By Rauru Takikawa
As I unconsciously turned off the first alarm and woke up with the second one at 4:40 AM, I knew today was not ordinary. As I made the final check on my luggage and left home, I felt a little sorrow that I won't be able to return home for about four days. When I arrived in Dalat, everyone was ready for the nearly ten hours of trips. After the long travel and arriving at The Tarras Beach & Spa Resort hotel at Redang, we received an interesting green juice. Enjoying free time at the beach and eating a wonderful dinner, we received important information from sponsors regarding the expectations and activities.
One activity I found interesting was spoon assassination which we stabbed people with spoons, and the only way to protect yourself was to put both hands on top of your head. This activity was not only fun to watch as a couple of people were always putting their hands on top of their heads but also allowed me to have new social connections with other people after I assassinated.
Having a good night's sleep in a cozy hotel and eating breakfast on the second day, we played a game similar to a music chair and created a sandcastle. We played night tag in the evening, which I enjoyed but became exhausted.
On the third day, we clean the beaches as community service. Although the beach looked clean, we collected more than seven trash bags. Later that day, my friends and I went snorkeling to see turtles. It was a great experience to see turtles and fish close.
The following day, I woke up early to go on a sunrise hike which was supposed to be a long walk. However, the hike was short as a hotel to the hiking place was longer than hiking itself. Regardless, the view of the sunset was spectacular as we saw the sun rising from the mountain top and a clear ocean surrounded below. In the last free time of the trip, my friends and I set the transparent kayak to the sea. We saw sea turtles swimming under us as we puddled among the endless oceans. Sometimes we stopped kayaking to float in the calming sea, which almost made us sleep.
Being in Dalat for the first year and the trip being my first and last high school vacation, I believe this Sneak allowed me to rest and grow socially. When I asked Lee Anne Lim (12), who stayed in Dalat way longer than me, about the trip's reflection, she said, "A lack of electronics allowed me to be more aware of the different ways to spend time with friends…It forced me to actually find ways to entertain myself and allowed me to bond with my other classmates."
Without this trip, I would never have had conversations with some students. The trip also made me appreciate the beautiful surrounding and increased my connection to Dalat. Dalat's 2022 Senior Sneak changed me physically as I became slightly tan and socially as I made new relationships.
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