OK, I understand now – Bora Bora is lovely. However, I agree with many other cruise guests: Moorea is the more beautiful island, but Bora Bora has the best lagoon. That single entrance thru the atoll is natural. I understand why the US Navy had a base here during WW2. What a choice assignment that must have been!

I’ve snorkeled since I was young, and I learned to scuba (PADI) about 20 years ago. But it has been almost 15 years since I’ve dived (last time I was with my sister in Mallorca). So, I decided to try something different. Remember old-fashioned giant-helmeted diving suits? Well, they now have something for untrained tourists.

The boat had a rack of scuba tanks with a hose leading to each helmet. We were about 20 feet down. The joy of this helmet is that I can continue to wear my glasses (I have not dived since I’ve stopped wearing contact lenses). The grey on the chest is a weight – there is also a weight on the back. The whole helmet set weighs about 80 pounds, but once you get under the water the air in the helmet almost floats it on your shoulder.

The guides have a roped area where we can walk around. You cannot lean over, because the water will just flow over your face. They teach us the drop to our knees to see things near the lagoon floor. There were a few sea anemones and clown fishes. I’ve never touched an anemone before.

The guide then tied a small bag of fish food to our helmet. I’m not a fan of bribing nature, but this was fun.