Zheng Tiancheng

    Xiamen No.1 High School, Xiamen, Fujian, China

    Oaks Christian School, Westlake Village, California, US

    During Spring Break, my school organized some of the international students to go to Hawaii on vacation. There were lots of interesting activities, but the most exciting part of this trip was no doubt going snorkeling.

    At seven o’clock in the morning, we set off to go snorkeling, and we arrived at Hanauma Bay, an hour later. After a short orientation, we got our flippers and snorkels and went down to the beach. There was a ring of reefs around the bay that kept the waves out of the snorkeling area. Feeling excited, I dressed quickly and dove into the blue sea. At first I was amazed by the fish swimming towards me. Unfortunately, I was too big to be their prey. I had only seen these fish in the aquarium before, but now it was as if they had escaped into the shining Hawaiian sea to greet me face to face!

    They were so gorgeous. Some were bright yellow with dark stripes, some were black with red heads, and some others were the colors of the rainbow. I tried to touch some of them with my hands, but they were too fast for me and slipped through my fingers.

    In addition, it may have been illegal to touch them: We were told during orientation that it was illegal to touch the sea turtles.

    But no matter how beautiful the scene is, you will eventually get bored. After hanging out with my friends for a while and taking some photos, I decided to go beyond the protection of the reefs in search of some larger sea creatures. I started my adventure.

    At first I went out in a group with my friends, but since we couldn’t see each other well while snorkeling, I soon found myself alone. We were warned by the chaperones to never be alone, so I was a little scared but decided to be manly and keep going.

    My adventure didn’t start well — my flippers were torn so they couldn’t hang on to my feet well, so I struggled a bit when swimming. To be honest, I didn’t really need the flippers to swim, but they protected my feet from hitting the reef. With the help of the current, I soon approached the reef barrier. The reefs were so high that the water was very shallow.

    I had a really hard time getting outside of the barrier. As I tried to squeeze through, I constantly felt my skin scratching against the rocks. Finally I got into open water, where the current was strong and the waves were huge. I was intimidated so I dove deep under the surface of the sea to avoid the dangerous waves. Not only did I encounter the roughness of the sea, I didn’t accomplish my goal — though I did see some really big fish, they weren’t as colorful as the small tropical fish. I didn’t see any sea turtles or seals. I was very disappointed and rued my decision to cross the barrier reef.

    Then I had another crisis. A big one.

    My breathing tube filled with sand so I couldn’t breathe underwater anymore. I felt myself starting to drown. This was the first time I ever felt the urge to struggle for my life. I swam upwards as fast as I could, but the salt water in my mouth was choking me.

    At that moment, I understood the horrors seafaring men experienced in a shipwreck. I gasped for air on the surface. I took off the breathing tube and swam for my life. Then I detected another threat — in my blind struggle I got very near to a huge reef, so I was in a dangerous position. I sat on the reef to catch my breath and figure out a way to get back to shore.

    The waves were ruthless, knocking me backwards and pushing me towards the sharp bits of reef. I tried to stand upright, but the waves kept sweeping me off my feet. I turned and tossed on the reef.

    I knew I was bleeding, but I couldn’t tell where I was bleeding from. Desperate and exhausted, a huge wave came and boosted me over the barrier and into the safety of the bay.

    I got back to shore and felt victorious. Maybe this was how Robinson Crusoe felt when he washed ashore after the shipwreck. It was the most adventurous thing I’ve ever done!