Vacation

I thought I'd start out this lovely blogging experience by posting pics from our recent adventure in Florida & the Bahamas. We flew down to Ft. Lauderdale on May 14th and spent some time with Meesa, Trev & Co. for the first few days. We hung out at the pool, had a BBQ on a boat, went to the alligator farm where we not only saw LOTS of alligators but also went on an awesome airboat ride into the Everglades. We went to the beach and tried to snorkel out to some large sunken jacks that seem to be mysteriously missing (we never did find 'em), we ate ice cream at Jackson's, helped them have a yard sale, listened to them speak in church, scootered around a beautiful neighborhood and took a walk through the jungle. It was a pretty eventful few days and we had a blast. Thanks again guys!! :-) Here are some pics from Ft. Lauderdale:



(If you want to check out some more pics, including the scooter trip.. you can check them out on Meesas blog: www.carterandavryjohnson.blogspot.com. You'll have to click down to May's entries)

Once we'd spent the weekend in Ft. Lauderdale, we went down to Miami and got on a cruise ship headed for the Bahamas. We spent one day in Nassau and one on Coco Cay, a small, private island owned by Royal Caribbean. While in Nassau, we took a Segway tour of Fort Charlotte and the Botanical Gardens that were destroyed in the 2000 hurricane. While the sites weren't terribly exciting, the segways were 'all terrain' and we had loads of fun just riding them around and over pretty much anything we wanted. After the tour we did some shopping and headed back to the boat. All in all, we weren't terribly impressed by Nassau -- it seemed to be the equivalent of Nogales -- just in the Caribbean.

After Nassau came Coco Cay. This island was actually a lot of fun, which wasn't really expected, being owned by a cruise company and all. We spent the day on a beautiful white beach with palm trees and hammocks -- what more could you want out of life? We also rented a small Hobie Cat sailboat and Chad tried out his sailing skills -- which were fairly impressive, if I do say so myself. We sailed around the harbor and actually made it back into dock. We also spent a few hours snorkeling where we saw a lot of terribly cool fish and one very large Manta Ray. The underwater pics are off being developed, so I'll have to post them once I get them back. It was a terribly pleasant day and not a bad way to spend my birthday! :-)

Here are the some of the pics from the Bahamas:



After leaving Coco Cay, we sailed to Key West, FL. It was REALLY hot that day in Key West, so we settled for doing the 'Famous Conch Tour' because it at least kept us relatively cool. It drives all over Key West and talks about their long and sorted history. It was actually terribly interesting, as the island is covered with old houses and tall tales. After the tour, we were looking for a cool place to spend an hour or two and decided upon the Pirate Soul Museum (they seemed to have the only A/C on the island that was functioning properly). We were pleasantly surprised. We learned all about piracy and even saw one of the original skull and crossbones flags as well as a genuine pirate treasure chest. I know, I know, it sounds cheesy. But, if possible, they actually did a fairly good job of taking themselves seriously and we enjoyed it. After that and some shopping, we headed back to the boat to get out of the heat.

Here are some of the pics of Key West:



The next morning we were back in Miami and bid our cruise ship farewell. We spent that day hanging out with Meesa & Trev who took us down to the Las Olas Riverfront to cruise through the 'Yachting Capital of the World' and see the really big boats and the even bigger homes. It was mezmerizing. Wow there's a lot of money down there!!



All in all, it was a great trip. Hanging out with Trev & Meesa was fun, and the cruise was a nice, relaxing way to spend a week. The food wasn't half bad either ;-)

Ah.. if only I could go back..