102 Search Results for "swim"

• School Swim

  • From: nestcooper
  • Description:
  • 6 days ago
  • Views: 13
  • Not yet rated

• Maui Green Turtle (I try to sw

  • From: Daus
  • Description:

    While on a Maui, Hawaii Vacation on May 7, 2009 I went snorkeling in an area were Green Turtles live and had this short but exciting experience with the biggest turtle I had ever seen and it saw me and approched me as to check me out and seen I ment it no harm and then it just swam away.

  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 17
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• Grand Cayman - North Sound tou

  • From: beezhan
  • Description:

    Our fantastic tour guide bringing a starfish to the surface for us - and posing for the photo op.

  • 2 weeks ago
  • Views: 33
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• A Weekend in St. Augustine: A

  • From: AmyCW
  • Description:

    Before “diving in” (pun intended) to describing my new favorite beach town, I’d like to share the update that several items listed in the “20 Ideas for Saving Money” post qualified as winning ideas for the local contest sponsored by frugal-columnist Ms. Cheap at the Tennessean, Nashville's daily newspaper.  I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Cheap last Monday at a brown bag lunch session where she announced the contest winners, who each happily received a signed copy of her new book, 99 Things to Save Money in Your Household Budget. 

    Ms. Cheap would certainly have approved of the frugal, excellent long weekend Adam and I took in Florida the weekend before – in which we drove from Nashville, stayed with friends, and avoided the expensive theme parks for two days of sun, swimming, grilling, and exploring (and of course, in my case, preparing homemade nectarine salsa and Carolina cole slaw to add some flair to the cookout).  One of the highlights of the weekend was the day we spent in St. Augustine, meeting friends at Anastasia State Park.  

    

    This was my second time to St. Augustine, but my first time to this particular beach – a private beach with $8.00 per car fee, but well worth the cost for the natural, clean, and minimal-tourist experience.  The water was warm, the white sand was soft, and the waves were perfect for bodysurfing, football, frisbee-throwing, and catching rays.  The facilities were particularly convenient, with outdoor sand showers, picnic tables, and a convenience store where I was able to find a pair of sunglasses, and Adam a pair of swim shorts, both quite nice, at the last minute and at a decent price.

    After a day at the beach, we were starving, and headed to the historic downtown St. Augustine to A1A Aleworks Brewery & Restaurant for some local brew and a meal on the second-level patio overlooking Matanzas Bay.  The restaurant, describes itself as a working brewery serving "New World Cuisine featuring Caribbean, Cuban and Floridian influences,” was everything I had anticipated.  We ordered a sampler flight of 2-oz. beers that we happily sipped, watching the sun set, with a basket of warm bread on the house.  Although we were not in lobster country, I was too intrigued by the lobster tacos (off the appetizer menu) which turned out to be amazing.

    Although I’m usually one to plan my vacations meticulously to put together a combination of the absolute best street ambience, restaurants, scenic areas, and quaint architecture, I came upon St. Augustine completely by accident this past April while traveling in Florida for work.  After following up the winter with a particularly draining work schedule, I was yearning for relaxation and the beach, and St. Augustine was the closest to my location.  One evening after work I drove an hour to the coast, and once I entered the historic downtown, I was hooked.  I entered a world of Spanish architectural style, from the Cathedral of St. Augustine, to Flagler College, to the narrow, cobblestoned streets dotted with boutiques, cafes, and restaurants specializing in international dishes ranging from French pastry, to Polish pierogi, to fish and chips, to Mayan cuisine.  Deep into the town were historic structures, beautiful private residences and B&B’s. 

