Day 1 and 2 – Arriving at the Cayman Islands

Today is our second full day in the Cayman Islands. We’ve been pretty busy so far and haven’t had a chance to post anything yet, so here’s the first post.

We had left Tampa Monday, October 16, for our honeymoon in the Cayman Islands. We first flew to Atlanta and quickly transferred to our flight down to the islands. As soon as we had boarded our plane in Atlanta, our pilot had said we’d be flying right back over Tampa all the way down Florida and then over the ocean to the islands.

About 2 hours after leaving Atlanta we had our first glimpse of Grand Cayman:

On the way in, a giant rain cloud was lingering over the south end of the island and we ended up having to fly through it. Out our side of the plane we could see the bluest waters while out the other side was complete grey rain cloud, almost touching the wing. As we approached the runway the wind was picking up a bit and you could feel the pilot holding against it. We landed well and at the end of the runway the pilot had to turn the plane around on the spot, as the runway did not circle back the terminal.

After exiting the plane caymanian musicians were their to welcome us and were playing island/reggae music. Just beyond them we entered into customs, which only took a few minutes to get through. We then picked up our bags which were just waiting on the floor right off the tarmac and we then passed through duties and declarations. We had nothing to declare so we made our way to hail a cab. Our ride to the hotel was uneventful and we saw more of the island, which appeared much like any typical city in Florida. The only difference, which is still strange despite being in Japan too, was the cars driving on the left side of the road. A good mix of all car makes were on the island including many that still retained the stearing wheel on the left side of the car.

When we entered the hotel we were greeted like royalty and offered fresh mango lemonade, which was delicious and well welcomed. We then checked in and were able to get into a room early. Once we unpacked our things, we made down to the beach, we first passed through the hotel’s courtyard which has a turtle pond in it:

When we made it to the beach it was about only 20 feet wide from the shore to the water. We were told some tropical storms had just washed away most of the beach and since the waterways nearby are protected environments no heavy machinery can be used to restore the beach. No worries though, it just gives more water to swim in.

Immediately we went out to test the water, which was extremely warm, but very comfortable. The water is crystal clear too with that perfect green/blue coloring. I’ll add a picture of it soon. I forgot to take a pic since I’ve been swimming almost all day in it.

After swimming a bit, Sara went back to read on the beach while I went on to check out the artificial reef just off the shore. As soon as I got to it, I was greeted by a large school of fish. The reef is really neat to explore and teeming with lots of different sea life. I swam around for about 2 hours before the sunlight was getting too low.

We headed back to the hotel and washed up then went to a restaurant a short walk from the hotel called, Cimboco. It was a caribbean cafe with a well varied menu. We ate outside in the warm, but not too hot night air, where we both had noodle dishes, Sara’s a curry with a caribbean flair and mine a fettuccine alfredo, both were quite good.

After dinner we stopped at a gas station to get some drinks for the hotel and to try some Cayman chocolate milk. It was very good and came in a carton. We then went back to the hotel and crashed after the long day.

The second day, we started out by heading to a dive shop to get me some new fins, mine I have had since I was 15 and after using them all day yesterday, my feet were killing in the arches and caused me to limp for about an hour after I took them off. I tried a new pair on and got them and new boots to fit my feet now. I wanted to avoid that pain and make sure I would be comfortable since I have three dives planned this week. We then headed back to the hotel donned our swimsuits and headed down to the beach. This time we headed straight out to snorkel, Sara too this time. My new fins worked really well and never caused any pain. As soon as we got to the reef again, we came across a school of squid. They were mesmerizing to watch and at closer glance they changed colors matching the sand below them. When they crossed over a shadow or darker ground they changed a dark brown, but when they went into sunlight or light sand they changed almost white.

After swimming a bit, Sara headed back to read and I came back to get the GoPro to try out. I then went back to the reef and here is what I saw:

I looked and looked for the squid again, but could not find them. However, as soon as my battery died they came out! I will try to find them again.

After swimming for about 4 hours, I came out of the water to a massive storm, which brought in very cold rain water. The ocean stayed very warm though. Sara and I huddled under the umbrella for a while on the beach, but saw the storm had no end in sight. While waiting a bit we saw a cruise ship pull out of the harbor and disappear into the rain. We left for the room to wait it out there and about an hour or so later we headed back down to watch the sunset. We then prepared for dinner and found a nice little bar and grille just across the street from the hotel. We ate fresh conch fritters and both had jerk chicken. The music was really awesome it was a bunch of well-known songs but all island/reggae renditions, including Journey’s – Don’t Stop Believin’

We then went back to the hotel and I learned to edit the GoPro video above and then we fell asleep. Tomorrow (Wednesday) we have our first dive tomorrow at 2:00 pm. I hope to get some GoPro video of that too.