Margy’s Trip Report – St. Croix 2009 – April 14-30 – Part 6 (The LAST Part): April 23 – 30: My week with the girlfriends

Thursday, April 23 - Continued

Without our UK friend, we are just three. I’m hoping that we may still get a phone call from her saying she’s freed up her schedule and is on her way. Otherwise it’s gonna just be me and the two sistas. There’s been talk of making me an honorary sista but that would make me the eldest sista and I’m not sure I want to take on that role in the pecking order – :Plol . Besides, then someone might develop middle child issues and those could be lethal on a villa vacation – :Xrofl . These girls are accustomed to traveling together and besides heading to Cabo together every year they have been to various Caribbean islands, including STT & STJ. This is their first trip to St. Croix. KG is on vacation from her work for a well-known publisher and KS has arrived just one day fresh from her final day at a global oil company before taking a very early retirement. Now we are both out of work – lol.

I brought the Polar Bear with some roadies/coldies to the airport and as open containers are legal in the USVI and I am the designated driver, the sistas enjoy a few ice cold Red Stripes on the way to the east end via the Southside Road. Unfortunately, no triathletes out training on cycles today so our view is limited to the hills and the reef. We arrive at the villa and the girls tour around. When Hubs and I were moving things into D’Estasi I chose one of the bedrooms on the pool level. There are three equal bedrooms with huge bathrooms on this level here at D’Estasi and there’s a beautiful master suite upstairs – I’m going to let the sistas work that one out between them - lol.

After a bit of back and forth, KG (the older sista) gets the master and KS moves in across the kitchenette from me on the pool level. We make some drinks and settle in on the upper gallery to just “be” for awhile – it’s been a long travel day for them and it’s good to just sit and relax and feel the wind. We have a reservation tonight at the Pelican – it’s Thursday, 2 for 1 entrée night.

We have a really good meal at the Pelican and excellent service from a waiter who is from a Chicago suburb just to the north of us. We split large orders of Tortellini Carbonara and Pasta Pelicano with local Mahi. We finish by sharing a HUGE Tiramisu with a large wafer-thin palm tree cookie – the Pelican wins awards for their desserts and they are always wonderful. The owner, Dennis, is there and making the rounds of the tables. He tells us that this Sunday will be the last brunch for the season. We talk about coming back on Sunday – can’t beat those $2 Mimosas and Bloody Marys. Back to the gallery to enjoy some chilled Rum Cream on the rocks and listen to some very loud surf.

We have discovered that there are tube lights strung around the railing around the pool – we light them up and joke that from the water we must look like a Carnival cruise ship. “Paging Isaac to the Lido deck for refills…”

Friday, April 24

Up early and KG starts working on putting together a big breakfast. Today is to be a villa gravity day but I am just going to take a quick run into Gallows Bay to try to get a new pair of sunglasses at the hardware store. I dropped my new pair on the stone floor yesterday, cracking the frames beyond repair, so just want to find an inexpensive replacement pair quickly without taking a lot of time to go into C’Sted and shop around. KS and I talk about how warm it was in our bedrooms last night. The temp feels fine on the main level so we check out the thermostat and the setting looks good to us. We call Vacation St. Croix to inquire about what could be wrong. They tell us that their head maintenance person, Cliff, is in the area so he will be right over. Cliff arrives in just a few minutes and he must be accustomed to idjits like us as he is so very patient. The a/c in this villa is zoned, DUH – and the a/c on the lower level is currently off. Cliff shows us the lower level thermostat which is on the wall in the kitchenette. He tells us not to feel too bad we didn’t know about it as it was partially hidden by a high stack of beach towels – lol. He re-sets it for us and then also shows us the “sweet spot” where we will get the best cell reception at the villa – KS has been trying to call her Hubs but having trouble getting a good signal. Thanks, Cliff! This is what we get for not having a villa greeter who would have shown us all of the ins and outs at D’Estasi when we arrived. The sistas only had ME and I have proved woefully inadequate. I’m sure this will be reflected in my gratuity – lol.

