cruise: full day 1 - Half Moon Cay

[rm]

On Jan 5, our first stop was Half Moon Cay, which is a private island in the Bahamas (homosexuality is still illegal in the Bahamas and the private island is as much as I want to be in that country until that changes). It was pretty cold there thanks to the freeze everywhere -- I doubt the temperature ever got above 75 and it sure felt below 70 by the time we left. It was a shame, as the beach was one of the most beautiful we were at, and it was one of our few days with truly blue skies. But we were freezing!





I was testing my camera shooting into the mirror in our stateroom. What you can't see here is out verandah.




Our ship, the Noordam, off Half Moon Cay. This was a tender port and the seas were kinda rough, especially coming back and trying to get back on the boat.




Floaty toys! Floaty shark and floaty lobster!




Check out the ugly fountain thing with the conch shells. Yes, that thing you're thinking? We thought it too. We're still thinking it.




There was a nature walk on the island.




Sea grapes.




Another random plant close-up.




It's a Torchwood tree! Really. Zoom in.




There were also chickens. Awesome, awesome chickens that Patty got the better photos of.




But more importantly, there was a STINGRAY ENCOUNTER. I went in to the water up to my waist, but it was so cold. The stingrays were super friendly and came up and said hi. Patty actually snorkeled and fed them and kissed them and all. This is her. SURROUNDED BY STINGRAYS. Stingrays are AWESOME.




See? Happy Patty says so.

Comments

[ophymirage.livejournal.com]

*looks at pic of torchwood tree*

rm, I have a theory about why you might have found it cold. you seem to be missing a few layers. :)

[rm.livejournal.com]

bathing suit! Appalling pink and white bathing suit of utter campyness, but bathring suit, I swear!

[ophymirage.livejournal.com]

LOL. No, I got that part, but any San Franciscan would tell you 70 degrees is *perfect* weather for a swimsuit, short and long-sleeved t-shirts, and a windbreaker in case of rain. ;)

[wynkat1313.livejournal.com]

living across the bay in Oakland, I can confirm this. Also, go 20 minutes or 20 miles and you will either strip to your skives or need ALL of the clothing you brought and wish you had one more layer.

[ophymirage.livejournal.com]

*waves at wynkat* actually, I'm down in Sunnyvale, El Camino @ 85 basically, so it's a little warmer than the city. :D where's you?

[wynkat1313.livejournal.com]

*waves back* Way cool!

I'm in N. Oakland, right on the boarder between Oakland and Berkeley.

[pocketmouse]

Oh, that's the cruiseline we used when we went on a cruise ....aaages ago. I know we went there, and a number of other places, but it's been 6+ years, so I can't remember too many details other than getting a horrific sunburn.

[wynkat1313.livejournal.com]

oh my gods stingrays!!!

ok, will return to being calm now, but seriously! STINGRAYS FTW!

*ahem* I am an Adult. I SWEAR.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I LOVE STINGRAYS. So it's cool.

[rufus.livejournal.com]

I love the expression on your face in the Torchwood Tree photo. (Also, ahahaHAHAHAAHHA, conch shells, yes.)

Unrelated news: I have a recording of your play on a CD for you, and a program. I'm in Jersey all day tomorrow, but I can mail it to you/arrange for our paths to cross any time after that?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, totally (got your Twitter message, then spaced it!). When are you around Mahattan like? We should say hi!

[rufus.livejournal.com]

I am in Manhattan pretty much all the time (Jersey is just a special expedition). I'm normally north-west of you (across the park & up 40 blocks or so) but I also spend a fair amount of time in TriBeCa. I'm off from work AND school Monday, so I could catch up with you then?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Totally. I'll be going into my office for part of the day, but that should be fine. We will email or what have you.

[marzipan-pig.livejournal.com]

I'll admit I got a little distracted by that photo and didn't look at the tree part right off. The conch shell thing is AMAZING.

[tod-hollykim.livejournal.com]

Considering how truly *COLD* it was up here in NYC while you were down there in 70 degree weather- PPPPFFFFFTTTTTT!!!!

