Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The water was warm and clear. It was soon evident that all I had to do was hover over the
cluster of oysters and observe the open ones. They are filter feeders and remain open, fil-
tering any plankton as it drifts down through the water. The instant you cast a shadow over
these bivalves they snap shut, and the sight of any pearls they may have inside them will be
hidden from view. I warmed to this job like a thief in a jeweler's store. I hovered overhead,
wary of my shadow, and spotted a few with little yellow or white drops in their interior and
swooped down, throwing them in the bag. There were some very large oysters, and a lot of
these were closed. I took them anyway in the event of their containing pearls. I looked up
from time to time at the other divers. They were filling sacks quickly and professionally.
I realized I had better get a move on if I was going to fill my three bags quota. I charged
around scooping up oysters and suddenly skidded to a halt at a sight that had my heart leap-
ing into my mouth. Underwater, I mouthed, “Jesus Christ almighty!”
I was looking at a giant oyster with a huge golden ball bearing inside it. I went straight
down and closed my hand over it. It had snapped shut by the time I had it in my hand. I
couldn't be sure it was the right one, for they had all snapped shut about me. I just dared
not show them this one for fear of them confiscating it. I stuck it in my booty that I always
wore with my flippers. I felt guilty as sin, but this was a chance in a lifetime, and they had
said nothing about any limits on size. I soon had filled my three bags and clambered over
the boat after throwing in the last one. They had been waiting patiently for me. Faali was
grinning at me, with his ever present cigarette in his mouth. I wondered if he had seen me.
No, it was not possible. Was it?
They up anchored and took me back to Déjà vu, helping me with the three heavy sacks. I
waved a thank you and set to work. The first thing I did after they had disappeared was to
open the oyster I had inside my booty. It had been pressing up painfully against my shin,
and I was chafed badly from the sharp shell. It had better be the right one! I pried it open
with a knife blade, breathless with anticipation. There it was! It was huge and golden and
perfectly round. It was a gorgeous specimen and by far the largest I had found. I still have
this one to this day, having made three sets of earrings for three girlfriends with most of my
other larger ones.
For the rest of that afternoon, and the best part of the day that followed, I sat cross-legged
in the cockpit, with knife in hand going through every oyster. Each bivalve had to be pried
open and examined for a pearl. It was like Christmas when I was ten all over again. I can't
describe the excitement that came from opening these oysters with the chance of discover-
ing the little, round nuggets inside some of them. At the end of the day, I sat with a pile of
gooey oysters and empty shells and a good handful of lovely pearls. Most were small, some
were quite big, and they ranged from a nine caret gold color to a brilliant oyster white. Not
all of them were round. It all depended on the shape of the piece of grit that got stuck in-
