Jelly Fish Wall

Another day scheduled to take the boat out and snorkel. Luckily today's weather allowed us to do that. We were headed out with some friends to 8th island which is pretty far from our island and to the coral gardens. It was a bit of a rough ride to get out to the spot but totally worth it. So snorkel gear on I jumped off the boat and followed my man. As soon as we got in the water he spotted a HUGE stingray at the bottom, with a little shark riding the stingray's back. It was pretty deep down but as usual still freaked me out. I'm beginning to gather that I really am quite the "weenie." Ha but I am not used to sharks and stingrays I'm used to cows and corn, and that shit ain't near as scary lol.

So Greg tells me to put the video on and he's going down, I'm thinking dude don't piss him off this is how Steve Irwin died ya know? And this guy is HUGE! I turn on the video camera on my iPhone and Greg swim's down to the bottom. He flips his flipper  about an inch away from him to create a wave that'll startle the stingray and the thing instantly freaks swims away (from us thank God.) It was really cool to watch his big body float away and see the little shark guy riding his back across the bottom. Plus I got it on video which was cool, except I can't for the life of me get video's to upload on this blog which totally bums me out because I have a lot of cool things to share that we've caught on video.

We kept swimming around finding some beautiful fish per usual and then Greg showed me a ginormous clam. I really don't think I'd ever seen one before and what I pictured in my head was a pretty purple small clam that would hold pearls inside lol. Not at all what this was like. It was probably two foot wide and sure enough my man wanted to go down and poke it so he did and thing clamped shut hard and quick! I was hoping he'd come back up with pearls for his lady, but he didn't. I suppose I should just be glad he didn't come up missing any body parts as quick as that thing shut! We did see a shark or two while swimming around and I surprisingly didn't find myself as scared as before, I suppose I was warming up to them. It was time to head off to our next destination to snorkel.

WHEN YA GOTTA GO YA GOTTA GO...lol

I thought everything we had just saw was pretty, man I had no idea it could get any better. I believe this part was called the coral gardens. The water had such clear visibility and the colors and size of the fish were outstanding out here. First thing we did was swim over to the the 8th island. Nobody lives on this island it is literally a deserted island. I told Greg we were swimming over to it and stepping foot on it, because how many people can say they were the ONLY TWO PEOPLE on an entire island?! LoL

Unfortunately about 10 minutes into the dive we discovered my waterproof case was leaking into my phone and we took my camera back to the boat. So we didn't get what we were about to see on camera, which is really too bad. The sun rays shining down through the crystal blue water over the beautiful purple coral was a site in itself. I've never seen anything so beautiful. As we swam though the coral gardens we came close to a little drop off spot. I had a hard time seeing out my goggles it was like there was water spots all over them or something, or maybe they had fogged up. NOPE. It was a whole wall of jelly fish floating around. Just a bunch of white spots. THOUSANDS. It was incredible. But of course I was making sure not to swim or float any closer, because there seriously were thousands everywhere. It was pretty cool! I wished so bad I had my camera at that point. As we were headed back towards the boat we saw multiple sharks, and pretty good sized ones. I can't believe I've been swimming with sharks on multiple occasions now.

WARNING TMI TMI TMI AHEAD

I sort of freaked when I realized it was what my girlfriend and I call shark week for me. It happens once a month to ladies, and hopefully I don't need to explain any further that it was that time of month for myself. OH GAWWWWWWD. Sharks and blood go together like fat kids and cake right?! I'm doomed. PMS. Pissed Mad Sharks. OH NO I told Greg and he just laughed, but I seriously was freaking out, however I yet again made it out safe without any shark attacks. LoL It ended up being a great day and my favorite snorkel ever. Since then we bought a GoPro camera which is great for underwater diving and snorkeling so I am hoping before I leave we are able to go back out there and get it on video because it was too amazing not to share with the world.

Japanese Pool

We were supposed to take the boat out the other day and snorkel but there was a weather advisory and too strong of winds and they wouldn't allow any "B Boat's" to be taken out. So we had to cancel and make a change of plans. I was bummed out but it actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise because Greg and I had one of my favorite days together yet.

