Trip Report with link to pics

jofus · Post by **jofus** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 1:30 pm

Hi All !,
My husband and I just returned from 2 glorious weeks on STJ. We spent most of our time just soaking up the island atmosphere from our villa La Sirena, located out past Salt Pond Bay.

So I don't have a long detailed report to give. Most of our activities are not to be shared with the general public.
With the exception of sitting on the runway for 2 hrs prior to take off ( it was so cold at JFK that morning they couldn't get water on the plane.... it kept freezing up in the hoses) our travel was relatively painless. Despite our 2 hr delay, Freddie from Dynamic Tours was waiting for us when we arrived. He drove us to the Nat.Park dock on STT where we met up with Dohm's Water Taxi. For me and my husband that water taxi was worth every one of the $200 it cost for the round trip. We can't stand the ferry ride and never will again after taking the water taxi.

The water taxi dropped us at the Nat Park dock on STJ and Levi from L&L Jepp Rental was there to meet us with our jeep. Same for the return trip.

We cooked almost all our meals at the villa(we brought our own frzn meats and some dry goods with us from home). Had Cafe Roma twice, once take out and once there, delicious as always. Went to Miss Lucy's twice for brunch, we love the views and banana pancakes from there. Once to Woody's for a pub grub lunch( good fried shrimp).
Went to Happy Fish(?) for sushi it was good but not enough to go back for a second round. Finally tried Uncle Joe's barbecue. It was Okay for me but unfortunately for my husband, his body rejected it so we definately won't be returning there.

One of the highlights from our trip last year was renting a dinghy from Crabby's and exploring Coral Bay. Unfortunately all Crabby's dinghys were without motors as they were waiting to be serviced. So we rented from Noah's Little Arks and did a North Shore dinghy day. It was rough and bumpy going around Mary Point but we survived. Lots more to see on the North shore and more beaches to visit but also a lot more boat traffic to deal with. If you can, do both, they are very different experiences. I think we may upgrade to an Ocean Runner next year!

Something new we did this year was spending an evening stargazing on the beach. We went the night of the New Moon (which means no moon at all) which happened to be utterly clear. The stars were soo bright they were reflecting off the ocean. Great way to spend an evening.

Well that's about all I have to report. Here's a link to the pictures..click the 2007 album (the thumbnails in this post are also liks to the album)
http://community.webshots.com/user/jofu ... =community

I'd be more than happy to answer any ?'s anyone has

jofus

waterguy · Post by **waterguy** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 2:15 pm

thanks for the report

parafins · Post by **parafins** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 2:24 pm

Hi Jofis,If you don't mind my asking,how much does it cost to rent noah's little ark?
One other question...Did you get a chance to snorkel Kiddle Bay?I here the snorkeling is good.Thanks,Dan..

jofus · Post by **jofus** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 2:37 pm

Hi parafins,
If I recall correctly the cost of a Little Ark is $75 for a 1/2 day and $140 for a full day. We snorkeled and scuba dove at Kiddel. There's a lot of cool arches,tunnels,coves etc. in the rocky area off the west side of the bay. Very nice diving!

jofus

Chickadee · Post by **Chickadee** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 3:49 pm

Jofus, great report, Thanks. I've always loved the look of that villa but its size never suited the group we were going with. Could you tell us more about the place?

jofus · Post by **jofus** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 4:07 pm

Hi Chickadee aka Jennifer,
What would you like to know about the villa? If you want lots of specific details it might be better if you PM'd me

jofus

nothintolose · Post by **nothintolose** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 4:41 pm

Jofus - that shot of the birds at the feeder is spectacular!!! I love being able to see all of the feathers on the wings!!!

The rest of your pics are beautiful as well.

Thanks for the report and the pics!

nothintolose

jofus · Post by **jofus** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 4:46 pm

nothintolose,
I wish I could say I inteded that picture but it was just a lucky shot!

jofus

Jumbiegirl · Post by **Jumbiegirl** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 8:37 pm

Jofus,

Did you have to pay a penalty to Dohm's because you were late? I'm considering them for June but I'm scared that a late flight will inflate the bill big time.

liamsaunt · Post by **liamsaunt** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 8:49 pm

Lovely pictures Jofus. I especially liked the one of the sun through the palm fronds.

jofus · Post by **jofus** » Wed Feb 21, 2007 9:03 pm

Jumbiegirl,
I did not have to pay a penalty. My flight was 2 hrs late but it was still during normal business hrs. I arrived at 2:30. They monitered my flight and knew I was going to be late. I would ask them directly if you're concerned about. They were very nice to work with.

jofus

jac w · Post by **jac w** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 9:52 am

Great pics jofus. We used Dohms last year and also had no penalty when our flight was late (I don't remeber if if was one or two hours late).

RickG · Post by **RickG** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 10:42 am

Great pics. I love the new webshots slideshow. The cloud reflections in the swimming pool were a great composition. Kiddel Bay sounds like fun. I'd like to stay out the side of the island some time.

Cheers, RickG

Chickadee · Post by **Chickadee** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 9:05 pm

Jofus,

I don't know as I have any specific questions, would just like to hear about the place. It looks so neat on the internet... How is it with no a/c, many bugs, how's the size and layout, well kept, amenities?

sea-nile · Post by **sea-nile** » Thu Feb 22, 2007 9:15 pm

Great pictures and report!
I was finally able to look at the pictures. They were blocked at work where I often visit the forum (Shhhhhh!)

usvi-on-line