The Beach

We went to the Atami Beach Club yesterday. It's a perk for the faculty - the school provides a membership. The beach is about 30-40 minutes away. It takes longer to get home because it's all uphill. The picture is Susan and Maggie sipping from their first coconut.

The club has two swimming pools and a water slide (a big hit with Mags and Will - 6 rides for $1.00). You rent a cabana - a thatched roof hut with a table and two benches. They set up four woven hammocks for you (not Pawley's Island hammocks, but still very nice.) And then you just enjoy the breeze.

The club itself is on a cliff. The sand is black - crushed volcanic rock. The beach is rough but perfect for surfing. The surprise was the tidal pools - big concrete pools built on the shore's edge. So you can safely swim in salt water right next to the raging sea. It's worth every step of the long climb back up to the beach club.

Note to my mother - we saw one fishing boat, probably a shrimp boat. But we also saw men on floats out in the ocean shrimping. When I say float, I mean inner-tube! We waved to them. What a way to catch shrimp!

James is out right now trying to find the Episcopal Church. Once we master the route and find out the schedule, we'll try services in Spanish. I'll let you know how it goes.