It was low tide so the waters weren't covering a certain area by the runway that is called the "Japanese Pool." It' s a small coral area that is dug deeper and traps a lot of things in it. We decided that we would grab our snorkel gear and water shoes and check it out.

Water shoes were necessary to walk around on the parts that were usually covered in water because it was rough and slick walking around on it. It was really cool though because there were little pools or puddles that had some sea life trapped in it that couldn't get out and that didn't wash back into the ocean when the tide lowered. So we found a semi easy entrance to the Japanese Pool and tried to maneuver our way in. I was nervous as usual at first because who knows what could have got trapped in this confined area. But once I got my flow down and we got to moving around in it I felt better. It was so pretty and there were a lot of pretty fish in it. We saw a black and white spotted fish that was like a ball with spikes coming out of it, of which Greg later told me is called a tiger fish and it is poisonous, AWESOME probably a good thing I didn't know this while in the pool.

 I missed it but Greg signaled to me that there was a shark in this pool too, which totally freaked me out because as I said before basically all the sea life that's in this thing is trapped, and it's a really small space. I figured this shark was pissed off and wanted out and maybe he was hungry for humans lol, but sure enough he never bothered us. It was a little difficult to get out of the area because there is so much coral around but once we were done snorkeling we found our way out and exchanged our flippers for water shoes. We walked around the land part (I'm struggling to find the right terms to describe it) that wasn't covered in water at the time, but usually is during high tide. The ground is real squishy and slippery, but I only busted my ass one time. It was really cool though to walk around and look in the little puddles at the different fish left in them. We even saw a couple eels, which totally grossed me out. And of course naturally I think all eels are electric and can kill you (thanks crash bandicoot game ha) but Greg said they aren't those kinds of eels. They looked like thick slimy snakes. After we saw those I was afraid the whole rest of the day I was going to step on one. There were a few starfish left in the little pools too. It was a great experience just exploring around and seeing the different life that existed and bicycling by later that day to see that it was completely covered by ocean now and that whatever was trapped in there had probably washed back out to shore and the next time would have a whole new party crew of fishies in there. I can't wait to go back and do it again!

It's Not All Rainbows And Unicorns

I know I've done my share of bragging about how awesome my life is and how great the island life is....however it's time I share, it's not all glamorous and fun and games. 

When the dark night sneaks up on us, it's when they come out. What comes out you ask?! ROI RATS! Gross right? Seriously there is tons of them all over the island. And of course the first one I see I squak and freak out and the usual response from people about all the creatures I've encountered is, "They won't hurt you, they're just as scared of you."

YEAH OKAY maybe. They are still gross and creep me out! Same goes for the geckos they crawl everywhere at night, so fast and eeeeek lol. I was sitting down the other week at the shack watching the sunset and had hung around  a little after. Sure enough it had gotten rather dark, all of a sudden a gecko runs across the table in front of me, another across my foot, and a rat climbs up the tree by my head. 
Here's the little gecko dudes that hang out....

EW I'm out! Of course the residents here laugh at me and call me a weenie but c'mon rats and lizards aren't anybody's thing right? So I forget to bring a flash light and attempt to make my way down the stairs to my bicycle without screaming. What  a terrifying ride home lol I was dodging running over rats with my bike the whole time. However, the moon and stars here are out of this world bright! It's so beautiful in the sky at night with no clouds or polution you can see all the stars perfectly and the moon so bright reflecting off the ocean is just stunning...until you see a rat and freak out ha ha. And then there's the bugs. UGH. I have bug bites galore all over my body. Day and night there's always something looking to bite. Bug spray is a must all the time. But besides those gross things as I said before it's wonderful out here, I mean you can't have it all right? =) One of the residents actually asked me to paint them a rat out of my palm frond art....I am not sure how it will turn out but I'll definitely give it a shot! Until next time.....

Peace Out! 

Reflecting on Roi

It's be wayyyyy too long since I've updated this...

