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Caribbean Travel Roundup
Paul Graveline, Editor
Edition 57
September 1, 1995
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We visited Guadeloupe in March 1995. This was our second trip to the island, our first being in 1993. This is the first time we have made a return trip to a Caribbean island. We previously visited Barbados and St. Martin. So, why did we decide to return?
There are three things which attract us to this island. First, it is somewhat off the American tourist track. Not too many Americans visit Guadeloupe; indeed, there are only two American Airlines flights per day out of San Juan, using ATR turboprop aircraft. Tourists come primarily from France, although we saw a few more Americans on our second trip. The island is not dedicated to tourism. Industry is small, with many sugar and banana plantations, and distilleries.
The second "attraction" is Guadeloupe's geography. The island is actually two islands connected by a bridge. The western island, Basse Terre, is higher in altitude and has an active (though sort of dormant -- you can smell it) volcano. The relatively high elevation of the west makes for a very lush, tropical environment. However, Grande Terre, the eastern island, is in a rain shadow. It is much drier, with more desert-type vegetation. The east and north coasts are quite rugged, with the Atlantic Ocean crashing in.
The geography of Guadeloupe encourages tourists to explore the island. Therefore, unless you are at the Club Med or similar establishment which run tours around the island, you must rent a car if you want to get around. The roads are good, reflecting the importance of commerce to the island (as well as the availability of aid money from the European Union). They contrast sharply with the roads on St. Martin, which were terrible when we visited in 1991.
The third attraction is the French influence on Guadeloupe. There is something quite civilized about having a fresh baguette and cheese for a picnic lunch on the beach. The food on Guadeloupe outpaces that of St. Martin and Barbados. Guadeloupe is a part of France, so you should have a French phrase-book with you, especially in out of the way areas.
Where we Stayed
The first time we went to Guadeloupe, we stayed at the Cannella Beach hotel in Gosier. The hotel was fine, although the beach is small and not very interesting. The staff is friendly and can communicate in English. We did not have a meal plan, preferring to use the kitchenette to prepare our own breakfasts and picnic lunches -- a step we highly recommend to save money. We did eat dinner once at the Veranda, the hotel's restaurant and enjoyed the well-prepared food.
On our second trip we were slightly more adventurous. We decided to rent a cottage in St. Felix, just east of Gosier. This cottage, owned by the Josie and Christopher Dock, is advertised in "Caribbean Travel and Life" and mentioned in one of the Caribbean travel books out there.
The Docks' property consists of two villas (they live in one), a one bedroom cottage and a studio apartment. It is located about five minutes from a very quiet beach and a shopping center. The cottage has a kitchenette with two electric burners and a refrigerator, and a loft bedroom. A telephone, radio and television are also included. The cottage does not have air conditioning, but does have a ceiling fan. On really warm nights, it can get a bit sticky and somehow the mosquitoes do make it under the net. You do need to keep the window open; since this is the Caribbean you are guaranteed reptilian visitors. The lizards are small and eat gross things, so welcome them. The Docks provide pick-up at the airport and daily maid service that includes laundry. The Docks are very friendly and helpful, and are quick to provide useful touring information.
Beaches
The main reason for us to visit the Caribbean in the winter is to go to the beach. That's where we spent most of our time.
Beaches on Guadeloupe tend to be small, in coves. Some beaches are a bit shallow and narrow. Some of the best are Grand Anse on the west coast of Basse Terre; Islet Gosier, a few hundred yards off of the southwest side of Grande Terre; Tarare on the southeast coast; Anse Crawen on the island of Terre de Haute and the beach at the Fort Royal Hotel, in the northwest of Bas Terre. The beaches at St. Anne in the southeast (including the Club Med Caravalle beach) are a bit shallow, but great for kids.
The beach at Grand Anse is the most beautiful. The sand is a golden color and the beach is wide. The water is good for swimming. The water when we were there was rough; however, we spoke to another couple who said that it was almost like a lake the day before.
Tarare is another good swimming beach; it is in a sheltered area, so waves are not rough. The water temperature was just right. The beach is small, though. Tarare is a bit hard to find, as you have to travel a dirt road. Look for the sign on the left hand side of the road, on your way to Points des Chateaux. From the area just opposite the beach you can get a spectacular view of the ocean and the Points des Chateaux in the distance.
Islet Gosier is just off of the mainland. To get to Islet Gosier, go to the dock in Gosier. Men there have small power boats and charge a few dollars for the quick round trip. The beaches on the south side of the islet are somewhat isolated and private. There are a lot of sea urchins there -- we recommend swim socks if you want to go into the water.
Note: You may see naked people at the following beaches: Tarare, part of Caravelle, Anse Crawen, and Gosier. If you are bothered by such sights, you may want to avoid them. We observed no risque behavior on these beaches, unlike in St. Martin. In fact, the behavior of people on the beaches in Guadeloupe in general is great -- no boom boxes, no yelling. The beaches are quiet and relaxing.
Things to See and Do (and Avoid)
Les Saintes: These are a number of small offshore islands. Terre de Haute is the principal one. This is one of the loveliest spots in the Caribbean. It is an all-day trip. Take the boat from Point-a-Pitre; it leaves at 8:00 a.m. and costs about $30 per person round trip. The crossing takes about an hour. (It's not bad going out, but the return trip in the afternoon can be a bit rough.) Terre de Haute can be hot and dry so make sure you have a hat, sun screen and a bottle of water before setting out. The travel magazine that we read says you can walk the length of the island. That's true literally, but it is so hot that you may prefer to rent a scooter instead (or hop the bus to the Bois Joli Hotel). Hotel buses also go up the hill to Fort Napoleon, which is a steep hike of about an hour but well worth the fabulous view of the harbor and the smaller islands. The fort has a museum with artifacts from the late 18th-early 19th centuries and an impressive cactus garden.
