So... Must of you reading my blog know that I hate exercising so when I say that I willingly chose to go hiking it might come as a huge surprise. Not only did I want to go to a place that literally means giant hole, I had to force Federico and Mattia to agree to come with us. We had a semi early morning as we had to get everything ready for the day. Giulia joined us for the day making it a full car. We each had two sandwiches, a soda, crackers, and a backpack full of beach gear that we were responsible for carrying. We stuffed ourselves into the car and drove the hour or so necessary to get there.
When you have to drive up a mountain to get to the start of the hike, it is never a good thing. My first impression of looking at the task in front of us was that it was impossible.
It was hard to get a clear photo from the top, but our task was to hike about forty minutes down the mountain on a natural path to get to a series of fresh water lakes in the middle of the valley. Forty minutes in the sun just to go downhill. And I chose this. We wet our heads and began our journey. Quinn and Mattia took off and were out of sight before long. Federico's knee was bothering him so he and Mariella took it slower while Giancarlo, Giulia, Sofia, and I went at a little bit faster than leisurely pace. My legs were shaking before we made if halfway down. It was beautiful though.
The first lake was small and that's where we met up with Quinn and Mattia. Giancarlo scouted ahead while we stayed there until Federico and Mariella caught up.
The two girls on the rocks were boys obsession of the day. They were from France and the boys enjoyed following them around everywhere and showing off.
When everyone was together again, we walked the couple more minutes to the main swimming lakes. My jaw literally dropped when I saw them. It was absolutely worth the climb down.
The higher peak in back of this photo is where we started the hike down.
We quickly shed our clothes and jumped into the water. Luckily the rocks were smooth so we didn't even need shoes. It was cold but felt amazing and fresh. There was a smaller pool of water and a larger one where most people were swimming. We alternated between the two.
We spent about five hours just goofing around. There was a natural rock ledge that you could climb up and jump off of. Think Wakulla Spring's high dive but only rocks and no platform. Looking out at the waterfalls and the mountain you just climbed down was a surreal experience. It was beautiful standing there but even more beautiful jumping in. I was the first one in as per usual and the rush was incredible. We started at the smallest ledge but by the third time, we were scaling the rock face and making our own path to the top ledge. I think we set an example for the others because soon after, many other curious teenagers were imitating us. We were one of the only groups to attempt the top ledge jump though and it made me feel special to be this adventurous.
The boys found many beautiful girls to look at but the day wasn't a waste for Giulia and I. There was one guy in particular with a yellow bathing suit and dark skin and green eyes that caught both our fancy.
We also played with the ball and made stupid videos of us jumping into the water. It was one of the most enjoyable days of the trip. All too soon it was time to pack up and start upwards. Remember how it was forty minutes to climb down? Yeah, well, it was an estimated hour to hike straight upwards. Upwards. Up giant stones and inclines. The boys being competitive, made a bet that we all had to finish within the hour or we lose at life.
We started off at a jog but Federico soon pulled ahead. I was in front of Mattia for awhile but he took off at a run to catch up to Federico. Quinn was behind me.
I thought I was going to die. That or poop myself. The only reason I made it to the top was because I promised myself that that was the only way I could get to the bathroom. My legs burned and I couldn't breathe. I pushed even harder when I heard Mattia scream in joy when he reached the top and I was only halfway. It turns out I'm really mean to myself when I need to be motivated. I told myself that I would never make it and when I did the feeling was incredible. Out of the predicted hour, I did it in 37 minutes. Not bad. Not bad at all.
I probably dumped a whole water bottle on my head and wasted a ton of money but I don't even care. I felt on top of the world. From where we were earlier we literally were. After everyone reached the top (Federico- 26 mins, Mattia- 27, Me- 37, Quinn- 38, others- 43), we ate some much earned gelato before collapsing in the car.
Everyone still had an excited buzz so the car ride was spent joking and singing. We played a prank on one of Giulia's friends and had a discussion of America vs England.
When we got home we went on a walk (why, I don't know) and soaked in each others company before dinner. Afterwards we met up with Luca and talked until bed.
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