Whitsundays Day 2, Night 2.

The sound of the anchor being pulled up and the bright morning sun woke everyone up early. Early like 6am. Breakfast of toast and cereal with fruit salad and yogurt with hot coffee and tea were served. We set sail, this time for White Haven Beach.

do you see the monkey on the rock? no? that's b/c it's a rock.

White Haven Beach is the most famous of the Whitsundays, particularly for having the whitest sand. We walked as a group up through the forest to a look out point, before meandering down to the beach.

 Group Shot.

 
This one's for you John & Sheelagh! 

The colours really are like that - no editing.

 The sand was incredibly soft, supposedly the softest in the world?! It was so fine that we had to keep our cameras and iPhones in plastic bags otherwise the tiny particles would get into every crack and crevice of any device. Suncream was repeatedly applied apprehensively from the glare of the sun reflecting of the white sand and penetrating our skin.

 We took the "necessary" shots, feeling a bit like paparazzi were following us models on the beach.

I don't know how the guys did it...

This didn't really work...

 Star.

This was really cheesey. 

For those who brought their wet suits, they could go in the water; those who didn't would definitely be stung by a sting ray or a jelly fish - you could see them from the shore through the clear water. 

The wet sand was a bit like sludge, really sticky and really deep. It smelt a bit. 

Looking back at the beach...

 Chris above, me below.

 It was even prettier than the pictures can show, very serene and we were lucky to get there early before many of the other boat groups arrived.

so white. so clear. so tan!

We reluctantly went back to the boat after soaking up as much sun as we could, not that we really needed anymore, and were headed to another dive sight. There was however, too much algae in the water so the visibility would be too cloudy so we spent more time on the boat as drove again to another sight where we would spend the night. I went for a quick snorkel. I couldn't breathe terrifically well and my fins kept hitting the coral.

 dive sight.

Marlin: Now, what's the one thing we have to remember about the ocean? 
Nemo: It's not safe. 
Marlin: That's my boy. 

The fish were fantastic though and I felt a bit like Nemo when you reach the edge of the coral and it drops off into deep and dark water, Marlin: The dropoff? They're going to the dropoff? What - what are you insane? Why not just fry them up now and serve them with chips? 
I have more pictures on my underwater camera that I bought - who knows what they will turn out like! The coral was so intricate, it was quite fascinating that there are so many types on top of each other, all so very different and unique, and that they are all living things. The schools of fish didn't seem to mind us swimming around them at all. By the way, is it school like skool or schoal with a soft c? I don't think my aquatic experience or vocabulary is good enough to be able to describe what I saw. 

We were back on the boat for another tasty dinner and to finish our drinks while watching the sun set. It was one of those sunsets that you keep taking pictures, trying to get the best picture after the sun dips each inch. We had gotten to know each other better and had become more comfortable with each other - in a "I've seen you in a wet suit" kinda way. 




It really was a beautiful night. I didn't dare to attempt sleeping downstairs again and I heard that sleeping outside was a bit chilly, so I found my spot again on the table-turned bed.

Squirt: Sweeeeet. 

Crush: Totally.