Directly opposite from Fort Napoleon is the beach at Anse Crawen. This is about a 45 minute hike from where the ferry arrives. The walk is a steady climb, and can be steep. The beach is about five minutes past the Bois Joli hotel.
Basse Terre: Allow time for at least two visits here. For one trip, take the highway around the southern side of the island. This will enable you to visit the Chutes du Carbet and the Suffriere volcano. The road is in excellent shape and is very scenic, but is winding and can be very slow. The Chutes are beautiful. There is an easy hike to the lower falls, which empty into a pool that you can splash in. After visiting the falls, push on to the volcano.
The road to the volcano is very steep -- make sure you have confidence in your car's brakes. The volcano is impressive, and you can follow the trail to the top. However, it probably is impossible to do both the falls and the top of the volcano in one day.
However, its worth going to both. If you have some time left after the volcano, freshen up at one of the black sand beaches nearby.
On your second trip to Basse Terre, take Route de la Traversee westward across the island. The road cuts through the heart of the rainforest, and is beautiful. Plan to stop at the Maison de la Foret for an interesting, if short, hike. We saw the biggest snails in the world there. If you want, stop at the Cascade aux Ecrevises. This is a pleasant waterfall, but there are so many people visiting it that it just is too crowded. Hiking trails into the forest can be accessed from the road.
After reaching the coast, head north for the beach at Grande Anse, north of Deshais, for some well earned relaxation. After Grand Anse, the road loops over the north side of the island and returns to Grande Terre quickly.
Grande Terre: Grande Terre's north and east sides are quite rugged -- you would not think you are in the calm Caribbean. Actually, they face the Atlantic Ocean. At the northeast corner is Grand Vigie. It is well named, for there is a great view of steep cliffs and crashing waves. On a clear day (which we did not have) you can see the island of Montserrat, about 35 miles away. South of Grand Vigie is the Port d' Enfer en, or Gates of Hell. This is a small inlet into which the Atlantic storms through. Very impressive.
At the southwest end of Grande Terre is Points des Chateaux. Some compare its scenery to Brittany. There is a short hike to which provides a pretty impressive view. Near Points des Chateaux are the beaches at Tararre and Anse de la Gourde.
Food
After a day at the beach, one can work up an appetite. Fortunately, there are some fine eating places on Guadeloupe.
Our favorite dinner restaurant is Bananier in Gosier. The cuisine can be described as Nouvelle Creole. The menu is creative, and the food well prepared. Dinner for two, without wine, is about $60. We were pleasantly surprised by the restaurant at Tarare Beach where we had lunch. We both had a very filling, tasty meal which served as dinner. For a cheap eats, try the Express Grill on the highway between Gosier and St. Felix. This is an open air restaurant featuring barbecued chicken. They have takeout, too. The sight of smoke belching out onto the highway, along with a rather garish neon sign screaming "Grillades" attracted us. Chez Lydie in St. Felix is an inexpensive and good creole restaurant. Note, Lydie takes cash only. Gosier strip: There are several restaurants on the strip that goes from the main road to the hotels in Gosier. They all are reasonably priced (for the Caribbean), and offer daily specials.
Many travel guides recommend Chez Violetta in Gosier. We don't. We ate there in 1993 and were disappointed. Violetta herself died a few years ago (though that fact is not well advertised) and the kitchen has suffered. This restaurant is overrated.
Another overrated restaurant is the one at the Hotel Vieille Tour, also rated highly in travel books. The food is nothing special for the high price, and the service rough.
We recommend stopping at the various patisseries for bread and pastries. The Match grocery store in the St. Felix, Grande Terre shopping center is a good place to pickup lunch and snack fixings. Match is open on Sundays. There is a good bakery in shopping center.
Travellers Tips:
Don't send mail from the Gosier post office. We have lost postcards twice there.
The Credit Agricole bank in Gosier has an ATM machine outside that accepts Visa (not marked). Use that machine to get cash. Don't stand in line at the bank unless you want to get a bad exchange rate and waste good beach time. Don't waste too much time in Pointe a Pitre, the largest city on Guadeloupe. Its not very interesting. We wish we allotted time to visit the town of Basse Terre (the capital) which looks pretty nice.
JAMAICA: JAMAICA JAMAICA BY DEBBIE HOFFREN
We got back in early July from a 7 full day, six night trip to Jamaica Jamaica. This was our second visit to the resort. The first visit was in September, 1992.
Sunday, July 2
We were up at 4:30 and left for the airport at 5:30. We arrived at the airport before 6. Parked in City Economy lot against my will and were at terminal at 6:20. The line was awful. They started getting Miami passengers to the front of line. This was a good idea except that we were going to Miami and many cut in front of us, resulting in extra delay. The flight left on time at 7:05.
We had cereal, banana, and strange muffin. We didn?t get to sit together. We were on time to Miami. Our bags were checked through to Montego Bay. We shared a $3.50 slice of pizza. We were given turkey and cheese calzone (good) with banana chips (I didn?t eat them) and cookie. We arrived at 12:20 in Montego Bay, on time. We were greeted by a power outage. This led to a baggage nightmare as bags from all flights were brought out one bag at a time and deposited randomly. People climbed on top of the conveyor belts to scan the entire terminal for bags. Amazingly, this only delayed things about 30 minutes. I brought my own diet soda, as I am not a Red Stripe or regular soda drinker. However, I took my free Red Stripe and gave it to Todd to drink with his. We left the airport at 1:30 and were at the resort at 2:52.
