Isla Files 1.18

Isla Files 1.18
The weather has continued stormy for the past few days. This north wind is slowly lessening and the locals say that the storm will only last another day or two. Our mission yesterday: locate some fresh basil. There used to be a small greenhouse on the corner across from the ball field but it had one too many hurricanes and is closed. Jose Luis gave us some directions to find the “vivero.” It took us a couple of tries but we finally found it on a side street in the area of the island known as “La Colonial.” It is pretty bare bones but we were able to buy 2 beautiful basil plants for 30 pesos (about 3 dollars). We have a small garden area on our balcony that has only aloe vera growing there now. Jose Luis says that if you put the aloe vera in your hair, leave it in “maybe for one minute” and then rinse it out, it makes your hair really soft. He has beautiful hair so it is worth a try!
Today was our first day diving. The ocean was rough and there is a strong current along the reef. We went out on a boat with 6 other divers and 2 guides. Our boatman was so short he had to stand on the battery to see over the console.
The dives were great! We saw a whole school of spotted eagle rays (about a dozen), several large green moray eels, and 2 huge octopi. The fish down here are swarming as always. It is great to dive where there are so many fish! The area between the island and Cancun is closed to both cruise ships and fishing, so it is in good shape. Signs of the past 2 hurricanes are abundant with lots of sand dumped on the reef and pieces of broken coral. I am wondering if the sand on the reef is like a forest fire? Does it help the reef rejuvenate? Does it protect from global warming or does it just smother the coral?