El Salvador: a Diving Destination

by Jamie Rhein on

If you think about El Salvador perhaps images of civil war come to mind. The civil war ended in 1992. Now there are other things for El Salvador to become well known for–scuba diving, for example.

You can open water dive to explore a wrecked boat and volcanic rock reefs and swim in the midst of schools of fish. Or, you can dive in Coatepeque Lake or Lake Ilopango, two craters surrounded by volcanoes. Night diving is also possible. Both lakes are El Salvadoran vacation get-away spots that have beachfront hotels and other water sport options.

Along with excellent diving locations, El Salvador is equipped with dive shops and places to take lessons for PADI certification. At Punta Mango Surf Trips’s website you can find information about scuba diving opportunities and how to combine diving with cultural tours. Also, check out Yamelith Coreas’s website . A native of El Salvaldo, Coreas has rounded up his favorite spots to promote tourism and Salvadoran culture. He lists Coatepeque Lake as one of his favorite destinations. The photo is of Coatepeque Lake posted on Flickr by traveling addict. In case the idea of traveling in El Salvador still makes you a little nervous, here is information from the U.S. Department of State.

Top Five Destinations of Travel Writer Christopher Elliot

by Jamie Rhein on

I checked the Baby Boomer Trips website to see what is happening there these days. Last month, I mentioned the feature, Ask Nan. This time I browsed the Interviews section. Christopher Elliot is one of the interviewees. As a person who writes for National Geographic Traveler, the U.S. News & World Report and who is a columnist for the New York Times, I’d say Elliot knows a thing or two.

One of the interview questions asked him for his top 5 travel destinations. Except for Anchorage, Alaska, Elliot seems to like warm climates. Sanibel Island is listed as #1, then the Florida Keys, then Sonoma, California, and then Bermuda. Anchorage is last.

Here’s the briefest of brief rundowns of each of these places. I don’t know what Elliot likes about each, but this is what appealed to me. Each place’s website is filled with details meant to capture a wide range of interests. Sanibel Island is a shell collectors’ dream spot and there is the National Wildlife Refuge & Bird Sanctuary. The Florida Keys is as far south as you can get and still be in the U.S. Plus, it just happens to be the dive and sports fishing capital of the world. (At least that’s what the website says.) One of my friends is in love with the Key West Literary Seminar held there every January.

Sonoma trades the tropical paradise for wine country. Instead of driving yourself from winery to winery, you can take a wine country tour. Good idea since wine tours can make a person tipsy in no time. Bermuda is a place I’d go to see the architecture. There are 785 historic houses that are listed on the National Register. Anchorage is a place to go if seeing a wildlife abundance is your fancy. Within a short distance of the city you can see bears, whales, moose and more–a lot more.

If you want more travel thoughts from Christopher Elliot, check out his own travel blog called “Ellipses.”

Scuba Diving in Missile Silos

by Neil Woodburn on

There are plenty of unusual places to scuba dive in this world but one of the most unique is undoubtedly a missile silo located in Texas.

The silo was purchased 25 years ago from the U.S. government after they removed and decommissioned the Atlas Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) which lurked inside. Over the next quarter century, ground water began seeping in through the four-foot thick concrete walls and flooded the silo. Operating under the philosophy, “when life gives you a lemon, make lemonade,” the owners decided to convert the silo into a diving facility in 1994.

Since then, the Family Scuba Center in Midland Texas has been operating dives in the dark recesses of the silo for $60 a pop. Divers can enjoy 130 feet of crystal clear water enclosed within a 60 foot diameter concrete tube. The water is 60 degrees, and as you might imagine with an underground silo, very dark. Just don’t touch the glowing green stuff at the bottom.

A Hotel Underwater? Thank Jules Verne.

by Jamie Rhein on

There are Japan’s capsules hotels that Willy Volk blogged about and there are the Swiss igloo hotels that Neil Woodburn blogged about. For another option, although you’ll need to scuba dive to get there, try Jules’ Underwater Lodge at the Key Largo Undersea Park. This lodge, inspired by Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea has offered an upscale intimate place to scuba to for a night’s stay or longer for 21 years now.

I first read about this lodge in an ESL (English as a Second Language) book on idioms. I can’t remember the idioms covered in the story but one of them had to do with visitors being able to sit by a window and watch the fish pass by. There was also an idiom that involved a chef preparing terrific food. This story was a huge hit, though not as huge as the one about the man who advertised for a wife in the newspaper and said whoever was interested should apply at his booth at a shopping mall on a particular day. Shoot! Could this have been a Valentine story?

The Jules Underwater Lodge story explained how the people who stay there don’t drown. The hotel looks mighty sweet and comfy to me. If you don’t know how to scuba dive to get to bed, you can take lessons at the Undersea Park. You’ll need more than one day to learn, however, so you’ll have to lodge above ground first. Think about taking lessons closer to home then reward yourself with a trip here (one of the website’s suggestions). There are several package options for those who are interested in the more simple fare to those whose tastes run to the elegant. Also, there are 21st year celebration discounts. Check the lodge’s press release for the details.

You Won’t Get Eaten By A Shark

by Jonathon Morgan on

Despite whatever fears you may still harbor thanks to Jaws, Jaws – The Revenge, Jaws 2, or Jaws 3-D, chances are, you won’t be attacked by a shark during while on vacation.

This past year sharks killed only 4 people and bit 58 others around the world. According to George Burgess, director of the International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida, “The reality is, as a biologist, this is a non-problem. It’s a minor, minor thing.”

While no matter where you travel, shark attacks are highly unlikely, arguably your worst bet is Florida, which accounted for two-thirds of the 38 sharkbites in the United States. However, this is probably only due to the year-round swimming weather, and the subsequently high-number of people that use these waters for recreation. The four shark-related deaths were in the waters off Australia, Brazil, Reunion Island (in the Indian Ocean) and Tonga (in the South Pacific).

The research didn’t include what they considered to be provoked attacks — such as when fishermen catch sharks. But if you’re provoking a shark, you’re pretty much asking for it — right?