We checked into our suite. Jamaica Jamaica should do the welcome drink like Sandals, Couples, and San Souci Lido. Anyway, the suite was slightly better that the regular room we had on our last visit. It had a living room, patio almost to the beach, and a tvcr. The rooms have added a teapot and safe deposit box since our last visit. There was a bottle of champagne there soon after our arrival.
We had missed lunch. We got in the Jacuzzi--too cold, so we went to the beach grill for a burger. We were disappointed because there was no fries. Burger was identical in taste to all Jamaican hamburgers, but bun was awful. This is the worst beach grill of all the resorts we?ve visited in Jamaica.
Todd hopped in the shower, and we then went to the 5:30 welcome party. It was fun. The party was held in the disco. They had tacos (stale shells), watermelon, sandwiches(we didn?t try those). The bar and dance floor were open. We danced. They had a game to reggae music. Everyone was to take off one shoe and throw it in a pile. They turned out the lights. The first four people to find their shoe got a bottle of Tia Maria liqueur. I was No. 1. They had a dance contest that pushed the rating from PG-13 to R.
We went to the Jacuzzi and then watched part of ?I Married an Axe Murderer? on TV.
At 8:30, we ate dinner at Martino?s, the Italian restaurant. We had chicken and spinach soup, antipasto from a little buffet (salad,etc.) Next, Todd had lasagna. He then had pasta with mussels and shrimp. I had veal scaloppini--delicious. Next, I had fruit tart--puff pastry with watermelon and cantaloupe on top. Todd had fresh fruit--watermelon and cantaloupe. All was good except the salami. As always in Jamaica, I won?t eat the sausage.
After dinner, we joined the bingo in progress in the lobby. We played 3 games with 3 cards each. I won 2 of them--an L and blackout. I got Tia Maria and a resort logo visor.
At 10 p.m., we went to the night club to hear the entertainment. The band started late. The singer was Katherine Smith. We stayed for 6 or 8 songs because Todd wasn?t feeling well--maybe something in the seafood. The singer was good. The music was contemporary. Observations: Disco was a younger crowd. The resort had a wider age mix than 3 years ago and more singles.
Aside: More about the suite: the number was 1142. It is oceanview with flowering shrubs limiting the path up for more privacy. There were windows on 2 sides. The living room had a table with 4 chairs, a couch, large chair, end table, and coffee table. The TV had satellite and a built in VCR. I did not see any videos in the library but did not ask. There was an area rug under parts of the room. There was a patio ousted with 2 chairs and an end table, but this was ruined by the guard that sat there constantly to sign in and out golf-goers. The bedroom had a door with separate lock and key. The bed was king-size. There was a chair and footstool in the corner. The tub was normal-sized. The bedroom had a desk with a few drawers. Although there was lots of room, there was no chest of drawers. In the living room, there was a teapot and tea bags and instant coffee. There was a cabinet under the TV that looked like it should hold a refrigerator. It didn?t. There was even a manual for a refrigerator under there.
We went to bed at 11 p.m. or so that first night.
Monday, July 3.
I woke up at 3 or so but slept off and on until 7. Continental breakfast came at 7:35. It included pastries and muffin--no fruit. Orange juice, coffee, and tea were included. I went to the buffet and brought watermelon, cantaloupe, bacon, and boiled eggs.
On our last visit, breakfast was at the indoor restaurant. They have moved it to the beach terrace. They also had pancakes, omelets, and eggs to order. There was not a line for anything, including the omelets. I ate outside. Todd ate inside.
After breakfast, we went to the Golf Fundamentals video and golf school orientation. I went to the T-shirt painting. Unfortunately, if you want to participate, you must bring the plainest T-shirt you possess. I bought one in Mingles gift shop for $20 and returned to the craft shop. I fought the bees and got some Diet Pepsi from the machine at the beach bar. This worked most any hour during the visit and was a nice touch. Clyde runs the craft shop. He is handicapped and a graduate of the Jamaican School of Arts. Unfortunately, his program all week is painting on different things. He did more of it for me than I would have liked.
After crafts, we played ping pong and had a drink until lunch at 12:30. Lunch is on the beach terrace. It had a lot of Jamaican flavor. The had BBQ chicken, fresh pasta with several sauces and ingredients, curry chicken, fruit, salad, fish, and other items I didn?t eat, such as jerked pork, pastries, and sundaes. They had less selection than other resorts, but the food was pretty good. Wine was served.
After lunch, we watched the women?s swimsuit contest A woman from Belgium who claimed to run an escort service was having quite a time with a drunk man the entire staff and most of the guests knew as ?Al?. They had a beer-drinking contest before that. For the games, they gave away Tia Maria, visors, and T-shirts.
At 2, we went to the golf-school. I had private instruction until others showed up at 2:40. I participated until 3:15. The pro?s name was Erroll. Todd hit balls.
At 4:00 p.m., we went on the carriage ride. The ride is designed for two couples per carriage, for some reason. They bring a bottle of wine per couple. In 1992, we rode alone because the other couple didn?t show up. We got too liquored up. This time, another couple came. I had met them in the Jacuzzi earlier. They came on my recommendation. Two carriages were there, but they would not bring each of us separately. Between the four of us, we did not finish the two bottles. A lot of wine gets spilled. This was not romantic like the ride alone.
At 5 p.m., I went to aerobics. Todd went to Tennis with the pro. At 6, we went to the 5:30 cocktail party. Most of the food was gone, so we got a glass of wine and headed back to the room to change for dinner. We ate at the Jamaican buffet at the beach terrace. I had curried goat, mixed seafood (picked out the squid, ate scallops and shrimp). It was in coconut sauce. I had roast beef, salad, and the fruit from a banana & lemon tart. We ate with a couple from Pittsburgh who compared the experience to cruises. Todd and the other couple ate cake from corn. It was even shaped like corn. We had wine and chatted until 9. We went back to our room and watched part of the Twighlight Zone marathon and went to bed.
