This morning we will go diving, but first we have to prepare breakfast. We cook up some eggs and after cleaning up, we head off to catch the bus into town. In town we gather at the travel office, where we pay for our dive trip. From there, we are taken the short distance down to the pier and the dive boat.
We all crowd onto the boat - divers and snorkelers - and head out to the reef. The dive operation is ok, but nothing special. The diving is on a very shallow reef, so it is very simple and is not technical. There is no real briefing and they do not really explain much. In the end, we just jump in the water and go explore around the reef on our own and see what we can find.
The visibility is not that great, and we do not see all that much on our two dives. The most interesting thing that we find is what they call a bat fish. It is a bottom dweller that lays on the reef. It has a funny shape and almost looks like it is walking. He does not move very fast.
After the two dives are finished, we head back to shore, arriving at the town at 2 PM. We then spend the next two hours walking around town and window shopping. Jacqui checks out a few bikinis, but they are too skimpy, so she passes. The locals where these bikinis where just about everything oozes out. At 4 PM we return to the campsite.
We will be leaving the truck for a few days, so we need to sort out our stuff and pack our things that we will need. We will be taking the night bus up to Salvador. The rest of the group will be taking two days to drive there, with a beach camp in between. From what we have heard of Salvador, we decided that we wanted more time there.
So, once we have packed up our stuff, we head off and catch the local bust to the bus station. It is rush hour and the bus is packed. But we are able to squeeze in with our small bags. We are stuck at the back of the bus and when we reach our stop we have to squeeze our way to the front of the bus. Along the way we see what all the locals have brought on the bus - racks of wares for sale, big bags, but the best is right near the door. Someone is taking a washing machine with them on the bus!!!
While we wait for our bus, we decide to have a bite to eat in one of the local places. Very nice and the locals even chat and joke with us, so we pass the time in a very pleasant manner. When we board the bus, we are in for a pleasant surprise - it truly is a luxury liner. The seats are three to a row (two and one), are made of leather and they almost fully recline. They hand us a little box, which has a snack and headphones for the movies they show. The seats have blankets and pillows laying on them waiting for us. There is also a toilet and free water and coffee at the back. We travel overnight to Salvador in luxury and get a good nights sleep.