Sylvya Tenerife was about thirty years older than in her profile picture. The two deep wrinkles between her long, downward-curving nose and mouth made it hard to tell whether they were from a forgotten scowl or simply the marks of age. With her deep, cigarette-smoky voice, she greeted the family who was awkwardly waiting in the narrow parking lot.
“Where are we going?” Elena asked excitedly, not waiting for their guide to finish introducing herself.
Instead of answering, Sylvya pointed with her red, bent-nailed index finger toward the narrow street that started at the parking lot’s exit.
The narrow street, wide enough for only one car, was lined with bright bougainvillea bushes in vibrant magenta and orange colors. The family was amazed by the dazzling array of colors. After walking barely fifty meters, they reached a long, winding staircase that ended at the ocean. Elena’s mouth dropped open at the sight of the natural pool nestled among the rocks. The waves from the open sea occasionally crashed into the clear pool with great force, turning it into a foamy, white mass.
The family stood mesmerized by the enormous, fearsome waves and listened to the roar of the massive volume of water.
“Shall I take a picture of all of you?” Sylvya broke the silence. “Then we’ll continue,” she added curtly.
“Where to?” Elena asked happily.
“There, along that path,” their guide pointed toward the winding oceanfront promenade running beside a nearby hotel.
After more than two hours, they returned to their starting point. Elena was disappointed to realize that the tour had ended.
Her two kids, feeling sorry for their mom, didn’t point out that they had simply walked through the center of a popular tourist town, which could hardly be considered a “hidden gem.” There was no denying the beauty of the place, but they could have seen it for free with information easily available online. Still, they didn’t want to upset Elena, who was clearly feeling duped. They weren’t even surprised when the promised sunset photo shoot took place in the same natural pool.
The family arrived at the water park much later than the suggested 10 a.m. because Lily Tenerife had trouble purchasing the tickets. The family hadn’t known that many others had VIP passes, allowing them to skip the lines. Nor did they know that on hot summer weekends, the wait for a single slide could average forty minutes.
After shaking off their disappointment from the water park, the teenagers took control. They researched sights, attractions, and beautiful locations themselves. On the last evening, Elena emotionally thanked her two kids for their enthusiastic guidance throughout the trip.
They had to return the car to the same place where they had picked it up. Carlos and two large companions were already waiting for them. The car owner motioned for them to step back from the vehicle while the two men inspected it. One of the burly men tried to open the car’s roof. Unsuccessfully. Carlos narrowed his eyes menacingly under his thick eyebrows.
“Well, this is a problem,” he said in a threatening tone.
“We couldn’t open it either, it wasn’t working when we picked it up,” Albert explained hastily.
“Do you think I’m stupid, man?” Carlos snapped.
Elena was enraged.
“You should be ashamed of yourself! You knew the damn roof wasn’t working! Give us our money back, right now!”
“If it wasn’t working, why didn’t you say something right away?” Carlos snarled menacingly.
But he didn’t get a response.
Albert wasn’t good at handling situations like this. And even though Elena was furious, she couldn’t say anything that would sway someone like Carlos, who made his living off families like theirs. They had made a mistake, and Carlos had bills to pay.