Back to School 4/17

Got up this morning, and had to get ready for work!  Donnie dinked me to the dock at the laundromat, then I walked to school from there.  While I taught class, Donnie, Matt and Karie went in search of a good snorkeling spot.  I gave a lesson on what psychology is, and a little about the brain.  They seemed to enjoy it, and they were very polite.  They invited the 9^th graders to join 7^th & 8^th graders, so I think I had about 15 kids in all.

It was so refreshing as I walked up to the classroom, the girls were leading the rest of the class in several hymns, and they were all clapping and dancing to their ‘music’.  After singing, another girl led them in prayer.  The last older girls then read the scripture for the day, and they then said the pledge to the Bahamian flag (which was very similar to the American pledge).  I loved them striking their silly pose.

I asked their teacher if this was a church related school, and he said no, it was government supported.  I found out they have exams in grades 3, 6, 8, and 9 that are like our ISTEP.  And as in Indiana, the 9^th grade exam is a graduation qualifying exam.  This school had 50 children total, and only went to grade 9.  After that, they go live with relatives or a sponsor family to attend high school in Nassau.  The last boy on the right was the oldest at 16, and he decided he wanted to live in Indiana so he could drive a car J  I let them ask 20 questions of me, and they thought it was strange that I live in a log cabin in a woods.  To them, if you are wealthy, you live in a fine brick home.  They also wanted to know if there are wolves in Indiana, and I said no, but we have our share of coyotes!  They liked the idea of riding a bus to school, and being able to have breakfast or lunch at the school- none of which happens on their small island.

As soon as I got home, we weighed anchor at 12 noon.  It was a beautiful beam reach sail in 18-20 knots of wind.  We were well over seven knots most of the way.  It took us less time to sail nearly 15 miles as it did to go just five miles into the wind two days before.  The wind direction makes all the difference.

Following Matt and Karie through the shallow draft cut into Cambridge Cay which is back in the Exumas Land and Sea Park.

This was to our port side as we entered the cut…

…and this was starboard.  The colors of blue are so beautiful.  I can’t get over how the water is crystal clear, too.

Since we got in so early in the afternoon, we decided to dink to shore to go exploring.  We took a hike and a half!   All away around the back side of the island, down to the other end, through the brush, past several beaches, over the hills, and onto the ‘moon rock’ coral- at one point we even had to jump in the water as it became impassible!  Here we are in front of “Bell Rock”- makes sense to me J

The scenery was stunning.

I found some docklines for us, baby!

From the top of one cliff…

The shoreline was breaking with some pretty big waves.

Aw…I found my brain I lost!

And Donnie found the skeleton of a lobster tail that was big enough to have fed all four of us!

Notice the sharp coral we were trekking across (me in flip flops, no less) and you see in the distance the dinghy we are trying to get back to.  Time to jump in the water in the final stretch!

It was a picture perfect day- gorgeous sail, beautiful hike, and we had a fish dinner from the spadefish that Donnie shot on snorkel that morning.  I didn’t know you could eat them, but it was a delicious, mild, white meat fish.  I ate until I was Thanksgiving stuffed.  It was all I could do to clean up the galley and call it a night.  G’nite y’all!