    

    
    

    While the gulf-coast beach towns where I spent much of my youth had a laid-back, fishing-village, shanty-town feel (which is a great escape in its own right), St. Augustine offered more of a high-end atmosphere perfect for a more luxurious experience after a sun-drenched day, while having many diversions that were surprisingly affordable.  On my brief evening after work, I was entertained simply enjoying the street life while munching a pastry, peeking inside the Cathedral, and browsing the shops.  I made my only purchase at a store specializing in all things hot sauce, Hot Stuff Mon, I bought some specialty sauce made from locally-grown Datil peppers and an orange-and-Datil Minorcan spice mixture, which we are still enjoying here at home. 

    I topped off my evening with dinner at Casa Maya for authentic Mayan cuisine (from bottom left, clockwise): Pork marinated in sour orange juice and axiote basted in mayan spices, black bean soup, candied plantains, tortillas, and Mayan rice. 

    Returning for a second time in September confirmed my newfound love for this jewel of a town in northeastern Florida, where I hope to return again soon to continue exploring the culinary delights, museums, and historic structures between lazy days at the beach.   

     

     

    Where to eat:

    A1A Aleworks Brewery & Restuarant, 1 King Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084, (904) 829-2977

    Casa Maya Organic Mayan Cuisine, 17 Hypolita Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084, (904) 829-3039

    Denoel French Pastry Shop, 212 Charlotte Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084, (904) 829-3974

    What to see and do:

    Anastasia State Park, 200 Anastasia Park Rd, St. Augustine, FL 32080, (904) 461-2033

    Hot Stuff Mon, 34 Treasury Street, St. Augustine, FL 32084, (904) 824-4944

    Castillo de San Marcos National Monument (America’s Oldest Stone Fort), 1 S Castillo Dr, St. Augustine, FL 32084

  • Blog post
  • 3 weeks ago
  • Views: 55

• Sunset in Kep, Cambodia

  • From: fleetski
  • Description:

    It was the warmest and most peaceful Xmas holiday I'd ever spent, away from 'bustling' Siem Reap and Pnomh Phen. I'd met these fellow travelers from Philadelphia (of all places) and, as they wandered out to the end of the dock to watch their kids swim (they're in the water, but you can't see them in this shot), I caught them in peaceful silhouette just as the sun was going down

  • 3 weeks ago
  • Views: 45
  • Not yet rated

• Mexico 2009

  • From: DreamGirl65
  • Description:

    I just returned from a 7-day Mexican Riviera cruise on Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas.  This ship is absolutely lovely.  I enjoyed every minute of my time on board.  The ports we visited were Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo San Lucas.  We were supposed to stop in Cabo first but, thanks to Tropical Storm Patricia, we went to Mazatlan first.  The beaches in Mazatlan are beautiful to say the least but the drive through the city was, well um, not so much.  Let's just say I've been to cleaner, more inviting places.  Next was Puerto Vallarta.  It was nice there but nothing much to write home about if you get my meaning.  I was able to swim with dolphins there which was a great experience!  Finally, our last stop was Cabo.  Ah, Cabo!  We pulled into the marina at about 7:00 a.m. and I couldn't help but think how "sparkly" everything looked.  That's a strange word to use in describing a place I know but it's what came to mind.  I took a boat tour of Land's End and Los Arcos and it was beautiful to say the least.  I'd always seen pictures of it on television and in travel brochures and magazines but to see it up close left me speechless.  It's much more beautiful in person.  I'm so glad I went.  The whole cruise experience was a lot more than I expected.  I was pleasantly surprised by everything from the service of the crew on board to all the different activities there were to do on and off the ship.  If I had to do it all over again, I would.  In a heartbeat!

  • Blog post
  • 4 weeks ago
  • Views: 76

• Peaceful and Powerful

  • From: shelbot1
  • Description:

    My Mom and I went hiking through the Great Smoky Mountains, and with waterfalls being my favorite part of nature, we hiked to dozens of them. After a rain, they are even more spectacular! Sometimes the ones that aren't as widely publicized as the more popular falls are just as beautiful (and less populated!). These are Mouse Creek Falls in Great Smoky National Park about 2 miles up on Big Creek Trail. It's a wide, dirt and gravel trail as it also serves for horseback riding, and is a fairly easy climb - along the way you also pass Midnight Hole where people swim in the water. Hang out, have a picnic, and enjoy the peaceful, powerful continuity of the falls!

