Greetings from Carolina Beach

We spent Saturday driving to and enjoying Carolina Beach, where we will be staying for the next few days enjoying the beautiful warm water of the Atlantic and the various wildlife and science places to explore, plus downtown Wilmington, which I've wanted to visit since the first season of Dawson's Creek. We were a bit slow getting out -- I knew when Hufflepants arrived to cat-sit before we left that we were running late -- and we had horrendous traffic from the Virginia border through Fredericksburg, but everything was moving fine by the time we stopped for lunch outside Richmond, and we made good time all the way through North Carolina to the coast.

There is nothing that makes me happier than being up to my neck in salt water with the Atlantic waves pulling on me -- it was nearly 90 degrees out when we went to the beach near 6 p.m. and the water was quite warm, with little fish swimming around our feet and mole crabs, hermit crabs and coquina clams burrowing under them, plus pelicans, seagulls and laughing gulls diving overhead. We stayed out till 8 p.m., then came back to our hotel room for dinner, and we are currently being complete nerds with all four of us on our laptops and Animal Planet recently on the television. This is rich shipwreck territory, so I feel no qualms about posting pictures from the Piratz Tavern on Friday night:


Our host was a bit slow getting us seated...no, actually he was great, and he agreed to pose for this photo!


This is the childrens' area, bordered by a fish tank with a pirate ship, featuring pirate storybooks and piratey movies.


Hufflepants ordered the deadly hot wings and was required to sign this waiver stating that she would not maim or sue anyone as a result.


The decor is entirely pirate-themed, from the register area...


...to this kitchen display and bar sign photo (for )...


...to the old maps, instruments, and ornaments decorating the head.


We sat in the well-lit front of the restaurant. There's also a bar area and outdoor seating in the back.


And since it was Friday night, Pirates for Sail (the crew of the Drunken Ferret) were singing while we were there.