First let me introduce the players (initials used to protect the innocent)
Me - 44 years old
Hubby - 58 years old
L.A. - 43 years old (never been to the VI)
B - unknown age (never been to the VI)
V - 45 years old (never been to the VI)
J - V's Husband missing from this report due to their 12 year old son making the All Star team (Still never been to the VI)

And, I am the one who did all of the planning, made all of the reservations, picked the dates, etc. . .

WHO CARES, GET ON WITH THE REPORT ALREADY (No, this is not a split personality, I borrowed this from another person's report - it is all of you on the forum, yelling at me to get on with the story).

Ok, ok, got up at 3am, Hubby and I picked up by B, L.A. and V. We decided one vehicle parked at the airport was enough - Good thing they have an Excursion - 5 of us with snorkel gear, b.c.'s and weights for diving, shorts, tops, all of the ladies with one pair of capris (that was my rule) and me and my 5 (yes, count them 5) different bathing suits. I went a little crazy ordering from the Lands End catalog. We got to the airport early enough - checked our bags, whoops, L.A. and B's bags too heavy, had to redistribute the weights to everyone's carry ons.

DIDN'T YOU THINK THAT THE WEIGHTS COULD BE RENTED WHEN YOU RENTED THE TANKS?

Yes, but I require quite a bit of weight in my b.c., I seem to float no matter how much weight I have (something about fat content). Anyways, that's neither here nor there, we brought them, we're stuck with them. Long line at security after screwing around outside smoking our last cigarettes. Then they all wanted to stop for breakfast once past security. Needless to say we were the last ones on the plane.

Stopped in Miami - had to walk the 14 miles in between terminals (worse on the way back carrying all that liquor). Then, we decided to go smoke, all 3 of us girls (ladies, women, whatever) got stopped on our way back through security. Ma'am, do you have any kind of metal in your carry on? NO. Jewelry? NO. Are you sure? Yes - as he's unpacking my unmentionables and one of my bathing suits (just in case my luggage gets lost). OH YEAH, I'm carry 2- 4lb bags of lead pellets. Had to explain the purpose, he laughed and sent me on my way (The other 2 girls got the body search too).

FULL BODY SEARCH??

No, get your mind out of the gutter, just a waving of the wand over the body. Off to the gate, where we sit and wait, wait and pace, watch a piece of luggage through the window, fall out of one of those luggage carrier things as the driver takes a turn at about 60mph. Look at the luggage. OMIGOD, is that our bag with the b.c.'s and snorkeling gear?? sure looks like it. We report it to the gate agent, she comes and looks at it through the window and says she'll take care of it. We watch as one, then two people walk by it (close enough to touch it) and another drive around it (hey, that was courteous). Watch another, pick it up, look at tag and put it back down. Come'on, someone's going to be missing their luggage at their destination. By then, we've determined it's not ours but still go report it 2 more times. Finally, someone comes and gets it.

AGAIN, MINDLESS DETAILS, PLEASE GET ON TO THE REAL STUFF. WE WILL BE BACK FROM OUR VACATION BY THE TIME YOU FINISH YOUR FIRST DAY!

No worries, almost there, just calm down. Touch down in STT at around 3:30. I can barely contain my excitement. Get off the plane, rum punch waiting, everyone decides they need a toast - they have to call me back b/c I'm making my way to the rental car desk already. I pick up rental car from AVIS, Chevy Trailblazer, some scratches on it but hey who wants a car that's brand new. I want to be able to put a scratch or two on it without any problems with insurance. All of the luggage shows up and loaded into the rental car.

I begin driving, hubby in the front with me, the other 3 in the back. I'm already grinning ear to ear because I'm back where I belong (is that a song?) and they have no idea what the roads are like or what it's like driving on the left. 😀

Everyone is oohing and aahhing at the water, how beautiful the harbor is - go past Havensight up the hill and around, scary turn for them at the top there, another scary part a few more feet and then DONKEY HILL (music please). Hubby and I are giggling and laughing so hard at the reactions and pleading from the back of the car, please stay on your side of the road. I really am staying on my side, they're just not used to side view mirrors being so close to them on the right!

YOU DO HAVE A MEAN SPIRIT IN THERE, DON'T YOU?

No, not really but Finally, when they can't take it anymore, I pull into Pirate's Cove - I figure they all deserve a drink after the ride! Bartender there very nice, made the girls (excluding me) Painkillers with Cruzan and the boys their regular drinks. THubby wanted a bushwhacker, no blender at Pirate's Cove. Good old fashioned mixed drinks and beer! I'm sorry I didn't get her name but she offered us bug spray and took our pictures even though she had a full bar. Good place to stop for a quick drink.

Off to the Anchorage Condo - Found Anchorage okay, checked in. The 3 bedroom was perfect for us. The beach there is nothing to write home about but the condo was clean, furnished well, nice kitchen, porch to sit out on and enjoy the breezes. The grounds were kept nice and the pool was clean (I never used it). There was a washer/dryer in the condo also.

Dinner: We went to Latitude 18 since it's right down the street from Anchorage and I had heard great reviews from prior posts. They were not kidding. Tuna appetizer - FANTASTIC; Shrimp appetizer - GOOD especially when we used the sauce to dip the french bread in. We all ordered sandwiches and drinks. All in all a great meal at good prices and we will definitely return. NO FOO-FOO drinks here either! Chris was playing the guitar, he was good and also seemed to enjoy the banter from the crowd (or was that just us giving him a hard time?). We stayed late, walked out on the docks. And used the bug spray provided for us.

FOO-FOO DRINKS? WE DON'T NEED NO FOO-FOO DRINKS!

That's all for now, it's getting late and I'm supposed to be studying for the bar exam not writing trip reports. Sorry it was so long for just the first day but it will pick up from here.

I HOPE SO, NO WONDER YOU'RE A LAWYER, LONG WINDED DOESN'T DO IT JUSTICE.

Shush . .. . next installment - Coki Beach and Foo-Foo Drinks. 😛