One way to rewrite this paragraph without figures of speech and idioms would be:
"We had the greatest vacation ever! We went to a beautiful beach. The sand was extremely white. We lay in the shade of the blowing palm trees all afternoon, watching the butterflies and birds. In the evening, the ocean was incredibly clear. We could look right down into the water and see coral reefs and bright fish. When I told my friends about it, they were all very jealous! They all said they wished they could have gone!"
We had a great vacation! We went to a beautiful beach. The sand was white. We lay in the shade of the palm trees all afternoon, watching the butterflies and birds. In the evening, the ocean was very clear. We could look right down into the water and see coral reefs and bright fish. When I told my friends about it, they were all very jealous. They all said they wished they could have gone!
No they aren't proper to use in writing class they are considered slang. It would show your teacher that your not interested in sounding educated and proper. Hope this helps!