Tuesday, July 4
We got up at 7 for Todd to be at golf by 7:30. No tee time is required, but an early game means less heat. Everett, one of the caddies Todd had last November on our San Souci Lido trip, remembered Todd. Todd used him and loved him. The fee for 18 holes is $9. Todd loved him and gave him $20. Todd shot a 79.
My morning bath was interesting because the light kept going off and on. It took 30 minutes for me to get the water warm enough. At 8:30, I went to breakfast. I ate on the beach--bacon, eggs, toast, cantaloupe, and pineapple.
At 9:10, I went to golf school. I saw a video and then had a lesson on chipping with a pitching wedge. There were 4 others. I knew 3 from the previous lesson. I saw Todd on the last hole. He hit a great shot and went back to the room.
At 11, we went horseback riding. My horse was a little rough, but in general, the horses are tame. To ride, you must wear long pants, a provided helmet, and sign a waiver. The ride was through a neighborhood and lasted until 12. They have another ride earlier in the morning that goes up to an ocean view for photos.
After the ride, we changed to swimwear after a drink at the bar. We went to the beach and then lunch. I had grilled fish, curried chicken, pasta, salad, beans, and cantaloupe. Todd had tacos. We both had quesadillas and enjoyed them.
Todd went to arts and crafts to paint a sunset on a gourd. I joined him at 3:15 and painted fish in an ocean. This was after my massage. The massage cost $45 for an hour. It was well worth it. I have had quite a few and this was one of the best. Someone that saw me go in even commented on how different I looked when I came out. So much so that he got his camera to photo his woman coming out.
At 4 p.m., Todd went to tennis. I sat around until aerobics. The previous day was step aerobics. This day was low-impact sand somewhat wimpy. Eight people attended. Two were staff. Todd was dehydrated after the tennis tournament but got a Jamaica Jamaica T-shirt for participating.
We got ready for dinner at Martino?s. Both of us had soup--Todd minestrone, me--escarole. Next, antipasto was mussels, sardine, and salad. My third course was veal scaloppini (again). Todd had seafood pasta. Dessert--Todd had ameretto & chocolate cake. I had fruit. The meal lasted 7:30-8:35.
We came back to the room and watched more Twighlight Zone. At 10 p.m., we went to the nightclub for the entertainment. Dennis Marlow?? sang Benny King, Ray Charles, Bob Marley, and others. After the show at 11, we went to the disco for 30 minutes and pack
to the room. We stayed up awhile. During the night, the power went off and on. I slept very little but laid in bed all night anyway.
Wednesday, July 5
We were up at 7:20 and had a quick breakfast. The power was off, so there was no eggs to order, but they had omelets. We had those with toast and cantaloupe. I had hot tea. Todd had milk. At 8, Todd played 18 holes with same caddie. He got 80 this time. I went to the Jacuzzi then to golf video on swing and on to the lesson. Todd showed up and saw the end.
We went back to the room and changed for the beach until lunch at 1 p.m. This time, it was pizza, fries, pasta, mango, and wine.
After lunch, we were back to the beach. At 2 p.m., we went on the boat ride--just us and two guys from the watersports staff. The water was choppy. The ride was around Runaway Bay. We had to jump from one boat to another. We were given a rum punch during the ride. It ended at 3. Todd went back to the room to rest. I went to the gift shop and bought each of us a pair of resort logo shorts for $26.50. I bought Todd a shirt for $24.50 and some off-brand Jamaican coffee for $4.10 pound.
Since our last visit, the resort has added 8 quarter slots, a couple of $1 machines and a few video poker machines. I put $5 in the quarter machines until I lost it all. You have to use tokens in these machines which you can only buy at certain hours of the day, The machines are scarcely ever used, but I did hear someone win a jackpot. Vegas, this was not.
At 4:30, Todd entered the ping-pong tournament. Although he is very good, the competition was stiff. He won nothing. At 5, I went to aerobics. This time, the class was tough. I was body-shaping for 65 minutes with a 3.3 lb. weight in each hand. Todd joined at the end for the 15 minutes of abs.
We were going to go to the pool since there was no sun and the pool temperature felt good. It started to pour. We went to our room. I went back to the bar for drinks. I got Todd the special--grasshopper, and me a Vodka Tonic. The rain quit almost as soon as we got back. I took a bath and scalded myself this time. I was able to fix the temperature, however.
At 7:30, we went to Martino?s again. By this time, some of the folks we had met during the visit were sitting in groups. We continued to dine alone. Antipasto was clams, salad, and sardines. For the soup, we both had chicken and fennel soup. Next, Todd had snapper. I had veal marsala. Since I had seen pine nuts on a cold fish dish, I asked for some in my veal. They brought me some on a plate. Though I was tired of veal, this was the best dish yet. For dessert, Todd had cheese and crackers. I had watermelon and pineapple. We had wine with dinner. We were tired from the sleeplessness the night before. We stopped by the lobby bar for a drink and chatted with the bartender a bit. We took our drink to the room and were in bed by 9:30.
Thursday, July 6
I was up at 5:30 and watched the sunrise on the patio. I should?ve gone to the beach because part of the view was blocked by the trees. At least the guard wasn?t hanging out on our patio. The gardeners were already up and working. During the visit, they watered the same spot for up to 2 days with no break. Things were so dry and droopy due to lack of rain. The resort had at least a couple of wild cats running around, something I have found at most of the Jamaican resorts I?ve visited.
I went down to the beach. Amazingly, several people were around, including a woman doing yoga and a man jogging. This isn?t what you see at the couples only resorts. I enjoyed some Diet Pepsi again.
