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Oh what a (fort)night! October 2011 Trip Report Part I
Oh what a (fort)night! October 2011 Trip Report Part I
Tuesday, October 4 - Travel Day
I know that reading about the details other folk's travel to and from the island isn't everyone's cup of tea, and if you fall into that group, then you'll just have to wait for the next installment!
Since some of you may be familiar with the travails we went through on our last visit (cancelled flight, left a day late, and more)... this visit's trip down is noteworthy to me due to it being a polar opposite experience from the last one.
We had flight scheduled to leave Miami at 10:30AM. Miami is a three hour drive from home, and we aim to be in the security line two hours prior to takeoff. Add in some time to drop the car off at the off airport lot and the shuttle ride to the airport, figure in the time lost due to trying to trudge through the rush hour traffic in Miami, and we had planned to leave some time around early thirty or so. We were helped out in this regard by not being able to sleep much later than 3:00AM, so after putting the final items in our bags and checking the list one last time, we were out of the driveway by 4:00AM.
Traffic could not have been much lighter. Even at the dreaded Golden Glades interchange, which is where the turnpike merges with I-95, and is normally a bottlenecked cluster, we cruised right through. No missed turns/exits, a quick and uncrowded shuttle bus, and we were in the (short) security line by 7:00AM! Other than a cursory hand inspection of our Polar Bear cooler by a smiling TSA agent, who joked that he might need to confiscate a steak or two, we breezed right through, and were at the gate well in advance of boarding time.
We boarded the flight without incident. There were a number of empty seats, which we haven't seen on that particular flight before. I had reserved seats near the back of the plane in order to be in an early boarding group, to ensure that we wouldn't have to compete for storage space for our two allotted pieces of luggage to go in the overhead bins. As it turned out, there was extra space in the bins nearest our seats, so we were able to put a third bag in overhead storage.
Amazingly, the flight actually made it to the Cyril King Airport on STT ten minutes ahead of schedule. They emptied the plane from both the forward and aft doors, so we were off in a flash! Since we were doing carry on only, the only thing between us and Constantin, from Amalie Car Rental, who was waiting with a sign with our name on it, was the free rum samples (Mango and Pineapple - yum!).
Charlotte Amalie Waterfront Road
Our thoughts exactly!
This was the first time we had rented from Amalie, and they could not have been more pleasant to deal with - both ahead of time when making and checking on the reservation, and when we were on island as well. It only took a couple of minutes to sign the paperwork and get a brief orientation from Constantin, and then we were on our way! By the time our fflight was scheduled to land we were in sole possession of the Jeep, bags loaded, and exiting airport property!We took Route 38 towards Red Hook so that we could make a stop at Cost-U-Less to stock up on staples (aka rum!).
We backed on to the 2:30 car barge and soon had St. John in our sights - yahoo!!
Leslie's smile says it all!
There it is!
We had told our greeter that we didn't mind waiting until just after 4:00 to meet her, so we had a little time to kill once we were off of the barge. We stopped at St. John Spice for some needed supplies. We were disappointed to not get to say hi to Ruth, but were glad that she (and Curly!) were taking advantage of slow season by spending some time away from the shop. Next, we had to be near the water, and with a drink in hand. We wandered over to High Tide and fulfilled both requirements.Our server told us about their new menu that they were just unveiling, and about the entertainment that was scheduled to play that night, so when we were leaving we told her that we may just see her later.
Leslie looks longingly at that water...
...then decides that she needs to be in it!
NOW we're on vacation!
We met Kathy, from Island Getaways, in the parking lot of St. John Market, and followed her up Jacob's Ladder, then Rock Ridge Road, to Villa Allesandra. We had visited this villa on a couple of occasions before when friends were staying there, so even though we weren't surprised at the view (and the villa in general), we were certainly delighted to be there! We endured the briefing, then, finally, we were all alone in the villa on St. Freaking John! Woo-hoo! There was now no denying that vacation was in full swing. In short order we were in the pool, drinks in hand, and hanging on to the side as we gazed out at the sun beginning its decent towards the horizon behind St. Thomas - heaven on earth!