So it's been quite some time since I have had the chance to write, better yet since I have made the time to. It's just things are different when you're living "Roi Island Life." It's wonderful though. For instance if you want to get ahold of someone or make plans, you actually go knock on that person's door and talk to them face to face instead of sending a quick text like you would in the states or you call their house phone and actually speak instead of just type. 

It's also great when you meet people for a day at the beach or at the bar at night. This might seem crazy I know so brace yourself. . . but people ACTUALLY LOOK AT YOU, LIKE MAKE EYE CONTACT instead of staring into their smart phone the entire time you are out and about. That in itself is amazing, it's almost like how it used to be before these smart phones were invented. Even though I will confess to being a bit of a Facebook addict, I LOVE being out places and not seeing the tops of people's heads. Now I see their lovely faces and get to hear their awesome life stories. I get to see people enjoy spending time with others instead of spending times on their phones while around others. It almost makes me wish we didn't have cell service and internet service in more of the places we go, but with that it sure does come in handy at times! 

Aren't you going to get bored, I mean seriously what are you going to do?!

I can't tell you how many people said this to me before I left. Followed by, "Wait you won't have cell phone service and only limited internet access? A tiny island with less than 90 people, what are you going to do? I would die!" 

Well if that's true ya'll have a serious problem. C'mon this is f*!$'n paradise! For real! Just look at the island sunsets and that should be enough to sell anyone. 

I've actually considered moving out here, I love it so much and it's only been a month. However, they don't let you have dogs on the island. For anyone who knows me, you know living without my little girl is NOT an option. Hell this 2 months away from her is killing me. HA. Plus I have a great job and beautiful house in Iowa that I couldn't just leave on a quick notice. Luckily Greg's contract is only for 1 year and by the time I leave he will only have about 8 months left and should get some vacation in that time period so we can see each other. 

But seriously it's amazing here. You instantly become part of a little family. I mean when you are one of 80 some people on an entire island you all get to know each other real quick. You can actually trust people here, leave your bicycles out and a backpack sitting on a picnic table and nobody is going to bother it. Everybody is so nice and helpful. With Greg being new to the island and me being just a visitor, there are a lot of times we haven't had something we needed and every person here has been so willing to help us and let us borrow things. Maybe it's not for everyone but I can totally entertain myself and get along with most anybody. I've read quite a few books to pass time, worked on some art of which I'll be posting more on soon, and just made time to do nothing. Think about this.... 

When is the last time you did nothing and embraced it? Didn't have a plan or schedule for the day? Just lived in the moment with no time restraints?

I know most people aren't lucky enough to be in the spot I'm currently in and with jobs, reality, kids, and all that stuff it can seem impossible. Sometimes it's great to just do nothing. 

Literally I'll just lie in the hammock and take everything in. Feel the warmth of the sun, hear the ocean waves crash in, feel the ocean salt infused breeze on my skin, hear the palm trees blowing above me shading my face, watch all the little creatures come to life as I sit there so still and peaceful. The geckos, hermit crabs, ghost crabs, butterflies, birds, just everything. I actually laid in this hammock for 2 hours once expecting to finish a book and instead watched this little army of hermit crabs beneath me. There were probably 50-75 of them. I was eating sunflower seeds (just like I am now as I write this lol) and when I'd spit the shell out they would all fight over who got it. I was even able to spot the bully crab LoL I let him know real quick I was part of the anti bullying movement and poked him with my stick so the runt crab could enjoy my seed and the bully move on! I let him know he shouldn't be so crabby with the little crabs HA HA! It was so fun to watch them crawl around with their beautiful shell homes on their backs. It's just great because here you can actually be BY YOURSELF and think, reflect, observe, and people need that yet a lot of people never do that. Any other beach you go to is packed with people and the people you do see aren't truly getting away they are laying out with their phones or I pads tweeting about what they are doing at that exact moment instead of just living in it. I am living in pure bliss right now and absolutely love it, every second of it. 

Get out there and enjoy whatever bliss may be for you, find a day and do nothing but ENJOY and live in the moment! 