  • 4 weeks ago
  • Views: 60

• Floating in the Dead Sea

  • From: ktvedo
  • Description:

    The Dead Sea was so beautiful and so much fun to float in! It's an experience everyone should have. You can swim out to where it's too deep to touch and bob up and down without having to tread water.

  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 50
  • Not yet rated

• No Swimming ! ! ! ! !

  • From: furtravel
  • Description:

    Traveling through South Africa on a birdwatching trip, we saw this sign in Greater St. Lucia Wetland Park, not far from Durban.  Swimming with the hippos, or the crocadiles may not be too bad, but I'm not sure I want to swim with the ! ! ! ! ! in the water.

    
    

  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 64

• Sea Turtle

  • From: evbk
  • Description:
    Hale'iwa Beach Park has one of the few light brown sand beaches on the island, unlike most Oahu beaches which consist of white sand formed from coral and seashells. And we didn't even have to go to a marine park to swim with Green Sea Turtles! This beach is known as "police beach" by the locals. We met an officer who was patrolling and he said that if you hold on to the turtle's shell, you can swim around with it. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get close enough...they always swam away. He also informed us that "Lost" is filmed in the area, just around this one bend.
    
  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 24
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• Surfing Hale'iwa

  • From: evbk
  • Description:
    Hale'iwa Beach Park has one of the few light brown sand beaches on the island, unlike most Oahu beaches which consist of white sand formed from coral and seashells. And we didn't even have to go to a marine park to swim with Green Sea Turtles! This beach is known as "police beach" by the locals. We met an officer who was patrolling and he said that if you hold on to the turtle's shell, you can swim around with it. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get close enough...they always swam away. He also informed us that "Lost" is filmed in the area, just around this one bend.
    
  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 22
  • Not yet rated

• Sea Turlte

  • From: evbk
  • Description:
    Hale'iwa Beach Park has one of the few light brown sand beaches on the island, unlike most Oahu beaches which consist of white sand formed from coral and seashells. And we didn't even have to go to a marine park to swim with Green Sea Turtles! This beach is known as "police beach" by the locals. We met an officer who was patrolling and he said that if you hold on to the turtle's shell, you can swim around with it. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get close enough...they always swam away. He also informed us that "Lost" is filmed in the area, just around this one bend.
    
  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 22
  • Not yet rated

• Paddling to surf in Hale'iwa

  • From: evbk
  • Description:
    Hale'iwa Beach Park has one of the few light brown sand beaches on the island, unlike most Oahu beaches which consist of white sand formed from coral and seashells. And we didn't even have to go to a marine park to swim with Green Sea Turtles! This beach is known as "police beach" by the locals. We met an officer who was patrolling and he said that if you hold on to the turtle's shell, you can swim around with it. Unfortunately, we weren't able to get close enough...they always swam away. He also informed us that "Lost" is filmed in the area, just around this one bend.
    
  • 1 month ago
  • Views: 31
  • Not yet rated

• Corsica Day 1

  • From: lesleyjames
  • Description:

    Corsica
    September 13-22, 2008

    Corsica truly is the island of beauty but, man, does it take a long time to get there from Seattle. If I ever make the trip again (and I hope I do), I would break the trip up into two parts by spending a night in Paris before making the journey from Paris to one of the four airports on Corsica.

    We chose to power through the entire journey without stopping because we wanted as much time in Corsica as possible and didn’t want to stay a night in a Paris hotel and have to make two airport-hotel transfers. We also chose not to transfer from Charles de Gaulle (where our flight from Seattle arrived) to Orly, which would have allowed us to take a direct flight from Paris to Corsica. Instead, we changed to a flight from CDG to Marseille, then changed again to our flight to Corsica. This took more time and meant an extra take-off and landing, but we were worried about having to cross Paris to the other airport. In the future, I’d consider staying in Paris, even if it would only allow us a little time to enjoy the city and take away from time in Corsica, and I’d take a flight from Orly the next day. Transferring through CDG is almost as stressful as crossing the city anyway!

    I would also make sure not to arrive in a provincial French town such as Ajaccio on a Sunday afternoon in desperate need of a hot meal. There were no stores open and no cafés serving anything other than drinks or ice cream so, after stumbling around in a hunger-induced daze, we finally ate a big bowl of ice cream at a waterfront café, which isn’t the worst thing in the world, but we were still hungry and the skies were grey and the town felt deserted and we were wondering why we’d come all this way.

    Around 6:30 p.m., it was like someone turned Ajaccio back on. The sun came out and sparkled on the water, which would have been enough to make us feel the journey had been worth it, but then the “pizza trucks” that dot the waterfront started opening for business and all was well. We had a freshly-made pizza (at a truck called “Pat’a Pizza”) that was the best thing I’ve ever tasted. That was the first of many times I was to think that during this trip. We were lucky we’d ordered our pizzas early because they could only cook two at a time and there was quite a line by the time we got ours.

    As we walked around on our fruitless search for a hot meal, we saw lots of kids playing on playgrounds. Sunday is clearly a time to hang out with family. But even on other days, we didn’t see many tourists in Ajaccio, but this could have been because of the lateness of the season. We noticed that Corsicans speak more slowly than Parisians and it was easier for us to understand their French. At first, I even thought people were speaking slowly out of consideration for our mediocre language skills, but then we heard them speaking to each other at the same speed.

    We picked the Hotel Imperial because we wanted to be right by a beach where we could swim, even though it isn't a resort-type hotel. The beach was indeed on the other side of the road, across a small parking lot, and beyond a stretch of sand where people play bocce. It was a 10-15 minute stroll into the main part of town along a pleasant promenade. This end of town seemed shabby genteel to us. It’s the “Foreigners’ Quarter”—the foreigners being the English who made Ajaccio a winter retreat.

    We were glad we'd been advised to ask for a room with a view of the water on the top floor. There was some noise from the road at night, but we could also hear the waves crashing and we weren't bothered by noise since we were able to keep the windows closed. All of the staff we interacted with were very nice, the room was bright and surprisingly modern, and everything was very clean. The lobby was pleasingly old and European to our American senses.

    Day One: Ajaccio

    Our first impressions of Ajaccio weren’t positive—it seemed kind of empty and drab—but that may have been due to our exhaustion and hunger and the grey drizzly weather. When we woke up the morning of our first full day, however, the weather was gorgeous and sunny. We had quite a few days like this, although it started to get cooler and rainier towards the end of our stay. While we were in Ajaccio, clouds would roll in every afternoon, but then clear up by evening. This might be typical for the time of year.

    With the sunnier weather, our impressions of Ajaccio improved. On the plus side, it has a lovely waterfront promenade lined with palm trees, a local food market every morning, and conveniences that smaller towns don’t have, like a good-sized Monoprix. On the minus side, the traffic during rush hour is a nightmare (and it’s not much easier to drive at any time) and giant cruise ships come and go from the port every day. We chose Ajaccio as our starting and stopping point because we could get to other places we wanted to go from there relatively easily.

    We allowed ourselves a day to recover from jet lag and get acclimatized and Ajaccio was a perfectly nice place to do so. We walked along the Cours Grandval, seeing more of the “foreigners” quarter. We found the Hertz rental office where we’d be getting our car the next day. We enjoyed the market , which wasn’t huge, but was bustling and full of good produce, cheese, and charcuterie. I bought some especially strong honey. Next we walked along rue du Cardinal Fesch, a pedestrian shopping street that had a mixture of shops, ranging from tacky souvenirs to a Comptoir des Cotonniers. The museum was closed for remodeling. We scouted out the train station, which is right in town. It’s easy to find nice sidewalk cafés where you can have something to drink. Corsica has some of the best sparkling mineral water—we liked Orezza, which comes from the mountains just outside Ajaccio. We finished by walking along Cours Napoleon, the main street, and spent some time at the Monoprix since one of our favorite things to do when we travel is go to typical supermarkets.

    It was getting close to lunch time and, although we had some guidebook recommendations, we decided to follow our noses and chose a place called La Serra’s, just off the main street. It was our first real meal of the trip and didn’t disappoint. It was also our first time to have delicious fish soup, made with tomatoes and spices and garnished with bread, grated cheese, and rouille. After lunch, we wandered around the oldest part of town where the streets were narrow and crooked, scouting out places for dinner. These streets turn into outdoor dining areas at night as the restaurants spill outside. We walked by the Citadel, which is closed off because it’s used by the military. At this point, we had pretty much seen all there is to see in Ajaccio. There’s a park (the Bois des Anglais) where there may be some nice walks and you can keep going along the road that goes past our hotel to get to some beautiful islands, but we didn’t explore the area by car.

    The weather was getting darker and cooler, although people were still swimming in the choppy waves. We retreated to our hotel for a siesta, then discovered a small grocery store a few doors down where we were able to buy a box of cookies called oreillettes (little ears) which we ate at a café across the street with cafés crèmes. By early evening, the sun had come back out and we were able to take a dip in the Mediterranean, which was surprisingly warm. The beach was made up of sand so big it was more like small pebbles.

    By 7:30, our American stomachs were more than ready for dinner. Our first choice restaurant, Da Mamma, was full so we made a reservation for the next night. Our second choice was Chez Paulo, where we had a delicious meal (cannelloni au briocciu, the local soft sheep cheese, and chocolate mousse) that took forever to get. We were wondering if this was just how dinner is served in Corsica, but then we noticed that diners who had arrived after us were getting their food. Then we wondered if we’d somehow offended the waitress, although we’re hyper careful about things like that, but we also noticed the manager seemed to be giving her a talking-to so then we decided she was just a really bad waitress. This was our only experience with poor service on the whole trip.

    Walking back to the hotel, we felt very safe. There were other people out strolling, admiring the moon sparkling on the water.

  • Blog post
  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 102

• He and She

  • From: Kruzer57
  • Description:

    2 dolphins make their morning swim along Carbon Beach in Malibu, Ca.

  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 81
  • Not yet rated

• Ke'e Beach Hike

  • From: finke99
  • Description:

    Looking back at Ke'e Beach from the hike to Hanakapiai Beach. Great walk there and then have a swim and a picnic when you get back to Ke'e.
    

  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 112
  • Not yet rated

• Red Sand Beach Hana HI

  • From: julie73
  • Description:

    I was so happy when I found this beach. I had to find the path and walk on slippery loose cinders around a rocky cliff with a nice drop I must say this is more then a beach it's an adventure and worth all the headach to swim in it's calm warm waters.

  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 75

• Beach in Costa Rica

  • From: shanna661
  • Description:

    Me, my aunt and a friend went to Costa Rica and took a day trip to a small island to swim, fish and snorkle. This was a picture I took on a walk.

  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 71
  • Not yet rated

• Oia Poolside

  • From: laratada
  • Description:

    Pool lounge and cafe overlooking the caldera in Santorini, Greece. This is a relaxing escape on the edge of the northern part of Oia.

  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 78

• What A Dive!

  • From: trvlmurofen
  • Description:

    Ok, maybe this boy actually climbed down the cliffside to take a swim in the small pool created by Cucumber Falls and he did not jump the 30 something feet!  Good thing!  He was the only one to brave the chilly water so he is still brave in my book!  Ohiopyle, PA  Best viewed enlarged.

  • 2 months ago
  • Views: 73
  • Not yet rated