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La Papaya Aug 28 to Sept 2 Part 4
La Papaya Aug 28 to Sept 2 Part 4
La Papaya Aug 28 to Sept 2 Part 4
I’m sorry I didn’t finish this trip report sooner, I have been very busy with work and outside activities. There are not a lot of good things to write about after Hurricane Earl and not a lot of pictures, either.
Tuesday morning we woke up to brightening skies and a hell of a lot less wind. We were still without power, so that meant no showers for either of us and no hot food or coffee. My wife Suzanne had brewed coffee the day before, so we did have iced coffee to wake up to. We got a visit from the villa rep and he told us they couldn’t guarantee when the power would come on and that if we saw any ferries going back to St. Thomas, we should get on one and go to one of the larger hotel complexes on St. Thomas.
We packed up and headed down to the car ferry, but FEMA wasn’t letting any ferries on or off the island because of high winds and big waves between the islands. So, we went to the Westin to see if we could get a room there, but they wouldn’t take in any new guests. We couldn’t even get on the property; they had a guard at the entrance keeping everyone out. We drove over to Caneel to see if we could get in there, but they too were not letting anyone on their premises.
We went to Starfish market and bought some supplies, to the hardware store for some candles, and headed back to the villa. There was a lot of debris in the pool, so I tried to clean it out so we could at least have a swim if we wanted, but it was a little to much for me. The villa does have a generator, but no one knew when it had last been used and no one even knew if it worked. I went to the offices of Destinations and used their electrical outlets to charge my cell phone as it was running out of power.
Back at the villa, we were just sitting around reading and drinking rum, when at 3:00pm the power came back on. We RAN to the shower and turned the hot water on so we could both take a shower. After a day and a half without a shower, it was nice to feel clean again. We went back out to clean the pool a little more, but it was just too much. We freshened up and went down to the Beach Bar for dinner. We both had cheeseburgers and beers and the hot food never tasted so good. We shared our hurricane experiences with some of the other patrons and had a great time. It was time to go, so we went back to the villa and watched a little TV before heading off to bed.
Wednesday morning we woke up to fantastic weather. It was a bright and sunny day, so we decided to try the beaches. We went to Hawksnest, but the waves were rough and the level was high, not leaving much beach space. We drove past Trunk and they didn’t even want anyone coming through the parking lot. We thought Francis might be better, so we took a ride over there. The water was a little high on the sand, but there was still enough space to put out the beach chairs. The water, however was still very murky and had a little rip-current to it. It was also very buggy, so we gave up and decided to drive around the island, looking at what Hurricane Earl had done to it. We drove out past Miss Lucy’s and past Skinny Leg’s before heading back to the villa. I called Destinations and they sent out their pool men to clean up the pool, so we could enjoy the rest of the day lounging in the pool.
We cleaned up and went to Cruz Bay for dinner. We decided to try Uncle Joe’s BBQ and we were very happy we did. I had the chicken and ribs and my wife had the chicken. It was great!! We did a little shopping and when in Bamboo Studios the owner showed us a picture of a water spout on her blackberry that was happening at the Westin at that very minute. The skies outside were dark and threatening and then the rain started. We hit a few more shops and spent a little bit more money before calling it a night.
Thursday morning arrived and we were sad we would have to leave. We called Delta about switching our plane tickets to get a couple of extra days on the island, but the price they quoted us was well out of our range. So, we had our morning coffee while taking in the beautiful sight from our elevated deck and wishing we could stay there forever. We packed our bags and headed down to the car ferry and we were the second vehicle to back on. It was another beautiful day and the ferry ride over to St. Thomas was bittersweet. I drove over to Main Street to the shops so that my wife could pick up some more beads for her Pandora bracelet. We then went to the Greenhouse for lunch and had an unusual experience. We wanted the Mahi Sandwich and we wanted it fried. We asked the waitress if we could have it that way and she said yes. 30 minutes later, the waitress came back and said the cook could not make our sandwiches the way we wanted and could we try it a different way. We saw the cook standing in the doorway with a meat cleaver in his hand looking at us, when he gestured to the waitress and told her he decided he would make it for us fried after all. It was very strange. After lunch we drove over to Dependable to drop off the car and get a ride to the airport.
We got through customs without any problems and got in line to get scanned. I was pulled out of line to get the special treatment from the sniffer machine. It took an extra 15 minutes, but we weren’t going anywhere fast, so it was no big deal. The plane was about a half hour late, but the air conditioners were working so that wasn’t a problem. We flew to Atlanta went to one of the sky clubs for beers and snacks before catching our flight back to Boston.