The sistas decide to accompany me to Gallows. We stop first at Schooner Bay Market for wine and a few other things. Over KG’s delicious breakfast we’ve bullied KS into whipping up her famous potato salad for us (if she can get the exact ingredients). She really ought to sell this stuff, it’s that good. We’re kind of surprised to find the Yukes at Schooner so, after purchasing those and the other ingredients, she is in business with no way of weaseling out and we are going to enjoy the world’s finest potato salad with our burgers. We run into Ann from Vacation St. Croix at the fish counter at Schooner – she is picking up some gorgeous Mahi. She and I talk about getting out to a couple of villas on the north side next week as Hubs and I didn’t have time on his last day. I am certainly game to lookie-loo some more so we make a tentative plan for Tuesday morning.

This is my first trip to Gallows Bay Hardware and the place is HUGE. They have four racks of sunglasses, all sale-priced, and KS helps me find a pair and a spare while KG checks out the rest of the store – they have beach chairs, coolers, pool toys and they even have wine here! We pick up an Avis to see what’s happening on the island and head on back to D’Estasi for some pool time.

We just relax and soak up the sun and enjoy drinks at D’Estasi all afternoon. While on the pool deck, I look up and think I see something odd in the water to the east. I grab my camera, hit the zoom, and, nope, it’s not the Red Stripes fooling me – it IS a horse!

There’s a man in fins swimming beside the horse, moving in to guide as needed. The horse appears to love the swim, making strong calm strokes parallel to the beach. When they emerge from the water, we can see that this might be a racehorse, maybe swimming to strengthen its legs. What a beautiful animal!

Dinner in and a movie from the villa’s DVD collection and we are all done in early from our afternoon of sun and breeze.

Saturday, April 25

KG has friends on STX who have a bed & breakfast at Carden Beach just a bit down the road from D’Estasi (The Rose Sail Inn) and they also offer sailing vacations aboard their sailboat, the Calypso Rose. They have graciously offered to take us sailing. KG catches up with them this morning and we set a tentative sailing date for Monday, weather permitting. This is our one major plan for the week – the rest of our days are going to be played out strictly by weather and what little we feel like doing hour to hour.

With our sailing date set, the sistas are ready for some retail therapy. Although I am finally feeling like I’m getting over the pneu, I don’t have it in me to walk C’Sted today so I encourage them to develop a walking plan of stores from the detailed C’Sted maps and I will drop them off, head over to Plaza Extra to pick up a few things, and then return to get them. I plan to just drop them off in front of Sonya’s on Company Street but there is half of a legal parking space available in front so I run in for just a minute and, of course, have to look around. I “keep left” and see a pair of silver earrings in the shape of a coral fan that I feel I can’t go home without. I dash back out to the car just ahead of the bike cop with his ticket pad and head on out to Plaza Extra. St. Round-a-Bout, the patron saint of STX road navigation, must be smiling upon me today as I have no trouble with the 708 East / West thing this time and get back to C’Sted without getting lost and doing the ol’ loop d’loop. I get a legal spot and order a diet coke at the Twin Cities Coffee Shop and just chill at an outside table while waiting for the girls. They have each bought earrings at Sonya’s – KG’s are being made for her and she will pick them up before we leave the island. KS has the STX hook earring hoops – a pair for herself and one for their other sista. They’ve found a great pirate t-shirt for KS’s Hubs and I’ve picked up one of the Miss Anna’s sauces at Plaza Extra as a suggestion for KG who was looking for something to bring back to her office mates.

On the way back east we stop off at Southgate Farm for some veggies but we didn’t realize how early we needed to get there in order to get salad greens or bread. All we can get is tomatoes and they look really good, although pretty pricey. We stop at Chenay Bay for a late lunch – no Big D today, but the view, food and service are very good. More sun time at D’Estasi. Tonight is burgers and KS’s excellent potato salad which has been developing its flavors since yesterday.

