought they may make nice sticking stuffers for Christmas. Guess how many I have sold! Go, guess! One. I have sold one in about a month. Pathetic. I was so despondent about it that I even gave one away the other day to a really nice mum of one of our divers. A Christmas present, I said. I just felt like I needed to shift them. Perhaps they are too expensive – $15, but after printing costs and shipping, that really is only a small mark up.

I also commissioned a local artist from Saba, Jo Bean (who I talked about in on of my previous blogs), to make some Octopus Diving pendants, and purchased from here some other really beautiful necklaces. Each one is hand made and individual. I think they are so cool! What do you think?

This is just one of the pendants, but there are many. Also, she makes these adorable little turtle beads.

Chris even made me this wonderful display area for them to be mounted on. Guess how many of these I have sold. Guess. Go on… four. Well, that isn’t really true. I took one (so I kind of bought it from myself. I gave myself a price that I couldn’t resist). Here is the one that I bought.

Sorry if the photo is a little blurry, but I took the photo myself! Isa, one of our new instructors who I should really tell you all about, bought one and then I sold two the first day I put them on the shelf. But since then, no one has wanted any!

There are also dive necklaces with the dive flag which I thought would be really nice for divers to get, but I haven’t sold any of those. I gave one to Stuart, one to Isa and one to Karl (our other new instructor) but they don’t even wear them

Maybe I’m being too hard on myself.

I also had all these Octopus Diving stickers made and some magnets too. They are on the shelf right next to a little sign that says “Stickers and Magnets $3 each” but people just keep taking them thinking that they are free! Then it is embarrassing when I have to stop them.

“Ummmm, those aren’t actually free. Yeah… Ummmm…. Sorry about that… They are actually $3 each.”

I’m sure I’ve seen stickers for sale in other diving centers, and they aren’t free either!

Ok, I’ve just been skyped by my dad, so I’ve got to go. I shall ask his advice on the subject.

Oh… If you want a necklace, just ask. Or a calendar, they are going on sale for 20% off shortly!

Sally wrote this blog

Well… last year we had a small article in the magazine with a small advertisement, but this year when we contacted the editor she said if I could write a longer article she would give us a larger advertisement. So, I did. The theme of the 2012 Destination is looking at things from a new perspective. So I wrote about looking at the ocean a different way (i.e. from below )!

Here is the article. I cut it out and then scanned it. I hope it is big enough for everyone to read. You have to click on the link… Enjoy
Octopus in Destination

Sally wrote this blog

The package was about 2 feet by 1.5 feet and only a few inches thick. Very strange. It had actually arrived a couple days before, but I was out diving and Stu put it in the back room at the dive shop. When I found it I eagerly opened it and inside was a framed certificate. Intriguing…. I thought.

The first thing I noticed was the word “Excellence” and I thought to myself “that’s pretty excellent.” Upon even further inspection I read all the words.

“Certificate of Recognition for

EXCELLENCE

Awarded to

OCTOPUS DIVING

For the 2011 PADI Americas

Diver Retention Award

Given the 1st Day of November, 2011″

Took a long time for it to get to me if they awarded it on the 1st of November.

Anyway… I was extremely pleased but a little confused. What the heck is “Diver Retention”? It sounds like some kind of genetic disorder at first. Luckily it was accompanied by a letter from PADI, from no one other than the Executive of PADI Americas.

Apparently Octopus Diving was selected as one of only three diving centers nominees for the PADI Americas and PADI Canada 2011 PADI Member Recognition Awards. This means that out of all the PADI diving centers in America, Canada and the Caribbean we were selected for the particular DIVER RETENTION AWARD.

This award “Recognizes retail and resort members that have shown continuing education certification growth over the previous year, followed PADI Standards and philosophy, and implemented innovative diver retention strategies.”

Phew, still not sure what that means, but it’s freakin’ cool! My translation of this is that we not only certified divers as Open Water Divers, but those same divers came back to do their Advanced Open Water with us, or their Enriched Air Specialty Certification, or their Rescue. What it means is that our divers, Octopus Diving divers, keep coming back to us.

It is only a piece of paper, (although nicely framed), but it means a lot to us. We work so hard, we try to provide the best education for our divers as possible, and we also try to keep our relationships with our divers strong, so that they do come back and dive again with us. Plus, do you have any idea how many diving centers there are in Canada, the USA and the Caribbean? Lots. Lots and lots and lots. So for us to be in the top three (although we didn’t make the top top) is pretty great!

Anyway, big pat on the back for us, and thanks to all of you, our RETAINED DIVERS!

(Sally wrote this blog )

Saba is called the “Unspoiled Queen” of the Caribbean. This phrase isn’t just a tourist pull, it is true. With only 1,550 full time residents (there are an additional 300 medical students studying there) the island is small. It is a massive rock that juts out of the ocean and is made up of a potentially active volcano called Mount Scenery. The highest point on the island (Mt. Scenery) is 877 m (2,877 feet) and is the highest point in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. There are only two ways to get there, ferry or flight.

