Emmanuel's Visit: Day 7

This aftertoon Emmanuel and I walked to the beach by my house on the Mesa. We brought paddle ball, vollyball, and buggy boards. By the time we got down to the sand we were already sweaty because of all the steps and the blazing sun beaming on our backs. Straight away we jumped in the ocean, diving under the refreshing waves. Halfway through, we went back to shore and gathered the boogie boards, and once again dissapeared under the waves. An hour later, numb and tired, we walked back to my house. We both rinsed off and got dressed in biking clothes. I let Emmanuel borrow my Mom's bike and helmet while I used my brand new mountain bike for Santa Barbara Middle School. I first showed Emmanuel around my neiborhood, showing him all my favorite spots. We then biked to the Dougles Family Preserve which happened to be only a few blocks away. We spent about and hour there, going off intense jumps and followig the never-ending trails.

I'm glad I got the chance to spend a week with Emmanuel and hope to see him again soon.

Emmanuel's Visit: Day 6

This afternoon I had a ballet class, so I invited Emmanuel to come watch. I wondered if he'd ever seen or heard of ballet before. I thought Emmanuel would be bored at the beginning at bar consisting of mostly plies and tendu exercises but he looked pretty excited. After an usual class I met Emmanuel outside the room. Even though the class was on flat, I showed him a couple moves on my pointe shoes.

plié (Fr., bent). Bending of the knee. In classical ballet the term most commonly refers to a slow bending of both legs, knees turned out to the side at a right angle to the front of the body, heels on the floor. It is the fundamental movement of the daily ballet class, used to warm the muscles and tendons during exercises at the barre before proceeding into the centre of the studio.

ten·du   [tahn-doo; Fr. tahn-dy]
adjective Ballet.
of or pertaining to a movement that is stretched or held.

Emmanuel's Visit: Day 5

This morning Emmanuel and I woke up bright and early and walked to the beach by my house to watch the sunrise. We arrived just in time for the beautiful show. Afterwards, we marched along the rocks, collecting shells and flat rocks for skipping. I never officially learned how to skip a rock so Emmanuel guided me through the basics.

Later that day we had a picnic at the Rose Gardens in front of the Santa Barbara Mission. I tried to make the picnic as "All-American" as possible, with the red and white checkered blanket and picnic basket, but we ended up with a sheet from my bed and a bag of sandwiches and chips. The food didn't matter because as long as the sun was out and birds were chirping it was going to be a great day.

Emmanuel's Visit: Day 4

Because of the long and tiring day of hiking yesterday Emmanuel and I chose to have this day to sleep in and hang out at my house. We both woke up at about noon and slugged to the living room couch. I showed him a few of my favorite American movies as we decided on the first movie to watch. While Emmanuel searched curiously through the list of movies I got up and made my favorite hot chai. Emmanuel was so interested that he came up to help me in the kitchen. I showed him how to make the chai which was quite easy. I let him push the button to stir the chai mix and split the amounts equally into two cups. Since we were both already up we searched the cabinets for pop corn and candy. After a few minutes of gathering we scrambled to the couch and set up blankets and pillows for our movie. Emmanuel had chosen one of my favorite recent movies, Hanna. The movie was thrilling and eventful, and I could see that Emmanuel was enjoying one of his first American movies. The pop-corn had instantaneously gone to our stomachs and in between the cushions. We had already gone through four different movies by 5 o'clock. I thought  it'd be best to leave the house and get air so we got dressed and ate dinner at my favorite sushi restaurant, Arigatos. Emmanuel was amazed by the varieties of delicious sushi platers and the different culture of food. Even though today was laid back and lazy we still had a blast.

Emmanuel's Visit: Day 3

The third day I had with Emmanuel was spent hiking at Tangerine Falls. We arrived at 10:00am so we could avoid the crowds. The beginning of the trail was flat and the rocks crumbled beneath my feet. The air was fresh and brought a cool breeze. Emmanuel and I hummed along to the croaking frogs to distract from the inclining path. The trail went with an up and down pattern, so Emmanuel and I both raced on the curved path with our arms out wide. The roller-coaster like track ended with a steep up hill. Boulders loomed from around the corner and I knew Emmanuel might have trouble climbing them with his leg, but

apparently I took him for granted. He used the corner    of his prosthetic to wedge in a crack in the rock and  hoisted himself up. I followed and we continued on our way. Two our right we spotted a couple pools so Emmanuel suggested we take a dip. Since Emmanuel was my guest  I catered to his desires. As I peered into the spooky, moss filled pond, Emmanuel bravely plummeted into his death. A little worried and frantic I searched the brinks of the pool. "Come in!"Emmanuel hollered, splashing chilling water in my face. Relieved, I unexpectedly jumped in next to him. The cold water flowed throughout my body and took my breath away. My feet brushed the muddy ground and I launched through the air. The calmness of the pool rippled and sent waves in Emmanuel's face. We both screamed and bounced with the current. Numbness quickly overcame our bodies. There were no towels, or a change of dry clothes to look forward to, just more hiking. We gathered our stuff and followed the path as we dragged a trail of water behind us. Before we knew it, the bottom of Tangerine Falls was in view. Emmanuel and I hugged the boulders trying to avoid the thought of death inviting us to take one false step and slip. We both made it across alive and sat in on a leveled section of the rock and ate lunch. The waterfall next to us shimmered and covered our bodies in mist. The trail descended the whole way back so it took only about 10 minutes. Exhausted, my mom picked us up and we drove home soaked and thankful for a warm shower awaiting us at home.

Emmanuel's Visit: Day 2

The next day I took Emmanuel to Miramar Beach. We arrived on a calm day, low tide and few people. First we picked a smooth spot and set up chairs and an umbrella. As soon as we were done, Emmanuel begged to go in the ocean. At first I thought about sunscreen, but then decided it'd have to wait. I love the ocean, especially when you have an amazing person like Emmanuel next to you diving under the salty waves. After an amusing time spent playing in the waves we dried off and sat down for a gushy sandwich.
While nearly dry we skidded to the edge of the barren sand and build a giant "drippy castle".  Later, we dug the paddle boards out from the sand and sprinted to the water. It was hard getting out past the waves but once we were past the buoys we were able to stand up. It was wobbly and difficult for Emanuel since it was his first time, but after a few tries he'd finally gotten the hang of it. In the middle of conquering the bumpy kelp forest Emmanuel said he sees a shadow in the murky water. All of a sudden a baby dolphin jumps directly in front of me. I've never seen a dolphin up this close and Emmanuel certainly hasn't either. We make our way back to shore, both with a smile on our faces, grateful for such an eventful day.

Emmanuel's Visit: Day 1

On Emmanuel's first day in Santa Barbara I took him to Stern's Wharf. We walked the Pier and bought ice-cream at The Great Pacific Ice Cream Company. With mint-chip Ice Cream cones in hand we walked to the end of the pier and admired the fishers. Later, we toured the Ty Warner Sea Center  and felt the urchins and sea cucumbers. After an hour of exploring the history of sea animals we made our way out. I saw him eyeing the stuffed animals so I decided to buy him a souvenir of his choice, as a remembrance of the day.