ocean - Lili on the Loose

8 05, 2017

Travel Missteps: Warning! Danger Noodle

By Lili|May 8th, 2017|Categories: Nature & Outdoors, Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2013, Bacalar Chico, Bacalar Chico National Park, Bacalar Chico National Park and Marine Reserve, beach, Belize, Caribbean, Caye Caulker, Central America, Coral, eel, island, Latin America, Mayan Encounter 2013, ocean, Sting Ray, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site|0 Comments

I don't know why but I fear eels. The first time I saw one was in St. John USVI. I actually thought it was a poisonous water snake and so freaked out. But as I learned more about eels I started to become weary of them. I love diving down, getting close to rocks and taking photos of the fish. You know what also lives in the rocks. EELS! Now beyond that first experience of seeing a spotted eel swimming near the top of the water, I hadn't seen another one. Of course my guide in Belize decided to change

15 04, 2017

Souvenir Saturday: Larimar, Stone of the Caribbean

By Lili|April 15th, 2017|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: 2010, 2011, Caribbean, Charlotte Amalie, Cocoloba Shopping Center, conch, Coral Bay, earings, jewelry, Jolly Dog, Larimar, necklace, ocean, paradise, St. John, St. John 2010, St. John 2011, St. Thomas, USVI|0 Comments

Larimar is a stone only found in the Dominican Republic, but you'll find jewelry made from the stone throughout the Carribean as the "Official" stone of the area. It's beautiful aqua blue color does remind you of the ocean waves. I have 3 pieces of Larimar jewelry, all purchased at various places of the US Virgin Islands. The first piece The first piece, is actually my newest acquisition, as I got it right before leaving the USVIs on St. Thomas in Charlotte Amalie at a market usually serving cruise ship passengers. We had arrived by ferry and right after exiting found

12 11, 2016

Souvenir Saturday: Genuine Sea Glass

By Lili|November 12th, 2016|Categories: Souvenirs, Travel|Tags: 2010, 2011, 2012, beach, Caribbean, Central America, Costa Rica, Costa Rica Adventure 2012, Montezuma, ocean, Sea Glass, St. John, St. John 2010, St. John 2011, USVI|0 Comments

I often look for unique sea shells when I'm on vacation, but natural or genuine Sea Glass is like winning a treasure hunt! Sea Glass comes from broken glassware that are tumbled and grounded against the sandy sea floor and can take anywhere from 20-50 years before it reaches it characteristic weathering of frosted coloration and rounded edges. There are rumors that people use to refer to them as "Mermaid Tears", morning drowned sailors. Sea Glass has become so widely used as "gems of the sea" that they actually have a rating, as well as some colors are rarer than

24 06, 2016

Pura Vida – Pink Sunset

By Lili|June 24th, 2016|Categories: Nature & Outdoors, Photography, Travel|Tags: 2012, beach, Central America, Costa Rica, Costa Rica & Orlando Adventure, Costa Rica Adventure 2012, G Adventures, Gadventures, GAP, Montezuma, ocean, Photo Friday, sunset|0 Comments

This was a peaceful beach near the hostel I was staying at in Montezuma, Costa Rica. I found a lot of sea glass on this beach while I watched the sun set. Every Friday Lili shares her favorite photography & the stories behind the photos.

8 06, 2016

Under the Sea – World Oceans Day 2016

By Lili|June 8th, 2016|Categories: Nature & Outdoors, Travel|Tags: 2011, 2012, 2013, Bacalar Chico, Bacalar Chico National Park, Bacalar Chico National Park and Marine Reserve, Belize, Caribbean, Caye Caulker, Central America, Coral, Costa Rica, Costa Rica Adventure 2012, Flounder, Isla Tortuga, Mayan Encounter 2013, ocean, Sea Grass, Sea Turtle, Sergeant Major, St. John, St. John 2011, Starfish, Sting Ray, The Little Mermaid, turtle, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, USVI, Waterlemon Caye|0 Comments

Today is World Oceans Day. With so many news stories of rising ocean temperatures and bleached corals, now more than ever is it important to protect this important part of our ecosystem. So today I share some of my favorite snorkel photography and hope we can all help protect the oceans. Above is Waterlemon Caye, off of St. John USVI. The large school of fish you can see are Sergeant Major, my favorite fish. Here you can see more Sergeant Majors near Isla Tortuga, Costa Rica. I like this fish as it reminds of me the coloring of Flounder from the

