When we finally woke from our aloe-induced sleep, all of us were moving very gingerly. Upon seeing each member of our group groggily tiptoe into the living room and carefully sat themselves down, being sure not to touch their back to the couch cushions, we decided a day out of the sun would be imperative. We had a bit of a lazy morning, watching tv while Grace and I worked on blog posts and Chris and Dan caught up on some reading.
Around 10:30, we decided it would be good for us to head down to breakfast at The Sea Grape. Coating ourselves in sunscreen and gingerly pulling on t-shirts, we stepped out into the hot Bahamian morning. Thankfully, the back half of our condo is in the shade during the morning, so we were able to stay out of the sun at least for a couple minutes. The little sun we did experience between our condo and The Seagrape was sweltering, and further convinced us that today needed to be out of the sun. Upon arriving at The Sea Grape, we were dismayed to find that the restaurant stopped serving breakfast at 10, and we could only eat at the outdoor restaurant, Coconuts. With our skin feeling the effects of yesterday's excursions, we wanted no part in dining outside. Instead, we all decided to head back to our room, shower, and head to Port Lucaya for an early lunch.
While we were getting ready to go, Grace did a little research on what was available for us to do on the island that wouldn't involve too much sunlight. Unfortunately, the Bahamian Brewery is not open on weekends, so we were no able to take a tour that day. Upon looking at the caves at Lucayan National Park and Garden of the Groves, we decided that the Garden of the Groves looked like it was the most shaded. Grabbing our tennis shoes, cameras, and water bottles, we were all set for our excursion. After braving the heat of the sun, we cranked the AC in our rental car and headed toward Port Lucaya. We decided on lunch at Zorba's, a little Greek restaurant right in the marketplace. We each had a gyro burger with feta cheese and gyro meat, as well as french fries and a drink.
Around 10:30, we decided it would be good for us to head down to breakfast at The Sea Grape. Coating ourselves in sunscreen and gingerly pulling on t-shirts, we stepped out into the hot Bahamian morning. Thankfully, the back half of our condo is in the shade during the morning, so we were able to stay out of the sun at least for a couple minutes. The little sun we did experience between our condo and The Seagrape was sweltering, and further convinced us that today needed to be out of the sun. Upon arriving at The Sea Grape, we were dismayed to find that the restaurant stopped serving breakfast at 10, and we could only eat at the outdoor restaurant, Coconuts. With our skin feeling the effects of yesterday's excursions, we wanted no part in dining outside. Instead, we all decided to head back to our room, shower, and head to Port Lucaya for an early lunch.
While we were getting ready to go, Grace did a little research on what was available for us to do on the island that wouldn't involve too much sunlight. Unfortunately, the Bahamian Brewery is not open on weekends, so we were no able to take a tour that day. Upon looking at the caves at Lucayan National Park and Garden of the Groves, we decided that the Garden of the Groves looked like it was the most shaded. Grabbing our tennis shoes, cameras, and water bottles, we were all set for our excursion. After braving the heat of the sun, we cranked the AC in our rental car and headed toward Port Lucaya. We decided on lunch at Zorba's, a little Greek restaurant right in the marketplace. We each had a gyro burger with feta cheese and gyro meat, as well as french fries and a drink.
After our lunch, we all hopped in the car to head to Garden of the Grove. Cruising down Midshipman Road, we got to see wide stretches of land coated in palm trees, Caribbean pines, bracken ferns, and various shrubs. Along the highway, we saw some of the dry brush fires that we saw from the plane. These fires are purposefully set in small doses to burn away the choking grasses that often stifle the growth of the Caribbean pine trees.
Upon reaching the Garden of the Grove, we payed our entrance fee and proceeded into the main entry and the hanging garden. Immediately upon entering we made friends with a Bahamian duck, who followed us through the hanging garden and into the aviary where we saw a variety of red faced ducks and little tropical birds. The garden had a café available for patrons, complete with a dining deck where visitors can overlook small waterfalls while they dine. 
Our group proceeded through the garden trails, climbing a set of stairs to the chapel overlooking the garden. After a brief photo stop, we decided to get out of the sun and follow the trail down the backside of the chapel hill, where we had a shaded view of various tropical flowers, trees, and wildlife. 
Toward the end of our excursion, we happened upon a row of local craftsmen selling paintings, sculptures, shirts, and more. We ended up in the shop of a Bahamian gentleman named Leslie, who sold paintings of beaches, boats, and tropical landscapes. I purchased a 4x10 painting of a row of white boats with colorful trim sitting on a white sandy beach beneath a bright blue sky. Leslie was also kind enough to include two bookmarks and a smaller print of an ocean scene with our purchase. Succumbing to the heat and humidity, we took a final stroll through the hibiscus gardens before climbing back into the car and blasting the air conditioning. 
We weren't quite ready to head back to the resort, so after leaving Garden of the Groves, we opted to take a drive down Grand Bahama Highway to the east end of the island. We did not end up seeing much other than a few homes and Caribbean pine forests, and decided to turn around at Bishop's Place. The view from Bishop's Place was beautiful, with the bright blue waters meeting the rocky shoreline that we were driving parallel to. While returning, we happened upon more of the small fires utilized to control the pine forests, and were able to get an up close look at the flames.
We decided to make one last stop at Port Lucaya before heading back to the resort. Feeling a bit peckish, but not wanting to have a large meal, we decided to order appetizers and drinks at last night's restaurant, Agave. We settled on the chipotle bbq pulled pork quesadillas, the nachos supremo, and coconut mojitos. Dan and Chris also had some spinach and queso dip before we headed out to get some ice cream. Stopping at Frank's once again, I got a non-dairy strawberry cone, Chris got cookie dough, and Grace got a vanilla cone.
Returning to Island Seas, we decided that the sun was down far enough for us to take a nice dip in the resort pool. After cooling ourselves off, we decided it would be fun to play a few of the lawn games that the resort provided. We started with shuffle board, with Dan and I playing versus Chris and Grace. We had a lot of fun in our friendly competition, and Dan and I won 5 games to Chris and Grace's 3 games. After shuffle board, we decided to play a few rounds of horseshoes, with Dan and I beating Chris and Grace 5 games to 0. Upon finishing our lawn games, we were feeling a little peckish again, so a few of us opted to go to the Sea Grape, where I had conch fritters, and Grace and Dan had french fries. Having settled our stomachs, we headed back to the room to relax before heading to bed.
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