Kokrobite

Saturday Seth and I took Kobe out to the beach with us. Charles had a tour to run for the day and Becky was working, so he would have been home alone. It was good to have him along and Seth says Kobe probably hasn't been to the beach since the last visit, a year ago. Getting there was a bit of a challenge and required 2 tro tros and a taxi. Once you arrive though, you can find a private palm shack to rent for the day. The shacks sit right on the beach and provide plenty of shade along with some basic benches and a table. Locals wander by with food and drinks every so often and we were able to buy some bananas and peanuts to add to the minerals (sodas) we had brought in a cooler.



It was almost impossible to get Kobe out of the water to have some food. He could have spent all day in the ocean. I don't blame him! It's so warm here. The water was perfect, warmer than Hawaii but plenty refreshing after a long trip in the sun. We met a man named Johnson who is a structural engineer and he spent some of the afternoon with us. Seth and I did our best to teach him and Kobe how to float on their backs. Kobe was definitely wary of getting very deep in the water and had a death grip on Seth's neck. Showing Johnson was easier and he at least got the feel for it, even if he hasn't quite gotten it down yet. Swimming is not a skill that is taught here so both of the guys were impressed that both Seth and I could swim. They kept reprimanding us for how far out in the water we went. It's true that the current is pretty strong, but once you figure out the wave pattern it's perfectly manageable. Also there were sandbars some distance out from the shore, so even if it seemed far, we were only in up to our hips. That said, if I didn't feel confident in my swimming skills and know to follow the shore rather than fight the tide, it would be easy to be intimidated by the water. The waves are similar in size to those on the Oregon coast.



The unfortunate thing was in all our aquatic merriment, we lost track of our shack. Although we were trying to keep an eye on it someone managed to slip off with some of my money and my sun glasses. It could have been worse - they didn't take it all and they left my camera and ipod. It was still frustrating though because it could have been helped and I've spent the last few days glaring at the sun. Luckily I have a visor with me and only a couple days remaining in the trip, so my funds should make the duration.

Even with this frustration though, I would love to spend another day on the beach. It was so relaxing and nice to be able to spend some time in the water. Even better was to see Kobe let his guard down and have some fun with us. I'm glad he was able to come along without his parents. Meeting Johnson could be helpful as well - hard to build a school without an engineer!