How to Turn 30 in the Jungle

How many people can say that they celebrated their 30th birthday in a tropical paradise?  I can.  :)  And this is how it's done.

On the 21st, I had a pre-birthday celebration by the sea.

It was awesome.  We've been going and going and going.  We were all so exhausted and just needed a break.  And we got it!  Just after breakfast we loaded up in the Hino (a truck with wooden benches in its really long bed) and headed down the mountain.

me, Laura, and Cathy

The previous POC directors bought a house (read:"shack") on the ocean a few years ago and they let POC participants use it every course.  It has 3 bedrooms, a kitchen, and huge porch.  Oh, and a liklik haus (outhouse) out back.

The snorkeling is great.  We swam over the reef to the dropoff.  It's just like in Finding Nemo!  We saw so many amazing fish.  Blue starfish.  Awesome coral.  A sea cucumber.  A few jellyfish... we found Nemo.  AND Dori. :)  We were warned about coral scrapes... they can get infected really easily.  So at one point I was really nervous as we floated across coral only a foot under us.  If we let ourselves fall, we could have touched it!

I had a root beer with my lunch!  Then I sat and read for a while.

My friend, Cathy, and I went out in the canoe to the little island across the reef.  Isn't that water amazing?

Once we got back to shore, 3 cakes were pulled out and candles were lit (on one of them). 

And everyone sang "Happy Birthday".

A group of us played Apples to Apples.  Some people here say that the cards you win describe you.  Hm.

Then it was time to pack up and go home.

Seriously, no work all day.  It was divine.

Waking up on the 22nd, I was blessed with an amazing birthday sunrise.  There are so many gorgeous sunrises.  I'm sure I'll have a special blog one day solely dedicated to all the ones I've captured.

I constantly had people telling me Happy Birthday all day.  I got several hugs (I miss hugs from my family and friends at home).  When I got to class, I had several origami designs at my spot, all made by Cathy.

One of those was a 5 Kina bill to be used to buy a "pop" later (Cathy's from Oregon... clearly not the south).  Which I fashioned into a bow for my hair.

I got a few things in my box, including some chocolate from the UK from Luke and Laura.  Yum!

After lunch, the internet finally came back on for the first time since Friday!  I got to talk to my parents and Jessica for 45 minutes and chat with my brother and Christen and check a few facebook messages before it shut off again.  (sorry, guys!)

At exactly 3:18 pm (which was 12:18 am EST- the exact time of my birth), one of the staff (David) came into the class and blew a horn to say "Happy Birthday!"

After the afternoon class, my German friends, Jurgen and Dorothee, invited me to tea and cookies.  Then my roommate, So Hyun, and Joanne (who are Korean), Cindy (Canadian), and Kathy (American) brought me some birthday gifts of a pack of cookies, non-caffeinated peppermint tea, and a face mask.  And then they all sang "Happy Birthday" in English, Korean, and German!

My day(s) was so much nicer than I ever expected since I celebrated away from my family and friends.  And like you all assured I would, I have amazing new friends! :)

And that's how you turn 30 in the jungle.