At 7, I got Todd up to get ready for breakfast. The water temperature in the room was okay that morning. We showed up at 7:25 for breakfast. About 20 people were already there digging in to what they could. The staff was eyeing their watches but let us go at it. Todd had an omelet. He skipped the shrimp and fake crab and opted for bacon and cheese. I had scrambled egg, a slice of bacon, a piece of toast, and mango. I had hot tea. Todd had milk. We were eating unhealthy food and the same every day, but it was what we could identify.
At 8, Todd went off to golf. I got in the Jacuzzi. As always, the temperature was okay but not spa temperature, This was different from 1992 when they were always running water in it to cool it down. I read a magazine.
At 9:30, I went to the Green Grotto Cave bike tour. Nine and the guide went. I didn?t bring money and couldn?t get any because Todd had the key to the safe. The entrance fee was $3.50. I arranged to borrow from the guide, knowing this would by like a loan shark experience. The ride was on bikes with a wide seat and with the wind. It was 25-40 minutes and at least 3 miles each way. They want you to buy drinks and look at crafts upon arrival. I got a $2 bottle of water.
The cave was interesting and worthy of a few photos. It wasn?t cold like caves in the states. They had lights placed here and there. They said the cave was 7 miles long but the tour was 3/4 of one mile. One cave was called Runaway, the other, Green Grotto. In between the two, they took us outside and to a tunnel down to some water. They took six of us out in a little boat and floated us around. This was where the submarine came up the James Bond film ?Live and Let Die?. At the end, they give you a rum punch, play music and push for tips for the bartender, musician, and guide.
I met several interesting people on the tour. One guy had just spent 5 days at Hedo and was telling us about his burnt rump. He was from Phoenix and said it took him 12 hours to get to Montego Bay. A couple from England said it took them 9 hours. The guy in that twosome, 1 yr. younger than me, was in my field. He is now an IT strategist. He said his raise was 4% this year. Another guy who programs in California and uses PowerBuilder, the took I use, also got 4%. Supposedly that is the market average. We get our raise next week. The British guy was on a two-week vacation because he is gong to quit when he comes back and work for IBM. Actually, he was raised in Scotland. I told him my husband just went to work for Compaq and he would be going to Scotland soon, so he told me where they are located.
We were back just before noon. I went to the room to get money for the guide. It was obvious he expected a tip. I gave him $9 for my $5.50 bill. He counted it all and said ?Thank you? and took off.
The maid was in our room but left soon, so we got ready for lunch. We had roast beef and gravy as the main course. We also had grilled fish, salad, and papaya. We had wine, but no refill was offered.
Next, I got back in the Jacuzzi until 1:50. After that, we changed for the golf lesson. We videotaped each other. I am definitely improving, but the teacher says I need another week in Jamaica. The lesson ended about 3:15.
At 3:30, I sat with a group and waited for a turn with the palm reader while Todd swam in the pool. According to the reading, I will make a good investment within a few years and have a great wealth line. My wealth may come from my husband. I have 2 marriages in my line, and my current should work out because I didn?t expect a rose garden! He said I would live past my late 80?s. He looked Todd?s and my birth year up in the Chinese book and made comments.
Next, Todd and I went to the Jacuzzi. He just spectated. Two other couples were there. One had got married at the resort on Tuesday. They were telling about a phone scam of someone calling her mother to bill a 3rd party call like they were her. Marriage license was next to the phone. The hotel is doing something about it.
At 5, I went to aerobics. She did hi/low and abs for 55 minutes. Se had mercy on us because she was in the Mingles fashion show at 6:30.
At 6:30, we attended a cocktail party for ?special people?. Marilyn and someone else (male) came to meet us. Barbara asked our opinion on the service and what they could do to improve on the hotel. We said we would like a more upscale category--more gourmet food and room service with a higher class suite and refrigerator. As a comment to the readers of this report, the service was better in 1992. They did not refill tea bas in the room, replace cups or take some of our trash. We had to beg for more shampoo on our 5th day since none had been left since day one. Around 15 people showed up. The food was outstanding but not enough for all attendees. At first, I had 4 fried fantail shrimp and a tin slice of sirloin. Later, they brought garlic shrimp. I had one, all that was left. We sat with a honeymoon couple from St. Louis. We had seen them at other activities. He was a chiropractor, her a beauty bride by trade.
At 7:30, we went to dinner. I had encrusted chicken after soup and antipasto, similar to other nights. The chicken was so salty I couldn?t eat it. Todd ate most of it, in addition to his pasta with mussels, shrimp, and scallops. We ordered dessert, but the staff was too busy chatting and goofing off and forgot about us. We finally had to leave.
At 8:30, Todd participated in the glow ball putting tournament. I was going to but chickened out. Erroll asked my to play several times. They had lots of wine, participants, and spectators. My British friends were there. Todd?s partner was a staff member.
They won visors, so the staff member gave me his. One was white, one was yellow. The one I won at bingo was green. We were in bed sometime after 10.
Friday, July 7
I woke up at 1:48 and slept off and on until 6:35. I had some tea and got Todd up at 7:40. We went to breakfast at 8. We had about the same food as other days but ate less.
At 9, we went to the golf video and then the woods lesson. I hit one to the back fence (200 yards). More people came than the range would hold, so we had to take turns. We were done at 10:45. We went back to the room. Unfortunately, I goofed up the satellite reception by trying to improve the picture. I lost most of the stations.
I kept checking the Jacuzzi all day. It was ice cold.
Around lunch, Todd got in the pool. We both tried to sunbathe at the beach, but there was so much wind that sand was blowing everywhere. We ate at 12:30. We had bbq ribs, salad, and fruit.
