That was a unique sight. One single tree completely dwarfing the rest of the trees and vegetation nearby. Reminded me immediately of Tagore’s “Taalgaach” poem. Also the head of the tree reminded me of the divi divi trees from Aruba!
Went around the island in bicycles. I have not biked in a very long time (30 years)? Nikita took to it very quickly. I had some difficulty in getting the bike to slow down or stop. These rental bikes have no brakes. Took me a few minutes and hobbling down a bridge, desperately trying with my two feet on the ground to slow down to realize that all I had to do is try pedaling in reverse!! Thereafter, it was all smooth sailing.
Next up – motorbiking together?
The three of us went to pick up some stuff from the nearby grocery store. There was an ice cream store (Kilwins?) there that is apparently a very famous brand. I know that they are very famous because
(*) First, Nikita told me so!
(*) Second, there was a long queue outside
Never been a big ice cream guy myself. But I guess vacations are about exceptions. We sat on a bench by the roadside enjoying our icecreams!
I remember seven years back, we were vacationing here and Natasha ran into some school friends of hers on the beach. In fact, I think they split from us to go dine by themselves and Nikita, Sharmila and myself had a Hibachi dinner that night.
Almost an action replay this time! Nikita ran into Grace from her current class! They had a good time in the ocean (when the sharks were not around) and in the pool (when the sharks strolled by)…
First there were a few dolphins that swam by. And then five sharks came by and drove everybody off the water. The sharks were barely visible. Talking to the life guard, I found out that they take a hint from those birds (brown pelicans?). They usually stay 300 yards away from the shore.
When shark – usually small ones – come near the shore, they drive all the fish towards the shore. The birds follow the fish and come up almost to the shore. We saw something we have never seen before. A boat load of fish – I mean a whole lot of them – were jumping up from the water level and then splashing back again making it look like there was a rainfall happening there. Of course, the birds had a great time scooping them up.
One thing I did not realize is that most of the hurricanes we get on the East Coast actually originate from over Sahara and make it westward picking up steam on the Atlantic.
Another thing I had not realized is that dust storms make it to the USA by the same route! This year, there has been a particularly dense and strong one. It crossed the Caribbean last week and came into USA this weekend. As you can see the skies are hazy and the air quality in Hilton Head is fairly bad. Apparently, the dust is going to make its way to some parts of Ohio and Indiana even!
Six years back – almost to the day – we had brought my in laws here. That was the day they saw an ocean up close and personal for the first time, they had told me. I remember that evening, both of them just standing there and gazing into the Atlantic totally mesmerized. My father in law is no more and I do not believe my mother in law can make the journey to the USA one more time.
Hilton Head Island. Thought we will make a dash for the beach for the weekend. It will be a quick Friday-Monday thing.
Well, turns out the whole world had the exact same idea too!!! The beach resort is filled to the brim. Good news is that most are honoring social distancing. But not so much the mask thingy…