Sunday, April 26

Woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of something scratching outside. Figured it must have been an animal scratching at the large refuse can outside the gate so I went back to sleep thinking we would just deal with whatever mess in the morning. Woke up Sunday to this sight outside the small vent window in my bathroom:

Scratchy here evidently fell down into the window well without his Life Alert button and couldn’t climb out so he wedged himself between the glass panes of the little crank window and tried to scratch his way in. KS put on some rubber gloves to protect against pincers and saved poor Scratchy from his prison of glass then set him free down on the beach. Better she than me – I would have cooked him – he was a really good size, too…

We had planned to go to brunch at the Pelican today for Mimosas but I had been thinking about how the days were flying past and we were spending a lot of time at D’Estasi so I suggested that we head to Cane Bay for lunch instead so the girls could see a different part of the island. Went to Cane Bay, to Off the Wall beach bar, had some pizza by the slice and Reubens and just had some good “at the bar time”. Tried VI Summer Ale – KS and I both thought it was a bit too sweet. It was a beautiful day at Cane Bay and we didn’t want to leave. My first time driving out to Cane Bay on that twisty turny 80 North Shore Road and St. Round-a-Bout was still with me – only one wrong turn coming back on 75 in Golden Rock – didn’t get lost, corrected it right away.
Monday, April 27

Sailing Day! It’s a beautiful morning and we all are excited about heading out on the Calypso Rose. How often do you get to be the only passengers on a beautiful sailing yacht? We meet Captain Miel at the St. Croix Yacht Club. He tells us that we have some pretty rough seas today as well as the algae plume greening up the waters around Buck Island. He thinks we may be in for a pretty rough ride and he gives us the option of postponing. As we cannot be sure that this glorious weather is going to hold a couple of more days we talk about just going for it. KS has recently been experiencing vertigo and has loaded up on Bonine just in case but even she is all for giving the day a shot and no one else is backing down, either. Miel assures us that if even just one of us looks to be going down with a bad case of motion sickness that we will come right on back. Oh, if Hubs had only had that option on The Roseway – lol. We get in the dinghy at the pier and bounce our way on out to the Calypso Rose:

The spray feels great on our short trip out to the boat and we are thoroughly wet and loving it. I’m so glad I had protected my cameras inside Ziplocs before I put them in my beach bag. The only bag that took the ride well was the Polar Bear cooler – that thing really sheds water. Scootching ourselves onto the boarding deck from the dinghy was an experience in the chop – one craft would go up as the other craft would go down –and I’m talking feet, not inches. We each had to catch a rare moment of synchronization to make the transfer. With Miel and First Mate Sharon’s help we all get transferred to the Rose without sending anyone or anything into the drink. Miel and Sharon give us the grand tour: The Calypso Rose is a 43’ Beneteau with three cabins and 3 heads, a galley and kitchen area, a large amount of deck space and a very comfortable cockpit with shaded cover. Sharon gives us a demo of the head and then we all go back up to the cockpit to settle in while Miel goes over the safety features and equipment on the Rose and also what to do in the event of various emergencies. We ask a few follow-up questions then Miel and Sharon maneuver off the mooring, we get turned around, and head to the west toward Buck Island. Miel raises the spinnaker, cuts the motor and we are flying. KS takes a turn at the helm and, with Miel’s expert instruction, gets us through some rough water and past the reefs:

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We are enjoying just moving on the water. It takes us about an hour to reach Buck Island under sail. We anchor a ways out from the beach on sand and Miel explains to us about letting the anchor chain tell you where you are at on the bottom – sand or rock. We’re looking good on sand in a very nice spot. The NPS boat arrives and the Rangers note how we are anchored (I guess making sure that we are not on coral) then continue on their way. It’s really uncanny how green the water looks due to the algae plume – it kind of looks like the Chicago River on St. Patrick’s Day:

We talk about swimming for the beach but we are just enjoying being lazy on the boat so we opt to put that off until after lunch. Sharon makes us a delicious meal while we have a drink and just relax in the cockpit. After dessert, KS tries a swim off the fantail but there is a very strong current at work here and still a lot of chop so she comes back up pretty quickly. It’s not a good day for lazy snorkeling. KG and I are not all that unhappy at KS’s news – we are just content to be lazy butts on board with Sharon and Miel and enjoy some excellent conversation over another drink.

