Crew Profiles:
Walter,50, Swiss,
is a 400 ton licensed captain since over 20 years and a Swiss licensed and certified mechanic as well a PADI certified dive-instructor with an experience of over 7000 dives.
During a very cold and rainy summer in Europe in 1987, Walter went to the Dominican Republic for a dive vacation . He loved it and stayed to open one of the first European dive schools which he ran successfully for five years and it does still exist today, owned now by he’s best Swiss friend.
Never he stopped dreaming from the perfect Dive & Relax Vacation solution. A catamaran as a floating hotel and dive base. And the dream came true …
In 1991 he went to France and bought the Belline ll. After customizing the Catamaran, he set sail through the Biscay to the Mediterranean sea where he cruised along the French coast, the Balearic Islands , Gibraltar and the Grand Canaries . From there Walter and his crew set sails for a cross Atlantic cruise .
They had a wonderful quiet time across, and made landfall in the BVI's 21 days later. Walter and his crew thought they where the next Columbus in Paradise when they found that the beer at Pusser's Landing on the dock was only a nickel! (What they didn't know was they had landed on a Thursday, when Pusser's Pub was celebrating a special "Nickel-Nite").
Walter is a well known captain/chef in the charter business since a successfully 15 years. Over two thousand guests had the pleasure to experience an unforgettable vacation, blowing their first bubbles under water and spotting their first tropical fishes too. Many guests return year after year, read our guest letters.
One of his preferred moments is in the evening when he finds the time to create a wonderful meal and spoil you with one of the daily creations of tropical drinks. Some of his favorite meals need to be prepared each time for repeat guests they love it so much.
Because of his many skills other charter boaters call him, "Walter-will-fix-it", he always has a helping hand, no matter if mechanical or if its just a dash of salt …
Joining Walter aboard Belline ll are Gary and Steffi...
Garry, 41, USA
Co-Captain, Dive Instructor, Chef
Growing up in Arizona a person might ask how a desert rat has come to develop a passion for water. Spending 5 years in the Monterey Bay area of California, Garry found his true love for the diving and sailing. With over 20 years of diving experience including 12 years as a PADI master scuba diver trainer/instructor, Garry can spark your interest for scuba diving. His passion lies in teaching others about the ocean, its environments and how to protect it. He has spent many years diving and sailing in the Sea of Cortez, Pacific Ocean and throughout the Caribbean and Central America and the frigid waters of the Great Lakes. As an avid technical diver he is trained in full cave, deep water ship wrecks and tri-mix gasses and has hundreds of interesting stories to tell and pictures to show you.
Always looking for another challenge, he took on an apprenticeship at the prestigious culinary institute of America. He specialized in French, Vegetarian/Vegan and South Western US cuisine. His travels throughout Africa, the US, Canada and Mexico let him develop and refine his international cuisine style. He worked 10 years as executive chef for places such as the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island (MI), Grand Teton Lodge (WY) and the Oasis Gardens in Salt Lake City.
In addition to sailing around the Caribbean, Garry owned his own sailboat in the Sea of Cortez where he lived on it for 3 winters. As captain and crew on board the live-a-board dive boat RLT, Garry is very familiar with the Lake Superior in particular the wrecks around the Isle Royal National Park. Garry holds a 200 ton US coast guard captains license and will be your co-captain on the Belline II. He is also a trained emergency medical technician specialized in remote emergency care.
Stephanie Widmer, 29, Switzerland
Chef, Hostess, Rescue Dive
Steffi grew up in Interlaken, in the middle of the Alps. After graduating from High School, Steffi earned a certification as a medical laboratory technician and worked two years in the state hospital of Brig, Vallais. Additional to the certification as a medical laboratory technician, Steffi did a 12 month Baccalaureate Degree in Math and Physics. After fulfilling the prerequisites for the University of Applied Sciences in Waedenswil, she started an engineer degree in Biotechnology specializing in Environmental Biotechnology. After graduation from the University of Waedenswil, she went to the University of Minnesota, where Steffi earned a master degree in Soil Science specializing in Waste Management.
Traveling all over Europe with her parents, she became a passionate world traveler, visiting countries such as Vietnam, Thailand and Canada. Together with her fiancée Garry, Steffi traveled extensively through the central and western US. Steffi enjoys meeting people from all over the world and exchange stories. Coming from Switzerland, Steffi is fluent in German, French and also English. While studying in Minnesota, Steffi realized her dream to become a diver. Being a passionate diver, she now hold SDI open water, SDI advanced diver, deep dive specialty, dry suite specialty, nitrox and cavern specialty. Diving the caverns and caves in North Florida, Steffi was curious to discover the beauty of the Caribbean underwater world.
Since her parents had a busy shop, Steffi volunteered early on to take over the cooking and quickly developed a passion for it. Her ability to substitute traditional recipes with a hint of Island Flava will high light your dining experience.
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Walti
Walti going native with guests |
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