A lazy Monday April 8

Today was a day taken at slow pace as we all were still adjusting to the time zone change.  I slept solidly, save for a bit of disorientation, and I woke early - 5:45 am local time - to the sound of the prolific local birds.  I attempted to go back to sleep, but the sound of a loud splash startled me, and my curiosity to see what was making the racket woke me up for good.  Breakfast would not begin until 7:30, so D and I took a walk around the grounds.

The resort is relatively empty, apparently it was filled to capacity last week and we arrived the day that most of the visitors checked out.  We did not see another guest on our walk, but I did spot several new species of birds.

Little Blue Heron 

Zenaida Dove

Juvenile Little Blue Heron

Another Little Blue Heron - the lighting on this one made him easier to photograph

After our quiet walk, we meandered back to Bizot Bar where D grabbed a table and ordered coffee while I went back to the room to wake G.  

Bizot Bar is decorated with an ample amount of driftwood and plays reggae music all day

I actually have a decent selection of choices for breakfast, which is a rarity for me.  This is the plantain and peanut porridge served with local honey and toasted coconut

The small plate of fruit has a great variety of banana, watermelon, papaya, pineapple, mango, orange, and I'm not sure what the purple thing is called, but it tastes like rambutan

 After breakfast we headed back to the room to change and G and I headed to the pool near snorkel cove.  We swam until we were waterlogged, and as we began to doze in the lounge chairs I felt a hint of rain, so we gathered our gear and headed back to the room.   G showered and it was about time for lunch, so we headed over to check out Bamboo Grill on the Button Beach part of the property.

Always a great treat in Jamaica, G enjoys a fresh coconut water.

Bamboo Bar is located directly on Button Beach.  The kitchen portion is a separate bamboo building just above the beach

I'm fairly certain I spotted a Mango Hummingbird while we waited for our lunch, but I didn't have my good camera on me to capture a photo. 

I ordered fish in foil along with sweet plantain and roasted potato, and the lunches come with a fresh salad made from the produce from Pantrepant Farms, also owned by Chris Blackwell.  The salad greens are far sturdier than the lettuce we have in the States.  The fish is snapper, covered in callaloo, which is my favorite green vegetable in Jamaica.

After lunch we decided to stay on Button Beach and attempt a little snorkeling.  Unfortunately the sandy bottom was too churned up to have any decent visibility, and the ocean was too rough to venture out, so we decided to go over and swim in the main pool instead.

There are two pools just off the main beach.  The second is the "Goldeneye Pool", a saltwater pool set over the ocean.

The pools have steps down so that you can either swim in the center, or sit around the edge.  Here I am in the corner of the Goldeneye pool over the ocean.

As the wind picked up, we all began to feel the effects of the jet lag and early morning, and headed back to the room to shower and rest again. I was woken from my nap by the sounds of people some loud birds making a cackle-type racket.  I picked up my camera and stepped outside to investigate, and discovered a small flock of parrots flying around the trees on the island in the center of the lagoon.

The photo is bad due to backlighting and distance, but it is clear enough to positively identify olive-throated parakeets, endemic to Jamaica.  They are really adorable!

 While standing on the dock waiting for the parakeets to fly closer, I heard what sounded like a sudden downpour of rain in one spot across the lagoon.  It was a school of hundreds of tiny fish suddenly leaping out of the water all at once.

I shifted my lens just as the sudden swarm was dying down.

I took the opportunity in the remaining daylight to walk the grounds around the cottage to check out a few more species of bird.

Cape May Warbler, a common winter visitor to Jamaica

An American Redstart, another common visitor in the winter.  The bird stayed too high to really capture it's stunning colors, beyond the red and yellow shown it also has a streak of bright yellow at the top of the tail.

 Once the light faded, it was time to go to dinner.  Tonight we dined at the Gazebo restaurant, located up near the main office of Goldeneye.  Our path took us across the main beach and up over the suspension bridge.

The view from the restaurant overlooking the bridge.

I ordered the marinated tomato carpaccio salad to start...

And the pan seared snapper with okra, green peppers, and "fish tea".  The broth was not nearly as fishy as I thought it might be, and was actually a lovely compliment to the massive piece of fish.

After dinner, we retired for the evening, where I reflected on the difference between identifying fish vs. birds.  Although I haven't really snorkeled much yet, I have seen plenty of fish just off the dock of our cottage, and I've even managed to grab some photos.  The only fish I can positively identify, however, is the barracuda.  The snorkel guides seem to be missing the two other prominent fish that meander past our dock, which I'm finding a little frustrating.  Maybe the guide who runs the glass bottom boat will be able to help me with that.

The turn-down service at the resort include covering the bed with the mosquito net... which is nice... except that last night I tangled my foot in the net while I was sleeping, and woke up completely disoriented.  Hopefully tonight I'll remember where I am and possibly not be jolted awake at 1 am again. :)