Mosaic Monday #186: Back to the Islands

 

As I continue my denial that this is the month of August, we might as well go way back to May and our trip to Grand Cayman.  (see previous posts June 5, 2022, June 12, 2022 and June 19, 2022)  One day we journeyed around the island, beginning with Smith's Barcadere, one of the most photographed beaches in the Caribbean.  Also known as Smith Cove, this historic stretch of coastline is a favorite with locals and visitors alike.  Calm, clear waters and easy beach access make it ideal for snorkeling.  Dappled shade and picnic tables round out the facilities for those who don't want to go in the water.  I filled my time taking pictures, and bird-watching.  The two videos below are a bananaquit - a member of the tanager family.  They feed on small insects and spiders, as well as fruits and nectar.  The local subspecies, Coereba flaveola sharpei, is endemic - found only in the Cayman Islands.

The other most common bird at this beach? Chickens. 

The flowers and fruit on the trees at the beach fascinated me.  I did some rudimentary investigating on the web, but the identification eluded me.  Anyone know the name of the tree(s)?  (One had pink flowers and the other yellow.  Both flowers were shaped like a hibiscus, and the leaves of the trees were identical, if that helps!)

Our next stop was Spotts Beach, known for turtle sightings.  And sure enough, we saw three different turtles.  This is the smallest.

Check out the video of the small one.  It was completely oblivious to the snorkelers awkwardly hanging above it while it snipped at the sea grass, gently rolling in the current near the shore.

Here's the medium-sized green turtle going up for air.  Isn't it marvelous how the sunlight shines through the ocean onto objects under the surface?  The water here was only about 15 feet deep.

I love the following shot with the reflection.  By the way, all these pictures were taken by Spousal Unit with his hand-held GoPro.

The largest of the three was by far the most skittish, and that's why we have only video.  Notice the two remora clinging to it or swimming nearby.  The larger animal provides protection while getting cleaned.  I can't put into words how fulfilling it was to witness three of these majestic creatures in the space of 30 minutes.

Our next stop was Kaibo Beach Bar and Grill, on the far North Side of the island.  If you look at the red numbering in the picture below, we began at 1 - our condo.  Smith's Barcadere is 2, Spott's Beach is 3 and Kaibo is 4. (You can enlarge the picture by clicking on it.)

You can take a ferry from Camana Bay to Kaibo, but you would miss all the fun of driving around the island!  

After we enjoyed drinks and appetizers at the Grill, we strolled over to Starfish Point, only a quarter mile from the restaurant.  As the name would indicate, you can always find starfish in this area.  The red cushion sea stars that frequent the shallows looking for food provide the perfect photo opportunity, while the soft sands are a great place for beachcombing and exploring.

This day, we also came across a few hermit crabs at the Point, the first we have ever seen on the island.  Caribbean hermit crab adults burrow and hide under the roots of large trees, and can be found a considerable distance inland.  I suppose these creatures, like us, were also on their beach vacation!

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time).

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.

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Mosaic Monday #181: A Bigger Boat

As the family planned our vacation to Grand Cayman, the men finalized the details of a deep-sea fishing trip.  8 hours on a boat.  Hmmm. Not my cup of tea!!!

But they seemed to have a good time!  They all had plenty of turns in the "fighting chair".

And came back with enough tuna for more than two meals!

Check out the videos - the men also pulled in some barracuda, but they are not recommended by the locals for eating.

"You're gonna need a bigger boat." BRODY, JAWS 

So, what are the ladies to do?  Go to the spa, of course!  And enjoy the tuna!  (with plantains, and rice and beans)

December 2012 treated our family to Grand Cayman diving for the first time, and Man with Snorkel booked our dives through Living the Dream Divers.  It's hard to grasp that we have known the owners, Gary and Liz, for 10 years.  We felt an immediate affinity for them, since they are originally from the UK.  But it goes beyond that, to the way they treat their clients, like family!  They have watched our kids grow up, and we have witnessed the growth of their business.  I will write a little more about that in a future post!

For the Fiance, this was his first time diving after he achieved his certification - a special moment!  Man with Go Pro did not take any photos the first dive - the emphasis was on making sure the "kids" had a good experience - even for our children, it had been five years since they had been diving!  (Spousal Unit and I, having arrived a couple of days ahead, already had two dives under our "weight" belts!)  So, the photos I share below were taken over two days and several dives.  Enjoy!

Check out the video of the Green Moray.

I am obsessed with Porcupinefish.  Maybe you can see why in this video.

All this hard work (!) diving makes everyone hungry.

And puts big smiles on all the faces!

