Day 6 - More Coral Watch and managing home sickness

 So far my Fiji experience has not been what I expected, at all. It has been way better than I envisioned. One of my biggest worries before coming on this trip is that I would be homesick. I have never been away from my family for this long but as soon as I met my host family, I immediately realized I would be alright. They are the kindest and most welcoming people I have ever met. Every time we come home or wake in the morning, they welcome me with a huge smile and make sure I feel at home. My roommates have also made this trip so much more comfortable. Emma, Charlotte and I have become close, like sisters. We have made so many fun memories and have more yet to come. The three of us have become close with our host sister, Susi. Susi is about to turn eighteen, and she reminds me of my own sister - fun, outgoing and has a laugh that makes everyone around her laugh too. We are going to miss her so much. But she has helped me see all the joy in life, and how to cope with hard things. 

Before we left for this trip, I let the worries of being homesick overpower all the excitement that I had deep down. Now that I am here, I realized that I was very excited for all that we would be learning the coral reef ecosystem. And let me tell you.... it is something to be excited about. Sara and Matthew, our leaders during this trip and owners of Ocean Ventures, are amazing teachers. Almost every night we sit down and learn about all sorts of things. One night we learned about all the fish in Fiji. Now when we go underwater, I can recognize and signal different types of fish. We also learned about seagrasses and mangroves, which is very interesting because in Hawaii we don't get to see many of these. Tonight, we will be going on a walk through the mangroves! Today we also did a coral survey for Coral Watch which is where you record the color status of the different types of corals. This was a great hands on experience. Sara and Matthew have so much knowledge that they are willing and eager to share. You can ask them any question about the ocean, and they would be able to answer it - I bet! Overall, this trip will be experience I will hold onto forever. I am so incredibly lucky to have gotten this opportunity.

- Kela

Marine life lecture in the community area.

Visiting the Mangroves in the rain... and planting a few new ones.