27 05, 2016

Ocean Waves Under a Moonlit Sunset

By Lili|May 27th, 2016|Categories: Nature & Outdoors, Photography, Travel|Tags: 2014, 4th of July, 4th of July Coronado x2, beach, California, Coronado, Independence Day, moon, North America, ocean, Photo Friday, San Diego, sunset, USA|0 Comments

I wish Colorado had an ocean, as I love living here except for that one oversight. So instead I must enjoy the beach when I get a chance to visit. On one 4th of July weekend I spent it in Coronado, CA and we brought out a bottle of wine and some chairs to watch the sunset. Every Friday Lili shares her favorite photography & the stories behind the photos.

23 05, 2016

Travel Missteps: You hold a lot of stress in your Butt

By Lili|May 23rd, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2015, beach, butt, Florida, late checkout, Massage, Miami, Miami Beach, Miami Heat, North America, ocean, South Beach, The Redbury, Vinyl, work trip|0 Comments

My Miami work trip, wasn't that great. It was hot, it was stressful, and I had the worst string of bad luck I've ever had. On my two days off it didn't get any better. On the first day, my Uber was stolen. The second day didn't turn out much better. And the bad luck started the night before. I had no plans for my last day. I really hoped to go to a spa...a Canyon Ranch Spa. I had been to one in Las Vegas and it was heaven. After my week in Miami, I needed pampering. But when I called,

14 03, 2016

Travel Missteps: Swept Out To Sea

By Lili|March 14th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2003, 2012, all inclusive, Arenal, Central America, Costa Rica, Costa Rica Adventure 2012, fear, Holiday in Rivera Maya, kayak, La Fortuna, lake, Mexico, ocean, Rivera Maya, sea kayaking, white water rafting|0 Comments

My first trip to Mexico I stayed in an all-inclusive hotel with my family. My mother certainly had an interesting birthday! But she also saved me on this trip. My sister and I had taken a sea kayak out on the beach of our Rivera Mayan hotel. It wasn't much fun as the waves kept hitting us. So my sister turned around. I kept going further out, trying to see the island of Cozumel better. But as I turned around and attempted to come in, I realized frighteningly that I was stuck in a current...that was taking me further out

18 01, 2016

Travel Missteps: Don’t Look Under the Ledge

By Lili|January 18th, 2016|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps|Tags: 2010, 2013, beach, Belize, boat, California, Caribbean, Caye Caulker, Central America, fear, fish, G Adventures, Gadventures, GAP, grouper, island, Little Maho Bay, Maho, Mayan Encounter 2013, Mermaid, Michigan, ocean, paradise, snorkel, snorkeling, St. John, St. John 2010, The Little Mermaid, underwater photography, UNESCO, UNESCO World Heritage Site, USVI, water|0 Comments

As a young child, my favorite movie was The Little Mermaid. I loved swimming and spent my childhood on the beaches of California and the Great Lakes of Michigan pretending to be a mermaid. On my first trip to St. John USVI, it was my first time snorkeling in years and I was excited to try out my new equipment and underwater camera. I swam out to a rocky outcropping near Little Maho Bay Beach and got a little snap happy as I hadn't expected the water to be so clear or to see so many fish so close to the

14 09, 2015

Travel Missteps: No See Ums

By Lili|September 14th, 2015|Categories: Travel, Travel Missteps, Travel Tips|Tags: 2010, 2011, beach, bites, bug bites, bugs, Caribbean, itchy, mosquito, no see ums, ocean, paradise, rum, sand, sand flies, snorkel, snorkeling, St. John, St. John 2010, St. John 2011, USVI, vodka|0 Comments

The US Virgin Islands are full of amazingly beautiful sandy beaches. And those beaches are often infested with small biting and blood sucking insects sometimes called No See Ums, Sand Flies, as well as many other names. They are almost invisible but their bites can swell up and look like mosquito bites. They can also carry/transmit diseases. They are also not fast, if you are moving quickly into the water, you'll likely not get bit, but its when you walk back through the sand, sit on a towel, or have stand sticking to you or your shoes that they can hitch