isla iguana

last weekend the le volunteers traveled to pedasi. the night we got there the town was celebrating something (as always). there was a parade and a fiesta at the local jardin. after dinner we joined right in and had our fun.

early the next morning, after a delicious breakfast of eggs, hojaldres, and a mango batida, we jumped in a truck that brought us down to the beach to get to isla iguana. the sky was dark in the morning, and the day did not look promising. the boat ride over was choppy and i was afraid the whole day would be gray. i was pleasantly surprised when it ended up being gorgeous! after paying the natural reserve staff on the island we hiked through a trail to the other side. no one wanted to stay on the landing side because it was crowded with people and their trash. the crabs that inhabit the isla are bright orange with a mix of deep and neon purples! at first i could not believe how beautiful they were. the hike took us into tall grass that extended far over our heads and through overhanging, lush trees.

when we reached the beach on the opposite side the water was turquoise and the sand white and clear. huge cylinder shaped boulders protruded from the beach on the left and on the right the beach cove was interrupted by grassy cliffs. in less than a minute i parked my stuff near a fallen tree, stripped down and jumped right in! i thought to myself, i havent seen an island this wondrous even in my dreams (which have been absolutely nuts recently, and apparently not due to the antimalarial because that is not a side effect of chloroquine).

i swam for the duration of the day, skin almost completely pruned. the current was strong and, when deep enough, pulled you out into the darker waters. when close to shore it would push you to land as if in a large wave, but there were none. only the current in this clear, pacific isla determined our movement. no crashing of the ocean on our skin. no sea animals either. only masses of washed up coral. we went into clepto mode, bar mitzvah style (i really hope someone remembers how much stuff i used to take from those parties). each group member started a personal collection in the sand. i think i took a few too many, but i know stace will find a decorative use from them in marion. one of my friends reminded us of the saying, "leave only footprints..." oops!

after tossing around a football and floating around we decided to go on a hike through the rocks. they were scalding to the touch, but my feet adapted. we climbed and climbed toward new coves and tidal pools. we found one giant tidal pool with the godfather of the fish. we named him don pescado. he was quite large, with a square shaped face and the rest of his body growing narrow towards his fin. he had leopard print scales and the attitude to go with them. well, if i was stuck in a hot tidal pool i might not be the most jolly fish in the sea either.

we had to board our whaler at four even though we felt like staying and setting up camp for the rest of our lives...

now, i only have the memory and the coral.

must leave and teach my last classes before heading to santa clara with le to celebrate our independence... yay. i would rather stay in llano largo with my family.

hope you all have a glorious independence day,

cati