Day 24 on Captiva

Mid-morning Visitor by the Front Door

 

Top 3 Photos by my brother Jack

This beautiful Great White  Egret landed on a tall plant next to the screen porch door and sat there several minutes posing for photos.  During the courting, breeding and nesting season from February to July, the egrets take on beautiful plumes and also take on bright colors around their eyes, known as lores  which show so beautifully on this egret. We just had to prop open the door to  photograph.  What an exciting bird sighting and we did not have to leave the front porch.

 

For lunch, I put out ingredients of sliced ham, sliced turkey, strips of red pepper that I roasted, cheese, avocado, tomato, romaine,  arugula and ciabatta bread with oil and balsamic and let everyone prepared their own "hero" sandwiches.

 

Everyone but Jack who is still working spent the afternoon on the beach.  Beautiful afternoon of sun, sand, and dolphins.

 

We left at 5:00 to get to Doc Ford's in Captiva at South Seas before the crowd.  Early birds get a table without waiting and we got great seating on the outside deck.  We began with oysters on the half shell and Mojitos for Loy, Jack and I,  Al had a Manhattan.  Loy ordered Panko shrimp -

Jumbo shrimp crispy fried with mashed potatoes and house cole slaw, Jack had clam chowder

chock full of sea clams, sweet onions, carrots and diced potatoes, and  Captiva Crab Cakes pan-fried beach style, served with "jicama cole slaw and finished with a superb key lime butter sauce, ("hi-ca-ma - the "water chestnut"of South America).  Al had Texas Baby Back Ribs basted with our one-of-a kind BBQ sauce, served with smashed potatoes or French fries and our house slaw.  I ordered the  Calamari Salad lightly battered calamari tossed with mixed everglades greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, a sweet and sour vinaigrette dressing and topped with crispy wontons which was large enough to share with everyone.  We had fun sharing our food getting a taste of everything.  Jack tried the  Doc's Cure and Loy the Tropical Breeze.  two more of the rum drinks.