9:30, and it about time to head off to the beautiful land of California. I am going to a week long christian Intervarsity camp on Catalina Island called Campus by the Sea. I am not really sure what to expect, but I am quite excited for the warm, the ocean, and of course the palm trees.
It's 11am, we have been on the road for a while now. I feel tired like I could sleep but I don't want to miss the beauty of the grass fields and small towns. I have my yoga pants on and my camera by my side. I mean, what else could you need?
It has been about 3 hours. We've have driven by the beautiful Twin falls canyon, into Nevada, through jackpot, and stopped for lunch in wells. Dust devils are the entertainment currently, as we are surrounded by tall bumpy shaped mountains on both sides of us. Besides nature, masks have been a source of excitement. A mask with a mustache resulted in this quote being created: "my mustache fluttered with a delicate breeze". You could say we're doing our best to pass the time.
7pm and we have made it to the In N Out in the oh so famous destination of Las Vegas. Now, the car I am in decided to spend some quality time with this crazy city, and adventure a little.
Street show madness.
10pm and we finished driving and walking the strip. As it is a Saturday night, in Vegas, it was obviously pretty crazy. People everywhere of course. Got to see Paris, walk through some fancy casinos, and watch the Bellagio fountain show. Tonight we're staying at a local church which we just arrived at. Everyone else is already sleep, and I definitely woke some people up after walking into a trash can in the pitch blackness.
Up at 5 am. An alarm goes off and someone immediately gets up and runs around dancing to it (Good morning song) The sunrise is soft highlighting the tall luscious palm trees. Time to pack up the cars again, and were off to sunny and beautiful California.
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Were nearly there! We have arrived in California. After a lot of turning around and getting a bit lost with confusion between cars, I can safely say, we survived the drive and are at the Catalina Express ferry loading docks. There is a huge exquisite green bride which I like to call the Golden bridge of Southern California. Now, all we have to do is wait for everyone from other schools to arrive, and we will be off for the week.
Turns out that instead of leaving at 1pm, we will be leaving closer to 3pm. Being my first time on a ferry and all, I would like to get something to eat. The Catalina Express restaurant cafe is a bit expensive, but apparently actually quite good. I went ahead and ordered from the cafe, which was about $10 for a BLT and some fries. Our group has made the decision to play some dice games to pass the time.
Finally, it is time to load the ferry. Myself and a couple others ended up being the first to get on the boat. We went strait up to level 3 on the tippy top part of the boat.
Oh, and don't forget to do them squats while rocking back and fourth in the ocean.
The ride is overall smooth as the water is only slightly choppy. Some dolphins were even seen in the distance.
The island appeared quickly and it was unloading time. We grouped together and lined up everyone's luggage to be picked up after our orientation.
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| Avalon, the main city of Catalina in the distance. |
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| Our cove and home sweet home for the week. |
Dinner, being served 10 minutes sharp after the bell is rung. We have about a half hour of quite time to enjoy the peace of the island, and this is what I did...I sat on the pier and looked down on the Crystal clear delicate blue water. And just like that, we go to our small group sessions for the first time for a few hours, walk the pier in the blackness, and end the day.
The cabin
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Couldn't pass up a little hiking trip during the fist few hours of our free time.
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| Cave exploration. |
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One thing that I will never forget about this trip, is the fact that every night we took our mattresses, sleeping bags, pillows, etc. and slept out on the beach. Falling asleep to the waves of the ocean and waking up to the light of the world. |
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Sometimes, even with a dazzling sunrise, it was difficult to fully get up.
One thing I was not expecting to occur this week, was what you see in the next few pictures. I discovered Jesus one night during worship, and the next day, as a literal last second decision, I was baptized in the ocean. I enjoyed watching my friend being baptized as well. The best thing about it was having some of the people who have played a huge role in this process, being in the water with me. I am definitely insanely blessed for these people.
The past few days have been busy, crazy, beautiful, wonderful, and fascinating. I have been learning so much from my Mark 1 track (studying the first part of Mark in the bible). I also am enjoying all of the new people I am getting to know, and gaining closeness with those I have already been around.
God
This may sound strange, but I really liked the rustic feeling of the ceilings in the boat house. The lights created a smooth, comfortable, feeling and an environment I wish I didn't have to leave.
How nice is it to be at a place where you can snorkel, and see the colored fish, big crab, a choral. How neat is it to go paddle board on the ocean with constant clear visibility of the ocean floor. How adventurous is it to be out in the open water watching the seals lay and swim and spot dolphins showing off their mysterious wonder in the distance. How challenging is it to hike uphill past cacti and trees until you can't feeling anything, but have the most perfect view. How precious is it to enjoy the moment of waking up on the beach to a perfect soft sunise between the swaying palm trees, only to have fallen asleep the night before by a fire, the moon, sound of waves crashing, and endless revealing stars above.
The week has come to an end, and it is time to say goodbye to this jaw dropping place. I will miss what this place has provided me including so many endless memories.
"No, mate. I'm free forever. Free to sail the seas beyond the edges of the map, free from death itself." -Captain Jack Sparrow
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| The island from afar. |
And just like that, a week of every importance has ended. A 17 hour strait car ride awaits. The fact that I can't really sleep in cars, means one thing, 17 hours of sitting in a car watching an endless road slowing pass by as we cross through 4 states.
Its around 3 am and as we are driving, rabbits continue to quickly run in front of us, attempting to play the game of dodging the cars. And then...one dashes out and the driver says in all seriousness, "I hit it." plain and simple.
We have arrived in Boise, it is 7am, and I can still feel the waves moving me back and forth. I miss the island, but I am more happy to have the idea in my head that this week was real, and that it is something I could never forget.
"I like this road" - Kyle B.
HUZZAH
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