What a beautiful sight - and St. Thomas and the horizon look good, too!
Auditioning for a new job?
Sheer awesomeness!
After getting unpacked we headed back to town, parking at the new gravel lot between the car barge terminal and the tennis courts. From there we walked back to High Tide, got a table by the rail, and melted into island time. Drinks and dinner were good, but the highlight was the location. We heard both of the musical warm up acts (actually left during the second one), but the long, early day left us unable to stick around for the main act - which was a band featuring Jim Messina, of Loggins and Messina fame. Not to worry - we were told that they would be performing the next night also, so we headed "home" and slept the sleep of weary and contented travelers - travel day was in the books!
This view didn't suck either!
Relaxed much?
Happy Island Girl!
I know that reading about the details other folk's travel to and from the island isn't everyone's cup of tea, and if you fall into that group, then you'll just have to wait for the next installment!
Since some of you may be familiar with the travails we went through on our last visit (cancelled flight, left a day late, and more)... this visit's trip down is noteworthy to me due to it being a polar opposite experience from the last one.
We had flight scheduled to leave Miami at 10:30AM. Miami is a three hour drive from home, and we aim to be in the security line two hours prior to takeoff. Add in some time to drop the car off at the off airport lot and the shuttle ride to the airport, figure in the time lost due to trying to trudge through the rush hour traffic in Miami, and we had planned to leave some time around early thirty or so. We were helped out in this regard by not being able to sleep much later than 3:00AM, so after putting the final items in our bags and checking the list one last time, we were out of the driveway by 4:00AM.
Traffic could not have been much lighter. Even at the dreaded Golden Glades interchange, which is where the turnpike merges with I-95, and is normally a bottlenecked cluster, we cruised right through. No missed turns/exits, a quick and uncrowded shuttle bus, and we were in the (short) security line by 7:00AM! Other than a cursory hand inspection of our Polar Bear cooler by a smiling TSA agent, who joked that he might need to confiscate a steak or two, we breezed right through, and were at the gate well in advance of boarding time.
We boarded the flight without incident. There were a number of empty seats, which we haven't seen on that particular flight before. I had reserved seats near the back of the plane in order to be in an early boarding group, to ensure that we wouldn't have to compete for storage space for our two allotted pieces of luggage to go in the overhead bins. As it turned out, there was extra space in the bins nearest our seats, so we were able to put a third bag in overhead storage.
Amazingly, the flight actually made it to the Cyril King Airport on STT ten minutes ahead of schedule. They emptied the plane from both the forward and aft doors, so we were off in a flash! Since we were doing carry on only, the only thing between us and Constantin, from Amalie Car Rental, who was waiting with a sign with our name on it, was the free rum samples (Mango and Pineapple - yum!).
Charlotte Amalie Waterfront Road
Our thoughts exactly!
This was the first time we had rented from Amalie, and they could not have been more pleasant to deal with - both ahead of time when making and checking on the reservation, and when we were on island as well. It only took a couple of minutes to sign the paperwork and get a brief orientation from Constantin, and then we were on our way! By the time our fflight was scheduled to land we were in sole possession of the Jeep, bags loaded, and exiting airport property!We took Route 38 towards Red Hook so that we could make a stop at Cost-U-Less to stock up on staples (aka rum!).
We backed on to the 2:30 car barge and soon had St. John in our sights - yahoo!!
Leslie's smile says it all!
There it is!
We had told our greeter that we didn't mind waiting until just after 4:00 to meet her, so we had a little time to kill once we were off of the barge. We stopped at St. John Spice for some needed supplies. We were disappointed to not get to say hi to Ruth, but were glad that she (and Curly!) were taking advantage of slow season by spending some time away from the shop. Next, we had to be near the water, and with a drink in hand. We wandered over to High Tide and fulfilled both requirements.Our server told us about their new menu that they were just unveiling, and about the entertainment that was scheduled to play that night, so when we were leaving we told her that we may just see her later.