We opted for the ferry as it was cheaper and also more convenient. Although flying is only 10 minutes and the ferry is an hour and ten minutes, with the ferry you don’t have to arrive 2 hours early, the airport is farther away from Grand Case than the Pelican (where the ferry leaves from) and we aren’t worried about getting seasick. (They sometimes call the ferry to Saba and St. Bart’s the “Vomit Commit” due to the constant yaw of the boat in the waves.) Once you arrive at the port you jump in a taxi and they take you up, up, up. Everything is “up” there.

So, we arrived at the ferry and let me tell you (it is so odd) that even before we got on the ferry Chris started to relax. We had breakfast at a little cafe before boarding and he was already cracking jokes and embarrassing me in front of the waiter. I know that a lot of you understand this, it seems that just the thought of vacation, just the hint of it, is relaxing. That is why I sometimes get those people who are planning their vacations and they email me 50 times before they arrive, or once they get back they are sending me photos (which I love by the way) and they are commenting on FB. It is because they want to try to prolong that “vacation feeling” and I totally know how they feel.

We stayed at Scout’s Place in the village of Windwardside. It is owned by our friends Wolfgang and Barbara. They also have a diving center there, Saba Divers, but this trip was a “NO DIVING” trip. I didn’t even want the briefest of reminders of scuba diving while we were away. The room was beautiful, with the most amazing view from our room.

The first night it started to rain. Really rain. Lots of rain. Rain coming in all directions. The rain continued, and continued. You know what? We didn’t care. All the better reason to stay in bed and do nothing. To read and relax. That’s the thing about vacation, sometimes it doesn’t matter if it rains.

Around 1 PM on Saturday it cleared up and we explored the island a bit more. This is our third visit to the island. The first time was on a trip sponsored by the Saba Tourist office (in which Chris and I somehow got separated and while I was having a tour of the island in a mini bus with a bunch of ladies from various concierge desks of St. Martin, Chris was drinking Bloody Mary’s with the Saban Minister of Tourism! But that is a whole other story). The second time was for diving, so this time we decided to explore top side.

We went to the Tide Pools, which was like walking on another planet or something.

It was too rough to actually go in the pools, but it was still lots of fun. I figured out how to use the timer on my camera to get this photo of the two of us.

Probably the best thing that we did was go into Jo Bean’s Glass Studio. The name comes from the owner and artist, Jo Bean. When we first went in there were a few people mulling around the small studio, some talking to Jo. Jo had her head over an open flame (looked like a sideways Bunsen Burner to me) with a long stick of black glass. All around the studio are these wonderful glass trinkets, necklaces, key chains, hearts, mermaids, turtles. Amazing colors and textures. It made me feel like I was some kind of princess and the room was my jewelery box. A couple people left and I saw my opportunity. I was a little bashful (I’m much more outgoing in writing and underwater then I am otherwise), but I persevered.
“Hi. I’m Sally. From St. Martin. My husband and I own Octopus Diving.”
Her head turned up and she smiled at me. Jo Bean isn’t bashful at all.
“Well.” She said. “Aren’t you just exactly the people that I was looking for.” She immediately put me at ease and this started about an hour and a half of us chatting away about all sorts. When talking about her own art Jo Bean is especially animated.

“This one I love, you have to look at this one! Oh and this, I sell tons of these, aren’t they cute?”

She gave us a demonstration of how she makes some of her beads, and even let us make our own beads while we were there. Here is Chris and Jo Bean instructing Chris.

While working with the glass you get to wear these awesome glasses. Chris looked just adorable in them (I look pretty good too, don’t you think?)

It was so much fun. The best part is that I came away with some awesome necklaces, key chains, and other trinkets to sell at the dive shop. Jo Bean makes these wonderful dive necklaces and she is making custom designed, unique to us, Octopus Diving pendants and key chains. She gave me a quick sample of one and it looks great. I will post photos of it soon, and they will be for sale in the shop! I’m super excited! It was also really nice to meet Jo Bean, she’s a real character and has this quality about her that makes you both at ease and also intrigued. If you go to Saba visiting her studio is a must!
So… it was a relaxing vacation and now we are back in St. Martin hard at work. This morning there was a deep dive at La Renee and Stu had 3 open water students! My favorite part of the vacation was sitting with Chris, playing cards, reminding me of the days when we used to travel and had no responsibility, no stress, no worries, just where the next bus was taking us. We always play the same game, and it never gets old…. Here is a clip of Chris, truly relaxed in Saba.
Sorry the video is sideways, I’m new at this…


This is what we are saying, in case you can’t make out Chris’ accent.

Sally: “You’re on video.”

Chris: “That’s nice for me.”

Sally: “Do you have anything to say to all your fans out there?”

Chris: “Ride it like you stole it.”

Sally: “Are you having fun?”

Chris: “Endless.”

Sally: “You look like it.”

Chris: “That’s a nice big white swan behind us…. it’s huge.”

Sally: “I’ve seen it already, it’s fake.”

Chris: “It’s massive. It’s not fake, it’s real. It’s swimming backwards right now.”

Pan over to swan.

Chris: “It’s a real white swan. Otherwise, how would it move around the pool like that? It’s got legs, ‘in it. You just can’t see them.”

Chris takes swig of an aperitif.

Chris: “These shots are good, that’s our fifteenth.”

(Sally wrote this blog )