At 1:15, we arrived at the pro shop for the golf school scramble. Only those who attended three lessons could participate. Two foursomes at a twosome went out. I had never played a round, so this was very educational for me. We actually used 3 of my shots. With Todd on our team, we won with a 37, one over par for the back nine holes. The other two teams had 39 and 41. Winning didn?t matter much. We all got a Jamaica Jamaica shirt with Golf School printed on the back.
I joined the bingo on the beach terrace. The competition was too fierce. I went to a craft shop on the beach and bought a carved jewelry holder for $7 for a friend. Next, I was in the Jacuzzi for 1.5 hours. It was not quite warm. I talked to two other couples. I came back and took a hot bath while Todd watched t.v.
Unfortunately, we went to two dinners. First, we ate at the beach terrace. They had grilled meats--chicken pork, steak, mahi mahi, etc. We had steak. Todd had chicken, and we shared mahi mahi. I had salad and papaya. This was a tasty meal, and we wished we had gone by other nights and checked the menu at this restaurant since the Italian restaurant was so similar every night.
Next, we went to Martino?s. We had chicken and orzo soup and jumbo shrimp. I had salad. We shared fruit and had wine. We went back to the room at 8:30, so full it was unreal. We laid down until 9:40. I was so tired.
We decided to go to the staff/guest talent show on the semi-promise of hearing Erroll do Elvis music.
The nightclub got fairly full again. The show started on time an ran 1 hour and 40 minutes with two no-shows. Several members of the jazz band played or sang. The coordinators did several comedy routines, including one about how you catch what someone else has the doctor?s office. After a guy caught 3 things, he ran out when a pregnant woman came in. The show began with quite a few staff and guests coming through in togas. Nothing tasteless. One guy sang a love to his lady. A woman from Chicago sang ? ?The Way We Were? very well. Then her man got up there to do comedy and wasn?t funny, just drunk. They finally eased him off the stage and said he hadn?t been sober all week but they were still sober. They compared him to Al, the drunk who kept embarrassing his wife. Anyway, the woman from Chicago got so embarrassed, she went and sat at another table for awhile. Erroll did sing 2 Elvis songs. Although he didn?t sound like Elvis, he sounded great and could sing if the golf pro business dried up. The final act broke the previous PG rating when the Pointer Sisters came out--3 of the male coordinators dressed in short-tight dresses with wigs. They lip-synched two tunes and then took off their wigs. Next, most of their clothes came off. All of the participants were called back to the stage by name. One of the coordinators kept saying he was straight and for on one to proposition him for kinky stuff.
Next, we went to the disco. Several people were already there. More came after the show. We danced to around 8 songs and left at 12:20. We went straight to bed.
Saturday, July 8
I was up at 6:30, ready to pack. Breakfast was the same as other days, next we fed the fish I had found near the watersports area and our room. We took some photos and video. I got in the Jacuzzi. It was body temperature. We packed a little and went to the beach. We got in a kayak, then Todd snorkeled while I watched. He saw a lot of fish of many types. The day he and I snorkeled, we saw only one large fish and some sea urchins. I went to the pool and laid on a raft.
We put our bags out at 11, as instructed. By 11:20, the bags hadn?t been picked up, so we called the front desk. The bellman came immediately. We went to the beach bar and had a couple of drinks while we waited for the grill to open, as our bus was to leave at noon, before lunch is served. We panicked, as no one was even setting up. We asked a coordinator what was wrong. He called the guy and got him to come down. He showed up at 11:45. I went back to the room for the rest of our things while Todd waited for the burgers. I went to the lobby to wait for the bus and get drinks at the bar. Todd was there, but the bartender was, again, missing. I went to the beach bar. It took so long, the bus came and Todd came after me. With drinks in hand, we scurried to the bus. One other person was on. We stopped on the way for the restroom. We shared a Diet Pepsi--$1.75. We got to the airport at 1:15 for our 3:08 flight. The line was so long, we had only a few minutes for rum samples and liquor purchase. Prices were 20% higher than November. I bought rum, wine, and champagne--8 bottles--for $51. I scurried to buy coffee for a coworker. It was $15 for 12 oz. It was only $13.55 at the resort. There was nothing I could do about it now.
The flight pulled away from the gate on time at 3:03. We were fed tunafish, cookie, and banana chips. I didn?t like any of it, so I ate almost nothing. In Miami, we went up an escalator after we arrived and were sniffed by dogs. We claimed our bags. I?ve never seen so many people. I had to wait in a line of about 30 people for a cart. They questioned us a bit about our luggage and liquor but finally let us through. We paid a guy $2 to recheck our bags. We had tipped the bus driver and a guy in Montego Bay $2 each already (both directions). We had only a few minutes to spare between flights. I bought a USA Today and sat down. The flight was not totally full. We were fed only pretzels but got in on time at 9. We claimed our bags, hopped the bus, drove home for a 10:15 arrival.
Other notes--nude beach almost never had any nudes. Had some prudes. Several
kids from FDR came over with their parents throughout the visit.
JAMAICA: TRELAWNY BY KARIN THOMPSON
We recently returned from a 5 day stay at Trelawny Beach Hotel in Jamaica. This was the most disappointing trip we have every experienced.
We have been traveling to Jamaica for over 10 years and highly recommend it to our friends and co-workers. Jamaica is beautiful, the people are wonderful and enjoy sharing their culture and heritage with travelers. Jamaican people want to be sure you have an enjoyable holiday and will return to their lovely island. The properties we have stayed at in the past included Jamaica Jamaica, Hedonism, Holiday Inn (Montego Bay) and Ciboney,
If this holiday had been our first to Jamaica, it would most certainly have been our last. All the reasons and enjoyment we have found in Jamaica was lacking at this property (Trelawny Beach Hotel).
