The Marrietas

I look over to my right as the captain exclaims that we have arrived. There are probably 30 or 40 people floating in orange life jackets. More people are jumping into the water and swimming past the buoys, toward shore. I strap my fluorescent life vest to my waist, and dive overboard after Papa. Mira and Aunty Jane follow. Slowly, we make our way towards the rock face, along with the rest of our boat. Once the cliffs loom overhead, it is time to brave the tunnel, and swim to the beach. Jane had said that the last time she was here, the current was incredibly strong, and getting through the tunnel was a challenge. Luckily, this time the hardest part is avoiding the neon blobs exiting the hidden beach. Although, that's not to say that the current, between swells, is easy to swim against. We swim farther from the open air behind us, into the dark. Well, it's not really dark since the tunnel isn't too long, and there is sunshine ahead of us. We reach the beach sooner than I expected. In what is probably, at most, 50 meters across, and only 10 wide, are hundreds of people. Some are still in the mandatory life jackets, others have tossed them aside, into the sand. We are trapped, like mice in a hole. Cliffs are on all sides, except were the tunnel is, or where the few caves are. Having time to spare, and for lack of better things to do, we decide to explore one of the caves. As soon as I enter the cave, my body automatically recoils. The air is intolerable, maybe even toxic. Before Papa even has a chance of smelling the monstrosity that is this cave air, I leave and warn him of the danger. We were told earlier not to go in the caves and not to touch the rocks, but now I think they just say that to prevent the two caves from become the latrines. It's funny, everyone around us is laughing and smiling and taking photos, we are just standing on the beach, wrinkling our noses at everything. The amount of space is so tiny, and thousands of people come here everyday. The ecosystems just can't take it. The islands will being shut down on May 9th. Only for three months though, so I'm not sure how much of a difference it will make.  Oh well. It's cool to think we are on one of the last boats out to these islands. After swimming back to the boat, our captain drives us around the island. Despite the swells, and the shallow water, he hugs the shore, making sure to go into every little nook and cranny,
take us into caves and tunnels, and give us great views of the birds and the rocks. All in all it was a great trip, even if the water and the caves weren't the cleanest.

- Maya