This is my last full day aboard the Koala. We're anchored just outside of George Town in Elizabeth Harbor, just below the you-can't-miss-it monument on Stocking Island. In fact, the sun is about to sink into the sea and we can see folks up there, probably waiting for the spectacle. And the symphony of conchs, which you can count on before and after the sun disappears every night. It annoys the 2nd mate, but I bet he couldn't get a sound out of a conch shell. I'm duly impressed.

We went to George Town thinking we might want to have dinner in a restaurant there for my last night, but we were not inspired. 2nd mate is longing for some real Bahamian food--boiled fish and grits, or charred conch, maybe--but in the end we opted for a few groceries and a nice meal on board. 2nd mate bought a bottle of rum to replace the one we already killed. Arrgh!

George Town is pretty hardscrabble for being the biggest town in the Exumas. A smattering of what we Americans would consider touristy shops and beach houses, but mostly crumbly roads and cinderblock buildings and no sidewalks. Houses and businesses--even restaurants--perched at the water's edge without so much as a window to take advantage of the view or breeze. But everyone is happy and friendly, more than you can say about Americans in our la-di-da seaside communities.

The 2nd mate noted that the water from Nassau to George Town was Ty-D-Bol blue. And he's right! I hate Ty-D-Bol! Who wants a toilet that color? But when you discover it occurring naturally in the Exumas, it is perfect. I fly from George Town to Miami tomorrow, and I got those Ty-D-Bol blues.