Day 6 - Beach Day

The weather forecast said we were in for a fine morning with rain showers in the afternoon. So Joey suggested we go to the beach this morning, and have time off in the afternoon.

Early Morning: Hoodie Race

This event was a simple team relay race. Only difference was that we all had to swim in hooded clothes with the hood up. Any outfit was fine, as long as it had a hood and long bottoms.

Team leaders did not race but would be thrown into the pool if their team wins. I was dressed in my comfy staff uniform, red heavy jogging pants, yellow polo shirt and oversized hoodie.

Start

Each team had 4 swimmers. At exactly seven o'clock the first race took off. As they dived into the pool in their tracksuits. A few hoods flipped back and those swimmers had to stop to put them back up again.

During the race it would show how skillful the teams were when selecting their clothes. If the hood fitted like a glove, they had a good chance of winning. If it was too big they could barely see where they were going as the hoods went over their eyes. This entertained the swimmers a lot.

Suspense

The suspense was intense because I wasn't sure if I would get pushed into the pool. My clothes were still dry, except for a few splashes from my team. I was getting a bit hot in my hooded jogging suit, so I sat down and dangled my feet in the pool, soaking my socks and shoes, and my pants up to the knees. Then I splashed some water over my hoodie, just to look the part.

Final

Eventually Andy's team won the race. Being a keen hoodie swimmer, he probably taught his team how to best swim in a hooded top. After the race the teams grabbed their leaders and pushed them into the pool. Before I knew what hit me I found myself floating in my oversized clothes.

All Day: Beach Fun

It was a bright sunny morning when we headed for the beach. Joey reminded us to bring a change of clothes (or two) and some windproof tops. We packed some gear into the minibus, like bodyboards, surfboards, and two surf kayaks.

As the minibus rolled down the winding road to the coast we chatted about what fun we could have in the sea.

"I wonder what it's like to wear a hoodie and jogging pants in the sea," mused Andy.

"You'll soon find out," laughed Tim, who also was a fanatic hoodie swimmer.

We pulled into a car park right above the beach, grabbed our beach toys and ran for the water. There was no time to waste getting changed, we just hopped into the surf in the clothes we had on. We didn't care.

It was good that we had learned this week to pick well fitting clothes for each activity. On the beach and in the sea we stayed fairly warm, avoided windchill, but were free to move and have a great time.

"So, how do you like sea swimming in your hoodie in the surf?" I asked Andy.

"It's awesome," he replied with a big smile, "feels good, but is hard work."

We splashed around a lot, caught some waves on the bodyboards, and rolled the canoes. Everybody had a blast.

Evening: Beach Party

The tropical island music came drifing over from the pool hall. If the Tropical Party was anything to go by, this could be another mayhem evening. Time to get ready, we're a bit late anyway.

I quickly put on my black beach pants, a black long sleeve t-shirt and a thin yellow anorak, just in case it rains. Giovanni dressed all casual, including his white nylon jacket.

We headed to the pool and it was already quite busy. To our surprise it didn't rain!

As usual we made a beeline to the buffet and enjoyed the fruit and veg. Yummy.

The buffet looked different, I noticed while munching through my dripping watermelon. It was smaller and had a permanent roof. Interesting.

"Are you going to get wet tonight?" asked Giovanni.

"Not sure," I replied. "How about you?"

"Probably, yes. It's too nice an evening to stay dry." He gave a wink and a smile. Many things he says have double meaning.

After dinner we each joined our respective teams and chatted about the day. My team had many of the Thai students.

"No rain today!" one said.

"Do you want some rain?" I asked.

"Same same," was the answer, accompanied by a big smile.

Over on the other pool side, Giovanni's team got a bit agitated. It seemed like they were up to something. Some went into the pool to cool off. All were happy and laughing.

Soon they started chanting: "Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain!" This went of a while.

It can now be safely revealed that Alex wasn't just a lifeguard. He studied computer science and meteorology. In this centre he also looked after the evening entertainment which he ran from the waterproof supervisor box by the pool.

The music stopped, then the old song Riders in the Storm played with the thunder rolling and the wind blowing. The buffet closed and disappeared into its waterproof box.

Suddenly the wind machine started and blew a strong gust through the hall. Some sun umbrellas and boats were blown into the pool. The music got loader. The light got darker.

Flashes from the strobe lights were followed by loud thunder. Moments later heavy rain from the sprinkler system came down, driven by the wind. Alex pushed his tech to the limit.

There was no shelter. Within a couple of minutes everyone was dripping wet. My anorak leaked through and I was soaked to the skin.

Soon the wind died down, rain was a bit less, but still quite heavy. The dancefloor came to light. Big applause for Alex.

We all hopped around in the rain to the latest tracks from Europe and Asia. Dancing in the rain is an experience not be missed.

My anorak got very soft when wet. Many folks in my team wanted to touch it. I got lots of long hugs that evening, both on the dancefloor and in the pool.

My team, mostly Asians, were very affectionate. They wanted to huddle with me in the pool and talk, and often some girls or guys wanted to dance with me in the rain. So I was in and out of the pool all the time.

Later Alex played some slow songs. Giovanni came over and gave me a big hug. His wet nylon jacket too felt so soft. We danced for a good while and enjoyed the warm rain until we went to bed.