Sun-Day

Hey everyone! Hope you are doing well and not freezing too bad!
Today was a fun filled, outdoorsy, kind of day. We got up this morning and headed to the Kenting National Park for a tour of some of the beaches and wooded areas. We picked up our tour guide at the headquarters of the park and we went in the building to get some background on what we might see in the park and their conservation efforts for the beaches and wooded areas. After that we left to visit a beach that they had closed to visitors in an effort to try to conserve the area. It was a beautiful beach! We then headed to one of the wooded areas in the park to see some of the foliage. Because Kenting National Park is on the coast we stopped at a cliff top pavilion during our walk, and also went to see a beautiful, operational, lighthouse. We unfortunately were not able to tour the lighthouse, which I would have loved to do. Following stopping at a gift shop, we then went to another cliff. This one looked out over the Pacific Ocean. It was beautiful, but also super busy. Crazy to think that that will be the closest I am to home until I actually am home! That was our final stop on our tour.
We then had free time to wander downtown for shopping and to find lunch. I almost felt like I was back in the dells because all of the tourist shops had the same merchandise. Still, it was pretty fun. Beth, Kayla, Erich, and myself ended up shopping together as the others stopped for lunch right away. We ended up spiff at this cute Italian inspired café. The food was very good, and a great value for what we got.
Then, after we finished, it was FINALLY time for the BEACH!!! You could definitely tell we were the crazy Americans that are used to cold weather. Everyone else we saw was in sweaters, pants, and even some in winter coats. We went swimming for a little while, buried some people in the sand, and just all around had a good time. I ended up with lots of same in my suit though. Hopefully it will eventually all leave my suit! I feel fortunate though that I didn't have any issues with the coral that was along stretches of the beach. Courtney ended up with her legs and arms scratched up from two separate incidences with the coral.
As reluctant as we were to leave the beach, we at least were able to go to some hot springs. On our way there we stopped so that some people could get fresh coconut water. I tried it but didn't like it. We got to the hot springs and all jumped right in to warm up. As beautiful as the days are, the evenings get rather chilly, especially with as windy as it was today. This hot spring was different from the last one. These didn't seem to be warmed by the natural vents, and they infused the water with various things, like rose oil and ginseng. As nice as it was, I think we all preferred the first trip to the hot springs. We ate dinner at the site of the hot springs, which actually was not that bad. After we finished we came back to the dorm and are all exhausted and ready for bed.
We are leaving here tomorrow morning and heading back to Taipei for a few days. I think we are all ready to be back at Academia Sinica. This time tomorrow I will be back to sleeping on a mattress, which sounds amazing right now.
Good luck with the cold back home. Stay safe, I don't want to hear about anything bad happening to anyone because you were careless around the cold weather.

Pictures- preserved beach; lighthouse; windy day by the Pacific; hot spring area; beach we swam at