Club Med Nassau

Our trip to Club Med in Nassau was something really special, not because we got it for free. The fact was that the CEO of Club Med turned over the use of this resort for two weeks to members of the FDNY, NYPD, Port Authority and other NYC uniform personnel. 

This was a true act of understanding and compassion. He had seen the effort by the uniform workers at both Ground Zero and the Freshkill Landfill, so he contacted the Mayor’s office to offer the use of the resort on a lottery basis. In all there were about 250 of us there that week, enjoying the sunshine, the volleyball games, the shows that the staff put on each night and the shopping in downtown Nassau. The best thing we found was just getting away from everything in New York. We had the chance to just relax and not have a worry in the world. 

While there, the largest dive operator on the island offered a "Try Scuba On Us" at the pool. As it turns out, one of us was already a certified diver. I decided to give it a try. I put on the gear and went around the pool with one of the Divemasters, who kept a keen eye on me and the others.  After about 20 minutes of playing around the pool, he offered us a chance to go on a 2-tank dive the next day.

After speaking with Fern who said, "We are here to relax. Go for it," I signed up along with three others guys.

Going to the Far Side

The next morning, bright and early after breakfast, the bus picked us up, and off we went to the far side of Nassau. Once we got to Stuart Cove's place it was like something out of a movie set. It looked like a small sea side village; as it turned out I was correct.  The place had been used in the remake of the TV series "Flipper."  We gathered our wetsuits, masks, fins and BCs and were taken down to one of their dive boats.  The crew knew that we were from New York Fire Department and were happy to have us there. They told us to relax and they would take care of everything.

We did our two dives, saw lots of marine life and had a bunch of photos taken. Some are up here on the web site. By the time we got back to Club Med, I had a good feeling that I would be back and diving again.