Alexander Springs

Saturday we headed out to Alexander Springs. It was gorgeous! The spring was really shallow in most spots and crystal clear. I snorkeled for the first time which was pretty cool. I got to see tons of little fishes. The best part was when the shallow bottom dropped off to reveal a deep chasm where scuba divers explored. It was so weird to look down and see scuba people exploring a whole different world. The springs were a lovely 72 degrees which apparently is considered cold for most Floridians. I don't think any lake around Rochester gets above 65 degrees on the hottest day of the year. As nice as it was, my fingers turned blue after awhile and I needed to warm up. We went hiking on a nature trail through the swamp. It wound through the swamp and stopped at a couple of overlooks of the springs. It was creepy to be so close to water and yet be completely enveloped by the swamp. It's so dense. On the way back I had the worst moment of the trip when we encountered a serpent on the trail. Luckily, Jess spotted it first and was able to get it off the boardwalk so I could continue safely along. The thing was probably 10 inches long!! Eeewww.
The second most horrible moment came later when Jess stopped to get hot boiled peanuts. She always raves about these things and I was really excited to try them. She must have never told me exactly what they were or how they were made because if she had, I would never have tried them. Apparently, they take green peanuts and boil them for DAYS and then make people pay money to eat soggy, wet nuts. EW! The whole point of nuts is that they are hard and salty. Let me paint a picture: the boiling releases all the starches so they smell like potatoes and with the skins left on, when you crack them open they look like kidney beans. There is no crunch! First, I tried a sample at the vendors and thought it was gross. I chalked it up to having sat out for awhile. Then, I grabbed a fresh, hot one out of the bag and was even more disgusted. Jess refused to believe that I would hate them so she found me the perfect one (so she claims) and I ended up spitting it out and throwing it out the window because I couldn't stand anymore. Ugh. I couldn't fathom the fascination with these things. Then when we got back to her house her family practically tore them out of her hands and devoured them. Huh!? I guess I can never truly be a Coastie now.
That night we had a Mexican feast and played Yahtzee. I had never played before but figured it couldn't be too hard as the whole point of the game was based on the roll of the dice (literally). I got excited when I got a Yahtzee on my first roll. However, I never rolled a good hand after that and totally tanked. It's the Yahtzee curse apparently.