[rm.livejournal.com]

This is what we kept telling ourselves.

[ladyaelfwynn.livejournal.com]

I'm glad someone else takes photos of flora. I tend to go a bit crazy when we are any place with Nature. I probably took 100+ photos of flowers the first time we went to the telescope @ Ariciebo. And then bought a book so I could identify them.

I've been photgraphing flowers since I got my first camera when I was about 10 or so. I've got photos of yucca, Queen Anne's Lace, and trumpter vine from around my yard when I was little.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I do it a lot. I have flora pics from all the islands I think.

[nonlinearmusing.livejournal.com]

I love the TW tree. *giggles* That is truly priceless!

[rm.livejournal.com]

I wasn't sure if I was more amused because of Torchwood or Plants vs. Zombies, in which it features.

[moominmuppet.livejournal.com]

Yay stingrays!

And Happy Patty looks soooo happy; that's awesome!

[tree00faery.livejournal.com]

See, I'm the kind of person who wades out into the Pacific ocean in Washington state in June, so 70 degrees and in the Bahamas would not be a problem. ^_^

Never seen stingrays though; that's really cool!

[bugeyedmonster.livejournal.com]

Thanks for posting the pictures. I don't have the money to travel, so I LOVE to see pictures of places I'd like to see someday.

The stingrays! That was such a cool picture! I've seen a similar picture from Corpus Christi, Texas, but it was baby sharks around someone in an inner tube thing, so not as cool.

The Torchwood tree- Hee!

Hm... floaty lobster. (Hear song "Rock Lobster" in head.) And a floaty shark. Ha, I can think of a few practical jokes one could play with a floaty shark. Or maybe use it as a prop in a really horrible B movie.

Oh, that picture of the ship. What a beautiful sky! The sea looks lovely too, but that sky just keeps catching my eye.

Conch shell fountain... what couldn't they use other shells? Or maybe a variety? And why put the conch shells in that position? Unless they were timed to shoot out water into the fountain.

Huh, my grandma made the counter around her bathroom sink with epoxy, shells and little sea themed charms. It looked cooler than that fountain.

Sea grapes... were those edible? Loved the plant pictures. I can google the Torchwood tree and Sea grapes, but what was that red flowering plant?

Like I don't have enough tropical plants already. My lemon tree keeps getting bigger every year. I don't need more plants that have to come indoors for winter.

Were the chickens feral?

And thanks for posting the pictures! I think I'll look at that one of the boat again. Just look at that sky! Or maybe the pretty stingrays. I love the play of light on the water and the shadows under the water in that picture.

Thanks for posting. (This kinda' made my day.)

[rm.livejournal.com]

Don't know if the grapes were edible, but I'll be posting pics from each of the islands we were on over the next couple of days, so hopefully they will continue to amuse.

The chickens were feral and AWESOME. Patty has many more and much better pictures of them. Lots of tiny chicks. So cute!

[laughingacademy.livejournal.com]

Aw man, I visited my grandparents in the Bahamas when I was really little, and now my faint, fond memories are tarnished. Homophobia, boo.

Your vacation photos are awesome. I have always been fascinated by stingrays -- until we started getting footage of the fauna around deep-sea thermal vents, they were the most alien-looking critters I'd ever seen.

[rm.livejournal.com]

My grandparents lived in Ft. Lauderdale when I was a kid, and we'd watch the sting rays jump up out of the canals sometimes trailing after boats.

[nicoli-dominn.livejournal.com]

I always wondered why there weren't any Georgia O'Keefe paintings of conch shells...but I suppose Calla Lilies sum it up pretty well too.

[arjache.livejournal.com]

Torchwood! Perhaps somebody misheard "Torchwood Three".

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

LOL, Torchwood tree.

I also love the floaty lobster.

ETA: Damn it. Once you see that fountain there is no way to un-see it, is there?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Nope -- and that's like only a quarter of the monstrosity.

[kel-reiley.livejournal.com]

STINGRAYS! those are so cool