After a couple of hours of just enjoying the company, boat, sun and the breeze, a big yacht shows up – we gauge it to be about 70 feet. It is the Hanalei Bay from British Columbia that charters out of St. Thomas.

They start maneuvering to anchor but are having a tough time. Their anchor chain “stutters” and they are either on rock or coral – exactly what Miel had been explaining to us. We have a few really snarky Canuck yucks, like how we guess that the yacht must be a lot tougher to park than a Zamboni (geesh, we were really unkind - especially me – lol). They maneuver around closer and closer to The Rose, Miel throws out some bumpers as the current is really strong and The Hanalei is swinging aroundf and I start taking more pictures, hoping that Miel the pix won't be needed for an insurance claim:

The Hanalei Bay moves position yet again and finally gets situated on sand and the captain calls to Miel hoping that we are staying the night with them here at Buck Island. Miel tells him no, that we are leaving in a few and reminds him to get his Canadian flag flying before the NPS Rangers come by – guess you have to have your country flag displayed at all times.

It’s been a beautiful day at Buck Island thus far but we can see some black clouds forming so we head on back. After we get through Sneaky Reef, KG takes the helm and sails a bit. We outrun the clouds but can see that the skies have opened up right over Buck Island and we are glad that we got out of there when we did. We get back to the yacht club and say thanks and see-you-later to Sharon and Miel – we have been invited over to their B&B tomorrow for drinks.

For dinner we had some great filets KS brought from home. KG, who is a master griller, had a tough time grilling them out on the gallery in the wind, though, but ended up cooking everyone’s just right and they were excellent, paired with some Portobello mushrooms cooked in a balsamic reduction, crispy taters and a beautiful salad with avocado and farm fresh tomatoes.

Tuesday, April 28

I am going to try to meet up with Ann today to see a couple of north side villas. The sistas are going to stay at D’Estasi and try to get some sun. I have never seen anyone as melanin-challenged as these girls. They can baste and bake for hours without showing tan or burn. I am Irish-fair and spend more than half the time in the shade but I still tan and have to be very careful not to burn. It’s SPF 30, 15, and only when I have a great base, 8, in small doses of sun. The sistas could probably slather on EVOO and still be pale after sizzling in oil all day.

Ann is tied up today but Marti Gotts is going to take me to Judith’s Fancy and to the north shore. We agree to meet at the Vacation St. Croix office in La Grande Princesse and I actually get there without any wrong turns, even going through Five Corners – I had been dreading that one. It was so nice to meet Inderia and Velma at the VSTX office and to finally meet Marti – she and I have been talking over the phone off and on for a couple of years about various trips but this is the first time we have met. We both seem to have a similarly wicked sense of humor and I am looking forward to spending time with her on our tour this morning.

Marti drives us out to Judith’s Fancy, a mostly beachfront community to the north and west of C’Sted. The waves really pound in here all of the time but it is especially rolling right now due to the winds. Marti tells me that this is surfer heaven on STX when the winds are like this.

Our first stop is Blue Iguana, a newer three bedroom 3 bath one level villa that is beachfront and has lots of upscale amenities. Blue Iguana has three lovely bedrooms with gorgeous marble and glass baths and a very modern kitchen. The view is tremendous and there is a path through low sea grape to the beach – white sand maybe about 20 feet off the pool deck.

Next is Seacliff Cove – an unbelievably luxurious 3 bedroom 4½ bath villa. The pool is huge and there are steps leading from the pool deck up to a built-in Jacuzzi. The décor and amenities here are absolutely stunning and there seems to be a view of rolling surf from every window and from the various balconies and porches throughout. There is also a kitchenette off the pool level. I can’t even begin on the beautifully appointed interiors – way too much to list here. All I can say in short space is that the master bathroom can only be described as decadent.