All in all, we enjoyed our trip….this time we had come alone, just the two of us---without the kids, to get some ‘couple time.’ And we did get couple time!
I’m sorry I didn’t finish this trip report sooner, I have been very busy with work and outside activities. There are not a lot of good things to write about after Hurricane Earl and not a lot of pictures, either.
Tuesday morning we woke up to brightening skies and a hell of a lot less wind. We were still without power, so that meant no showers for either of us and no hot food or coffee. My wife Suzanne had brewed coffee the day before, so we did have iced coffee to wake up to. We got a visit from the villa rep and he told us they couldn’t guarantee when the power would come on and that if we saw any ferries going back to St. Thomas, we should get on one and go to one of the larger hotel complexes on St. Thomas.
We packed up and headed down to the car ferry, but FEMA wasn’t letting any ferries on or off the island because of high winds and big waves between the islands. So, we went to the Westin to see if we could get a room there, but they wouldn’t take in any new guests. We couldn’t even get on the property; they had a guard at the entrance keeping everyone out. We drove over to Caneel to see if we could get in there, but they too were not letting anyone on their premises.
We went to Starfish market and bought some supplies, to the hardware store for some candles, and headed back to the villa. There was a lot of debris in the pool, so I tried to clean it out so we could at least have a swim if we wanted, but it was a little to much for me. The villa does have a generator, but no one knew when it had last been used and no one even knew if it worked. I went to the offices of Destinations and used their electrical outlets to charge my cell phone as it was running out of power.
Back at the villa, we were just sitting around reading and drinking rum, when at 3:00pm the power came back on. We RAN to the shower and turned the hot water on so we could both take a shower. After a day and a half without a shower, it was nice to feel clean again. We went back out to clean the pool a little more, but it was just too much. We freshened up and went down to the Beach Bar for dinner. We both had cheeseburgers and beers and the hot food never tasted so good. We shared our hurricane experiences with some of the other patrons and had a great time. It was time to go, so we went back to the villa and watched a little TV before heading off to bed.
Wednesday morning we woke up to fantastic weather. It was a bright and sunny day, so we decided to try the beaches. We went to Hawksnest, but the waves were rough and the level was high, not leaving much beach space. We drove past Trunk and they didn’t even want anyone coming through the parking lot. We thought Francis might be better, so we took a ride over there. The water was a little high on the sand, but there was still enough space to put out the beach chairs. The water, however was still very murky and had a little rip-current to it. It was also very buggy, so we gave up and decided to drive around the island, looking at what Hurricane Earl had done to it. We drove out past Miss Lucy’s and past Skinny Leg’s before heading back to the villa. I called Destinations and they sent out their pool men to clean up the pool, so we could enjoy the rest of the day lounging in the pool.
We cleaned up and went to Cruz Bay for dinner. We decided to try Uncle Joe’s BBQ and we were very happy we did. I had the chicken and ribs and my wife had the chicken. It was great!! We did a little shopping and when in Bamboo Studios the owner showed us a picture of a water spout on her blackberry that was happening at the Westin at that very minute. The skies outside were dark and threatening and then the rain started. We hit a few more shops and spent a little bit more money before calling it a night.
Thursday morning arrived and we were sad we would have to leave. We called Delta about switching our plane tickets to get a couple of extra days on the island, but the price they quoted us was well out of our range. So, we had our morning coffee while taking in the beautiful sight from our elevated deck and wishing we could stay there forever. We packed our bags and headed down to the car ferry and we were the second vehicle to back on. It was another beautiful day and the ferry ride over to St. Thomas was bittersweet. I drove over to Main Street to the shops so that my wife could pick up some more beads for her Pandora bracelet. We then went to the Greenhouse for lunch and had an unusual experience. We wanted the Mahi Sandwich and we wanted it fried. We asked the waitress if we could have it that way and she said yes. 30 minutes later, the waitress came back and said the cook could not make our sandwiches the way we wanted and could we try it a different way. We saw the cook standing in the doorway with a meat cleaver in his hand looking at us, when he gestured to the waitress and told her he decided he would make it for us fried after all. It was very strange. After lunch we drove over to Dependable to drop off the car and get a ride to the airport.
We got through customs without any problems and got in line to get scanned. I was pulled out of line to get the special treatment from the sniffer machine. It took an extra 15 minutes, but we weren’t going anywhere fast, so it was no big deal. The plane was about a half hour late, but the air conditioners were working so that wasn’t a problem. We flew to Atlanta went to one of the sky clubs for beers and snacks before catching our flight back to Boston.
All in all, we enjoyed our trip….this time we had come alone, just the two of us---without the kids, to get some ‘couple time.’ And we did get couple time!
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mindehankins
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