"The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul."  ROBERT WYLAND

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time).

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.

Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.

Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us. 

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Mosaic Monday #180: Sweat, Tears or the Sea

 

"At the beach, life is different.  Time doesn't move hour to hour but mood to moment.  We live by the currents, plan by the tides and follow the sun."  SANDY GRINGAS

This post shares more photos from Grand Cayman.  They are not all from the same day, but they share a common theme: days we whiled away the hours on the beach!

Walks on the beach are soothing and refreshing, especially when that unexpected wave rushes up to nibble your toes.

Perhaps I have become more attuned to flowers, in my retirement, than I was on previous visits.  I certainly don't recall these delicate flowers in bloom on this plant.

This hammock has seen better days!

Seven Mile Beach has several public beaches; Cemetery Beach was less than 10 minutes' walk from our condo.  I love how the white picket fence denotes the boundaries of the public Beach.  Directly off this beach, the natural reef is 165 feet from shore.  With large underwater pinnacles, you will see a wide variety of fish.  On one day of snorkeling, we saw two large loggerhead turtles within 5 minutes.

This sign made me wonder about "Jan's" story ....

One day, we rented a paddleboard.  I spent more time in the water than on the board!  #1 Daughter was pretty adept!

We experimented with several new restaurants during our visit, and Bayside was the standout.  Unique and delicious cocktails.  Staff that were welcoming and gracious.  Great food.  We will be back!

And of course, every beach day worth its salt ends with a gorgeous sunset.

"The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea."  ISAK DINESEN

Linking to Wandering Camera

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time).

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.

Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.

Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us. 

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M M #179: The Beach is Cheaper than Therapy

Welcome back to Mosaic Monday, and do I have some treats for you!  If you like tropical flowers, sunsets, summer cocktails and sea creatures, you came to the right place!  The island paradise of Grand Cayman hosted our family for over a week, and what a joy it was.  Throw on your flip-flops, and let's go!

Originally, this trip was planned for May 2020, as a celebration of #1 Son's graduation from The Ohio State University.  We all know why that trip didn't happen!

Well, some things are worth the wait!  I am grateful to Spousal Unit for navigating the complexities of air travel in an (almost) post-pandemic world.  Loads of paperwork, COVID testing during specific time windows before travel, ensuring we had tests for our return, the list goes on!

Everyone tested negative, but the in-bound flights had challenges.  Our checked bag did not make one of our connections, and arrived the next day.  #1 Daughter and her fiance were informed that their first flight would be delayed by two hours, virtually guaranteeing that they would miss their connection.  Fortunately, they heard this the night before, and were able to change the city of departure.  They jumped in the car right then, and got a few hours of sleep at the house of our future in-laws before being driven to the airport early the next morning.  First-world problems!

Spousal Unit and I landed a couple of days before the "kids", and we immediately re-enacted one of our traditions - lunch at Camana Bay.  The name of the restaurant has changed, but the view is still just as spectacular as it was in 2017, the last time we came to the island!

We stocked up on supplies at the grocery store, returning to the condo with enough time to enjoy the white sands of Seven Mile Beach.  Generally, the island was quieter than our past visits; I believe this can be attributed to 1. Time of year - May directly precedes hurricane season - we frequently came in December; our 2017 trip was in March; and 2. Tourists are just starting to travel again.  Whatever the reason, we didn't mind that we practically had the beach to ourselves!

From the rooster at the grocery store, to the lizards sunning themselves on the sand, to the crabs staying just out of reach of the surf, the unchanging critter landscape was reassuringly familiar.

Can anyone identify the bird in the video below?

"Get outside.  Watch the sunrise.  Watch the sunset.  How does that make you feel?  Does it make you feel big or tiny?  Because there's something good about feeling both."  AMY GRANT

Still photos of the sunset are mesmerizing, but I think video captures the movement of the ocean AND the sunset.

"Because there's nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it's sent away."  SARAH KAY

Come back next week for more!

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time).

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.

Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.

Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us. 

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Click here to enter

Mosaic Monday #92: Shakin' It Up

I am in a rut with my blog topics.  Gardening, hiking, animal adventures, food pictures, crafts.  I felt the itch for new material.  I scanned a few previous posts, praying that inspiration would strike like a bolt of proverbial lightning.  As I arrived at the April 5, 2020 post, a kernel of an idea began to sprout.  In that post, I referenced an old travel journal that had been languishing in my bedside table.  So far, I have written three posts from it (Belize,  Virgin Corda and Road Trip).  The next entry?  Buckle your seatbelts, folks, 'cause you have won an all-expenses-paid voyage to Grand Cayman!  Ride with me as I re-visit the family's first-ever trip to this little slice of paradise in December 2012/January 2013.

