Jenny Cannoles I have started six different papers but I can not finish one. It is amazing. I have been to Europe, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and all over the United States, yet I can not write a four-page paper about an experience in nature. Does anyone else find that pathetic? Looking through old pictures I just stumbled on ones from three summers ago. It was the summer after my junior year. My cheerleading sponsor and really good friend asked me to go on vacation with her and her family. I was friends with her nephew and his friend that was going too. We were going to Destin, Florida. There were a lot of us going, Gina, David, Marshall, John, Nana, Papa, Drake, Conner, Kendall and I. The whole family. We go there and our beach house was huge. It was right on the beach. Marshall, John and I did not waste any time. We were in the water before we even finished unpacking the car. The beach was beautiful. The water was so clear. After we had swam for a while everyone else made their way to the beach. The whole family swam and played until it got to dark to see. Then we went inside to eat and make our plan for the next day. We woke up and got ready to head to Panama City. Once we got there we were ready to have fun. First we rented some jet skis and rode all over the ocean. It was my first time to ever jet ski in the ocean. Our tour guide lead us to this little island where we got off the jet skis and walked over to the beach side. What I saw when I got there was so pretty. There were tons of starfish and seashells all over the sand. I had seen shells and starfish before but never that many at the same time. But we were not allowed to touch them. It was the hardest thing to look at them but not to pick one up and take it home. And of course not one of us had a camera. From there we got back on the jet skis and rode over to this little cove on the other side of the island. There the guide told us to turn our motors off and wait. I was shocked. Before I could look down there were dolphins all over the place, at least six. I jumped right in. The dolphins come right up to me. I was speechless. They were so beautiful, so peaceful, so innocent. And I could not believe how trusting they were. After just sitting there with them I started to swim. And they followed right behind me. One would swim down below me, so close that I could not kick my feet or I would hit it. He came up so that I could hold on to his fin and he would pull me. I felt like I was on "Flipper" or something. After about thirty minutes our guide told us that we would have to head back and return the jet skis. So we all loaded on and headed back to shore. We turned our engines on and headed back. All the dolphins scattered, all but one. Only one followed us almost to shore. I could not take my eyes off of it. It was so perfect. I had never seen a dolphin swim except for on the discovery channel. I only wish that I had my camera. We turned in our jet skis and loaded the car for another adventure. We drove about twenty minutes down the coast and found our next destination. We were going parasailing. I was so excited. It was one of the best experiences of my life. I mean wow. I was so scared at first. We did the kind where we started on the beach. I sat there, strapped in, and heard the boat starting. I held my breath and started to pray. By the time I opened my eyes I was in the air, flying all over the Gulf of Mexico. I had never felt so free before in my life. Parasailing gave me the most amazing feeling. I wish I could describe it. It was almost like when you are swinging at the part when you are at the highest part and then you jump off. Imagine doing that for a good twenty minutes. And once again, no camera. After our two unforgettable adventures we headed back to the beach house to rest. I was so tired, not from doing anything, just from being so excited for such a long time. After a good long nap we headed back to the beach. But this time the beach right by our house. It was so empty. We swam and swam until our fingers and toes were totally wrinkled. And before we knew it the sun vanished behind dark clouds, the wind picked up and the waves started to rise. I was out pretty far when I heard Gina yell at me, "Jenny, get out right now." I had no idea what was wrong so I swam in. The waves picked up again and pulled me under. I was so scared. I thought that I was going to drown. But I remembered hearing on "Baywatch" that when you get caught in an undertow you should not fight it. You should just let it take you back up the top. And sure enough it did. Once I could breath again I swam as hard as I could to the beach. By the time I reached the beach it had started to poor down rain. We all grabbed our things and ran back to the beach house. We turned on the television and found out that Destin was in the direct path of a small hurricane. It was nothing big enough to leave town for, but enough to keep us indoors. We were all so mad. We drove all the way to Destin, Florida to sit in the house. Marshall, John and I all went out and sat on the porch for about thirty minutes. It was covered but we were still getting wet because the wind was blowing so hard. It did not really matter though because we were all still in our bathing suits. The next morning we woke up to a clear, sunny day. It was great. That day we spent all day at the beach because we were out of energy and money, too. The beach just entrances me. It is so hypnotic. I laid on the beach with my eyes closed and just listened to the waves roll in. I love that noise. I am not sure if it makes me tired or gives me energy, but it does something to me. Lying on the beach that day I was so happy. Flipping over every thirty minutes was all the work I had to do. It was a perfect day. I was on a beautiful beach, doing nothing but laying there with nothing on my mind. I love it because I have no schedule to stick to. The next day we packed up and headed home. I was so sad the leave. But at least I left with a pretty good tan and a better appreciation for nature. After spending that one day stuck inside the beach seemed to pull me to it. After swimming with the dolphins and parasailing the ocean seemed to be so much more adventuresome to me. Instead of wave after wave after wave, there was something new, something exciting. It was a perfect vacation.