Snorkeling on Tiran Island.

I am all for trying new things and Yes!!! after wanting to try out for a long time I did try snorkeling  and in a new city of course.

Sharm-El-Sheikh is a coastal city in between the desert of the Sinai and the Red Sea and it was by far the most memorable. I tried new things, met new people, partied at Naama  Bay, watched belle dancers, went window shopping 😯 , met a couple of admirers 😉 and as always, roamed the city.

Tiran Island used to be a part of Sharm-El-Sheik in Egypt but the Egyptian government recently declared that Tiran falls within the territorial waters of Saudi Arabia so technically, I can add Saudi Arabia to the list of countries I have visited 😀

My  Couchsurfing friend George helped with my hotel and tour bookings before I got to sharm so everything was pretty stress free. I got picked up at my hotel early enough on my dive day and we headed to the harbor. We were given instructions at the quay on safety and a head count was done with our names taken down so that we do not lose anyone. We sailed on Queen 3 and off we went.

The weather was cold and I was a bit shivery. I was pretty much alone, not because I couldn’t make friends but because no one around spoke English. Apart from the tour guide and photographer I could not find anyone else who spoke English. There were mostly Ukrainians, Russians and Egyptians on the cruise and save for minor gestures, we really could not keep up conversation.

After about 30 minutes into our sail, we were called around by the guides and given another round of underwater safety instructions and tips.

After a couple of hours of staying on my own and being bored. A water guide finally found me someone who could speak little English. Jonathan who is from Belgium was also on a solo trip in Sharm and spoke conversational English, there were little hassles here and there but we got along quite nicely.

We finally got to our diving and snorkeling destination and before I could blink I had already seen others jump out to go for a swim before our water sporting activities, I mean I can swim but bursting out in the middle of the ocean was way beyond me. My thoughts were, what if there are sharks, what if I had a muscle strain. I basically watched and it did feel awkward as I was left alone with the children and the elderly.

When it was time for snorkeling, little me slid down, with help from  a guide, I was able to have my snorkeling done. Snorkeling unlike scuba diving which I did here requires quite a bit of swimming skills but it was great non the less.  The coral reef, star and gold fishes and other under water creatures were really beautiful and I’d totally love to do it again.

After, we had lunch and I socialized a bit in sign language.

I was the only black person on the cruise and although it felt weird I was occasionally asked for pictures, but I willingly obliged.

I had so much fun and I would really love to try Snorkeling again, maybe even here in Lagos. I also hope to better my swimming skills and if you are a pro, I would really love to learn from you.