Who knew dancing in front of strangers would change your attitude for the rest of your life? This really taught the lesson that first impressions aren't as important as one can think. .
After we got off the plane we had to take out all the stuff we packed and size it down to three outfits for the next two weeks, and for someone who over packs for a weekend at the beach, this was hard to believe. We each had one towel about two feet long and one foot wide, and don't even think the colonel would let the four girls out of 20 people have a two piece bathing suit to have any beach time. Whatever we brought we had to be able to carry on our backs. Our lives were stripped of our usual bare necessities to the REAL bare necessities. .
The days went on, and as a group and individuals, we did amazing things; things a lot of people probably wouldn't do in a lifetime. We camped out on the beach in a naval base in Puerto Rico and were instructed by naval officers how to scuba dive. We started out in a pool, getting used to the equipment and the fact that you were allowed to breathe under water, and then moved to the ocean. Every student had a scuba buddy that stayed the same throughout the trip. Because this person was the only other human responsible for your life, it wasn't hard to become very close with them. I was lucky enough to really get along with my buddy; we liked the same movies, had the same type of friends, and did a lot of the same activities at home. Other people had some problems relating to their buddy, but kept a decent relationship, due to the circumstances that they were stuck and just had to tough it out. .
Four days went by and we all were official licensed scuba divers, which I still am today. We then moved on to the three-day hike through El Yonque rainforest. The forest hadn't been kept up trail-wise so we just followed the Colonel hoping he knew what he was doing. There was no camping ground so we would sleep under the stars, the most beautiful site I will probably see for years.
