Beach day!

Friday was the beach day. How funny it was. I wasn’t really thinking it would be that warm, so I didn’t even bring a swimsuit with me. And the morning was cloudy so I was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Which was great when I got there but that quickly changed. I was also so thankful that Karolina had a chair for me. Sometimes it’s nice to sit and have something to lean on and not be on the ground. I started out mostly alone with a few couples walking the beach.

As I sat down I looked at my watch and realized it had only been 15 minutes. Stomach drop. How was I going to make it through this day? This was actually the hardest day to just sit and rest and be. I had been moving and going and doing so much that it made me anxious to stop.

So I read and wrote. It also started getting warm and the sun was coming out and I started removing layers. But then I quickly remembered that I wasn’t wearing sunscreen and my pale skin was not going to do well with 8 hours in the sun. So I laid down on the towel and put my jacket over me. Of course I fell asleep. But I must have been a sight for people walking by for people to see this girl in jeans on the beach huddled under her jacket. Then I even moved behind my chair so I could hide in the shade.

Karolina met me for lunch and we picked up subs and a salad at the best sub shop. Two local guys with surf boards mounted on the walls and a line out the door.

We took it to go and told them we were going gator hunting!

As we drove around Karolina said to look in the sunny spots and anything that look for anything that looks like a log. I honestly didn’t think we were going to find anything. I figured we would be taking a nice drive and then head back.

We made a stop at the golf course and walked out to the water. Karolina had us walk slow and I’m still thinking she’s crazy because they aren’t here. And then she told me to look to the left and there he was! Sleeping right next to the water! I was so excited! I tried to get close to take pictures but luckily Karolina kept me at a safe distance so I wouldn’t be the next headline of “tourist attacked by gator”. She told me that they are fast but can’t run for long so just run fast! Also run in zig zag direction to tire them out. And run up a tree. Luckily we didn’t need to use any of these tactics.

Back to the beach! Again was feeling anxious to just sit for hours. Usually when we go on a beach vacation I sit in the sand for max one hour and spend the rest of the day doing things! So this was a challenge. Kept reading my book and drawing some pictures and sketches. I think I want to take a sketching class and learn some techniques. Took a walk on the beach and watched the sunset. Wandered around the shops until Karolina picked me up.

Then we were headed to her 20’s Christmas party. We made a stop at another friend’s party first and this one was very classy. Then we left and went to the 20’s. By this time, I felt like I really knew people and was also able to catch up with some and ask them about the test they were planning to take or the cookie baking they were doing. Also it was at her Pastor’s house and the kids were so excited to show us their St. Lucia craft and the crowns they had made. When the little boy went to bed he said to say goodnight to the “Swedish people” from him!