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First Day... WOW. Actually here, in the Virgin Islands! St. Thomas is beautiful and it's a full 50 degrees warmer than New York! Dave & Judy (our captain & 1st mate) are terrific. Made us feel right at home aboard Grace. I had no idea a 50 foot yacht is sooo big! Since everything was "in order" as soon as we arrived (very nice), I decided to start the vacation off with a swim. It was like soaking in a tub, and I could see straight down to the bottom! Amazing!! Afterward Captain Dave suggested we set sail for St. John right away so that we could see St. Thomas as a back drop for the sunset. Beautiful! If he makes such great suggestions all week, this'll be the vacation of a lifetime. Day Two... We had an early breakfast this morning & headed directly for Jost Van Dyke (I wonder if it's named after a long lost brother of Dick? ha-ha)
The sail over was incredible. Mornings here are amazing. The air is so crisp & filled with warm breezes that lift pelicans so that they're hovering right next to us. First stop- Great Harbor for customs. Even that ordeal was made pleasant here --people were actually smiling!! Then on into White Bay. Went snorkeling -and after a few tips from Judy on how to clear my snorkel- actually had fun! Then we swam ashore for lunch & drinks at the Soggy Dollar Bar (what kind of name is soggy dollar??). Anyway, they had a great and very potent drink called a Painkiller (this name I understand!). Back at the boat, Judy served an incredible shrimp dinner. Nice & light --she knew we'd want to leave room for dancing & calypso music at the famous Foxy's. Dave said it's been host to about every celebrity on the planet --must not be celebrity in-season though, we didn't see any.
Day Three... We took an early jog around Jost Van Dyke this morning (on its one road) & saw an amazing sunrise (is there anything but here?) Then sailed to Norman Island, which is said to be the inspiration for Treasure Island - very cool! & I helped sail the boat - even cooler!! I now know port from starboard & how to tie a bowline -can steer a course, too. Anchored (Captain Dave took over at that point) near the William Thornton, a pirate ship-shaped barge that's a bar (keeping in theme with Treasure Island, I guess). I understand that the crazier crowds do "body shots" here. I'll opt for an ice cold Carib instead..
More snorkeling today. I'll never tire of paddling around with all the colorful sea-life! Had fresh Mahi Mahi for dinner, capped off with some romantic stargazing & a great CD (by Enya, I think) from Dave & Judy's collection. Day Four... Slept in today and had a late breakfast. We went snorkeling in the caves of "Treasure Island" and were bombarded by hundreds of rainbow-colored tropical fish. Some were actually pecking at my toes - very tickly!
Spent the rest of the morning "trying" to windsurf. Amazing - it LOOKS easy... Had lunch under sail on the way to the northwestern shore of Virgin Gorda (the names they give things around here! I think that means "Fat Young Woman"?!) Anchored in a cute little harbor in Spanish Town. We had a delicious dinner at The Bath & Turtle Pub & met some new friends from another boat named Tralee. Took a look at their luxury power yacht -nice & very elegant, but Joe & I still prefer our boat & crew!
Day Five. Sailed
to the Bitter End Yacht Club this morning at an intense, Got some great shots of Joe getting drenched as a couple of waves hit right on Mark! Can't wait to develop that roll!
Once there, we all piled into the dinghy & headed for the Bar on Saba Rock. Had some wonderful barbecued chicken & ribs & listened to a pretty good local band on the sun deck They were playing some sort of local folk/reggae/calypso mix. I had a lazy afternoon finishing a book, but Joe decided to take off for some bone fishing. Seems he had a good time?! After -another great- dinner on the boat, we went to the Bitter End and danced for hours - great music! I'm so exhausted I almost didn't write tonight.
Day Six... We
had a big breakfast this morning - just what I needed after all
the dancing the night before!
Spent quite a while kayaking after breakfast. Very fun! But I was so afraid of tipping over and ruining the camera that I just had Judy take a couple of pic's from the boat. Good thing, too, I went right over as soon as I stepped in!! Went into Road Town after lunch. It's the "capital" of Tortola & the biggest British Virgin Island -which is probably why there was such great souvenir shopping! Still only one street deep! Dinner
was the best lobster I've ever had! I can't believe what comes out
of the
Day Seven... Headed back to the US Islands this morning (cleared customs quickly & painlessly, again). We went for a short hike in the National Park on St. John (which covers two-thirds of the entire island). There are more beautiful beaches on this one island than I even thought existed!
Went snorkeling off shore & saw some dolphins - one actually followed us!! I can't believe we could get so close!!! Perfect ending for an incredible vacation. Sailed to Red Hook on St. Thomas at Sunset - so sad to be off to the airport tomorrow. Looking forward to next year already! Great friends, great food and memories from the vacation of a lifetime...
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