Beautiful place and beautiful people

The air conditioning cooled us as we squeezed in the back seat of the truck. Four more people piled into the truck bed. The second car followed as we started our drive through the winding country roads. The green hills filled with cattle breezed past us as we weaved through traffic. Eventually our view turned from rolling hills to a small town of brightly painted cement buildings and shops. When we passed the town, the ocean became visible to our left. Venders on the side of the road were selling mangoes, coconuts, and Coca-Cola. Finally we turned onto a bumpy dirt road and found a parking spot.


The hot air surrounded me as soon as I opened the car door. The smell of the sea filled my lungs as I stepped onto the sand. The team and the families with us found a shady spot under a big tree. Someone bought two freshly opened coconuts and handed them around for us all to try. When we got settled everyone rushed through the scorching hot sand and into the water. 


The water felt cold on my feet and as I walked farther, the sandbar dipped and the water reach my waist. I took a deep breath in and submerged. As I swam, currents of cool and warm water passed by around me. I came up for air and saw the sun glistening on the blue water around me. It felt like paradise. 

 

Gillian, Jimmy, Andrew, Evan, Kim, Stu, and I all decided to swim to a little beached alcove out and to the left behind rocks that rose out from the beach. After about 200 yards of swimming, we were able to stand on a rocky base to catch our breath. We rode the waves to shore and walked onto the beach to take in the view. Two huge rock faces rose from the water on the left and the beach sloped into rocky cliffs on the right. It was the kind of you you would see on postcards. When the tide started to come in, we started to swim back to the main beach. 


I dipped under waves as the tide pushed and pulled me. As I passed the crested waves I swam against the swells, slow and steady, to get back to shore. My toes eventually made contact with the sand again. The salt water stung my eyes and lips as I walked up to the shore. The sun beat down on my shoulders as I took a much-needed drink of water. As I looked out at the beach, I saw our host families playing with the children and my teammates talking and splashing around. As I walked back into the water to join them, I thought about how lucky I am to be in this beautiful place surrounded by beautiful people that I get to call my friends. 


-Deidre 







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