The Boat 6/29/15

At 6:45am we rolled out of bed and were off to the grocery store to get any kind of snacks we might want. I noticed that there were tons of aloe plant fields as we were on the bus yesterday and while I was walking down the aisles there seemed to be every kind of way to consume the aloe from drinks to aloe flavored snacks. I got a tasty berry mixed aloe drink. We then packed ourselves back into our van with our driver (I think his name was Thomas) and drove to the boat yard/docking area.

Turtle Bay Eco Resort people were there to meet us Adam (the captain) and the dive master who's name was Thomas? Maybe? I'm bad with names. We then went on an almost 3 hour boat ride. I am so glad that I don't get seasick, knock on wood. Many of the students got to relive their breakfasts for the second time that morning. Among the students we have myself, Olivia, Codee, Austin, and Carlos (all of new college). Then we have Grace, Sonja, Adam, and Sophia (All high schoolers), and Natalie who lived in Sarasota but goes to school in New York. The professors traveling with us are Dr. Gilchrist and Professor Gillman (both of new college). The spray from the ocean, the motion of the boat, and the breeze were comforting to me but I can only imagine others were counting down the minutes until they were on shore. While on the Melissa (the name of the dive boat; also TBER's biggest boat) we had a good time talking and joking around. As we neared our destination we started seeing picturesque  tiny islands with little shacks on them. In the background loomed massive mountains of the pequñia version of our island. Finally a paradise appeared before us complete with coconut trees, friendly dogs, and small house structures.

Our lodging is *WAY* up the hill in what are essentially cabins with bathrooms and showers. By way, I mean up a very very steep and winding path and then um two sets of stairs. I am with Codee, Natalie, and Olivia. We each have a twin bed and the bug nets look like we have princess beds. We share an adjoining porch with the other three girls and there's one hammock on each side. After we got settled in and I to some dry clothes we headed down to the dining area where we had rice with sautéed vegetables and cucumbers and tomatoes in Italian dressing. Of you were a meat eater you got rice and a small taco with meat instead of the veggies. Oh and did I mention there's also hammocks, lizards, and iguanas all over the place!! They are perfect for chilling out and watching the world go by. While relaxing Olivia noticed two large groups of bats trying to escape the sun. I have also developed a fear of a coconut falling on my head! And speaking of falling, he have already had iguanas fall on our roof!! Apparently they and tarantulas are also common sights!

I'm off! We are swimming around part of the island today.