Silvia
Well, I did it. I got in bed, slept the entire night, and didn't have sex with Triana. She tried, but I knew we had to get up early, and I needed my strength for snorkeling with Megan.
Triana was disappointed, but I'm the boss, I think. She made a lovely breakfast, more omelets, and coffee.
Our thoughtful guide, Ines supplied us with a pair of inexpensive underwater cameras. Megan had considered an enclosure for her camera, but they cost around eighteen hundred dollars. So, the little cheap ones would have to do.
Ines drove us to the charter company's dock, and we boarded the boat with six other people. One married couple, I would guess mid-forties, a pair of young ladies, maybe in their mid-twenties, and a couple on their honeymoon who seemed close to my age, mid-thirties.
Before leaving the dock, the captain reviewed all the safety things and showed us the life preservers and how to put them on. There were baskets with long and short fins, masks, and snorkels. The long fins were for scuba diving and the shorter for snorkeling. I guessed the longer ones gave you more power with less effort. The captain then assured us the snorkels were clean and sealed in plastic wrap for our protection.
We'd head over to another dock, then walk to the reef area, where we'd join two guides who would keep an eye on us. I liked their safety precautions.
The trip out took about an hour. The honeymoon couple focused on each other; it was so cute. The older married couple, Ralph and Irma, were friendly. We talked with them and the two younger women, Carli and Sandy, as we made our way to our destination.
It didn't take long and the sea wasn't that choppy, but Megan got a bit queasy, as did Carli.
The captain noticed their worried look and asked them to stay towards the aft part of the boat in case they got sick. He offered them a dramamine to help alleviate their nausea, which was nice of him. I think Megan threw up once, as did Carli, and after about fifteen minutes, they seemed fine. They stayed at the back of the boat, talking in case they felt ill again.
Ralph and Irma were from the midwest and had never been near the ocean. They kept the captain busy asking questions about the boat and various other topics.
That left Sandy and me to talk. It was mostly idle chit-chat about where we were from, our tours, etc. Sandy thought it was great that I was taking Megan on her dream trip. She was sorry for our loss but was glad this trip was going well for us.
Sandy also told me how she and Carli got here. They have been best friends since kindergarten, and Sandy was going to be Carli's maid of honor at her wedding. That was until her fiance ran off with his off-and-on girlfriend whom he'd been seeing for over a year behind Carli's back.
Carli was devastated, so she invited Sandy to share the trip instead of losing the 'honeymoon' deposit money they paid. The funny part about the whole thing was Carli's fiance got dumped a couple of days before they left on this trip. Carli enjoyed that, and her outlook significantly improved.
During our chat, Sandy and I kept looking back at Megan and Carli, checking up on them to see how they were doing. They seemed to be having a good time talking. I assumed Carli was telling Megan the same thing Sandy was telling me. I know Megan was probably talking about birds and the ziplines. They were giggling and having a great time.
Sandy smiled as we watched her friend and Megan. We waved and debated joining them, but then Carli did an about-face and leaned over the rail. So, we stayed put.
Our conversation turned to Megan, and I talked about her love for birds, volleyball, soccer, and Spanish. Sandy casually mentioned with Megan's attributes, she should have no problem finding a college. That's when she said Carli was an assistant softball coach at one of the universities Megan was considering applying to.
It wasn't a large university, but it was a stepping stone to getting possibly getting her master's eventually.
That led to me asking Sandy what she did for a living. She smiled and told me she was a physical therapist and had graduated with her master's from that same university. She'd been a competitive swimmer during college. She loved sports, and helping others. Being a physical therapist was an ideal career for her
I congratulated her on her career choice, which sounded perfect. She mentioned she loved it and did pro bono work for one of the clinics in town for kids whose parents can't afford it or don't have insurance. She also mentioned that Megan, with her bi-lingual skills, should have more doors open than some of her peers.
That was something I hadn't considered. I thanked Sandy for the idea. She smiled, saying maybe Megan should seriously consider attending, especially now that she's met Carli. She suggested we stay in contact even though Megan was a year and a half from graduation. She was sure Carli could mention Megan to the other coaches if they haven't scouted her.
I thanked her and told her I'd talk to Megan. Then I asked if she and Carli might want to pair up with us snorkeling. Sandy said she'd love to and didn't think Carli would mind since she and Megan looked like they were having a great time talking.
Time slipped away as Sandy and I chatted. It wasn't until Megan and Carli walked up to us that I realized we were slowing down and getting ready to dock. Sandy asked Carli if she didn't mind snorkeling with us. She and Megan looked at each other and laughed. Carli was going to ask us the same thing.
We tied to the dock, grabbed our equipment, and met with our guides. They had a place to store our belongings, so we locked them away. Dressed in our swimwear, we regrouped around the guides for their safety lecture.