This past weekend was exactly what the doctor ordered! I’m
feeling refreshed, relaxed, rejuvenated and ready to take on the next three
weeks of grade 2! I cannot thank the French staff enough for having planned the
weekend retreat and inviting us at ISNS to join in on the fun. Lesson Learned: my word the French don’t do anything with half a heart! We could not have had a more wonderful weekend!
We hopped on the bus at 5:30 on Friday afternoon and were at
the beach around 8 (thanks to traffic). As soon as we were on the bus I
instantly felt relaxed and as soon as we were out of Shenzhen we all felt as
though we were on a grand adventure and about to embark on a lovely vacation.
Although we were only a couple of hours from home, from the moment we stepped off
the bus we all felt as though we could be anywhere in South East Asia! The
beach was wild and stunning, the water was crystal clear, the stars were out in full force (the sun was shining all weekend),
and the drinks were cold. AH, Vacation!
We were up at 8am on Saturday and
already the sun was shining and it was wickedly hot and humid – the perfect
combination for a brilliant beach day. Never have I Ever gone to the beach quite like we
did this past weekend (the French thought of everything) and I'm not sure how I will ever go back to 'going to the beach' basics hahaha!! We had
canopies set-up on the beach that offered much needed shade, had an extension
cord long enough to reach the beach which allowed us to plug in a full set of
speakers and a water cooler (A-mazing) and had a huge cooler filled to the brim
with all of the beverages you could want. We lounged, read books, played beach
soccer (Michael brought inflatable, full sized nets) and Frisbee, and made
frequent trips to cool off in the clean and refreshing ocean.
We had the most
delicious paella and salad for lunch and dinner was an incredible Turkish meal
(all made from scratch and cooked over fire and coals). After dinner on
Saturday evening we all headed to the beach where we set up camp under the
canopies and enjoyed fire works and The Blues Brothers movie on the big screen
(Thomas brought a projector). From there we listened to music and played some
games. Sunday was another early morning and another day spent lounging on the
beach. We all could have cried when it was time to pack-up our things and board
the bus that was meant to take us back to reality. This Xichong Beach Getaway
was Exactly what the doctor ordered for all of us – it was such a treat!!
We had: Great Company! Great Food! Great Drinks! Great
Weather!
An all around Great Experience!
