Seeing the Indian Ocean for the first time was a thrill. I'm an ocean person, having lived a few hours from the Atlantic or Pacific Oceans all of my life, but here was a brand new one! The sun was hot, the sand was warm and clean, the water was a rich blue with high white waves, and jellyfish and pale red crabs surrounded us.
I was wearing my swim suit under my clothes but decided not to go in. Actually, I'm a sit-and-watch-it person and can do exactly that for hours. I had my sunscreen on, my umbrella up, and my camera at the ready. Ronda and Brian are fearless. They see water -- they go in. We couldn't tell whether the tide was ebbing or flowing, but after a brief discussion of the possible problems of each, they shrugged and braved it.
The reason I didn't swim or wade (intentionally, that is; the waves come in quickly and surreptitiously) this particular time was that we knew there was an impressive undertow. I'm not a strong swimmer so was content to stay (mostly) dry. I took pictures of Ronda and Brian as they got smaller and smaller, the current taking them to who knows where. I could do nothing about their situation, so I sat down and enjoyed my surroundings.
Little crabs are everywhere! I don’t know what kind they are (maybe hermit), but they are are as quick as the surf. They stay close to holes, so they can pop down if anything threatens them. Even if they weren't close to a hole, they could disappear in an instant if I made the slightest move. I made it into a game. If I gave them a wide berth and tiptoed up behind them or pretended to be looking elsewhere, hoping to surprise them, the result was the same. I quickly lost. I declared the game ended and pretended to not care that the little scuttlers could consistently get the jump on me.
Another fact about that ocean on that particular day was that we were the only ones there. It’s true! I’ve been to public beaches on both U.S. coasts and could hardly see the sand. On this beach north of St. Lucia, I could have sunbathed nude, and the only reactions might have come from my husband and daughter (if they could make it back) and the crabs. All that beautiful sand and water to ourselves on that glorious day was something I’d never seen before and will likely not see again. There are not enough superlatives to describe a situation like that, and we didn’t want to leave.
Being on anti-malarial medication, we were supposed to stay out of the sun. I had sat on the beach, but Ronda and Brian had fought the waves and the undertow and were exhausted when they eventually pulled themselves out. We reluctantly ended one of the most beautiful experiences on earth.
We found the public restrooms, then utilized the outdoor showers. The water was cold, but we needed to rinse off the sand and salt. We appreciated the opportunity very much. Besides completely wearing herself out, Ronda swallowed a lot of salt water (that was Brian’s assessment), and she got quite nauseated, especially in the back seat of the car on our way back to our motel. She went to bed where she napped and read while Brian and I ate pizza at a restaurant down the block and later went out on the night tour (see the “Leaf-Stitching Ants” entry).
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