I’m up at 5 am to pee, and Dean wakes me an hour and a half later, giving me eight minutes to drink coffee and eat lemon pie, minus the meringue I wash down the sink before we leave. The guys set up at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, and I will walk around the crews eating breakfast on my way to the Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity in my second attempt to climb the tower. It is closed due to the 8 and 10 o’clock services.

Back at the club, I’ll have a sugary yogurt and another coffee, this one with milk, as a continuation of breakfast, as the guys should be done soon. I walk to Queen Elizabeth Par-La-Ville Sculpture Park, where, after admiring the plants, arts, and two-toned lizards, I will sit in the cool breeze and listen to the birds in the trees. When the guys finish, we walk to Bouchêe, a French bistro, for a sit down meal. I’m sure I ordered one of their Benedicts to tackle, but will still be leaving with some to-go.

We stop at the Gibb’s Hill Lighthouse while it’s open in the daytime, a more successful second visit. There’s a weathervane that was installed on top of the lighthouse in 1846, now closer to the ground when it was replaced in 1988 by a radar scanner to prevent ships from running aground on the nearby reefs. Already on the highest hill at 245 feet above sea level, the base provides a broader view of the harbor. In the 1600s, the warning system consisted of fire baskets that would be used for about two centuries before colorful signal flags, telescopes, and telegraphs took their place.

Lighthouses on the island had been proposed in 1795 but were delayed until a crew of 495 were grounded on the reefs in 1838. Passengers and their cargo were brought safely to shore, and though only one Bermudian ship had wrecked in the last decade, Britain saw a lighthouse as a good investment for international trade. Tolls would be charged to incoming ships to help pay for the upkeep of the lantern that was twenty feet high and weighed 5,500 pounds. The lighthouse was erected in London, brought to the island in pieces, and erected by the Royal Engineers and convict labor.

Construction was finished in October 1845, but the first light didn’t come until May 1, 1846. It took 18 pints of whale oil each night to keep the lantern burning. The beam could be seen from 26 miles away. In 1901, the oil ignited, and the heat shattered all the plate glass. The lighthouse was in operation again the next night, even though it didn’t shine as far or flash as regularly, so no major repairs were done until another wreck in 1903 that led to a new light arriving in 1904. Each day, the lighthouse keepers would wipe each prism lens clean of smoke until the lighthouse was fully automated in 1964.

After taking many pictures of the climb, the blue-white-green view, and the descent, we drive to Blue Water Divers with their morning boat out and their afternoon boat full. Dean will take us back to the house, and Dustin will take me on the scooter to Snorkel Park. I don’t enjoy this type of underwater viewing, partially from prior struggling experiences, but also now being dive-certified and able to go deeper. What I didn’t know was that this would be my first free-diving experience. I get into a breathing rhythm as I go rock to rock, seeing one octopus.

The good thing about holding my breath is that it doesn’t matter if there is water in my snorkel, and with sand beneath my feet instead of precious coral, I’m free to inhale deeply at the surface without worrying about buoyancy. We’ll do this for about an hour and a half and then celebrate by sharing a Shark Oil, a strong alcoholic green drink, and watching the rain approach. We’ll take a nap at the house until Dean wakes me up for a fish sandwich.

We go to West Whale Bay Park and explore the rock formations, shapes in the sand, and wild poinsettias before a short visit to Church Bay Park. The pink sand and blue water have me in the mood for a blueberry and peach soft serve from Yo Cherry Frozen Treats. We stop by a boat to talk with guys who play cornhole (who spent $8,000 on an 11-year-old’s birthday party). Dustin is an alumnus of LSU, which is where some of these guys went to school, too. One of the guys gives me a bottle of water, and we’re on our way to hang out with those who are more in our price range.

Dustin buys me a beer when we get to the base. We’ll stay over three hours before Dustin gets tired, and it’s time to go. I call Caleb when we get back to the house, and the neighbor comes outside because she can hear me over the sprinkling rain. I’m sure there would need to be a storm to help cover my voice that carries (not as much as my laugh). I’ll eat some fried chicken while enjoying the warm rain and brush my teeth before lying on the couch at 230 am.