Island Paradise Day 13

Back home we watch a lot of Netflix. Even as we travel we enjoy winding down at night with a good series. Here on the south shore though, sometimes the internet is not so good for streaming. But let me tell you, there are other things to watch here every day and night that do not involve a computer screen.

Things that make me say, “WOW!”

The colour of the water, eagle rays like the one we saw swimming beside the boat today, schools of colourful fish swimming alongside me, the amazing night sky so full of stars and so bright that it almost takes your breath away, and last night, we discovered mating glow worms, a natural phenomenon that was amazing to see. Hundreds of glow worms emitting green flashes of light in a unique mating ritual that began shortly after sunset.

The marine worm lives in the shallow waters around a few islands in the Caribbean and on the fourth day after a full moon (which was last night) right as dusk becomes night, they come to the surface of the water to mate. The female swims around in a circle, creating a glow in the dark donut just under the surface of the water, and then the smaller male comes and follows her around the circle and as she spreads her eggs he fertilizes them. Sounds crazy, I know, and I honestly thought people were pulling my leg, and that they just wanted to see me stand on the dock being eaten alive by sand fleas at dusk, but I swear to you, it is true, and it is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen!

We stood on the dock with our neighbours and a couple bottles of wine and watched the light show, which only lasts about 15 minutes. It was fantastic! And just as the glow worms stopped, the fireflies on shore began…it was so beautiful, and all crowned by the most amazing night sky. These are the moments that make me feel so blessed to be alive. If this is what a two star retirement buys me, I will take it! There is also another type of bio-luminescence here that is caused by a type of algae. We hope to get out kayaking at night to see it.

Today we were invited by my realtor to go out on their boat to Water Cay which is a small island where you can go picnic and hang out snorkeling and swimming.

We had a lovely day and so appreciate all of the people here who have reached out to us to make us feel “at home.” When we returned from Water Cay, we both agreed that "Our" beach and water and coral, here at Jack Neal, are even nicer than Water Cay, and it's free, and we have a toilet and a fridge full of cold beer! So tomorrow, we are staying home, to explore the wonders of our very own National Geographic world at Big Rock Cabana on Jack Neal Beach.