JADIP Part 2

We continue to have great weather and our week at the beach continues to be wonderful. Beach time is dictated by the afternoon thunderstorms that roll by, but we adapt well. Morning with the sand and water, and afternoons with a good book or a little sightseeing. We have enjoyed breakfast on the balcony, watching the dolphins feed. On our evening walks, we watch the snowy egrets feed in the shallows -- we can get quite close to them as they look, run, snatch, and swallow minnows. Shells on the beach are different from the Gulf; lots of coquinas, some scallops and arcs but no roller types. Waves in the middle of the day are nice for body surfing.

We took a short trip north to Ponce Inlet yesterday afternoon while the thunder rumbled. We toured the Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse, tallest in Florida at 175 ft. It has been beautifully restored and was well worth the $5 admission. We were fortunate to be able to go up to the top -- it was closed because of lightning in the area when we arrived and again as we were leaving. The fresnel lenses are huge and amazingly complex; they shoot the light out up to 20 miles in a specific pattern for each lighthouse along the coast. The picture is the original lens for Ponce lighthouse that was restored; it's about 9 feet tall. The characteristic of the Ponce lighthouse is 6 half second flashes in 15 seconds and then a pause for several seconds.
Monday night we used the 3rd grade class gift card to Garlic, a wonderful Italian restaurant. We ate in the garden, an open air area. We were under an overhang and enjoyed really comfortable temps as the afternoon rain ended with a drizzle as we ate. Live music, plants all around, great service, and wonderful food. Yesterday on the way back from Ponce Inlet we stopped at a Mexican restaurant near the condo and had an excellent meal. GB said that the lighthouse and the Mexican food would be good end points for a bike excursion with friends.
We're ready for some beach time...