• The rolling cityscape quickly flashed before my eyes as the bus quickly made its way down the road. There was not anything worth mentioning yet; just the same old shady urban landscape of Culver City. Out the window, multitudes of people continued on with their daily lives. A woman casually sat at a café, chatting with close friends while a hard working citizen scurried along the sidewalk delivering mail to businesses. The moderate climate and ideal conditions made it a perfect day to go on a field trip. The intense sun, slightly blocked by clouds, cast a somewhat dim shadow on the busy city. As the bus passed a lush, green park, the sight of worriless school children romping around urban jungles heightened the students’ anxiety. Their fun filled antics and carefree manner seemed to foreshadow the day ahead. Their bodies almost seemed to convulse with the sheer excitement that flowed through them; the students could not wait to go to the beach and the aquarium.
     
    After a while, someone in the back of the bus jubilantly shouted that we were near the beach. Out the bus window, the vast ocean stretched on for miles until it faded beyond the horizon. It was speckled with dozens of surfers, swimmers, and boats. The beach itself was also littered with a magnitude of people and items. There were people building feeble sandcastles away from the constant surge of the ocean, tanning in the heat of the scorching sun, playing volleyball with friends, inline skating along the sandy board walk, riding bikes over rugged terrain, and eating frosty treats to keep the heat at bay. The yellow sand of the beach was covered with vivid beach towels, fold out beach chairs, and children’s toys. Near the bus, a man holding a surf board with soaked hair and sand covered sandals passed the bus. He was followed by swarms of other pedestrians who were also covered with marks that indicated they had been to the beach. I also spotted a group of white seagulls soaring freely overhead the bus. They had finally made it to the beach.
     
    Stepping off the bus, a fresh breeze gently tugged at their outfits. Beyond the vicinity of the aquarium, the dark blue ocean sat motionless against wisps of white clouds. Its contents gracefully produced a hue of iridescent blue as the warm glow of the sun struck the surface of the water. The waves silently murmured to me; the stench of the saline water filled my nose. As we neared the entrance of the aquarium, the frantic clamoring of the overjoyed students reached its height. With anticipation building, the impatient students could no longer wait any more. The doors gently pulled away from each other causing the students to release a slight gasp. Lined with rows and rows of animal exhibits, the aquarium surpassed the children’s greatest expectations. The bright light shimmering off the many tanks caused a strange dance of reflections all around the blue room. The hypnotic light patterns gave the room an ambient feel. The aquarium was fairly crowded for a weekend. People explored the aquarium eagerly at their own pace. Off to the right, a young boy presses his face against the cold glass and gently taps a starfish that is clinging on the slick surface of the glass. Near the entrance of the aquarium, a young girl is fixated on three strange jellyfish that seem to be floating lifelessly in space. Their transparent bodies and long stingers slowly inch towards her face and touch the surface of the opaque glass, made so by the young girl’s heated breath on the chilly exterior of the murky tank.
     

    As the students headed down the aisles of the aquarium, the class came to a sudden stop in front of our tour guide. He rambled insistently about the aquarium like all tour guides are paid to do. His lips moved erratically and his face cringed into strange expressions as he lectured with great enthusiasm. He seemed like the kind of employee that didn’t mind to work a few extra hours after closing time. Instead of paying attention to the tour guide, most of the students’ attention drifted to a tiger shark across the room. The small shark had a built, broad body specially contoured to glide effortlessly through the water. The shark looked overly powerful and dominant; it looked as if it was capable of striking at someone from across the room. The tan shark silently glided along the bottom of its circular tank with its razor sharp teeth exposed. It swam in countless circles repeatedly as it tried to find a way out of its confinement. After the tour guide finished his introduction, the class continued to explore the aquarium. The first exhibit we came upon was the sea urchin exhibit. The sea urchins were lifeless creatures; they remained absolutely still in the interior of their tanks. They were a dark purple color and were covered with jagged looking spikes. When touched by the school children however, these threatening spikes merely roused cheerful laughter as they slightly prickled the palms of their hands. After the sea urchin exhibit, the students continued the tour until they had gone through all of the fascinating exhibits in the aquarium.
     
    After departing the aquarium, the class made its way across the street to the beach. The time they spent in the aquarium had given a chance for the sun to peek over the clouds that had previously blocked it out. Upon reaching the beach, the students broke out in a run. Some ran towards the bathroom to quickly change into their bathing suits while some simply ran towards the horizon. One student seemed to be frantically in pursuit of another fellow classmate. He tossed his sandals off and broke off in a run towards him. The warm sand tickled his feet as he stumbled across it trying to reach the ocean. The ocean was loud now; the steady sound of waves crashing into the beaten sand and retreating back into the vast ocean filled the students’ ears. The student chasing after his friend was now panting heavily with his hands above his head. His chest vigorously contracted, taking in the brisk ocean air. Before he could catch his breath, a colossal wave made contact with him and swept him off his feet. As the monstrous wave sluggishly retreated back into the ocean, it uncovered his soaking wet body. He looked like a clump of seaweed lying on the beach with his still body covered in sand. Above, three seagulls soaring effortlessly in a brisk ocean current appeared to look down and gawk at the boy’s pathetic condition. The sun’s warm presence was diminishing. The seagulls steadily soared toward shelter; they knew that the day was coming to a close –as the students would also soon have to realize. For now, they continued to enjoy their free day as much as possible, after all, tomorrow would be another long, boring day at school.