I'm not even sure where to start today. I returned from the Bahamas yesterday on a tiny 12-person plane and can't even begin to describe the weekend. We left Thursday am from Miami and took the boat down to Paradise Island. It ended up taking taking 8 hours because of the choppy weather but we used that time to sun ourselves on the upper deck, watch movies and just lounge. It was perfect. Upon arriving, Immigration and Customs came to us on the boat - way more convenient than waiting in a long line somwhere. And that was just the beginning of the weekend of convenience!

We spent the following day sipping margaritas at the Atlantis pool amongst all of the families and kids! Once it was time to break free of that, we headed for a spectacular dinner at Nobu which did not disappoint at all. We finished up and then headed over to Dragons, the Atlantis nightclub, which turned out to be great time. The next morning, we set off for Staniel Key on the boat, which is part of the Exuma Islands. I was not prepared for what was to come.

It took about 4 hrs to get to Staniel Key and the water was the most beautiful color I have ever seen. And there's something so peaceful about being out on the water alone...not another boat or person in sight for miles. While docking at Staniel Key, we all quickly noticed there were sharks swimming around the dock. Apparently these are sharks are friendly and don't have teeth - although no one bothered to find out for sure! It was lunchtime but our first task was to place our order for dinner so that the locals could get a count and go out to catch dinner! Now it was time for the jet skis. Shannon and I went out there and Shannon was driving which was hysterical. She weighs all of 95 lbs and I didn't have much to hold on to so any minute I was ready to pull her off! We went flying around through all of the little deserted islands, laughing the entire time. Next stop was cave snorkeling with the whole group. I've never been snorkeling before and it was amazing. We had to duck our heads and head into this cave which was unreal. Think of the movie Goonies and picture yourself inside of a cave, swimming with a ton of fish and floating around checking things out. It doesn't get much better than that.

But the day doesn't end there. Staniel Key is known for it's swimming pigs - don't ask - so we took a small boat out to this deserted island to feed the pigs which actually live there year round and swim out in the water, with their snouts out, in order to eat food that is brought to them. And the pigs are actually really friendly and were trying to climb up into our boat! Our last adventure of the day was to take golf carts (the official car and mode of transportation of Staniel Key) to the end of the island where we hiked down a hillside and took a walk/hike through the water. Again, it was unbelievable and the scenery was amazing!

Back at the local restaurant/yacht club/internet cafe/airport/humane society, we sat down for our fresh catch of the day dinner. Everyone was relaxed and happy. Too bad I had to leave the next am...the rest of the group sailed further south down to Georgetown to check out the new Four Seasons resort and casino.

Well, next time. I'm happy enough to have fake lived like a celebrity this past weekend. Now what? Everything seems bland compared to the yacht and Staniel Key's beauty!