December 29, 2012: 7:10 a.m. flight to Charlotte and connecting flight to Grand Cayman.  It was snowing heavily when we left Cleveland! Since the condo was not ready when we arrived, we had lunch at Ortanique in Camana Bay, and then walked around the shops briefly.  When we got to Unit #38 at the Discovery Point Club, cleaning was still underway.  We went to beach on the back side of the Club.  While snorkeling, #1 Daughter had trouble with her snorkel.

December 30, 2012: 7:15 a.m.  Left condo for first day of diving.  Met dive company "Living the Dream Divers" at West Bay Dock.  Carl and Scott were on the boat, plus four other divers.  You may recall from my post about Belize (our first time diving after certification), that we learned what we DID NOT want in a dive company.  Spousal Unit had investigated Cayman dive outfits carefully, and we quickly discovered that his sleuthing talents had paid off - diving with this crew on its large boats with a limited number of divers and all from an anchored position, was heaven compared to our previous experience.

After diving, returned to condo.  We all went our ways - naps, swimming.  After a while, Spousal Unit, #1 Daughter and I went snorkeling.  Most notable were the reef squid.  Had dinner at Al Fresco (6 out of 10 rating from the family).  A little chilly at dinner.

New Year's Eve, 2012: Went to Cayman Turtle Farm.  The touch tanks were awesome!! We also got see a staff member named Amy feeding the fish and small turtles.  The sharks wouldn't eat because it was too cold - they were "hibernating".  Spousal Unit and the kids swam with fish and turtles in the lagoon.

Since that tour of the farm, I have often wondered about the underlying conditions at the facility, especially since we heard sarcastic comments from locals about "turtle hell".  We certainly did not see anything of concern while we were there, but you can find animal advocates on the web that are quite critical of the treatment of the turtles.

 

BBQ buffet at Macabuca.  All the food was really good, especially the ribs and the grouper in yellow curry sauce (10 out of 10 rating from the family).  Macabuca Punch was YUMMY!

Watched fireworks from the condo and Club swimming pool.  They were all over but especially on either side of the condo.  #1 Son swam in the pool with the glowsticks.

January 1, 2013: Second day of diving.

Played Clue and I won!  While #1 Son took a nap, the rest of us went to the beach.  Snorkeling at Cemetery Beach was average.  Went for a run after dinner.  HOT!!!

January 2, 2013: Beautiful Botanic Park.  The Color Garden was the best ... Saw Grand Cayman's national bird - the Bananaquit.  (I looked on the web for more information about this bird, and discovered that the national bird is actually the Cayman Parrot.  Hmmmm.)  The Park is famous for Blue Iguanas.  We saw 8 of them!

Drove around east end of island.  Stopped for picnic lunch at a beach.  Went snorkeling at Smith's Cove.  2 puffer fish.  Juvenile angelfish.  Octopus.  1 Great Barracuda.  Houndfish.  Dinner at Sunshine Grill.  (My journal does not give a rating for this but I seem to remember that it was a long wait and the food did not justify it.)

Both of the pictures above are the same green iguana - can you believe how long it is?  Unfortunately, these lizards are not native to Grand Cayman; they arrived on the island about 25 years ago as pets and have managed to overrun the island in that short period of time.  They defecate on cars, chomp up crops and gardens, eat the eggs of wild birds and short-circuit electricity transformers (they are very agile climbers).  Without any natural predators on Grand Cayman, the population had grown to 1.3 million by 2018 (more than 2,300 per square mile).  The government began a bounty program in the same year; I wonder if we will see any the next time we return.

  

January 3, 2013:  Lie in until 9.30 - glorious!  Beach .... rented a paddleboard - went out with Spousal Unit, a snorkel and a mask.  Saw a Spotted Eagle Ray and a Southern Ray plus dozens of reef squid.

2 more games of Clue - #1 Daughter 1, Mom 1.

January 4, 2013: Another great day of diving - saw great schools of fish.  Bought Living the Dream gear.  Went shopping in George Town.  Had dinner (with sunset) at Sunset House (7 or 8 out of 10).  

Saw three cruise ships departing the harbor.  Across the street was this awesome light display!

(They were handing out these cards at the entrance to the property; you could stroll around the display - maybe this will give you a sense of the SIZE.)

I hope you enjoyed this step back in time.  I sure did.  The diversion was just what the doctor ordered.  ALMOST as good as being there!

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.

Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.

The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Tuesday (U.S. Mountain time). 

Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog. 

Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back. 

As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by. 

Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully. 

Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter