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Jamestown's Trip Report 2007
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Jamestown's Trip Report 2007
This was our second trip to STJ, our previous excursion in October 2004. Hubby Dan and I had a lovely time 3 years ago and decided to introduce our girls, Brier 15 and Savannah 13, to the island. We did things a bit different this time as far as transportation, groceries and meals.
Travel: Flew BWI to San Juan and then to STT. Uneventful trip, especially after three Bloody Mary's. I'm a bad flyer.
Ground Transportation: Rented a 2007 4-door Jeep Wrangler from Dependable Car Rental on STT (www.dependablecar.com). I fretted about having enough room for our luggage and groceries, but my worries were unfounded. The vehicle was new, clean and roomy. We contacted them after gathering our luggage and they met us at the airport taxi area, drove us to their office and we very quickly completed all the necessary paperwork. The Jeep was perfect for the winding roads of STT and STJ.
STT Accommodations: Stayed at Secret Harbour for one night (www.secretharbourvi.com). $250/night. Accidentally drove past the entrance and had to turn around. Stayed in a Garden Suite, building 7, room 734 which was pretty far from the beach and entailed quite a few steps. I didn't mind the hike, but it could prove taxing to anyone with cardiac disease. The room was just o.k. Decor was fair. The A/C was a problem as the window louvers didn't completely close. The bedroom stayed fairly cool, but the living room (where the girls slept on the sofa bed) was humid. Beach was pretty and snorkeling o.k. Ate dinner and breakfast at the Blue Moon Cafe which was good. Service was "island slow". We were unknowingly charged $125 security deposit for a safe deposit box. While checking out, made sure they credited our account. I wasn't overly impressed with Secret Harbour and wouldn't stay there again.
STT Groceries: Shopped for staples at Food Center in Red Hook. I made a menu and grocery list prior to our trip. Our best purchase was the 2 1/2 gallon containers of water with spouts. We went through three and probably could have used four. Grocery price list will be posted soon. We spent $157, not including perishables. While hubby waited for the car ferry, the girls and I walked over to Marina Market and purchased a few snacks. Nice little store.
Ferry: Easy entrance but bad signage for the car ferry in Red Hook. You have to stop at a little shack and pay the VI Port Authority $3 then wait until the ferry folk motion for you to back your vehicle onto the barge. 2-way ticket was about $50. We sat upstairs and enjoyed the view. Sodas, beer and hotdogs for sale. The ride lasted about 30 minutes. Notified Destination St. John once we were underway and they were waiting at the dock to take us to our villa.
STJ Accommodations: Rented Miles Away from Destination St. John (www.destinationstjohn.com). The home is located in Fish Bay and is truly lovely. Villa review included. Basically a 2 bedroom home with equal masters, gourmet kitchen and pool. A/C in the bedrooms. $2800/wk. plus $1000 security deposit. We loved it. DSJ included a welcome basket of fruit, cheese and crackers.
STJ Groceries: Starfish Market for perishables. About the only prices that made my eyes bulge was $8 for a big Gatorade and $11 for a gallon of orange juice. We spent $166 and another $50 later in the week.
Eats: I cooked the entire week and although it wasn't as fancy as Liamsaunt's fare, we enjoyed homemade meals of bar-b-q chicken, spinach and cheese quiche, macaroni and cheese and spaghetti with meat sauce. Breakfast included French toast, eggs, cereal and pop tarts. Lunch was enjoyed on our deck, generally sandwiches, fruit, beer and sodas. We ate lunch one day at the Beach Bar (www.beachbarstjohn.com) which was yummy and another day at Skinny Legs (www.skinnylegs.com). Skinny's has been cleaned up a bit & increased their prices (burgers $10, Budweiser $3). The biggest change is the ordering/paying system....I consider myself a traveled person and sometime city girl; however, I've not come across the handheld computers that take your order and accommodate your credit card. Skinny's waitresses handle these babies like pros. I was truly amazed. I rang Howie's Bell and some lady shouted "is someone buying us rum"? We all got a good laugh. Stopped at Deli Grotto another day for sandwiches and salads. Excellent food, desserts and drinks. They don't take plastic. I know you forum folk are divided and extremely opinionated about the grocery/cooking thing, but it worked very well for us and I wouldn't do it any other way. The meals were effortless, cheap and tasty (BTW, I'm not a thrifty person at all...I love to shop and can spend large amounts of money in a very short period of time. Just ask my husband!). It also made me feel better about spending $$$ on activities during the week.