Leslie looks longingly at that water...
...then decides that she needs to be in it!
NOW we're on vacation!
We met Kathy, from Island Getaways, in the parking lot of St. John Market, and followed her up Jacob's Ladder, then Rock Ridge Road, to Villa Allesandra. We had visited this villa on a couple of occasions before when friends were staying there, so even though we weren't surprised at the view (and the villa in general), we were certainly delighted to be there! We endured the briefing, then, finally, we were all alone in the villa on St. Freaking John! Woo-hoo! There was now no denying that vacation was in full swing. In short order we were in the pool, drinks in hand, and hanging on to the side as we gazed out at the sun beginning its decent towards the horizon behind St. Thomas - heaven on earth!
What a beautiful sight - and St. Thomas and the horizon look good, too!
Auditioning for a new job?
Sheer awesomeness!
After getting unpacked we headed back to town, parking at the new gravel lot between the car barge terminal and the tennis courts. From there we walked back to High Tide, got a table by the rail, and melted into island time. Drinks and dinner were good, but the highlight was the location. We heard both of the musical warm up acts (actually left during the second one), but the long, early day left us unable to stick around for the main act - which was a band featuring Jim Messina, of Loggins and Messina fame. Not to worry - we were told that they would be performing the next night also, so we headed "home" and slept the sleep of weary and contented travelers - travel day was in the books!
This view didn't suck either!
Relaxed much?
Happy Island Girl!
Come see us!
Thanks for the report! The forum has been so lacking lately. Should be some coming up 
. I like hearing about travel day. It can hold some interesting stories. For those that don't like it, wait for the next chapter. One Thanksgiving we arrived on the later side and could not find much decent to eat. I'm sure you know how there is not much decent food to be had on travel day either. We surrendered and went to bed after several rum drinks. We awoke to a very loud rooster before daylight and found ourselves laughing hysterically?? We were the first ones at Deli Grotto waiting for the doors to open. Reminded me of that "Mervyn's" commercial. Looking forward to the rest of the report 
.
. I like hearing about travel day. It can hold some interesting stories. For those that don't like it, wait for the next chapter. One Thanksgiving we arrived on the later side and could not find much decent to eat. I'm sure you know how there is not much decent food to be had on travel day either. We surrendered and went to bed after several rum drinks. We awoke to a very loud rooster before daylight and found ourselves laughing hysterically?? We were the first ones at Deli Grotto waiting for the doors to open. Reminded me of that "Mervyn's" commercial. Looking forward to the rest of the report .Going "home" again October 26th!
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Bill in Va
- Posts: 442
- Joined: Thu Aug 10, 2006 3:56 pm
- Location: Lake Gaston, Va
Great stuff..
Yo...Thanks for the 1st installment. Good pic's too...God bless...Bill
You are never too old to have a happy childhood...
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michigancouple
- Posts: 609
- Joined: Wed Feb 04, 2009 5:37 pm
- Location: West Michigan
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EagleRayLover
- Posts: 1474
- Joined: Sat Feb 12, 2011 8:56 pm
- Location: St. John -WooHoo!!
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msgcolleen
- Posts: 1497
- Joined: Thu Oct 05, 2006 8:33 am
- Location: Allen, Texas
St. Freaking John!
That says it all!
That says it all!
I've got 2 tickets to paradise~Pack your bags we'll leave tonight!
[url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
[url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]
A table by the rail at High Tide in the afternoon was one of my favorite hangout spots on STJ. On the end close to the ferry dock, so you can watch the comings and goings. Between ferries, things are slow and quiet and peaceful. The ferry brings a surge of energy, then things return to slow and quiet and peaceful. Like waves.
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Jan&MikeVa
- Posts: 1084
- Joined: Mon Aug 07, 2006 5:32 pm
- Location: The Chesapeake Bay
