September 2007
by Mariana Isunza

On May 21 I arrived at CEA as a volunteer in the Turtle Program. I came here to fulfill my 480 hours of social service that my university requires in order to get a degree. The real reason, or the one that mattered the most to me, was that ever since I was a little kid, I secretly wanted to be a marine biologist. So this was a great opportunity for me because I was doing what my university required, and I was fulfilling a dream.

As a communications major, my job at CEA was to be in charge of the tourists. I gave the Turtle Talk every night at 9 p.m., and, half an hour later, we walked to Turtle Beach and waited for the Green and Loggerhead turtles to come up to the beach and start nesting. During hatching season the tourists got to experience the amazing feeling of seeing the turtles reach the ocean. I have to say I loved my job. I met wonderful people from all over the world every night and, as a turtle volunteer, I got to share all my experiences with them. The feeling you get when you know someone else is interested in what you do and enjoys being a part of it for just four hours every night is indescribable. I started thinking that maybe we could do something to keep in touch and let others be part of this wonderful Sea Turtle Protection, Conservation & Research Program, so that they can experience from afar what’s going on in CEA. So I created CEA’s first Sea Turtle Protection Program Blog where everyone, including the volunteers and the tourists, can log in and keep up to date with all of the activities the program does on a current basis.

I went back to México City at the end of July to finish my major and I have to say that it was hard because I didn’t want to leave! I had a great time here. I learned a lot of things and met very special people whom I will never forget. I really thank all of CEA for giving me this wonderful opportunity. I will keep writing the blog as long as I can. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did creating it. Please click here to visit the blog.

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