Junior Lifegaurd

 Over the summer,  I tried out to train to be a Junior Lifeguard, a program run by the fire department.  I was tested in the pool, and I had to swim 100 meters in a 1:50 seconds.  I had to stay after swim team practice every day and train extra hard to become fast enough to make the time.   There are real lifeguards at the beach training us everyday.  One of the lifeguards is my swim coach who helped me pass the timed swim test.

I had to wake up early every day to arrive at the beach by 8:30 every morning and stay until 11:30.  At the beach, we were divided in three age groups.  I was placed in group C. During our training,  we learned how to save people who may be drowning, paddle, surf, and swim in the ocean.  Swimming in the ocean was the scariest part.  I was always worried about stingrays (and I saw one), sharks, and other kinds of sea animals.  Although I did enjoy swimming with the dolphins.  They would always put on a show for us.  It was incredible!  I also loved to surf.  For the first time this summer I actually stood on a surf board and caught a wave!  It was hard at first, but then I got the hang of it.  I also was allowed to tour a lifeguard tower and a lifeguard station.  We also learned how to use the cans that the lifeguard swings in the air to use if they need to save a drowning victim.   The other Junior lifeguards and I practiced saving each other. We had competitions as well.  We competed against different junior lifeguard squads form all the local beaches.  I especially did well in the running and almost always placed in the top ten. 

In addition to the instructors, we had helpers called Cadets.  They are in the highest group and have been doing Junior Lifeguards for 6-7 years.  They are not experienced and old enough to be an instructor but they are fabulous helpers for us.  My favorite one is Kourtney who is in the picture with me together with my instructor Sherri.

On my last day, I received a Junior lifeguard badge which my Grandma sewed on a one of my favorite sweaters.  I also received a certificate saying that I have finished my first year of junior lifeguard training.

Have you trained in something interesting?

Moving On

Saying goodbye isn't always easy when you like something very much.  I recently decided that I would say goodbye to ballet and move on to focus some of my other activities.  It isn't that I didn't like ballet, it was just because I had too many activities, and I was only doing ballet once a week.  I have been doing ballet for 2 and a half years.  I appreciate watching the real ballerinas perform. They make the moves look really easy, doing many turns and leaps. However, now that I have tried, I know how extremely hard it really is and how much they work to get their routines just right.  My favorite ballet teacher I have ever had is Eryka. I really liked her and she taught me many new moves.  She would always correct me and teach me new skills I didn't know.  She was also extremely kind.  I will miss her very much! I still enjoy dancing, and maybe I will stop by and take a few classes here and there. 

I also became close with the the receptionist Gabrielle and her little dog Seven.  Gabrielle named her dog Seven because she found her on the streets on July 7th which was also Gabby's birthday. Gabby would watch our class and encourage us to do well.  Gabby would sometimes bring her dog Seven, and let me hold her before class.  Seven now serves as the official Goodwill Ambassador of the ballet school. She is adorable!

Eryka and I

Gabby and I

Holding Seven

     

Have you started something and then decided not to continue with it?

Saying Goodbye

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

A few days ago, my cousin Ben left to go to University.  He worked really hard to get good grades and always did all his homework. Ben is very kind, helpful,and charming.  I admire him because he works hard at school, goes to the gym every day to get stronger, and always cares about others.  I also admire him because he is the oldest of 3 children and takes care of his younger brother and sister. He takes them to school every day and helps them with homework.

This summer, Ben and I spent a lot of time together before he left.  We went for a run on the beach, and on the way back, he told me different stories about Greek mythological heroes such as Achilles and Spartacus, so the run isn't as boring.  He  also went boogie boarding with me after the run to cool down.  Once Ben started driving, he took me to different places like Sky High and Knotts Berry Farm.  He also bought us ice cream any time we wanted.  He even babysat my younger brother and sister this summer. He picked them up in the morning, took them swimming, fed them lunch, and played with them. 

Now that he is in University  I wish him to study well and make many new friends.  I will miss him very very much, and I can't wait to see him in December!

Sarah and Ben

 We love you Ben!

 ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Have you ever had to say goodbye to someone special?

Modern Ballet

A few days ago, I went to Raiford Rogers Modern Ballet with my family at a local community college.  My ballet teacher had tickets for some of her students to attend. We also invited my cousin Luba to come along. She also dances ballet and is already on point.  We had great seats right in the second row. We were so close that I hear every squeak of their shoes and could see every little mistake and even the dancer shaking while holding there leg up high in the air. When the curtain went up, my younger brother asked if the dancers were real. They looked so spectacular.

What was so interesting is that they danced to classical music by Bach, and Liszt. Usually modern ballet is danced to modern songs.  However, dancing a modern ballet to classical music actually looked and sounded really good. 

The difference between modern ballet (also known as contemporary) and classical ballet, is the way the body moves. Classical Ballet is very emotional and has dramatic movements that tells a fictional story, like my favorite The Nutcracker and Swan Lake.  Contemporary  is very free and expresses the emotion of the music. These contemporary dances were very graceful and dramatic.  Everything they did was in unison and musical. The men and women were extremely flexible, and the men were very muscular. They were able to lift up the women up with great ease and grace.  It was a wonderful performance and I would love to see another modern ballet.

