This morning after a quick breakfast, we went out on the ocean with Rincòn Paddle Boarding. For many of us, it was our first time paddle boarding, and we all had a fantastic time. Shout out to the wonderful, helpful instructors! The weather was great, the ocean was calm, and Big Red was a beast. Big Red was a 6 person paddle board--teamwork makes the dream work! Whether on purpose or not, everyone ended up in the water. Water was clear and the beach was clean, despite initial concerns of post-hurricane damage. On to lunch! We went to a cute food stand called Pasta Grill; they opened early just for us! The owners were so kind and the food was delicious. Quesadillas, pasta, and smoothie galore. Possibly the highlight of the trip comes next: a bus ride to the mountaintop to deliver water and candy to people living there with no electricity or water since the hurricane. They were so appreciative and happy despite the surrounding devastation. It truly made us grateful for all the blessings we usually take for granted at home. We finished the day at a super cool dude-ranch themed restaurant called Cowboys. The view of the dude-ranch was sick and the food was tasty. There were even some peacocks and goats to look at. Truly a memorable and life changing day that we would not have wanted to spend with anyone else but our Swat Team! We are especially grateful to Isela from Sports Tours for organizing such a seamless adventure!

Next Wednesday, our team heads out to Rincón, Puerto Rico for a winter basketball tournament! While there, we’ll be playing two games against local university teams. We’re excited for new competition, for the sunshine and warm weather (especially with the snow that’s come through Swarthmore this week!), and to see how the resilient communities of Puerto Rico have bounced back from Hurricane Maria. Since we’ve gotten back from winter break, we’ve been working hard in the gym in preparation for our conference games this week and the games we’ll play in PR.  We haven’t had too many away games this season, so these two games will be fun ones for sure! This trip offers our team an amazing opportunity to play the game we love in this new place.

We’re excited to learn about this new place as a team. Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory known for its vibrant people and places--for being a melting pot of cultures and for its over 270 miles of beaches. However, on September 20, 2017 the island of Puerto Rico was forever changed when Hurricane Maria tore through the island. In addition to playing some basketball,  we are also looking forward to participating in a community service event in which we will deliver water to people in the more rural areas who were impacted by the hurricane. We’re looking forward to spending time together as a team and bonding on our annual trip!

Some fun facts about Puerto Rico:

Rumor has it...Piña Colada was invented there!

Basketball, volleyball, and boxing are the most popular sports in Puerto Rico

Spanish and English are the most popular languages spoken on the island.

One of the world’s largest radio telescope in the world is located in Puerto Rico at the Arecibo Observatory.