Back from the U S of A!

CONCH HORN'S A BLOW'N... SUNSHINE A'SHININ'... FISH ARE JUMPIN'
Yes, we are back in Eleuthera, and the non-consistent Blogger (that be me) is back after a hiatus!

THE "GLASS WINDOW" BRIDGE - the narrowest part of Eleuthera!
Pretty spectacular views from the rock cliffs looking in either direction as you park your car and walk across this narrow span, the Atlantic pounds thru the narrow opening and then dissipates onto the sand banks of the Sound turning aqua blue.

Eleuthera is 110 miles long and about 2 miles wide, less than 60 miles from Nassau and 240 miles from Miami.  It takes about 2 1/2 hours to drive from the airport to Davis Harbour - 3 1/2 if Bob drives :) narrow roads, crazy drivers, oh and then that driving on the opposite side of the road thing!

Perhaps you can see the X to the left of Harbour Island, that is the airport that we fly into, the red blob between Upper Bogue and Gregory Town is where the Glass Window Bridge is located.  Then waaaaay down to the most southern part you will see some arrows pointing to Davis Harbour which is where Veda L calls her winter home port.

We have grown very fond of the people who work here, the fishing boat owners & captains that keep their boats here, we are most often the only pleasure boat in the marina which suits us fine.  We enjoy the quiet and like having this to ourselves.

And this is why we love Eleuthera!
Lobsters still aplenty for those spear fishermen with a good aim - and Bob does have a good aim, this particular lobster was speared after about 2 minutes in the water; he seeks, he finds, he shoots, he kills, he cleans, he cooks....and we eat!  I bake the breads, and Bob's favorite desserts.

Scenes like the one shown here await around every corner.  Aw...another private bay of clear water?  God created this heaven on earth and we really need to be kind to Mother Earth so our children and theirs can enjoy what we do.

No question about it, the most rewarding event as parents to experience, for Bob and I was to watch Ted excel on City Council, then make a run for Mayor and win the election.  I had fun assisting in his campaign, had not knocked on Stillwater residents doors since I started selling real estate 32+ years ago!  The swearing in ceremony was very child friendly as the girls clung to Daddy as he gave his speech, they are very proud of their Daddy and tell everyone who will listen "My Daddy is the Mayor!" Now I am called M.O.M. Mother of Mayor!  Ted's passion for his hometown and his skills will serve Stillwater well.

Not just another pretty face!  November at Davis Harbour, we could hardly believe our eyes when this Manatee showed up.  It hung around the marina for a couple of hours, drank some fresh water from a hose, did a little water ballet with Bob and then moved on.  HUGE but friendly as Bob got some good underwater photos that I sent to Save the Manatees so the researchers could identify it for tracking purposes.

This little kitten used up the first of her 9 lives by trying to jump onto the Half Moon Clipper which transports workers over to Little San Salvadore daily to Half Moon Cay where the cruise ships come in.  She didn't gauge the distance between dock and boat however, as she ended up in the drink, Bob heard her cries, quickly donned his wet suit and under the dock he went, I think she should be named Lucky.  

Sand dollars at Hetty's Land, notice the "dead" white ones which I collect vs the "live" brown (Six-Keyhole Sand Dollar) and rather fuzzy one below, at low tide you see the tracks of them traveling; pretty amazing feat/feet they have!  I will have to Google more about these creatures of the sea-they are in the urchin family.  Can't wait to get Grandkids there to witness the amazing life the the Sand Dollar...another experience to prepare them to be stewards of the sea.  When we were in Exuma with them last April Amelia duly noted that you can pick up starfish carefully, but you most put them back as they are alive.

Another slice of Heaven...the top left is a photo taken of the beach from Veda L, anchored in the protected bay, walking along the shallows at low tide you will always gather a good selection of sand dollars that I take home to do crafts with the Grandgirls.  Sunsets here are for some reason more spectacular, and we saw 4 green flashes this trip, something that we used to contribute to someone having one too many rum punches!  The surf photo shows the Atlantic side of the island, to get there you follow a jungle path marked with flotsam traversing an area that is sometimes sandy, other times like quicksand - the destination is worth almost getting your shoes sucked off however as the waves crash into a tidal pond surrounded by chalky 50' rocks.

SUP PHOTOGRAPHY!
I finally got my paddleboard in the water as it has been pretty choppy other places we have been, Hetty's Land is perfect for it as it is a short paddle to shore and fun to look down into the shallow water to see starfish, barracuda, a small shark or OMG...What is that? ... sting ray ahead, quick Linda, on your knees, drop your camera over the side of the board and hope for the best!  Not a bad shot for not looking!  I am finally learning to do the quick bounce up from a squatting position.  Perfect calm water to learn the technique, easy for you to do Bob...you grew up surfing in the flippin ocean off CA.  I had a creek and some lakes in Wisconsin...no surfboards for sure.
Looking over the side of the boat this morning in 12' of water I could see brittle starfish on the bottom, it was almost spooky calm.

