Do You Wrecken We'll See Any Fish?

Day 2 and we were already snoozing. We woke at 7:00am and geared up for our nice morning snorkel. Though we thought we mastered the art of snorkeling after Day 1, the strong current quickly showed us we had much to learn. Our destination was a small ship wreck about 100 yards off shore, where we visited the home of a ferocious Nurse Shark (don’t worry they’re actually very friendly)! We were all safe though because it hid under wreckage, probably afraid of our sporadic splashing and uncontrollable excitement. For many of us this was our first encounter with a shark, and we were quite afraid of them; however, thrill quickly overcame fear as we swarmed the harmless creature. While the Shark was the highlight of the morning, we still enjoyed observing other marine life as we swam to shore. Like, Starfish, Cowfish, Crabs, Coral, Sponges, and other colorful fishes.

Getting our feet wet!

William exploring the ocean

After drying off and enjoying a filling breakfast, we split into two teams to work in two different kinds of farms. The first team headed over to the CSD (Center for Sustainable Development) to work in a chicken farm. The second team headed over to the APON (Aquaponics) farm. Over at APON Ander and I, along with the rest of our group, enjoyed to challenge of catching a weighing mature tilapia. At APON they have a very sustainable and resourceful way of raising tilapia and using the water they swim in as nutrient rich water for their crops. The work we did helped them get an accurate measurement of how much feed they needed for their fish. We also helped prepare the area where they were going to plant tomatoes.

Catching fish!

Getting ready to grow tomatoes!

On the other side of campus, team 2 was helping remove large rocks from the free range chicken farm. At CSD they are working on projects that use chickens to help fertilize the soil and lay eggs for the kitchen. The work students did helped removed large objects that prevented chickens from finding nutritious foods and fertilizing the soil. We also helped construct a wooden stand that used meat food waste from our meals to harvest fly larvae that would serve as food for the chickens. We enjoyed this most because many of us were able to bond and make connections with our feathery friends.

So many new friends!

Many of us were hesitant at lunch because they served us French fries and chicken fingers, but they assured us that we weren’t consuming our companions, so we chowed down! After that what some down time which we used to go off independently and we reflect on our experiences thus far. No phones, no friends, no distractions, just us and our thoughts. It was a very relaxing time by the scenic beach that helped us appreciate the efforts that go into sustaining our lifestyles and the Environment as a whole.

Ian's quiet contemplation

With cleared minds and open hearts we then went to a symposium where several graduate researchers presented their research to us. This was very interesting to see different areas of study and the research that went into them. We were able to ask the researchers questions about their research.  There was food at the symposium, until Isaiah and I arrived.  

Learning from CEI researchers!

Usually at this point of the day, we would have exploration time to swim and play, however, the weather had other ideas in mind. We were forced to stay inside and bond with our fellow classmates. The boys stayed with the boys, and the girls stayed with the girls. This was another meaningful part of our day because it allowed for use to create stronger friendships and become closed as a group.

Relaxin' all cool outside of school

After dinner, we rapped up our day with a competitive fish ID quiz to test our knowledge of different fish species. We spilt up into 4 teams of 5, and we competed to identify as many different fish as possible. Needless to say, we are all prepared to ID fish in the ocean!

With tired eyes,

Ander and Isaiah