Activities: Snorkeled Hawksnest, Cinnamon, Maho, Haulover and Salt Pond (thought of you, Jorge!). The coral close to shore at Hawksnest was in horrible condition. It made me sad as it's a huge change from 3 years ago. Farther out it improved, but overall, a big disappointment. Same way at Cinnamon...beach was beautiful, but the coral was in sad shape. Even at the cay the coral was suffering. Maho was gorgeous...the beach, the coral, the fish. Tons of fish, rays, turtles, conch, starfish, barracuda, even a nurse shark. This was our favorite snorkel. We had an intro to SCUBA course at Haulover with Colette Diede from 6 paq scuba (www.6paqscuba.com). I'm certified, but my hubby and girls are not. Hubby was quite nervous and youngest daughter backed out. Oldest daughter looked like she had been diving for years. The bay had o.k. coral, but nothing spectacular. We dove between 20 and 30 feet. Intro Course: $135/pp. Arrived at Salt Pond late in the afternoon and it was gorgeous. Not a lot to see on the right, but the left proved more alive. Spotted the biggest ray I've ever seen. We had fun lounging in the shallow water as the sun got low in the sky. The highlight of our trip was a day on the water with VIBE charters (www.caribbean-vibe-com). Captain Sam Lunday and first mate Brent took excellent care of us. The boat is in tip top shape and just beautiful. Cooler full of drinks. We departed the National Park ferry dock and headed to H.M. Customs in the BVI. Passport and $25 needed. Snorkeled the Indians and Caves which were thriving and beautiful, then headed to Smuggler's Cove. That beach is breathtaking. We swam ashore and treated ourselves to banana smoothies with freshly grated nutmeg. I could have spent the rest of the day there. Swam back to the boat with smoothie in hand (tricky!) and headed to The Soggy Dollar for lunch. We loved this stop also. Tried my first Pain Killer and Conch Fritters. Next stop, Waterlemon Cay to see the starfish. They were in deep water, so Brent dove down and brought one up for my girls to see. Millions of small fish around us. The last snorkel was Mary's Point which had a lot healthy coral and fans. Overall, we were floored by the BVI and will definitely pursue a vacation there. Tab: $600 + $120 fuel + $100 tip. Worth every penny. We went on another dive with Colette to Christmas Cove and Congo. I dove about 50 feet at Congo which had really healthy and plentiful sea life. Took the girls shopping in Cruz Bay one day (we needed a down day to let our charred skin rest). Went to St. John Spice and asked the gentleman behind the counter if he was Ron....he answered "that depends". Ruth and Ron are spectacularly nice. We frequented the store about 3 more times that week. Ruth was wearing a darling charm of the island around her neck and I decided to get one also. It was purchased at Best of Both Worlds Gallery at Mongoose Junction (www.thebestofstjohn.com). 14k white gold map charm: priceless.
Weather: Hot, high 80's to low 90's and humid. Hazy the first couple of days, but then clear and beautiful. Generally a shower or two during the night. Tropical Storm Dean was churning in the Atlantic and had my hubby in turmoil. Surgeon + Pilot + Weather Channel Addict = Sphincter Boy. AccuDan awoke at 0400 Thursday morning in sheer panic; turned on the T.V. and saw now Hurricane Dean swirling toward us. He could not accept that, according to Dr. Steve Lyons' Tropical Analysis, Dean was South of STJ. Next thing I know he's on the horn with American Airlines trying to get an earlier flight. I'm screaming at the kids to pack right away, as he thinks we'll be able to get an 1100 flight. No luck. I made an executive decision to head to STT to calm him down. We lounged the day away on STJ and leisurely took the 3 p.m. ferry to Red Hook. I really didn't know where to stay, but recalled The Green Iguana (www.thegreeniguana.com) from someone's trip report. They had rooms available for $115/night. The motel is tucked away on a hilltop. The managers are new, having taken over only a week before. Grounds are very pretty. The rooms are very basic, but clean. Certainly nothing fancy but suited our needs. My daughters room was A2 (smallish and the bathroom smelled a bit). Our room was H4 (roomy, cool and bright, but many mosquitoes). We printed our boarding passes in the main office of the motel. Dinner at The Green House (www.thegreenhouserestaurant.com). Very good, slow service, nice view and lots of mosquitoes. Breakfast as at Bumpa's (http://www.frommers.com/destinations/st ... 37518.html). Highly recommend. I actually enjoyed our short time in STT...the alleys were charming and I loved the old feel of the buildings. Returned our jeep to the rental agency at 1100 and off to the airport. A porter quickly approached us and we took full advantage. We checked in and were through customs in about 20 minutes. The best $20 of the trip! Flew to Miami and had a five hour layover due to our plane coming from Barbados. We arrived home at 4 a.m.
Final Thoughts/Observations: First, I'm a very picky person. Admitting it is the first step to recovery. However, I probably would not stay at Secret Harbour or The Green Iguana again.
We loved Miles Away, but I think Rendezvous Bay is prettier than Fish Bay. On our prior trip we stayed in Rendezvous by the Sea (http://www.gardenbythesea.com/villa.html) and the view was breathtaking. We passed several villas on Point Rendezvous that I need to check out (Leeward St. John, Casa Del Sol, Sea Cay).
The mosquitoes were bad, even in the villa. I wore citronella bands around my ankles while cooking. We purchased a bug swatter at Chelsea Drug Store to quell the swarms.
Prior to this trip, I hadn't any strong feeling about a pool; however, a pool is fabulous. After being at the beach all day, we'd come home and rinse our salt-soaked sun burned bodies in the cool water (no sand). It was heaven.
Buy lots of Pop Tarts. We ate these tasty treats at all hours of the day. They were great on the boats and after snorkeling/scuba diving. Granola bars were also indispensable.
We took along hard plastic water bottles with secure lids (purchased at Target 3 years ago). Filled them with water each evening and tossed into the freezer. They were perfect for the beach.
Our Neat Sheet (3 years old also!) was great for stashing our snorkel gear on the beach and also for protecting the jeep seat from wet bathing suits.
We brought along DVD's and really enjoyed watching them in the evenings. We never stayed up late....in bed by 8 p.m at the latest.
Driving in STT was surprisingly easy. We got around without any problems. I accidentally found K-Mart, Pueblo Market and Marina Market.
My girl's favorite thing was swimming ashore from the boat to eat lunch. We definitely will visit the BVI again. I highly recommend chartering a boat.
We probably won't rent a vehicle on STT again. The only reason we did it was because our villa was not ready on the day we wanted so we opted to stay one night on STT. We probably would just purchase groceries at markets on STJ and rent a jeep there also.
Hope you enjoyed this trip report....I had a fun time reliving our vacation. Picture link forthcoming.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inthebluewater/1176728237/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1355/117 ... eea13e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="KeyLimePie"></a>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inthebluewater/1177139406/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1109/117 ... 15fbfd.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="villa view 4"></a>
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Travel: Flew BWI to San Juan and then to STT. Uneventful trip, especially after three Bloody Mary's. I'm a bad flyer.
Ground Transportation: Rented a 2007 4-door Jeep Wrangler from Dependable Car Rental on STT (www.dependablecar.com). I fretted about having enough room for our luggage and groceries, but my worries were unfounded. The vehicle was new, clean and roomy. We contacted them after gathering our luggage and they met us at the airport taxi area, drove us to their office and we very quickly completed all the necessary paperwork. The Jeep was perfect for the winding roads of STT and STJ.
STT Accommodations: Stayed at Secret Harbour for one night (www.secretharbourvi.com). $250/night. Accidentally drove past the entrance and had to turn around. Stayed in a Garden Suite, building 7, room 734 which was pretty far from the beach and entailed quite a few steps. I didn't mind the hike, but it could prove taxing to anyone with cardiac disease. The room was just o.k. Decor was fair. The A/C was a problem as the window louvers didn't completely close. The bedroom stayed fairly cool, but the living room (where the girls slept on the sofa bed) was humid. Beach was pretty and snorkeling o.k. Ate dinner and breakfast at the Blue Moon Cafe which was good. Service was "island slow". We were unknowingly charged $125 security deposit for a safe deposit box. While checking out, made sure they credited our account. I wasn't overly impressed with Secret Harbour and wouldn't stay there again.
STT Groceries: Shopped for staples at Food Center in Red Hook. I made a menu and grocery list prior to our trip. Our best purchase was the 2 1/2 gallon containers of water with spouts. We went through three and probably could have used four. Grocery price list will be posted soon. We spent $157, not including perishables. While hubby waited for the car ferry, the girls and I walked over to Marina Market and purchased a few snacks. Nice little store.
Ferry: Easy entrance but bad signage for the car ferry in Red Hook. You have to stop at a little shack and pay the VI Port Authority $3 then wait until the ferry folk motion for you to back your vehicle onto the barge. 2-way ticket was about $50. We sat upstairs and enjoyed the view. Sodas, beer and hotdogs for sale. The ride lasted about 30 minutes. Notified Destination St. John once we were underway and they were waiting at the dock to take us to our villa.
STJ Accommodations: Rented Miles Away from Destination St. John (www.destinationstjohn.com). The home is located in Fish Bay and is truly lovely. Villa review included. Basically a 2 bedroom home with equal masters, gourmet kitchen and pool. A/C in the bedrooms. $2800/wk. plus $1000 security deposit. We loved it. DSJ included a welcome basket of fruit, cheese and crackers.
STJ Groceries: Starfish Market for perishables. About the only prices that made my eyes bulge was $8 for a big Gatorade and $11 for a gallon of orange juice. We spent $166 and another $50 later in the week.
Eats: I cooked the entire week and although it wasn't as fancy as Liamsaunt's fare, we enjoyed homemade meals of bar-b-q chicken, spinach and cheese quiche, macaroni and cheese and spaghetti with meat sauce. Breakfast included French toast, eggs, cereal and pop tarts. Lunch was enjoyed on our deck, generally sandwiches, fruit, beer and sodas. We ate lunch one day at the Beach Bar (www.beachbarstjohn.com) which was yummy and another day at Skinny Legs (www.skinnylegs.com). Skinny's has been cleaned up a bit & increased their prices (burgers $10, Budweiser $3). The biggest change is the ordering/paying system....I consider myself a traveled person and sometime city girl; however, I've not come across the handheld computers that take your order and accommodate your credit card. Skinny's waitresses handle these babies like pros. I was truly amazed. I rang Howie's Bell and some lady shouted "is someone buying us rum"? We all got a good laugh. Stopped at Deli Grotto another day for sandwiches and salads. Excellent food, desserts and drinks. They don't take plastic. I know you forum folk are divided and extremely opinionated about the grocery/cooking thing, but it worked very well for us and I wouldn't do it any other way. The meals were effortless, cheap and tasty (BTW, I'm not a thrifty person at all...I love to shop and can spend large amounts of money in a very short period of time. Just ask my husband!). It also made me feel better about spending $$$ on activities during the week.
Activities: Snorkeled Hawksnest, Cinnamon, Maho, Haulover and Salt Pond (thought of you, Jorge!). The coral close to shore at Hawksnest was in horrible condition. It made me sad as it's a huge change from 3 years ago. Farther out it improved, but overall, a big disappointment. Same way at Cinnamon...beach was beautiful, but the coral was in sad shape. Even at the cay the coral was suffering. Maho was gorgeous...the beach, the coral, the fish. Tons of fish, rays, turtles, conch, starfish, barracuda, even a nurse shark. This was our favorite snorkel. We had an intro to SCUBA course at Haulover with Colette Diede from 6 paq scuba (www.6paqscuba.com). I'm certified, but my hubby and girls are not. Hubby was quite nervous and youngest daughter backed out. Oldest daughter looked like she had been diving for years. The bay had o.k. coral, but nothing spectacular. We dove between 20 and 30 feet. Intro Course: $135/pp. Arrived at Salt Pond late in the afternoon and it was gorgeous. Not a lot to see on the right, but the left proved more alive. Spotted the biggest ray I've ever seen. We had fun lounging in the shallow water as the sun got low in the sky. The highlight of our trip was a day on the water with VIBE charters (www.caribbean-vibe-com). Captain Sam Lunday and first mate Brent took excellent care of us. The boat is in tip top shape and just beautiful. Cooler full of drinks. We departed the National Park ferry dock and headed to H.M. Customs in the BVI. Passport and $25 needed. Snorkeled the Indians and Caves which were thriving and beautiful, then headed to Smuggler's Cove. That beach is breathtaking. We swam ashore and treated ourselves to banana smoothies with freshly grated nutmeg. I could have spent the rest of the day there. Swam back to the boat with smoothie in hand (tricky!) and headed to The Soggy Dollar for lunch. We loved this stop also. Tried my first Pain Killer and Conch Fritters. Next stop, Waterlemon Cay to see the starfish. They were in deep water, so Brent dove down and brought one up for my girls to see. Millions of small fish around us. The last snorkel was Mary's Point which had a lot healthy coral and fans. Overall, we were floored by the BVI and will definitely pursue a vacation there. Tab: $600 + $120 fuel + $100 tip. Worth every penny. We went on another dive with Colette to Christmas Cove and Congo. I dove about 50 feet at Congo which had really healthy and plentiful sea life. Took the girls shopping in Cruz Bay one day (we needed a down day to let our charred skin rest). Went to St. John Spice and asked the gentleman behind the counter if he was Ron....he answered "that depends". Ruth and Ron are spectacularly nice. We frequented the store about 3 more times that week. Ruth was wearing a darling charm of the island around her neck and I decided to get one also. It was purchased at Best of Both Worlds Gallery at Mongoose Junction (www.thebestofstjohn.com). 14k white gold map charm: priceless.
Weather: Hot, high 80's to low 90's and humid. Hazy the first couple of days, but then clear and beautiful. Generally a shower or two during the night. Tropical Storm Dean was churning in the Atlantic and had my hubby in turmoil. Surgeon + Pilot + Weather Channel Addict = Sphincter Boy. AccuDan awoke at 0400 Thursday morning in sheer panic; turned on the T.V. and saw now Hurricane Dean swirling toward us. He could not accept that, according to Dr. Steve Lyons' Tropical Analysis, Dean was South of STJ. Next thing I know he's on the horn with American Airlines trying to get an earlier flight. I'm screaming at the kids to pack right away, as he thinks we'll be able to get an 1100 flight. No luck. I made an executive decision to head to STT to calm him down. We lounged the day away on STJ and leisurely took the 3 p.m. ferry to Red Hook. I really didn't know where to stay, but recalled The Green Iguana (www.thegreeniguana.com) from someone's trip report. They had rooms available for $115/night. The motel is tucked away on a hilltop. The managers are new, having taken over only a week before. Grounds are very pretty. The rooms are very basic, but clean. Certainly nothing fancy but suited our needs. My daughters room was A2 (smallish and the bathroom smelled a bit). Our room was H4 (roomy, cool and bright, but many mosquitoes). We printed our boarding passes in the main office of the motel. Dinner at The Green House (www.thegreenhouserestaurant.com). Very good, slow service, nice view and lots of mosquitoes. Breakfast as at Bumpa's (http://www.frommers.com/destinations/st ... 37518.html). Highly recommend. I actually enjoyed our short time in STT...the alleys were charming and I loved the old feel of the buildings. Returned our jeep to the rental agency at 1100 and off to the airport. A porter quickly approached us and we took full advantage. We checked in and were through customs in about 20 minutes. The best $20 of the trip! Flew to Miami and had a five hour layover due to our plane coming from Barbados. We arrived home at 4 a.m.
Final Thoughts/Observations: First, I'm a very picky person. Admitting it is the first step to recovery. However, I probably would not stay at Secret Harbour or The Green Iguana again.
