Utila – Week 3, Day 4: Underwater Hell
UTILA
Week 3
Day 4: Underwater Hell
November 30, 2022
I woke up to wonderful news: I was part of Demi Lovato’s top 0.01% listeners, according to Spotify Wrapped. I mean, it didn’t come as much of a surprise – her latest album HOLY FVCK had been on repeat ever since it came out. It’s so damn good! Back in Belize, Becca and I would belt out Wasted all the time. Now? Now I was in my Happy Ending Phase.
Pop news apart, I woke up bursting with energy after what felt like weeks of convalescence. Together with Gloria, I’d be assisting Rachel with the second part of the PADI Rescue Diver course she was running – the Open Water dives.
On the first dive, both Clive and Ken did excellent work – with both of them running through the notorious Exercise 7 without so much as a hitch. The second dive was the one I was looking forward to the most – the hell dive. And lemme tell ya – we gave them hell. Gloria and I kept coming up with every possible problem imaginable for them to sort out. I unbuckled Ken’s BCD while purging his reg, I rode Gloria’s air tank as we breathed from each other’s regs, and, to finish off, I ran away with Clive’s mask. It might’ve been hell for them, but it felt like pure heaven to me. I was encouraged to be impish as part of the course!
And that was that. They’d finish their final exam in the classroom, but, for all intents and purposes, they had earned their certification. Seeing Ken go from zero to hero genuinely made me feel proud. Plus, I could scratch off another task from my scoreboard!
Karaoke, Kisses, and Catwalk Vibes
Finally back on track, I realised the two days I’d missed were probably a blessing in disguise – a good chance to get some much-needed rest. Now I was ready for it all. Including Karaoke Wednesday!
Leah and I kicked off the night with a banger – Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars. She’d be leaving the following day, so this was a nice farewell moment. Then came I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) – a complete and total hit I performed with Stefan, a Dutch guy who had just arrived at Underwater Vision. In the meantime, Mike and Danielle would hog the mic and keep everyone entertained as we’d all wait for our next turn.
Michela and I closed off with a slow song – Need You Now by Lady Antebellum. She’d be leaving the following day, so a love song was only appropriate. I think of all the people I’d met at Underwater Vision that were leaving, she’d be the one I was going to miss the most. We just got each other in a way that’s hard to describe. I think it was the vulgarity of our friendship that made it so special. Me licking her neck and her kissing me on stage during our performance was just the icing on the cake.
Plus, we’d have these Mean Girls-style gossip sessions and impromptu beauty nights that brought us close to each other. Being away from glamour for almost four months is brutal on a metrosexual like me. I’d given up my Fendi shoes for off-brand flip-flops, my skincare routine for saltwater, my spa sessions for dirty hikes. I felt completely unrecognisable – but somehow, pampering ourselves in the middle of a hostel brought me back to my inner diva.
Stay wild,
Marius
Post-Scriptum
I shared Spotify’s Wrapped summary as a story on Instagram and tagged the Demi Lovato in hopes that she’d one day see me. Worth a shot, right?