One odd thing happened to me on the hike, that I thought I'd warn you about. My hands swelled and that worried me. Use your arms some, to keep the circulation going, and don't just let them hang at your sides the entire time you're walking. It's much warmer there than I'm used to, and that probably ...

Connie, I remember sitting at the pavilion on the day of the "hike," having just read something they'd asked us to read while waiting, and feeling very nervous! They had warnings posted about the hike, saying that you could still back out and, I believe, be refunded. They made me second, t...

Boy, that was a LOT of stress! I'm so glad it worked out for you in the end!

Wherever the sea grass is, at Maho, or at Francis. Early morning is best, in my experience, and they also seem to be out a ways, not in the very shallow water. Go to Maho about 8-9am - I can almost guarantee you'll find your turtles!

Awww, that's beautiful, Jim! It's even sweeter, when you've had to wait awhile!

Candi's, for sure. And I loved the tiramisu at Sam and Jacks, but they didn't have it last month

Amen!!!

My arrival ritual begins about 1/2 hour before our flight lands, when I take my sundress out of my backpack and head for the bathrooms! When we disembark, I want to feel the funshine alllll over! After disembarking, we meet Amy from Amalie to get our Jeep and then head to Costco to pick up a bunch o...

I suppose you could rent 2 vehicles from Amalie, and ask Amy if she could leave vehicle #2 at Red Hook. You could get vehicle #1 to STJ, taxi back to town, people ferry to Red Hook and then bring vehicle #2 over on the car barge - maybe with your boys as well? It'd be a pain, but it's possible! Anyt...

Chris, me too!!!

Samoka, I'm so jealous! Have a fabulous time!

Backtotheislands - There was real money involved, not just change LOL :lol: I used points for my flight, I think Tamarind was around $400-$500 (each), and the vehicle was around $400. These were all high-season prices and could be reduced significantly by traveling off-season. We could have done wit...

We rented from Budget for the first time, recently, and I was pretty leery. I did call twice before the trip, to confirm our reservation, two weeks before and one week before, in mid-morning when I thought they might be less busy. Their desk is in the terminal, right behind you when you're waiting f...

We considered stopping, but we already knew we loved Sogo's, so no need to try something new. It's peaceful at Sogo's and the food is always good - even with burgers for the picky eaters.
Takeout from Etta's is even more delicious food, in my opinion, but comes in styrofoam containers.

Oh how cool! Someone posted a video recently on FB, of newborn stingrays emerging from their egg casings. The casings were very familiar to anyone who's spent time at Eastern US beaches (maybe Western too), but I didn't know what they'd held until I saw the video. Google it - it's cool!

Awwwwww, thank you for the birthday wishes, and thank you Toni, for taking the time to post this report so I can look back and remember what we did! Just a day or two afterward, I can't remember where we even ate on a particular day! I can't type on my ipad. And now you know why I never have any pho...