The Beach

The final day of my trip was gorgeous.

That morning, I flew from the town to the city, where I was met at the airport & whisked off to the beach to spend the day with the friends I mentioned in "The School" post and with the transition kids also mentioned in that post. We drove to the coast, then drove my friends' dad's boat to a secluded beach.

There, we swam in the prettiest patch of ocean I've ever seen. The water was turquoise; the sun was shining; the beach was shaded by palm trees. And, best of all, there was a coral reef mere feet from the beach and so close to the surface of the water I could touch it as I floated above it! We snorkeled, admiring royal blue and brilliant orange starfish, blue-green fish which seemed to flash as they darted past, and yellow & black striped fish I recognized from tropical aquariums--swimming free in their natural habitat. I was astounded.

We ate Super Mie (kind of like Mr. Noodles) on the beach for lunch, and when the heat of the day was past, we packed up our boat & headed for home. We got home after dark, dropped the kids off at their dorm, washed the salt-crust off our bodies in the shower, picked up some supper, and headed over to a friend's place to play some games.

The next day, I flew to the capital, flew to a closer city, caught a taxi to the bus stop, rode a bus to my town, and called a friend for a ride to my house, almost without incident (I was only proposed to once, by a stranger in the airport). There, I ate supper with my roommate before enjoying the pleasurable experience of sleeping in my own bed after a month-long absence.

It was a GREAT trip. I'm so glad I had the chance to go. I enjoyed it all. And now it's nice to be home.