Marti and I leave Judith’s Fancy and head past Salt River Bay to Route 78, the scenic drive up above Columbus Landing. Although it is currently occupied, Marti points out the beautiful Clairmont Mill villa, built around an old mill: http://www.michaelhelmarchitects.com/Mill.html

We then reach Brimstage Estate, a 3 bedroom, 3 bath villa high above Columbus Landing where I am very taken with the two kitchens in this home – the interior one with the great layout, equipment and view, and then the second cooking and prep space on the deck. This outdoor kitchen is sunken between a hot tub and a pool with a swim-up bar on a deck where the view goes on forever and you can see both the north and south shores of STX. Wow!

I’ve seen quite a few gorgeous villas this trip and my head is spinning thinking about where we might stay next. I really appreciate Ann and Marti taking the time to show me around.

On the way back from La Grande Princess I stop at the Pueblo at Golden Rock – a market we have never tried as we have never been too taken with the Pueblos on STT. This Pueblo is very nice, though, and today they have some really good looking produce. I pick up some strawberries to add to the snack spread we are bringing over to Sharon and Miel’s this evening.

Back at D’Estasi the whitest girls I know are still turning on the spit. I join them for the afternoon and soon it’s time to clean up and put together our traveling nosh and drive on over to Carden Beach.

Carden Beach is a gated condo development in Coakley Bay in a gorgeous seaside setting. The landscaping is beautiful. We stop at the gatehouse and Sharon buzzes us in and we take the winding drive to their condo. A B&B in a condo sounds a bit strange, until you see it. It’s a beautiful unit built on two levels fronting the water – there are three bedrooms, 2 are guest rooms with baths ensuite and the third an office / bedroom for the owners with an adjacent guest bath. The beautifully appointed bedrooms are at opposite ends of the condo from each other. There is an open plan great room and kitchen and a large patio with a gate that leads to the path to the pool and ocean. The inn is available when Miel and Sharon are not off sailing the BVI with on-board guests and guests of the inn may also take advantage of sailing around STX with the couple. More info: http://www.sailandbreakfast.com/ We nejoy some time just snacking on the patio watching the beautiful Buck Island view and the hummingbirds and bananaquits hitting the sugar feeders.

After we leave Carden Beach we go to the Terrace Bar at the Buccaneer to watch the sunset. KS has wanted to try sipping some Cruzan Single Barrel – she wants to bring some home to her Hubs but wants to try it first. We are sure they will have it at the Terrace Bar. I have also heard a lot about Larry, the resident good-time bartender at the Buc. He is there this evening and lives up to his rep. Larry has a cocktail concoction show every Friday evening (sorry we missed that) and now has Gray Goose sponsoring half price vodka drinks during his show and Mongoose 104.9 FM sponsoring a simulcast. It's still early and the bar is pretty deserted so Larry spends a bit of time with us helping KS to sort out the differences in the various rums. Then, his groupies arrive and start doing their “Oh, Larry” shtick and they really keep him hopping –yes, Larry has groupies, cougar groupies - lol. What a guy! Here’s his mug shot – when on STX stop in and see Larry and watch him work the ladies... er, the bar.

We head back to D’Estasi. I confess I’m getting a bit weary of being the designated driver here but as we round a tight turn I’m suddenly glad I have been drinking just diet and lime as three deer jump right out in front of us and I need to react very quickly or have us wearing deerskin. That makes five deer that I have seen this trip. Later, I hear from Rute Boye on TA that the reason they are so visible right now is because it is so very dry on the island and they are eating a lot of moist yard plants and drinking out of pools and so are venturing much closer to humans than usual.

I peel my nerves back after that close encounter of the four-footed kind and drive more slowly back to the villa in case we have more deer in the road or even a darting mongoose – my nerves are on high alert, I think I would even brake quickly for a gecko. We finish the evening switching between the Bulls Game and Dancing with the Stars over some loaded Snicker Smoothies. VERY loaded smoothies (I made ‘em) – as KG was switching back and forth between the channels I was getting confused and thinking Gilles Marini was shooting free throws and Ben Gordon was dancing the Argentine Tango.

