Our Last Wonderful Day on Grand Cayman

Today was our last day in the Cayman Islands. We visited the Pedro St. James Castle this morning, where we learned a lot about the history of Grand Cayman. The weather was beautiful, as it has been all week. We had a delicious lunch at the Lighthouse Restaurant and then had free time until our farewell dinner on the beach. There were drummers and story-tellers, and great food. Our hosts built a big bonfire and we had fun making s’mores!

We all were awarded National Geographic Kids Hands-On Explorer Challenge medals of accomplishment. Our closing ceremonies were filled with mixed emotions. We are sad that the week is ending; we don’t want to say goodbye to all our new friends or to the Cayman Islands. We’re packing in as many activities as we can during our final hours on the island…including a planned 4:30 a.m. trek down the beach in search of sea turtle nesting activity. So long for now, Caymans; we hope to be back!

Emmie: Best trip ever!

Zane: I would just like to thank all the people at National
Geographic for putting together what was quite possibly the most amazing
experience of my life.

Maddie: This was the coolest trip. I love being a Hands-On Explorer.

Kamryn: This trip is something I will never forget. I can’t wait for more adventures to come!

James: I have never experienced something so tropical, and I have
had a lot of experiences I never would have had without National
Geographic.

Michaela: I have had such a wonderful time with all the new
friends I have made. I will leave this place with a new sense of how to
take great pictures and wonderful friendships. I hope I will see
everyone next year at the Explorers Symposium, and the Caymans are
absolutely gorgeous, so if you ever want to explore the Caribbean, go to
the Caymans!

Jonathan: The week went by so fast! The Cayman Islands are beautiful, and the friendships I made will last forever.

Kennan: I would like to thank everyone for making this trip
amazing. This has truly been the trip of a lifetime. Forget about
paradise lost, this is paradise found!

Clara: Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better, it did!

Harrison: I will definitely be coming back.

Diego: I’d like to thank all the National Geographic staff, and
Cayman Islands staff that helped put together this awesome trip. I hope
to come back here again, and the only problem is convincing my dad and
mom!

Michael: The week was amazing, and the friendships that were made
and seeing the island were out of this world. I’m very excited to be
able to apply what I’ve learned in photography and exploring in regular
life to be able to go out and explore some more.

Sha’anan: The Cayman Islands
Crabs are crabby, so is Boyd
Just kidding, he’s not

Brody: It was such an awesome week. I had so much fun and I’m
destined to come back with my family and then again enjoy the wonderful
Caymans. I thank everybody who made this unforgettable trip possible.

Kobie: On this trip I learned so much about the islands,
photography, and other people. I would encourage as many kids as
possible to enter the contest because they’re getting a chance to have
the same sort of life-changing experiences as I had this week. I think I
have become a better observer because I didn’t want to miss anything–I
wanted to take it all in. It was sometimes hard to experience
everything at once, but I tried my best because I want to remember it
forever.

Photo by Dan Westergren