We are in the Bahamas!

It was a long night making the crossing to the Bahamas.  I’m very thankful that it was a LOT easier than last year, but there were still a couple of hours of boisterous wind and waves that I could have skipped.  This is the dawn that greeted us after we’d been sailing on the banks for several hours.

This year we cleared in on a small cay in the Berries called Chub Cay.  It doesn’t look at all like the Exumas, being much more lush….rather like the Abacos. Here is the little church at the main cross roads on the island.

And here is Pandora sitting at anchor while we visited the Chub Cay Club.  Even on a second visit to these waters, I am stunned by how beautiful it is.

 The water all around us is full of sea life:  red starfish, ramoras, barricuda, sharks!….even little puffer fish.  Here is a shark that was checking us out….I think he knew that Bob wanted to clean the hull of Pandora, and maybe he thought he might get lucky and snag a couple fingers or toes if he waited… (and there is nothing to get a sense of scale in this photo, so I’ll tell you this shark is about 8 feet long).

When Bob did clean the hull (and I stood on deck keeping watch for the sharks, with a big screw driver in my hand, ready to bang on the hull to give Bob a warning to get out of the water!), all the fish hung out all around him.  The ramora stayed right by his side, and we’re thinking he was enjoying the little bits of stuff that Bob was scraping off the hull.

The second night we were here we saw the green flash!… and then there have been wonderful sunrises, sunsets, and even a rainbow and a water funnel.

Today we left the Berries and sailed for Nassau where we will meet Christopher in just a couple more days.  While we wait I think I might take a look at the shops in Atlantis…. now there’s a thought! We are anchored right off some docks with a pretty restaurant called Luciano’s.  Dinner there last night was quite memorable! We ate on the terrace, shown here, overlooking Atlantis across the harbor.

And I’m celebrating that I finished the first Oktoberfest sock!  Go me! I know the photo is too dark.  Sigh….it was getting late in the day.  I am happy with the pattern.  The barley stalks remind me of bubbles, and I love the frothy finish at the top! ….the color is quite reminiscent of a Blue Moon!  I might not see one of those ’til I get home in May…