Chasing Little Kids in the Rain
Location: Labuan Bajo
Labuan Bajo did not see us coming... Our day started with overnight oats made by the master of oats himself (Tomer). After our delicious deja vu meal, we had leadership class, where we discussed the period of our lives from when we were born to age 7. The class had a great conversation about how life has changed since then and what significant events and people influenced us to be who we are today. We then channeled this energy into having a crazy, fun day on land, all feeling just like kids again. When Nopadoan (the crash boat) arrived at shore, Hannah, Kiley, Allie, Drasksa, and I set off to explore the town! The rest of the group was making their way over on Ply (the fast crash boat).
We didn't exactly know how we were going to fill the day with 7 hours on shore, but we all agreed that today was going to be a day of eating. To start of our day we went to the nearest ice cream shop and all got soft serve ice cream or cookie milkshakes, they were SO GOOD! We tried tirelessly to get the local currency from an ATM but failed. Then, when all hopes were lost, we stumbled upon a cash exchange stop and successfully got Rupia. Then we hit the local shops, searching for graphic T-shirts and the next place to eat. We settled for this Italian restaurant, it was truly a treat to eat off of glass plates and have cold drinks of water, quite refreshing. After full and happy bellies, we still had 5 hours left to explore! Draska 'knew of someone' in the area, so they set off on an adventure to find them, determined to see if this person existed. They were getting a tattoo, so we searched for the closest tattoo shop and made our way! When we arrived we were immediately greeted by the owner, he started setting up chairs for us and suggesting that we should sit down. But all we wanted to know was where this person was and if they stopped by in the last hour or so; apparently not. This made sense because 'this person' texted Draska their location. It turns out their tattoo shop is 2 miles down the road, so off we go! On the way there, we saw a couple of young local kids playing soccer, so we decided to all join, which was epic! These kids were so cute and friendly, they were defiantely laughing at all of our soccer skills! Back on track we eventually arrive at the right tattoo shop, right after our arrival we see Draska's friend step out of the shop. We say hi, and then we leave.
It was time to walk back to the main street for our group dinner with the rest of the seamester class. It was a beautiful day with no cloud in sight until it started to downpour. As we were waiting for the rain to pass, Hannah and I saw young kids playing in the rain, and it looked a lot more fun than waiting under a random porch roof… so we decided to join in! Somehow, we ended up dancing, and the store owners of another shop were cheering us on; then, we saw another group of young boys playing in the rain, so we decided to run to them. They thought we were chasing chasing (which I guess we were) so we carried on and chased them down the streets of laubaum bajo until we arrived at another open street where even more kids were playing in the rain. When we arrived, we somehow orchestrated these 15 kids to dance along with us, and we taught them a very necessary skill in life… how to dab. When we arrived back with the rest of the group, we were head-to-toe drenched. We couldn't arrive to dinner soaking, so we decided to set out and look for shorts, the first pair we found we'd buy. So we bought these crochet shorts. They looked kinda small, but we didn't try them on. Was that a mistake? Yes. We pull up to dinner in our t-shirts we bought earlier on and matching, ripped, crochet shorts.
Everyone ate together, and it was funny to see the same group of people who normally eat with their hands in Argo's cockpit going to a nice restaurant where you can't act like you are on a sailboat! Dinner was amazing, and people ordered a variety of classic OG meals such as mac'n'cheese, steak, and so on! Also, at dinner, we got to see Juliette and Amanda M's new haircuts, which looked amazing!! Honestly, with the heat we experience, I'm thinking of shaving my head! Just kidding, Mom and Dad! After dinner, we all walked over to get gelato (yes, this was finally the last thing we ate). After we indulged, Hannah and I still had energy in us. What's better to do with energy than dance it out? There were a couple of local guys playing guitar over speakers in front of a restaurant down the road, so we ventured off to see them closer up.
After we dance to one of their songs, we decide to sing a song of our own. Surprisingly, they let us take over without having to beg to let us up on the mini platform! We decide that we are singing the song Iris by the GooGooDolls within a matter of seconds. Just before we start singing, the rest of the gang crowds around the 'stage' prepare for our song. We are one verse in before we get more attention, and other people across the street stop to look at what the heck is going on. Our singing is kinda horrendous, but the vibes are high! After our song, we get the group to dance to the local guy's music; it's a blast! Midway through, it starts to rain. We are all together laughing, dancing, singing in the rain, it's the best feeling! What a great way to end off an epic day on shore!
We are all ready for a good night's sleep as we all depart back to our little home, Argo.
PS. Mom, Dad, Theo, Simon, Remy, Luna, I love you guys! Don't worry about me; I'm still breathing!