Man Island

I know a place that has children but no mothers.  It has grandparents but no women.  

Although it sounds like a riddle, it is actually a real place.  It's something we affectionately call "Man Island."

Man Island is beautiful.  It has tranquil beaches, a beautiful port, and picturesque landscapes.  Around every corner is another grassy area, each paired with its own matching set of father and child playing soccer with the family pet.  Kayakers run back and forth across the warm, soft sand as they prepare to enter the water.  The old people all gather together and laugh the day away as they play a game similar to Bocce Ball.

In the summer months, when all the little shops are open, this place would have everything except one crucial element: women.

We didn’t notice anything strange when we got there.  Dad running in the grass with his children?  Heart-warming.  Grandfather playing on the beach with his grandson?  Precious.

At first, we laughed as we heard Grandpa tell his 4 year-old, French-speaking grandson something like, “Learn English.  Learn English.  They speak English.  Learn English.”

As we continued walking, though, we began to feel like everyone noticed us everywhere we went.  I realize that a group of seven loud, English-speaking women have a tendency to stand out just about anywhere in France but this experience was different from all our other adventures.  It seemed like everywhere we turned we ran into more creepy old men trying to talk to us.  But we never saw women.

At first, this experience is a little intriguing.  I mean really, where are all the women? 

When realizing there really is a shortage of women, one begins to wonder why.  I don’t really see any downside to living within walking distance of a beach.  Sit in the sun all day while the kids play in the water?  Sounds great to me.

There is an abundance of happy children on Man Island.  Obviously there are women somewhere. 

Or were women.

This sounds more like a horror movie than a real place.  I've already got my tagline ready for when it becomes a Lifetime Original Movie:

It’s a place where the children always laugh, the sun always shines, and the blue water always sparkles.  Once she saw it, she thought she’d never want to leave.  Little did she know she never would leave.  Man Island: it’s the perfect island…for a band of serial killers.

I have plans to return to Man Island in March to see an acrobatic group.  If you notice a sudden lack of posts around that time, please alert the authorities.  Thank you in advance.