After having sailed West during the night, Harmony V continued her journey towards our next destination on the Island of Youth and we enjoyed a full day at sea. What a privilege in this day and age of digital craziness and always-busy lifestyles to spend time in direct touch with one of Mother Nature's major forces, the ocean! Feeling her rhythms and cadence, we realize how small we are and how the entire globe depends on the sea. And as we sailed off Cuba's southern shore we couldn't help but to marvel at the amazing wild beauty of the open ocean. And not just any body of water, but the Caribbean Sea! Its amazingly clear waters and wonderful colors have made the Caribbean famous around the world and many of us got mesmerized just by staring at the the immensity around us.
I love to spend time out on deck while at sea; some people may find it boring, but not the attentive observer. There is always something going on and today several of us had the chance to watch several marine creatures including sea turtles, flying fish and sea birds. The occasional brown booby flew around Harmony V and an immature one even landed on her for a short rest! Every now and then the ship's movement scared flying fish and made them take off and glide over the waves for surprisingly long distances while some among us rubbed their eyes in disbelief of what they were looking at! But everyone's favorites were some stenella dolphins that followed us for quite a long time; several went riding the pressure wave that the ship's motion creates in front of the bow, while some others jumped over the surface as they raced each other towards us.
We also enjoyed some time to rest, catch-up reading a book or edit the ton of photographs that we have taken during our time in Cuba; several lectures were offered by the staff on such varied topics such as digital photography, Cuban music and the history of this wonderful island nation.
Harmony V eventually rounded Punta Francés and entered the protected waters off the Western side of the Island of Youth, where we dropped the anchor. Tomorrow we will visit the island to learn more about its rich history and the lives of its people, continuing our exploration of beautiful Cuba.