Wednesday, April 29

It’s “Buy the Rum” day. We are on the hunt to K-Mart, Plaza Extra and Cost U Less for the best price for Cruzan Single Barrel – CUL had the best price at $25 a bottle. At Sunny Isle I take a wrong turn in the mall and end up going the wrong way in a one way lane. Before I can recover and get out of there we hear the whoop-whoop of the VIPD in a big SUV coming at us – geesh, you can turn off the lights and the sirens – it’s not like we’ve just robbed a flippin’ bank. Must be a slow day for crime. The cops get out, block all of the traffic and proceed to instruct me on how to turn the car around and go the right way. How embarrassing. Come on – just move your honkin’ big Chevy Subdivision out of the way and this will be a 3 point turn rather than a 9 point turn and we’ll be gone in about half a minute. They finally come to this realization on their own and move the SUV and we are back on the right track quickly. KS and I have a history of attracting police when we are out together but that’s all I am going to say about that. Unfortunately, that seems to have followed us to the USVI. The sistas get their purchases in between some quick downpours and we score some good prices on Single Barrel, Rum Cream and even some Mount Gay. We pick up some more Miss Anna’s sauce varieties, too – can’t wait to try the dry seasoning.

On the way back east the sun has come out again in force so we stop at the Deep End Bar at Tamarind Reef for a late lunch. Tamarind Reef has really good snorkeling and the Green Cay Marina is right there, too. The water remains very choppy, though. The Deep End bar also hosts the Tito & Sue crab races. Maybe we should have considered bringing ol’ Scratchy here one night to win us some swag.

Back to D’Estasi for more sun and we see a second horse taking a swim – a beautiful gray this time, not as accustomed to the water as the first horse, but doing ok with the man’s help.

It’s clean up the leftovers night. I always hate that night – usually happens on the last night of vacation and it kind of sounds the bell that the vaycay is just about over.

Thursday, April 30

Spent this last morning getting some final sun (the sistas are still praying for a tanning miracle – lol) and floating in the noodle chairs. I really hate packing to leave. We cushioned the liquor boxes with defrosted techni ice down the sides which worked quite well. We took our remaining food over to Sharon and Miel’s then got gas (up a whole dime to $1.88 a gallon this week), picked up some Subway sandwiches, headed on to the airport, unloaded and parked the rental for Centerline to pick up. We used a porter and he took everything all the way through to TSA. Pleasant departure through customs, TSA (where they took a lot of care with the liquor boxes and reinforced them with gobs of tape), and at the gate, as usual – lots of smiles.

Our flight to Miami was on time. This time, to get to our next gate in Miami we had to hike to Orlando, take an escalator to an upper level, and then take a tram to our next gate – geesh. Every trip through there is a new surprise. We had a several hour delay in Miami as ATC had closed two runways for wahever reason. We passed the time watching the Bulls game on the large flat screens in a new multi-gate waiting area. Kind of nice area but definitely not worth the trek. Our pilot made up a lot of the lost time heading north and kept us updated on the Bulls and Blackhawks scores. We get into O’Hare, the luggage and liquor arrive in good shape, Hubs is there to pick me up, the girls grab their cab to KG’s house, and , just like THAT, vacation is over.

The sistas enjoyed STX – both the similarities and the differences to STT & STJ and other Caribbean islands they have visited. Unfortunately, the call from the UK didn't come and we missed SR a great deal. I had a wonderful time on both parts of this trip – 17 days may seem like a long time but, still, it seemed to go by so very fast. Next trip Hubs and I have vowed not to be sick and to spend more time out on the west end of STX and maybe we’ll finally get to the rain forest. Maybe we’ll add a couple of more days onto our trip...time to start thinking about that and where to stay and time to get a new vacation countdown ticker…