Page 79 of The Hitchhiker in Panama
“Papayas,” said Jonas.
“Oohhh,oui, with some lime on them. I want a real baguette.” Elayna closed her eyes and sniffed the air. “Fresh out of the oven.”
“What about you, Lila?” Jonas asked. “What are you looking forward to?”
“A long walk.”
Elayna sighed dreamily and Jonas grinned. “That one I can deliver today, I hope.”
It gave me more energy just knowing we would be in port soon, stepping on land and getting out of this space that had once seemed so large to me.
Climbing out onto the deck, I looked ahead toEik’sbow. Beyond it, on the horizon, Fatu Hiva towered. The island was steep, and cliffs dropped dramatically to the ocean. While it was still too far away for me to make out details, the island was a splotch of green—green!—in an eternal sea of blue.
Eventually the rest of the crew joined me and we watched the island approach. Eivind and I sat on the edge of the deck, hands gripping the lifelines and our legs dangling over the side. Occasionally the water tickled our toes when the boat rolled a bit deeper.
“What do you think?” Eivind asked.
“The island’s beautiful.” And it was. Now that we were closer, we could see the details: individual trees poking above the rest and shorebirds wheeling around the peaks.
“Would you do this again? Sail across an ocean?”
I wrinkled my nose. “It has been a very long trip. I would need a hell of a lot more books.”
Eivind smiled out at the sea. “The next few weeks will be a lot better. We have small islands to visit, beautiful places, lots of snorkeling to do.”
My stomach fluttered. In Panama, we had always said we’d part ways, even if we made it across the ocean together. But our relationship had grown and changed so much. Would he still want me to leave?
Jonas started up the engine, and that was our cue. We all worked together to bring the sails down. We motored into the Bay of Virgins. The steep walls surrounded us and the sea calmed.
Thirty-Five
We piled into the dinghy like wiggling puppies, eager to walk on land. We tied the dinghy up to a concrete wall, and one by one stepped onto shore.
I took a few shaky steps and almost face-planted into the grass. Elayna grabbed my arm and, with a gentle “oopla,” guided me down.
“Whoa. Why does it feel like this? It’s like I’m drunk and dizzy.” I flopped down hard on the grass, but the world kept spinning.
“Your brain got used to being at sea. Give it a few minutes to recalibrate,” Jonas said.
Elayna sat down next to me and lay on her back. She sighed. “Grass.”
The rest of the crew lay down too, whether landsick or not. We all spent a few minutes lying back in the grass, staring up at the trees.
“It used to be the Bay of Penises,” Eivind said next to me.
“Why did they change it?”
He shrugged. “Missionaries.”
After a few minutes, I rolled over and experimentally sat up. Eivind watched me carefully. I made it in a few steps but managed to climb to my feet and dust myself off. “I think I’m okay.”
“Great,” Jonas said, and climbed to his feet.
We walked along the only road and stopped at a bulletin board with some postings on it. One was a map to a waterfall, which Eivind took a picture of with his phone.
Continuing along, we walked past small houses with lush gardens. We were in the jungle, where everything was thick and green. Fruit grew everywhere—massive breadfruit and mango trees, papayas, coconuts. Kids played in the streets, and dark-haired Polynesian women swept their gravel driveways.
Most people called out to us: “Bonjour!”