Kayaking

The First Day of 2014!

So it's New Year's Day and we decided we would go kayaking. This is something I'd never done before, and especially never thought I'd do in the Ocean. So we packed our beach bags and snacks and hit the beach. They have community use Kayaks and life jackets at one of the shacks. So we hauled them down to the shore and off we went. I really don't have a lot of upper body strength and it turns out this Kayaking stuff is one hell of a workout lol, so again I say I am so thankful I have a patient boyfriend. =)

We kayaked all around the area for about 2 1/2 hours which by the end of that I was real wimpy. Greg mentioned Kayaking over to the 1st island but I didn't feel like I had the strength to go against the current and wind after a couple hours already in. So after some practice we will give that a shot, and hope I survive! We saw a few sea turtles pop their heads up but nothing that was really close to us. It was still really awesome to see the insane colors of the water and the clarity of it all. What an incredible first day of the year. If this is any indication of how the rest of 2014 will go, I'm in for a real treat....because my life is already way better than I could have every imagined. Here's a few more shots of us kayaking around the Pacific. 

As you can see it was a beautiful experience. So happy I got to experience it with my man....it's even more bittersweet because back home in Iowa it's been record low temperatures. Knowing that it's 85 every day here and how miserable Iowa winters are, makes being here THAT much better! It is going to be a rough adjustment going back in March.



PEACE OUT!

My First Day ALONE

Greg had to work today so I am on my own. I was pretty lazy all morning since I was still not feeling 100%. After a while I decided to grab my DSLR Camera and head out on the bicycle to capture some of the scenery. HOLY HOTNESS. Lugging that thing around while pedaling against the winds in 88 degree weather makes for one hell of a workout. I hadn't planned out my photography session very well, because I had to wait about a half an hour for the condensation on my lens to go away...woops. I was a little worried about getting lost at first, but then I realized the island is way too small to actually get lost. So I spent the day venturing the island solo and soaking up the scenery. I got quite a few pics so I'll share some...

Pontooning The Pacific

My First Actual Day On The Island:

As if I'm not already in enough bliss waking up next to my man for the first time again in the like two months, we are going to take the pontoon out in the Pacific today! As I said before I hadn't been feeling the best but I didn't want to skip out, I was ready to start taking advantage of island living! So we get some breakfast and meet some people out at the Marina to get in the Pontoon. We packed some snacks, tunes, and booze, prepared for a great day. Being out on the crystal clear water for the first time was absolutely breathtaking. Here is our friend bringing his booze over lol

We took the boat out near the "Third Island" and anchored down! A few other people met us out there in their sailboat and came over to hang. A couple folks jumped in to snorkel before us. There was an immediate mention of Jelly Fish and that totally creeped me out. I had never seen one before and wasn't sure jumping into an ocean to swim with them sounded like a great idea. The only thing I knew about Jelly Fish is if you get stung by one someone is supposed to pee on you, and personally I didn't feel like being stung OR peed on today....I know such a fun hater! LOL

Sure enough we jumped in anyways. If you know me I'm not a very good swimmer...I'm actually one of those nerds who still has to plug my nose and can't dive to save my life. 
Shout out to my mom for never giving me swimming lessons, thanks alot Mom. Ha Just kidding I Love you! Anyway I'm so thankful I have a patient boyfriend for me to get a grasp on my snorkel flow. It didn't take long before we saw a jelly fish swimming right next to us and Greg ha to shew him away. Right then I instantly wanted to go back to the safe zone on the boat where the couldn't get us..but as he always does Greg convinced me everything will be fine and encouraged me to keep going, so we did. THAT is one of the many reasons he is great for me, always helps me conquer my fears! I still stayed far away from the jelly fish when I could but Greg got right up in there face with the camera:

The rest of the day we just spent snorkeling around, drinking beer, and jammin out. Overall a fantastic first day with new friends, a new place, and the love of my life. Here's some pics of me snorkeling and Greg doing crazy tricks of the boat. LoL

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