We loved Miles Away, but I think Rendezvous Bay is prettier than Fish Bay. On our prior trip we stayed in Rendezvous by the Sea (http://www.gardenbythesea.com/villa.html) and the view was breathtaking. We passed several villas on Point Rendezvous that I need to check out (Leeward St. John, Casa Del Sol, Sea Cay).
The mosquitoes were bad, even in the villa. I wore citronella bands around my ankles while cooking. We purchased a bug swatter at Chelsea Drug Store to quell the swarms.
Prior to this trip, I hadn't any strong feeling about a pool; however, a pool is fabulous. After being at the beach all day, we'd come home and rinse our salt-soaked sun burned bodies in the cool water (no sand). It was heaven.
Buy lots of Pop Tarts. We ate these tasty treats at all hours of the day. They were great on the boats and after snorkeling/scuba diving. Granola bars were also indispensable.
We took along hard plastic water bottles with secure lids (purchased at Target 3 years ago). Filled them with water each evening and tossed into the freezer. They were perfect for the beach.
Our Neat Sheet (3 years old also!) was great for stashing our snorkel gear on the beach and also for protecting the jeep seat from wet bathing suits.
We brought along DVD's and really enjoyed watching them in the evenings. We never stayed up late....in bed by 8 p.m at the latest.
Driving in STT was surprisingly easy. We got around without any problems. I accidentally found K-Mart, Pueblo Market and Marina Market.
My girl's favorite thing was swimming ashore from the boat to eat lunch. We definitely will visit the BVI again. I highly recommend chartering a boat.
We probably won't rent a vehicle on STT again. The only reason we did it was because our villa was not ready on the day we wanted so we opted to stay one night on STT. We probably would just purchase groceries at markets on STJ and rent a jeep there also.
Hope you enjoyed this trip report....I had a fun time reliving our vacation. Picture link forthcoming.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inthebluewater/1176728237/" title="Photo Sharing"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1355/117 ... eea13e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="KeyLimePie"></a>
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Nice report, valuable information too about the STT overnights
you said "The meals were effortless, cheap and tasty (BTW, I’m not a thrifty person at all…I love to shop and can spend large amounts of money in a very short period of time. Just ask my husband!)."
I can relate! We are menu planning and taking meats next trip, which is something I swore I would never do again, in order to save time and stress.
you said "The meals were effortless, cheap and tasty (BTW, I’m not a thrifty person at all…I love to shop and can spend large amounts of money in a very short period of time. Just ask my husband!)."
I can relate! We are menu planning and taking meats next trip, which is something I swore I would never do again, in order to save time and stress.
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Rachelle & Joe
- Posts: 677
- Joined: Sat Nov 18, 2006 4:23 pm
- Location: ohio
trip report
Hi there, Enjoyed your report, the pic's were great! We R staying at miles away next May, We have stayed on Gift Hill twice & chocolate hole area once I must say the views from Gift Hill R Breathtaking!!! we know the view from MA will not B the same but opted for the villa anyway seeing that it is beautiful, newer & gets great reviews! sorry to hear about the bugs?? hope they R not a problem next spring!! Did u use the security system? any other comments we should know would B greatly appreciated!!! Thanks so much !!!! Rachelle & Joe 264 Daze!
What a lovely villa.
Jamestown, is that piece of pie from Blue Moon? I was thinking that it looked so familiar, and I just remembered my Dad had a piece of key lime cheeecake there.
I also meant to say that we really like Bumpas for breakfast too. I think I read somewhere that John Grisham finished writing the Firm while seated at Bumpas.
I also meant to say that we really like Bumpas for breakfast too. I think I read somewhere that John Grisham finished writing the Firm while seated at Bumpas.
It's like looking in your soup and finding a whole different alphabet.
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SouthShoreBoy
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Sun Aug 12, 2007 3:00 pm
Question about barge in Red Hook
Nice report on you trip! I am curious though about the 3 dollar charge you paid when entering the Red Hook Ferry area.
I have never stopped at the "shack" and just driven to the where the barge loads
and no one ever says a thing. In fact I often slow down and wave just to be sociable. So my question is have I been ripping off the VI Port authority all these many years or is this something new?.
Thanks SSB
I have never stopped at the "shack" and just driven to the where the barge loads
and no one ever says a thing. In fact I often slow down and wave just to be sociable. So my question is have I been ripping off the VI Port authority all these many years or is this something new?.
