Journal Entry 12
The moment I start to think that this trip can get no more exciting, I am proven wrong. I was proven wrong once again tonight. We ventured to an area of the national park named “Flamingo”. I didn’t understand why it was called that until I saw the sickly pink (somewhat dilapidated) paint job of the buildings nearby.
On a whim, we stopped by a marina in Flamingo to watch the sun as it began sinking in the sky. But what we found was much more exciting than a purple-pink sky.
(Image taken by Viviana Moreno in Flamingo, Everglades National Park)
As we approached the edge of the docks to get a closer look at the water, we saw three manatees just beneath our feet. They were close enough that you could have reached in and touched them with ease; however we did NO such thing, as it is illegal to disturb the sea cows in their natural habitats. They seemed to be feeding on some of the detritus or plants growing on the pilings of the dock beneath us and quite unafraid of our oohing and aahing and quite apparent gawking.
There was also one of the LARGEST osprey nests I had ever seen resting on what used to be a watchtower on the dock. The entire standing area of the watchtower was covered in sticks and moss that built the castle that the ospreys rested on. I have never seen such a massive nest!
(All images taken by Viviana Moreno in Flamingo, Everglades National Park)
As we continued exploring, I did my very best to simply focus on the present moment. I struggled to avoid thinking about the sadness and return to reality that would come the next morning. These thoughts stopped quite as quickly as they came when I heard someone say one of the words I had been hoping and fearing for since we arrived: CROCODILE.
My feet moved towards the direction of the word before my brain even comprehended what one of my colleagues said they saw. Once my thoughts caught up to the rest of me, I found myself standing on a bridge-like structure looking at a wooden dock diagonally across the water from us, following the direction of where everyone else was pointing. And then I saw it. Resting on its belly, eyes wide, teeth sticking out of its long V-shaped snout, an ashy olive green.
I felt so many emotions just standing there staring at the scaly creature. It was exciting, scary, exhilarating, and utterly humbling. It was such a big reminder that we are just visitors. We are in someone else’s home, simply visiting. I had been feeling absolutely out of my comfort zone in the best way in my time here and that feeling was SO prominent in that moment.
(All images taken by Viviana Moreno in Flamingo, Everglades National Park)
