Frustration

Yesterday I was up bright and breezey to be picked up by Cantamar Club to go on my eagerly awaited trip to see the sea lions on Isla Espiritu Santos. There were just three of us in the bus and as I was the last one to be picked up we whizzed off Pichilingue immediately. The hotel that the club is run out of is just next door to the ferry terminal, not the most picturesque of spots but well suited for trips out to the islands. It also turned out to be a dive hotel. We arrived to general chaos. Several boats were going out, full of divers. Eventually someone directed me to the place I could pick up some fins, a mask and snorkel and suggested I went and got a coffee. When I booked I had been told I would have to pay extra for breakfast so I asked if it was OK to take a table and the waitress just waved her hand. So I went and helped myself to toast and scrambled eggs and no one batted an eye lid!!! Back on the dock I got on board the Una Mas, as directed, along with about 20 divers. We had three female japanese dive masters and our pilot, Jorge. We steamed ahead for one and a half hours and eventually arrived at a small rocky pinnacle upon which sat a beacon and a couple of sea lions. I was to be the only snorkeller and the others would make 2 dives here. I waited until they were in the water and then made a tour of the 'island' and watched the sea lions. And they watched me and swam under me and generally tried to figure out what this thing in the water with them was! There were lots of fish too - damsel fish again and lots of rainbow wrasse. Below me was a ball of jacks circling slowly, they also came to see what I was when I dived down towards them. I saw a moray eel and even a red and orange camoflage patterned octopus. By 1 I had been in for a few dips and the divers had dived and Jorge had made lunch - tortillas with a chicken filling that tasted strangely of fish! We motored back towards the port stopping at another dive point within glimpsing distance of Isla Espiritu Santos but above a wreck 20m down - not so good for snorkelling. By now I realised that we weren't going to see the 300 or so sea lions on the island, and I was hopping mad!!!! Once back on dry land I made my complaint but the guy behind the desk just shrugged, its seems the other trip had been full and instead of telling me thay had put me on the other boat. I headed back to La Paz and was grumpy all evening. I know there are really nice people here in Mexcio but I am getting rather tired of the attitude that some people take.........