Leaving Port Moselle for Phare Amedee
Voila! How's this for a perfect day to head out to an outer island for some sun, fun and snorkeling?
We were so wrapt to have such awesome weather for our excursion today. The kids were all happy when they arrived at school at 7.20 and were really looking forward to the trip. Jessika had felt not too well with a sore throat yesterday but tiredness magnified it I think, because she was so much better today.
Meeting up first thing this morning
We caught the bus into Port Moselle to board our large ferry and were greeted by the crew singing with ukuleles to welcome us aboard. It definitely puts you in the mood!
The company that does all the tourist trips out there has purchased a new boat since last year so this one is much wider with more room inside which is good. It was really windy out in the open water so there was a fair bit of rocking and rolling going on as we headed over. Once again I had plastic bags at the ready but none were needed!
The kids just snorkeled and swam when we first arrived and then we had the tropical feast and cultural concert - much hilarity!
A beautiful selection of salads, seafood, and meats arranged around the trees.
Some tried new foods and loved them. The budget at home may well be affected if you choose to continue providing these delicacies e.g. prawns, tropical passionfruit and Jill, forget about the cheddar in future, Renata is into camembert bigtime!
Deja's 'neighbour' had met his demise trying to slither through the netting unsuccessfully and had become entangled.
It wasn't just the beauty of the island and the thought of snorkeling amongst numerous tropical fish that had the kids pumped in various ways. Le Tricot Rayee, the water snake that lives out there, filled some with fear and others with intrigue.
They come out of the water to bask in the sun, sleep and of course breed, but return to the water to feed. They are extremely venomous but have such small heads and jaws that it's pretty difficult for them to bite a human. They are slow-moving and tend to move/swim away from movement rather than attack as many other species would.
The 30 minute trip out to a small reef in the glass-bottomed boat was great! We saw many of the green turtles that live out here.They are one of the largest sea turtles and the only herbivore among the different species. Green turtles are in fact named for the greenish color of their cartilage and fat, not their shells. They are found mainly in tropical and subtropical waters. Like other sea turtles, they migrate long distances between feeding grounds and the beaches from where they hatched. They have such a small head compared to their large shell and they look funny as they pop their little head up out of the water like a periscope to breathe and have a checkout of what's up on top!
The skipper gave the kids some fish food to put down tubes in the boat and that brought a frenzy of fish under the glass of the boat and we were able to see many different species. The suckerfish that attach themselves to the 'V' under the boat for feeding also intrigued the kids.
After our excursion on the reef, there was just enough time to run up the 257 steps to the top of the Lighthouse to get pics of the magnificent view and then to look through the little tourist shop for 'goodies' to bring home, and then the big conch shell was blown to remind us it was time to board for our return to the mainland.
Renata, Will and Charlie were very proud of the fact that they managed to break open a coconut and loved devouring as much as they could before we boarded.
Au revoir Phare Amedee!
It was one very tired bunch of kids who were collected by their billets. The early morning starts, late dinner times and then a day in the sun and salt air would have ensured a solid night's sleep for everyone.
I'm so sorry I didn't get this posted last night but I kept on falling asleep at the computer! I had to leave the second half to complete early this morning!
Off to the chocolate factory this morning........
Au revoir
Colleen
The 30 minute trip out to a small reef in the glass-bottomed boat was great! We saw many of the green turtles that live out here.They are one of the largest sea turtles and the only herbivore among the different species. Green turtles are in fact named for the greenish color of their cartilage and fat, not their shells. They are found mainly in tropical and subtropical waters. Like other sea turtles, they migrate long distances between feeding grounds and the beaches from where they hatched. They have such a small head compared to their large shell and they look funny as they pop their little head up out of the water like a periscope to breathe and have a checkout of what's up on top!
The skipper gave the kids some fish food to put down tubes in the boat and that brought a frenzy of fish under the glass of the boat and we were able to see many different species. The suckerfish that attach themselves to the 'V' under the boat for feeding also intrigued the kids.
After our excursion on the reef, there was just enough time to run up the 257 steps to the top of the Lighthouse to get pics of the magnificent view and then to look through the little tourist shop for 'goodies' to bring home, and then the big conch shell was blown to remind us it was time to board for our return to the mainland.
It was one very tired bunch of kids who were collected by their billets. The early morning starts, late dinner times and then a day in the sun and salt air would have ensured a solid night's sleep for everyone.
I'm so sorry I didn't get this posted last night but I kept on falling asleep at the computer! I had to leave the second half to complete early this morning!
Off to the chocolate factory this morning........
Au revoir
Colleen
I love the effort you are putting into the blog each day.The lighthouse brings back alot of happy memories of my trip when i was young.Charlotte's mum
ReplyDeleteWow. I'm so jealous!!! The frosts here at home are freezing the water troughs for the animals!!! Sounds and looks like an absolutely amazing day. It's so great to see all the kids really getting into all the activities. Well done and thanks Colleen for all you do
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteOMG! Looks amazing. Thanks once again for the blog Colleen, we love reading it every night!
ReplyDeleteLook at that beautiful water!!! Wow, I'm so happy you all get to experience this. Seeing turtles would've been amazing 😍😍
ReplyDeleteI love your posts Colleen. I can imagine you falling asleep at the computer! How could you not if you have to keep up with thís bunch! And while I was wearing double thermals this morning to feed the calves, they are all basking in the sun. That's the life! No doubt the chocolate factory will be a hit!
ReplyDeleteJ'aime le chocolat!
Happy to see you all looking like you're having fun.
ReplyDeleteTon frère a vu le serpent et il pensé.. eek!
ReplyDeleteHaha.. tu es très courageux, Déja. Thanks for setting this trip up for our kids and for a great time they are having, Colleen. We appreciate your daily blogs too. God bless.
- The Petch clan