A Life in Koh Sak - Ecology School Trip cont.

With yet another early start, the group boarded the boat to Ko Sak from Pattaya. My first reaction was to immediately begin slapping each tourist I saw leaving their personal trash all over the beautiful beaches, along with their parents who raised them to be so selfish to believe that that kind of behavior and treatment of the Earth is at all acceptable. With that said, our MUIC team spent our morning and early afternoon taking tests and samples from the beach, while the rest of the time was spent ridding the sand of the nasty, smelly trash that had washed up onto the shore from nearby Pattaya thanks to frequent tourism. The later afternoon was dedicated to snorkeling to observe the reef, swimming, and of course, eating.

A quick fun fact: I was left behind on the island by accident when the rest of my group went to eat the buffet back on the boat. I was exploring the nearby rocks and didn’t realize I had been left. Instead of staying on the island until the group returned, you know I couldn’t live with the idea that I might miss a meal. So I may just have kind of...um...in a way, hijacked a sea jet ski to get back to the boat. Yes, I had the permission of the owner...but doesn't it seem much cooler if I didn't fill in that part? Nevertheless, please imagine the expressions on the faces of my team and professor as I rolled up on an ocean cruiser.

Overall, it was a weekend filled with constant kicks in the gut to come back into realization that human behavior is appalling towards our environment, but hopefully subject to change. I would hate to see the bluest waters in all of Thailand turn gray because of us. What a lovely thing we will lose if the behavior continues. This trip will be something to ponder as my time in Southeast Asia comes to a close.