This week's web page is brought to you by the Innocent Criminals (a.k.a. Kari's advisory group). We are; Monique, Mary, Suzy, Jaime, Javier and Abby L. We'd like to show you a bit of the island from February 17-24. Enjoy!

Taking the giant stride!	Tony with the SCUBA gang.

We have been divided up for the past week into three groups. We rotated between three-day blocks of kayak trips, SCUBA diving, and academics. The SCUBA diving consisted of skills and drills necessary to earn a basic certification, something that almost everyone here strives to achieve . Two of the three day kayak trips had left as of Feb. 24. The first group kayaked along the south side of Eleuthera from Feb. 16 to Feb. 19, and the second crept along the shores of Rock Sound from Feb. 20 to Feb. 23. The final group will depart on Feb. 26.

Monique, Jaime and the rest of their group known as the AquaPod paddled a total of eleven miles, camping for two nights and paddling for three. Five hours of the day were devoted to kayaking, one-and-a-half to discussing Omeros (our current subject in English), some snorkeling in mangrove forests reefs, and a wreck. The AquaPods started out sleeping under the stars both nights, and both nights it rained. Ever prepared, we had set up the tents earlier and no harm was done. Novelties included a unique strategy of waste management, and, to some, the camping itself. The phrase "take only pictures, leave only footprints" definitely applied to their group. Songs and games kept them busy around the campfire and during the paddling. For both Jaime and Monique, it was a great experience that excited them about later excursions.

Suzy, Mary and the B12 group began their trip on Feb. 20, under what seemed to be balmy conditions. Five hours into their trip, the wind had picked up. Their group found a broad beach and made camp. At some point in the night, the wind picked up again, and a much-needed rain came down. The tents caved in on the windward sides, and Mary and Suzy spent the night singing "Help!" and "Yellow Submarine" with their two other tent-mates. They didn't leave the beach for the rest of the trip. Meals were high points (excellent pasta sauce and chili), as were the hike to the Pow-Pow Cemetery and the pineapple reward at the end of the trip. Happily, there is now more water in the cistern, and everyone had a good time camping on the beach. They group came up with the name, "B12" because twelve people went on their trip, and they were originally called "Group B." They felt they needed a more creative name.

Javy, Abby, and the "Icicles" are getting ready for their trip. They have already been through the academic/aquaculture and SCUBA rotations. Needless to say, they are ready for a little break. Their route will be determined on Feb. 26 after the weather report comes on the radio (who needs the Weather Channel ?!). Since we work with a non-waterproof digital camera here, no pictures are available from the actual kayak trips.

Another important module in the three day rotations was the SCUBA certification course, which we began this week. For morning academics we studied the physics, equipment, and safety of SCUBA diving. Then in the afternoon we were taken to the marina for the required three confined water dives that we need for certification. On these dives we were taken through the skills of diving such as: equipment assembly, basic dive techniques and procedures, and rescue skills. Our instructors demonstrated the skills twice before they asked us to practice them. In the evening, we watch slides of local fish to prepare for our open water dives, which are the last dives required for certification. SCUBA is fun because we get to see what type of fish live in the surrounding coral. It's also kind of neat to be able to breathe under water and not have a mouth full of seawater (although some people have not mastered this particular skill yet).

The academics this week have been a challenging mix of English, History, Math, Science and Spanish. Besides all of our classroom work, we have labored hard at the marina to catch yellow-tailed snapper for our aquaculture project, which will begin soon after the kayak trips finish.

Sarah, Abby and Sarah ready to dive.	Saturday night lip-sync...watch out!

Despite the fact that we are basically cut off from what we have known to be civilization, we have found many ways to have fun. This weekend we opted to have a school lip sync. There were many exciting moments at the event, but our highlight was big Mikey singing into a broom. The concert began with a group of kids performing Row, Row, Row, Your Boat in a cannon. The boys then proceeded to dance to Men at Work's hit song Land Down Under. They did this in honor of their habitual Aussie Showers that they prefer to real showers. An Aussie shower consists of Aussie Shampoo, the gravity cistern, the song Land Down Under, and A LOT of fun!!!!!! A group of girls lip-synced to Jennifer Lopez's song, Waiting For Tonight, and another group of girls performed Wannabe by the Spice Girls. To top off the evening, Javy, Mike, Mary, and Jaime broke down to the classic hit My Girl. Once all of the individual groups had gone, the whole school danced to Boom, Boom, Boom, Like a Prayer, and I Second That Emotion. We ended this momentous evening with homemade ice cream courtesy of Suzy Newbury. All we have to say is, WE DON'T NEED NO CIVILIZATION TO PARTY!

We all would like to say hello to our families and friends. We love you and think of you often!