The Grotto & The Nudist Beach

Don't worry, I didn't take any pictures at the nude beach, and we really had no intention of ending up there when we started. It's just funny how things turn out sometimes.

Here's how it all went down:

We ended up on this beach (not too bad).

The Beach

We started swimming in the beautifully clear and refreshing water and noticed that other tourists were getting into little tour boats and heading down the beach. We had heard something about a grotto (cave) and it sounded cool enough to check out, but not cool enough to have to pay some dude to take us there. A combination of frugality and our sense of adventure took over and we decided to try and swim along the coast to see if we couldn't get there by ourselves (typical American guys). It wasn't as hard as you could imagen but we did swim for a long time, taking breaks on rock formation in the water or on secluded beaches. We actually swam around and through this funky rock on our way.

The Funky Rock

After a while, without any hints that we might be getting closer, we were thinking of turning back. I went to check out whatever was through an arch in the rock, what I thought was an enclosed cave, and found that it just went on along the coast. But it allowed me to see that there were some sailboats and a yacht anchored not too far from where we were. A kayaker-by (a passer-by but for kayakers) confirmed that the Grotto was just up ahead, but he also mentioned something about a nudist beach. Just to keep it straight, we did continue on but with our destination the same as it had always been, the Grotto. This is where it gets funny though. We get there, the water entrance of the cave, a cave big enough for the tour (motor) boats to enter and turn around and exit, and we talk to a local about swimming into the cave. He says its possible and that there is a way out (like a secret passage way) once you get into the cave. At this point not only am I excited that we made it all the way there, but now there is a secret passage way that takes you onto the beach, awesome! So we follow this dude and this wife, I think, into the cave (in between boats) and find that it was totally worth it, at least in my opinion. And the secret passage way, through which you have to swim amidst rocks with only a foot or two of space for your head, was like something from the movies (the whole Grotto experience was something like Pirates of the Caribbean). It took us right out onto the beach, which just so happened to be the nudist beach and also, the guy that we followed through the cave... completely naked. It was a very new and different experience as we walked across the beach and up the stairs and out of sight.