Thanks SSB
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cypressgirl
- Posts: 2178
- Joined: Tue Dec 26, 2006 2:42 pm
- Location: houston
Loved your report and had a good laugh at your husbands expense. I am the Nervous Nelley in our family and I would be the one checking the weather channel in the middle of the night. We were lucky enough to be home before Dean became a concern.
I also noticed the haze (Sahara Dust?) the entire 2 weeks I was there.
I am beginning to cross over to the cook at home side. Somehow getting dressed enough to go out to dinner after a full day in the water seems like torture. I loved Deli Grotto for all their prepared things that I could throw on a plate and say "I cooked". China Shack delivered some great Chinese. I call that almost cooking. Sorry Liamsaunt, but you have too much energy for me.
Thanks for a fun report. Your pictures are great and your family is so cute.
I also noticed the haze (Sahara Dust?) the entire 2 weeks I was there.
I am beginning to cross over to the cook at home side. Somehow getting dressed enough to go out to dinner after a full day in the water seems like torture. I loved Deli Grotto for all their prepared things that I could throw on a plate and say "I cooked". China Shack delivered some great Chinese. I call that almost cooking. Sorry Liamsaunt, but you have too much energy for me.
Thanks for a fun report. Your pictures are great and your family is so cute.
Thanks everyone for your kind responses....let's see if I can answer your queries:
Liamsaunt: Yes, the pie is from The Blue Moon Cafe at Secret Harbour. I'm a bit of a Key Lime Pie aficionado and it was DELICIOUS!!! My all time favorite KLP was from Lou's Restaurant in Lebanon, NH.
Joe & Rachelle Pagan: Miles Away is top notch. You won't be disappointed. I'll send you photos via pm. We didn't use the security system at all. The only time we closed the windows was at night (hubby paranoid). While we were out during the day, we left them open.
JMQ: This was actually my first visit to Maho. We didn't stop 3 years ago and that was a big mistake. We planted our big butts on the left side of the beach (when facing the water) because we really didn't know anything about the area. We leisurely swam parallel to the beach toward the right side. Immediately we saw several turtles and rays. Once reaching the rocky outcroppings, we we dazzled by the abundance of sea life. Snorkel all the way out (we were almost over to Francis). It was by far our best snorkel (and that includes the life I saw while diving).
Maggy: I'll pm you about diving.
South Shore Boy: I nearly spit out my drink from laughing when I read your reply...ripping off the VI Port Authority??? Perhaps I'm the moron for stopping at the shack. I'm positive that little lady inside wouldn't come chasing you.
Cypress Girl: It was great eating in our swimming suits or pajamas. Heck, if the kids wouldn't have been there, we'd have had some nekkid meals!
Liamsaunt: Yes, the pie is from The Blue Moon Cafe at Secret Harbour. I'm a bit of a Key Lime Pie aficionado and it was DELICIOUS!!! My all time favorite KLP was from Lou's Restaurant in Lebanon, NH.
Joe & Rachelle Pagan: Miles Away is top notch. You won't be disappointed. I'll send you photos via pm. We didn't use the security system at all. The only time we closed the windows was at night (hubby paranoid). While we were out during the day, we left them open.
JMQ: This was actually my first visit to Maho. We didn't stop 3 years ago and that was a big mistake. We planted our big butts on the left side of the beach (when facing the water) because we really didn't know anything about the area. We leisurely swam parallel to the beach toward the right side. Immediately we saw several turtles and rays. Once reaching the rocky outcroppings, we we dazzled by the abundance of sea life. Snorkel all the way out (we were almost over to Francis). It was by far our best snorkel (and that includes the life I saw while diving).
Maggy: I'll pm you about diving.
South Shore Boy: I nearly spit out my drink from laughing when I read your reply...ripping off the VI Port Authority??? Perhaps I'm the moron for stopping at the shack. I'm positive that little lady inside wouldn't come chasing you.
Cypress Girl: It was great eating in our swimming suits or pajamas. Heck, if the kids wouldn't have been there, we'd have had some nekkid meals!