 The Exuma Land and Sea Park at Warderick Wells, another one of our favorite spots to visit in the Exumas, this trip we got acquainted with members of The Royal Bahamian Defense Force (above) and spent an afternoon diving with them on our favorite reefs & walls in the park.  We saw an endless parade of sting rays, HUGE lobsters and HUGE Groupers...this area has been a no take zone for many years so the "food" are friendly as they know you cannot take them.

Exuma Land & Sea Park mooring field, this natural horseshoe of deeper water surrounds sand bars and takes your breath away each morning as you awake to the different shades of blue, and at night it is WOW as you look up from the foredeck, no lights to take away your view of the stars clustered in the heavens.  This is no "blanket" of stars as we see in the midwest, but you see into the layers of stars allowing you to look into the depths of the universe.

Taking a hike to "Boo Boo Hill" story goes that you can hear the spooks from sunken ships calling (who would want to walk up there at night anyway?) This is the view looking toward the sound, the Atlantic is behind you.  If you look closely you can see Veda L, 2nd from left at top of mooring field, a kite surfer is zooming behind our boat with a red kite above.  He came flying in from a boat anchored outside of the park.

I call the photo on the right The Laughing Cyclops Sponge with it's broad grin and one "eye"  these images were taken on our dive with the Royal Bahamian Defense Force, just one of the many sting rays that were "hiding" in the sands in about 20-30' of water.

On our way into Emerald Bay we saw what we thought was a pod of Dolphins nearby, as they got closer I was sure they were not Dolphins, Bob guessed that they were Pilot Whales, which it turned out they were.  This is the most exposed photo I was able to get, the rest were just fins....about 15 of them.

No....Bob is not wearing a stove pipe hat!!  A piling "photo bomb"while posing with two of the five fish he and his fishing buddy Gail caught off her skiff while at Compass Cay, the left photo shows the nice Mahi Mahi that we caught on the way over to Compass.  Happy Day!

Anybody see the movie DEAD CALM?  I saw it many years ago and many times since.  It rattles your desire to sail the oceans blue, or at least to come to the assistance of a boat that could be abandoned...or WHATEVER?!*#@!   When Bob and I were cruising on a calm day we saw this boat anchored a ways off shore...and NO we were not tempted to take our dinghy over to see if they were dead or alive... or psycho!

New York New York!!  My Sister Janet and I celebrated her 70th in NYC seeing shows, eating...eating...walking and just enjoying the city.   The only sad part was touring the 911 Memorial, the upper left photo was taken inside the memorial with a large photo of the former twin towers displayed.  Amazing structures that I learned more about and now understand more on how they collapsed...heat, bending steel.  

A day made more heart rendering when toured with three American Airlines flight attendants, my Sister Janet included who knew several of the crew that died that day.  Looking at their photos, reading their stories, hearing their voices as they left messages on family answering devices and the calls to air traffic control to relay the situation.  God rest their souls as they are all heroes.  The memorial fountains have all the names that perished in lights around the edge, the last column taken down is now preserved within the memorial and was taken to the site draped in black with the American Flag covering it with an entourage of dignitaries and bagpipes accompanying it.  

After the Memorial it was indeed time for a great dinner with a cocktail.... Janet's friend drove us to the River Cafe, located under the Brooklyn Bridge with a view of Manhattan that used to include the World Trade Center towers.  We ordered martini's with olives stuffed with blue cheese, and they came slowing because the bartender hand stuffs the olives...the martini was a thing of beauty, followed by a dinner that we shall not forget...lots of fois gras!

Yes...My Sister Janet turned 70 and I am two years behind her, Dang!  But as we say...always so much better than the alternative of Not getting older!  She wanted to celebrate at Eleven Madison West, one of the two owners is a friend of hers.  We were treated like royalty (and we're not?) as we were brought into the kitchen of the 3rd Best Restaurant in the WORLD and served drinks made in front of us; penicillin is the name of the drink, popular during prohibition at New York speakeasy's, and made with liquid nitrogen.  Certainly a night to remember...a 4 hour dinner with my wonderful sister!  

CABARET - at STUDIO 54 - KIT KAT KLUB

One of the plays we attended.....

Anyone who watches Alan Cumming on Good Wife will be like me...and when watching it you will want him to strip down topless and start strutting, dancing and singing!  Amazing talent and he shared the stage with Emma Stone.  Great musical shown in the best venue...Studio 54!  We wanted to go right back in to experience it the 2nd time...Go to YouTube and put in Cabaret Alan Cumming.  He is sooooo naughty :)