Surfing After School into the Sunset

Surfing After School into the Sunset

Something that I have wanted to do since I arrived is surf after school on a school day. The beach is not that far away, but for one reason or another - teaching is tiring, the weather doesn’t cooperate, no waves, no surfboards, more work after school, etc. - I haven’t done it. Yesterday, on December 2nd, it was a gorgeous cloudless day with a high of 92 and a low of 78. I had my packed my bathing suit and towel, and was off to the beach right after school.

This is Colombia and I do not live in a touristy place. The nearby beach is certainly not beachfront property that you'd see in a tourist office brochure. Even though there are often decent waves, surfboards are harder to come by than you would think. It took a while to find a surfboard. When I finally found one, I surfed on waves that were rather sizable. I got up on every wave I tried and laughed my head off. When I looked back at one wave it had grown to an enormous size. I screamed out of fright, and then started giggling again as I was fine. It was time to stop only after the sun had set and the sky was darkening.

I told my students about my what I was doing yesterday at sunset (past continuous practice), and the fact that I had gone surfing seemed to surprise them a lot less than the fact that I went on a school day, after school of course. I proceeded to explain that I go to the gym a few days a week after school. Surfing is a workout that is much more fun than the gym any day of the week.

When applying to international schools, beside the quality of the school, I was looking for a tropical climate on or near a beach, preferably in Spanish speaking country. I’ll admit, this little novelty of surfing after a day of teaching crossed my mind.

When I left the US to start working in the beginning of August, it was hot and beautiful in Portland. All my teaching friends were still on vacation, my vegetables just about ready to be harvested from my garden, and I was disappointed not to be there. I kept on thinking wait until November or December, and that will be the pay back. Indeed it is.

Work is hard. Life is short. Surfing is fun. Carpe Diem.