Thanks to the french...

It isn't too often that I thank the french for anything but I definitely owe them a bit of gratitude for something I recently discovered - a dive site named 'Le Dome'. The site is the remains of a large metal underwater dome that was created for a french television show back in the early 80's. Apparently the show was much like the modern day show Survior and contestants had to compete for rewards (food, money, etc). One of the challenges they had was to freedive to the underwater dome (which is in 40 feet of water) and search for pearls hidden inside the dome (which were turned in for rewards). During their freediving, scantily clad mermaids with scuba gear would give the contestants an occasional breath of air when needed. Unfortunately, the contestants were not scuba certified and were unaware that they need to exhale on their way up to avoid an embolism. Needless to say, the show was cancelled early when several contestants were hurt. After the show ended, the dome was left to become part of the reef. Over the years, hurricanes have knocked portions of the dome over and now it is a perfect dive site and home to numerous fish. We did three dives on the dome last week (2 daytime dives and 1 night dive) and each dive was spectacular. Thanks to the french, this dive site is now in my top 10 of caribbean dive sites.