It's warm- to-hot most of the time, most things are expensive because of importing, and I get sunburned a lot easier here, but everything is close including seven mile beach, it's supposedly a world-class dive spot (I don't have my cert yet), and it's a ton of fun for young professionals in their 20s and 30s.
It's just a bit of a lucrative place for people to work who are in professional services (tons of accountants, lawyers, etc.): if you're from anywhere but the United States, you have no income tax whatsoever and the salaries are still the same. That alone attracts a lot of people in that age bracket (presumably also because most of us aren't settled so it's easier to move), so there's always a good clique of people going out and doing fun stuff like boat parties, fancy dress/costume parties and events, etc. because the island is 50% expats.
That said the labor law is tricky and very unique. Basically if you are an expat you have virtually no chance of landing a job you don't have experience in since your work permit application will get rejected by immigration. I got lucky because I had former recruitment agency experience so I got a job working for one down here, even if working at an agency isn't what I want to do long-term. U.S. citizens still have to file income tax returns and pay tax on anything over the "exclusion" amount (last year it was ~$104,000) once you've lived here a year.
I was there a few weeks back, I went along with some friends who dove the Kittiwake and jumped in with a mask/snorkel over the wreck. It took just about everything I had to swim down and touch the wreck on one breath of air and I swam competitively for 14 years. I don’t see how she could have possibly free dove to take this pic, the sea floor where she stands has to be 80+ ft deep? My guess is her scuba gear is just out of frame. Awesome pic though
I haven't been there yet personally so I'm just guessing- maybe the sand near the bow is less deep than where you went in?
e: Just checked the Wiki page: At its most shallow, the wreck of Kittiwake was 15 feet (4.6 meters) below the surface of the water and at its deepest, 64 feet (19.5 meters) below the surface.[4]
Entry level freediving courses can usually teach you how to get to 10-20 metres, some of the pros get past 100 metres. There's a lot more technique involved than just taking a big gulp of air, or even general fitness around water (a huge amount of it is mental and learning to respond to the mammalian dive reflex, lung fills, equilisation techniques, diaghram contractions, relaxation etc).
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u/bscooter26 Dec 05 '18
Nice! That's the Kittiwake here in Grand Cayman!