In the short time that we have been here, we have decided that we have definitely found a little slice of paradise. The blue-green waters, clear blue skies, bright sunshine, palm trees of many sorts, "wild" wildlife, wonderful warm weather & soft sandy beaches made the revelation easy. And the sunrises . . . .
and sunsets . . . .
. . . . are breath-taking.
Along the marina are mangroves, where the pelicans & other birds spend the nights. It's hard to see in pictures, but there are hundreds of birds sitting in the trees. It can get quite noisy if a bird lands in the wrong "bed". Those pelicans can be mean, just ask Darbi.
With early February came great friends from the north & across the ocean. Our girlfriend of many, many years, Nancy, & her husband, Ron, travelled from Detroit, MI & our international girlfriend, Julie, travelled from Wimbledon, England to the boat to celebrate my & Nancy's birthday both on Feb. 9th. Yikes, I hit the BIG 50 & Nance hit the 'ol double nickels! Here we are having lunch at a close restaurant on Longboat Key overlooking Sarasota Bay.
Here we observed a funny sight. The plastic owl below (look closely) was placed there for the sole purpose of scaring away the birds so they don't leave their droppings on the docked boats. Doesn't look like it's working too well.
The weather was perfect for a cruise. Here's the crew sitting on the bow as we pulled out of our "driveway" & headed into the bay.
Shortly into the cruise, Julie & Nancy were picking out winter homes.
And it didn't take long before Ron started surfing Yachtworld.com in search of their new boat! Yes, they got bit by the boat-bug!! My guess is we will be cruising together real soon! YAY!
On our birthday, other friends that we had met through Nance (who live in Clearwater Beach) joined us for the celebration. Pam, Horace & his friend Bernie enjoyed the cruise as well.
On the way back to the marina, we came upon catamaran races in the bay.
The birthday celebration continued with a great salmon dinner cooked by Capt. Dave & with awesome velvet & keylime cupcakes made by Pam.
We ended the day with a typical Longboat Key sunset & cocktails.
While they were here, us girls participated in yoga-on-the-beach at the world famous Siesta Key Beach. The sand is soft as silk & always cool to the touch. What an experience!
We had such a fantastic time with our new crewmates! Thank you so much for coming to visit!
The day after their departures, Capt. Dave proceeded to re-grip his golf clubs on the bow in preparation of his buddies coming down for some Florida golf.
There are so many things you can do on a boat, including having a garden. Dave's growing rosemary & basil on the bow pulpit!
