Our trip to the Bahamas was filled with a number of exciting and unique experiences. From swimming with pigs, to walking the mile-long sandbar in the Exumas, to riding Segways on an island beach, to sighting fascinating creatures and exploring the beauty of the ocean, we had more than enough to choose from. That being said, nothing says thrilling vacation like a Compass Cay swim with sharks tour.

Compass Cay is located midway up the exquisite string of islands known as the Exuma Cays. So while a Compass cay swim with sharks tour is what brought Jay and Joyce here, the beautiful landscapes and the pure turquoise-colored water could make us think we were in paradise.

The animals we interacted with are Nurse Sharks. While they resemble the man-eating creatures of the deep in some ways, in other ways they look a whole lot like an oversized catfish with powerful tails, wide-set heads, and their dorsal fins slicing through the water's surface. In fact, they behave a whole lot like catfish. Known as 'bottom feeders' they stick to the ocean floor and sucking small creatures and sediment from the sand. However, to see all of this we had to climb into the water with them. ,p> Are they harmless? Well, we had heard a couple of stories that might make most people want to simply watch from the pier, but we were there and we were "all in." "Just keep your hands away from their mouths," we were told. Since we departed with as many finfgers, toes, arms, and legs that we had before the excursionb, we had to call the day a big success.