Trelawny Beach has great potential. They have a good location, good beaches, nice pool and acceptable rooms for a moderately priced hotel complex.
We found the quality of service, attitude of staff and food quality/ selection absolutely horrible.
When we arrived on 1 July at Montego Bay, we were excited about our short holiday in Jamaica. The flight from Chicago's O'Hare was very enjoyable. We were met by the Funjet Reps and directed to the Trelawny Beach Hotel shuttle. As always we were offered Red Stripe or soda for the bus ride to the hotel.
We got onto the bus and after several minutes, we were told that they were switching us to another bus so that we could leave for Trelawny immediately. We transferred to the new bus and our driver, Devon was very friendly. He gave us a quick overview and history of the sights along the way to Trelawny.
We arrived at the hotel and were checked in. We received the handouts regarding the basics of the hotel and the additional services for all-inclusive guests. After we got our "wrist-band", we had to go to the bellman to get our bags taken to the room. The bellman showed us to our room, checked the room to be sure all was in order and showed us the radio, 110 outlets etc. We gave him a tip as it appeared as if he expected one. Having been to other all-inclusive resorts this was out of context but since it was our first trip to Trelawny, we realized it was a bit different from the other all-inclusive.
The room was clean, furnished with the essentials and had a nice view of the sea from the balcony. I was nicely surprised to see washcloths in the bathroom - not the norm in the Caribbean. I shouldn't have gotten excited because that was the only day they were there. I also noticed that soap was provided, but not even the first day's complimentary shampoo/conditioner. (glad my bags arrived on time!)
We quickly freshened up from our trip and proceeded to venture out to explore the hotel property and go to the daily briefing. Since my husband is visually impaired, our first order of business is to find the essentials and ensure he is comfortable with his surroundings. I did not find a map of the property in the room so we went to Guest Relations. They provided us with the Daily Activity booklet. We also asked if the briefing would provide us with an explanation of the property or if we could get a short site inspection tour in case it did not. The girl said we would be able to get all we needed out of the briefing and did not offer a property walk in case it did not.
We toured the property, were able to locate most things and proceeded to the daily briefing. When we arrived, we were the only ones there. Shortly a staff member arrived and gave a condensed version of the handouts we had already received. He was friendly and did answer our questions.
We then went to dinner. Since we had just arrived, we elected the buffet for the first night. Very disappointing. The selections were minimal and were a little taken aback to find fly nets over the cold food displays. None of the entrees were appealing (we were glad we had stopped along the way for some jerk pork and festivales).
Trying to get a table was very frustrating. None of the waiters offered to help you take your buffet plates and assist with finding a table. After asking at a half dozen tables, we found another couple that offered to share their table with us. The service continued to be poor as it took almost a half hour to get served coffee and refills on the water. There were only 2 girls trying to provide bar service to the Palm Terrace from the Pocomania bar for over 200 guests so it was impossible to even get a soda.
We elected to stay for the nightly entertainment. The Daily Activities guide and the chalk board by the elevator listed a Cabaret performer and the talent show. No performer, but the talent show was enjoyable as they always are.
We stayed for a while in the disco. Music was good, but a bit of a hassle if you wanted to get a drink. We felt that we were going to a waiters service bar to get drinks. Area needs some work if they want to attract people to the disco. Also, waiters/waitresses in the disco would be nice. After searching around, we were able to find coffee available in the coffee shop, got several cups to go to the room and decided to call it a night.
At this point we were becoming very disappointed in Trelawny Beach as an all-inclusive hotel property.
Sunday morning continued to add to our dislike for Trelawny. I had arose early and went down to get some coffee for the room. During the briefing, we were informed that there would be coffee by the elevator. Well the table was there, cups, sugar, cream but no coffee. By now the buffet had just opened so I went there and asked how to get some coffee to take to the room. The reception staff told me to go to the coffee shop. I was confused as the coffee shop didn't open until 10:00am but thought maybe they had changed hours. I went over to the coffee shop, yes they were closed but did provide coffee to go.
When we finally went down for breakfast, we were again disappointed by the selection and quality of the buffet. Limited selection of fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, hash brown patties, cold waffles, cold toast and gravy. The was a chef making omelets and fried eggs. None of the traditional Jamaican specialties had yet been offered at dinner or breakfast. Again coffee service was non-existent and I had to go over to the wait staff to request water and coffee.
The weather was beautiful and we were looking forward to enjoying a relaxing day at the pool/beach. The beach area was not too crowded but all available lounges were taken so we found a spot off the pool. The sun was lovely, kids were having fun in the pool and the activity center and were being kept well occupied. Around lunch time we decided to opt for the buffet again. Same story, poor selection, no traditional Jamaican dishes and terrible service. We came back to the pool to enjoy the remainder of the day. The winds were quite strong around the pool area. There apparently were no service staff to patrol the area as we saw many plastic cups, straws and left over food blowing around. About an hour later, some one came by and picked up some of the finished lunch plates and empty cups. A couple hours later they patrolled again and got some more. Later in the afternoon, we were hungry and the only place open was the pool bar. We got a hamburger and a sandwich. The fry machine was broken. When we had finished, I went to return the empty food baskets so they wouldn't blow around. I had to leave them at the drink bar since there were no trash cans and no one to assist. I finally got the attention of the pool bar attendant. It was as if he was doing me a favor in giving me a beer and a soda. Glad I didn't ask for anything too complicated. We never saw any of the activities at the pool or around the complex that were supposed to be scheduled per the board/Daily activities guide. Walking back to the lobby we noticed that there were also plastic cups and straws all over the grounds that had apparently blown out from the pool area. There were still there after Showtime when we went for a walk.
