Jamaican Memories

In 1999 I had the opportunity to take a tropical marine biology class in Jamaica. I guess this is where I picked up my interest in marine botany. However, I did my Ph.D. work in the much colder waters of the North Atlantic. The class was very difficult as we spent all day collecting specimens and all night identifying what we had collected.

I did not do any scuba diving; it was all snorkeling. I guess I dove no more than 12'-15' collecting specimens. Here is a pic my professor took of me at work collecting specimens. Notice the gloves. I had never swam with gloves on before or since, but the coral was sharp.

Here is part of the gang that comprised the class. The only time I got seasick is when the boat was not moving. So I was always the first to get into the water and the last to get out of the water each dive trip.

We kept all our live specimens in this tank until the course ended. On the last day of class these specimens were all laid out for us to identify and then returned to the ocean.

We did get one day off to explore the island and go play in a place called Dunn's River Falls. The water was cold, but refreshing.