Today broke the horrid regime of 8am wake ups, allowing all of us a restful night. After an hour bus ride, we arrived at BSM, a company that trains people to become workers on shipping vessels. Their schooling takes years and includes in-classroom studies, water training and lots of simulations. I was amazed by not only the job descriptions- months at a time with only 25 sailors for company, living in tiny quarters on a huge cargo ship, but also by the benefits and passions of the sailors. While working on ships, they’ve seen so many places around the globe. The captain has been to almost every country with a freshwater port, which I found astounding.

After our morning visit, we hopped on another bus ride to lunch. For once, I was happy for my allergies: I got to eat shrimp and tried octopus for the first time, which I really enjoyed. The view of the sea was also very enjoyable and provided a nice background to our meal. I was surprised by how much undeveloped land was by the shore-every shore I’ve been to has been packed to maximize profit. It was a refreshing change to see.

After lunch, the only thing on my mind was going to see the ocean. I breezed through the mosque, and hopped right into the ocean. It was so much warmer than the north Atlantic that I had been used to, which was a very refreshing site to see. Although I was sad to see no waves, and no real drop off in the sand, the beach was very clean and in beautiful condition. I wish I could’ve stayed longer to see the sunset, but time demanded otherwise. As we approach the weekend in Phapos, I’m very excited to return to the beach again.

this is three days in a row with rhyming titles. i am proud of this and will keep this up all trip