Have you ever seen a modern ballet performance?
Which do you prefer, modern or classical ballet? 

Final Kauai Post

Napali Coast

Our trip to Kauai has come to an end, and we enjoyed the last few days hanging out at the beach right across the street from our Condo.  I have had a marvelous time exploring and seeing the incredible sights in Kauai.  Maybe someday I will come back to visit the island.  I loved all the activities we did, but one of my favorites was the boat trip to the Napali coast. Seeing the sea animals and snorkeling in a reef was so much fun.   I have never seen so many colorful fish in my whole entire life.  The dolphins were so active and looked like they were enjoying making a show for the people on the ship. 

 

 

 

Wailua River

 I also enjoyed kayaking in the Wailua River and swimming in the pool that the Secret Fall made.  I have never experienced swimming in a big water fall pool but I thought it was great to get to cool off in the cold water.  

 

 

 

 

 

Waimea Canyon

Another one of my highlights of my trip was the hiking.  My favorite hike was the Waimea Canyon and the Napali Coast.  It was quite a sight seeing green plants growing on the side of cliffs.  The bays in Kauai were so calm and I loved laying on my boogie board and paddling around.  Paddling in the Wailua River was a great experience Kauai is very beautiful but the rainbows made it even more prettier.  I wish that we could get so many rainbows in California. 

 

 

Crossing a river on our hike

 

Hankapi'al Beach

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spouting Horn

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I loved all the activities that I did at my stay in Kauai.  Below is a poll I made of the different posts my sister Sarah and I wrote of the activities we did in Kauai.  Which post did you like best?  Please vote and tell me your favorite post in a comment.

•  Catamaran ride to the Napali Coast 
• Rainbows!
•  Hiking Waimea Canyon 
•  Aloha from Kauai!
•  Kayaking on the Wailua River
•  Tropical Fruits from the Farmer's Market
•  Exploring the North Shore
• Hiking the Kalalau Trail to the Napali Coast
•  Kalapaki Beach
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

 

Get your own Poll!

Catamaran ride to the Na Pali Coast

Today we explored the northwest of the island by a boat ride on the catamaran to the Na pali Coast.  The Na Pali Coast is only accessible by boat, plane or by hiking.  Our ship's name was The Lucky Lady and I think it was a great name for the ship because we got a lot of luck. On the Na pali coast we met some playful Spinner Dolphins.  The captain told us that the Na pali Coast is the dolphins territory so they only do tours there.  The dolphins swam right next to the ship and turned and did different tricks.  Since it's the dolphins territory the dolphins race the ship and scratch its back on it.  We also met some slow sea turtles who looked like they were sleeping
on top of the water and swaying on the waves.

Standing in front of Lucky Lady

The boat ride was very rough and it was so much fun standing in the front of the ship and getting splashed by every wave.  We were rocking back and forth on the ship but still enjoying the gorgeous view of the 4000 foot cliffs.  The definition of Na pali is cliffs.  There were also many caves and waterfalls formed by the water and streams.  The captain pointed out everyone of them.

Long ago there was this fishing village called  Nu'alolo Kai.  This is where the captain anchored down the ship and let everyone snorkel in the reef.  The boat had a waterslide that went into the ocean.  My siblings and I slid down the slide and plopped in the water.  The fish we saw were amazing!  I saw my favorite color fish a huge yellow fish that was very easy to see through this school of gray fish called Nenue Lowfin Chub. It looked just like the Nenue fish, but yellow.   There was also a brown fish that had a flapping fin on the top and on the bottom called Humuhumu-Ele'ele Black Durgon Triggerfish.  We also met two sea turtles sleeping on the bottom of the reef.  Then we head back to our dock.  It was a very exciting day!

Spinner Dolphins

Caves near the coast

Have you ever been on a boat? Where did you go?

Rainbows!

                                                                                                                              

Kauai has many rainbows because in the center of Kauai is the wettest spot on earth.  Almost everyday it rains and there are rainbows.  Even if it doesn't rain where we are we still sometimes see the rainbow because it is raining close by.  A rainbow is made up of seven colors (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet), which are the same colors that make up light. When it rains, the rain drops act as tiny prisms. When the light from the sun reflects against the tiny prisms formed by the drops, a rainbow forms.  

 

In California, we don't get many rainbows because it hardly ever rains. Whenever it rained in Hawaii, we would run outside and see if we can find a rainbow. The rain doesn't last very long, and neither does the rainbow. It was therefore important to act quickly to get the perfect photo. The morning I took the picture, it was raining and I was thrilled to wake up to see a rainbow.  I rushed down stairs (because the rainbow doesn't last long) to get the camera and fortuitously captured the rainbow. 

 

My favorite color of the rainbow and my favorite color of all time is yellow. Yellow is my favorite color because it is bright, and it makes me feel happy.    Any rainbow you see, yellow always stands out the most and yellow seems to be the thickest color of the rainbow.

 

 

I took this picture when we were swimming in the pool. The funny part, was that it was sunny and warm  where we were, however it was raining somewhere over the rainbow (just like in the movie)

Taken from my bedroom window

 

 

 

What is your favorite color of the rainbow?

Do you see many rainbows where you are?