All at sea V

Sapzurro is tiny. It was also talked up as GORGEOUS and 'the best place in Colombia'. Well, it is beautiful. It´s nestled in a bay, cradled in the arms of jungle-covered mountains.

I AM DESPERATE FOR A SHOWER. It is the 30th of December and I haven´t showered since the 23rd. I´ve plunged into salty waters repeatedly, sweat a lot, and been through a rough sail. I have not changed my clothes once. I am gross.

This is first in mind as we head to the shore of Sapzurro and Dennis's new hostel. That shower was fantastic. It was, however, the only shower I had until I got to Medellin the night of the 3rd. And it was quickly obsolete as I would begin every day by diving into the ocean off the boat, and swim 2 or 3 times after that as the day heated up.

Sapzurro is a weird town. Tiny. Apparently everyone who lives there has money, but that doesn´t mean the amenities are greatly improved. It keeps being touted as the next great thing, how in 10 years it will have been taken over by the tourism industry. I think it was just over-hyped for me. Yes, it is beautiful, it is out there, away from it all. But it´s not the first place I´ve been that meet those criteria. For some reason dirty old men gravitate there on their sailboats. There was a flock of them, all friends with each other. I am SO SICK OF OLD MEN HITTING ON ME.

New Year´s Eve was crazy and FANTASTIC. Relaxed morning of swimming and mimosas with freshly squeezed orange juice. Evening of partying with Colombianos! We all danced like crazy. Then Kathryn, Lani, Joe and I ran off into the night to run naked into the Caribbean for the stroke of midnight. We bobbed in the waves talking about our previous year and our hopes for the next under the full moon. I love New Year´s, it is absolutely one of my favorite holidays. No guilt or negativity attached, which is common with several other beloved holidays of the year. It´s just one big party for everyone, when I reflect on the great things I´ve accomplished in the past year, how lucky I am, and look forward to the next. A fresh, new year. And I am so proud of this past year. One year previous, I had no clue I would be where I am. It was not a speck on my horizon. But I hatched the plan, executed it successfully, and despite everything, HERE I AM. Worlds away from my comfort zone and having eaten up so much experience on the way. I am doing something nobody else in my world has done. I am here, against all expectations, of others and myself. I am so pleased with the leaps and bounds I have made, that have been made for me, and resolved to continue this progression in my life as I continue my journey, and return home.

Something about being away always throws your life into perspective. This is nothing new. But a challenge I am having is that I have identified the changes I wish to make in my life (what I´m living right now isn´t exactly my life, this is something outside of my life), and I am eager to return to my life to make them. In fact, I can´t wait. But I know I still have more to learn here.

And then we continued dancing for hours afterward.