Surfing USA

Yesterday, I woke up at 5:30 am to make the 7 am meeting time at the school parking lot for our planned surfing trip to Waikiki. Basta lagi laag, sayo gyud mumata. :D

Many of the people who said that they would come were not able to come because they were all tired out from the Golf Tournament last Saturday. We only came up to 5. Kenji, Mayuko, Loren and John. Loren and John are MBA students while Kenji and Mayuko are my classmates.

We went in Loren's car and parked at the zoo. Which is the far end of Waikiki. We walked several blocks to the police station where we planned to start out. But first we had a problem. I busted Loren's board. Ooops. Tatanga-tanga kasi ako. I stood on his board while it was on the ground kaya nabutas. It would not float for long since it would take in water. I was feeling so guilty and offered to pay to fix it, replace it or pay for a rental board. Anything to make things better. Buti na lang Loren is such a cool guy. He's so laid-back, he didn't get angry.

We went in search of a surf shop to get Loren's board repaired. But the first one we went to was closed and wouldn' t open till 10:30 am. Buti na lang on the next block we saw one that was open. And the guys there were so nice. They offered a temporary solution for Loren's board so he could use it that day and they didn't even charged anything for it.

So dun na lang kami nagrent ng surfboard. We paid $10.50 for 2 hours. That was already discounted since we had resident IDs. Waikiki is such an expensive place. But we couldn't take out the boards yet since I wanted to buy a rash guard first. The rash guard is to protect you from the board. If your skin rubs against the board for an extended amount of time, your skin turns red.

We went up and down Waikiki and most of the shops were closed pa. Hello, 8:30 am pa kaya. Then it rained real hard. So we waited it out at the Marriot hotel. When the rain stopped we found a shop that sold rash guards and I bought one. It was kind of loose but it was better than nothing. Besides it matched my board shorts. :D I could buy another one next time pero maybe not. Billabong or Roxy bikini na lang ang bibilhin ko sa susunod.

After we bought my rash guard, we went back to the surfshop and went about the business of waxing the boards so we wouldn't slip off easily when we stood on it. Rather John waxed the boards and we all stood around waiting for him to finish.

Both Mayuko's and my boards were heavy and long since we were just beginners. Nine feet long and very heavy lang kaya sya. Di ko kaya mag-isa. Kahit si John, di kaya mag-isa. So what we did was, Mayuko and I both had a board each under our arms. Me at the end and Mayuko at the front. So we walked the one block to the beach carrying our boards that way. Barefoot.

Because we would all be in the ocean, we couldn't leave anything at the beach. Not even slippers. So we left most of our things in the car and the most essential things in a bag which we left at the surfshop along with our slippers.

We all paddled out to the open ocean. I think we went out about a kilometer from the shore in order to catch the waves. It was moment of personal truimph for me. That was the farthest out I went without a life vest. Just me and my board. Of course I was tethered to my board from my right ankle but it was a small comfort.

I learned to paddle and to turn right or left and how to get back on my board if I fall off. Which I did the moment I tried to stand up. I had a moment of panic since it was already deep water and I couldn't touch bottom. Pero sabi nga ni Mayuko, we had such strong wills to live so hala, kapa-kapa gyud. :D Nakakapyot gyud tawn ko balik sa ako board.

Surfing is such tiring work. All that paddling just takes so much out of me. After more than an hour under the direct heat of the sun, I couldn't take it anymore. I felt faint. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that I only had 4 hours of sleep the night before and only had a small bowl of cereal for breakfast. I was hungry and umandar na ang hyper-acidity ko.

So I broke off from the group and paddled back to shore. Since I was so tired already it was quite an effort. I couldn't manage to land at the part of the beach where we started. I landed in front of the I-forgot-the-name-of-the-resort. And then I just walked back to the police station and lifeguard station by walking near the shore and dragging my board with me.

It was when I was trying to avoid a boat that was going to moor on shore that I took my eyes from the ocean. It was the worst possible time to stop watching the waves. A big one came in and smashed my board against my chest. I sat down hard on my butt. Ang sakit. And how embarassing. :D

I took it as a sign that I should get out of the water already. I dragged my board out of water and tried to put in a place where the waves couldn't get at it. And because it was so heavy and I was so tired, I managed to drop the board on my own two feet. Talk about being a klutz.

Kaya eto ako ngayon, just a walking, talking ball of pain. My chest hurts, I've got a literal royal pain in the butt, my feet are aching, and my arms hurt like heck. Pero I can't wait to do it again. :D As soon as the pain goes away that is. :D