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Published: April 2nd 2010
thurs 3/25
This was one of the hottest days yet. But a day I was excited for because we'd be going to the manatee platform to feed them!! It was a "free day" for Neil, so he had the day off to go explore and be a tourist in the nearby cities. So, Shen, Erick, and I went to do the "Aquatic path" The Aquatic path is basically the river....but we'd turn on little narrow mangroves to reach the manatee platform. We took a tiny motor boat and road out to the path....once we got there, it was too narrow and too shallow to use the motor so all three of us rowed!! Little ole' me was rowin' a boat!! My shoulders and arms hurt, of course. Geez, Im out of shape! but I kept thinking, if I did something like that everyday it would be a great way to stay in touch w/ nature, and get a work out on my upper arm strength!
And nothing prepares you for the silence that you hear.....huh? you ask....well....I live in Orlando. A big, bustling city. It practically never sleeps. At any given time of day, you step outside and what
banana leaves
banana leaves for the manateesdo you hear? people. Traffic. Dogs barking. Construction. Well....on the aquatic path....its just narrow areas in between the river, you know what you hear? Nothing. Silence. If you think about it, its rare in life to actually hear silence. Even if it is "silent" in a room, an air conditioner is humming, a phone ringing, someone walking by on tile floors....the only things we could hear was the sounds of our oars hitting the water, birds and other wild life making weird noises, and....a mile or so away, we could hear the sounds of the waves of the ocean crashing against the deserted beach. It was sounds that I wanted to imprint in my memory and go back to anytime I was somewhere I dont want to be....like stuck in traffic. Or at work. Or in the waiting area of anywhere.
I was miles and miles away from the ordinary. I had no idea what kind of news was going on in the world. I had no idea what latest drama developed over facebook (lol, its true) I was away from the cares and burdens of everyday life that consists of two jobs, school, bills....and, basically the essentials
that put together a dull and mediocre, meaningless existence.
On the Aquatic path I saw snakes wrapped up in the trees. A sloth. Birds flying overhead, and fish jumping in and out of the water. Its like every animal wanted to come out and enjoy the crisp, sunny, spring day.
Well....after 40 mins of rowing and my arm threatning to fall off....we made it outside the Aquatic Path....Erick turned on the motor again, woohoo!!! We boated to the manatee platform, which is just what it sounds....a wooden platform high above the river made for viewing the manatees while they dine on banana leaves. Its also hidden from the river a bit, behind some trees, so if you're not immediatly looking for the platform, you'd miss it.
Erick tied up leaves and banana's on the trees. Now all we had to do was wait for them to come....it took about half an hour and we had not one, not two, but THREE manatees eating! they are quiet little boogers. Its cute because you will hear silence then "munch munch" as they nawed away on the leaves. We also saw a mommy and a baby manatee! A BABY!!! My
so big
they are huge! pics didnt come out that well because the zoom isnt that great, but you get the idea. Plus the manatees are sneaky. Its like they know they are being watched and try very carefully for their picture not to be taken!
After the platform was back to camp. We motor-boated the entire way back, yay! no rowing and it was lunch time. Shen and I ate Evelyns tasty lunch and she made the best juice! It reminded me of sunny delight, but really, I have no idea what it what. After the end of each meal I would say "muy bien" to her, to let her know I enjoyed it!!! Then I would rub my belly for full effect!
After lunch was break, aka nap time. It was the hottest part of the day again. I fell asleep in the hammock. Sleeping in our bunk that afternoon was out of the question. There is no AC and no breeze was coming though. I'd basically have to sleep in a puddle of my own sweat, so....hammock it is....
After break was beach clean time! Which....again, I LIKE that project. The idea of cleaning the beaches for our wildlife
gets me sort of excited. Its like I am helping the environment. Making an area where the female turtle was comfortable enough to come and lay her eggs! It was only Shen, Erick and I, doing the beach clean this time. We only did it for maybe an hour and a half, it was brutally hot. Well...poor Shen began to feel sick from the heat so around 530 we stopped cleaning and went on "break" again....aka swimming in the river to cool off, then dinner time at 6-ish or so!
Then....nap time until the night patrol started. I awake with loud laughter to Neil being back from his day off and two German tourists were staying at the camp as well!
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