On the way back to the room I stopped at the front desk to inquire about changing my "wrist-band" to my other arm as it was bothering me. I asked the girl at the desk if she could move it to my other wrist. She said no and turn around to do something else. No explanation, no reason, just a simple no.
Since our buffet experience was not good, we had opted for the "formal" Jamaica Room for dinner that night. At least the service was acceptable. We were seated when we arrived, water glasses and coffee immediately filled. The dinner selections were not much better than the buffet. Soup and salad were acceptable but the entrees left little to be desired. Dessert selections were the same as the buffets, poor at best. The entertainment that night was a Cabaret singer as posted, but this time, no talent show. Showtime typically was less than 45 minutes (and that included an encore of several songs).
The next morning we were going to another hotel property for a site inspection. We came down and asked the tour desk to assist in getting us transportation. We explained where we were going and the reason for our trip and the approximate time we would like to leave. The tour staff told us to go have breakfast and come back when we were ready, she would have then made arrangements for a cab and found out the rate for us. We went down for coffee and returned a short time later. We went to the tour desk and another staff member was there to assist. We explained that we were there for the cab to take us over to the other property for a site inspection and asked what time the cab would be there and what the rate would be. About 15 minutes later they said the cab would be there shortly and quoted the price. I asked if that was round trip and they seemed surprised. Apparently the second girl assumed we were just leaving and would not be returning. We decided at that point to just go to the site inspection and arrange for our transportation back when we reached the other property. (The property we visited was Braco Village Resort - fabulous property but more on that in another trip report)
We returned to Trelawny and same routine. Buffet with minimal selections, no service and limited wait staff. We opted to go to the Pocomania Bar to watch the show this time. This was the first time we really noticed kids on the property (although they had been there all along). Several young children were playing around at the piano bar and continued through out the show. So much for hearing the performer. About 11:15pm I went down to get some coffee and soda. I asked if I could still get a sandwich. The waiter said yes and placed my order. I asked for the coffee and a coke. He told me I had to go to the bar to get the coke. I told him I'd go up and be right back (bar was just upstairs and I thought it would take a few minutes to make the grilled sandwiches and fries). He said OK and off I went, leaving my room tray on the counter. Since there was only one bartender working upstairs, it took a while to get my coke. When I returned, the entire coffee shop was cleaned up, everything put away (except for my room tray) and it appeared as if it was closed. I came up to the counter and the waiter came around. He said he figured I wasn't coming back and had taken my food back to the kitchen. I got my coffee, he went back and brought back out my cold grilled cheese sandwiches. I decided not to ask about the fries.
Tuesday was our last full day at Trelawny. Not much better, service was still bad, food poor but at least with it being Jamaican night, we figured we would get a good selection of Jamaican food. We went through the buffet line, Pepperpot soup excellent, the remaining buffet items were somewhat acceptable. The curried goat was mainly bones but at least we had the jerk pork to look forward to. Since the pork was being served outside the buffet line, we got our other food, found a table and I went over to get some jerk pork for us. After standing in line, I was informed that I had to go back to the main buffet line and get a plate as they didn't have any with the jerk pork. Not that they had run out, they never planned on having any there! Pork was marginal, certainly not like the jerk pork we were used to but at least edible. The steel band and cultural/Jamaican show was good.
When we got back to the room I expected to find an evaluation form for the hotel property, a sheet showing the confirmation of our flight, what time we should have our bags outside the room for pickup and the departure time of our transportation to the airport. This was normal for the past 10 years at all the properties we stayed at. No such luck. I went down to Guest Relations to inquire. The girl told me to look at the board for my flight time and said I would need to check with the tour desk in the morning about the flight reconfirmation - or perhaps call the airline myself. I asked if there was an evaluation form. She said there should be one in the room. Since there wasn't she gave me another.
On Wednesday I went down to get some coffee for the room as I had every morning - straight to the coffee shop. This time I was told the coffee shop was closed and I should be going to the buffet line. Oh well, if they now want me to go there, no problem.
I went to the buffet line and was told any of the waiters could assist. One was standing by his station and I asked for some coffee for the room. He told me I should be going to the coffee shop - after I told him I just came from there and was directed to the buffet... eventually I got my coffee and went back to finish packing.
We finally got on the bus and after sitting there for over 20 minutes past our departure time, departed for the airport. This the first time that we actually looked forward to going home. I was sad to leave the weather, the wonderful beach, the freshwater pool but I had honestly had enough of a poorly organized and managed all-inclusive resort.
We will definitely return to Jamaica as it is a lovely country with wonderful people. But Trelawny will not be in our plans.
The following is a copy of the Guest Comment Sheet we filled out on Trelawny Beach Hotel: GUEST COMMENT SHEET
AIRPORT TRANSFER SERVICE
TBH-Airport Rep. Attitude Good TBH-Airport Rep. Service Good Visibility at Airport Poor Timeliness Average
Transport Vehicle Condition Average
Accessibility Average
FRONT DESK
Efficiency Average
Service Average
Attitude Average Poor
BELL BOYS
Efficiency Average
Service Average
Attitude Average
GUEST RELATIONS
Efficiency Average Poor
Service Average Poor
Attitude Average Poor
Information Average Poor
CONVENTIONS
Group Handling N/A
Facilities N/A
Equipment N/A
CONFERENCE ROOMS
Condition N/A Cleanliness N/A Decor N/A
Air Conditioning N/A Lighting N/A
Service N/A
ENTERTAINMENT (ACTIVITIES)
Presentation Average Poor
Quality Average Poor
Adult Activities Average Poor
Children Activities N/A
HOTEL ISLANDERS
Efficiency Poor
Service Poor
Attitude Poor
(We only found out that "Islanders" were the social directors because of the Daily Activities Brochure!)
KIDDIES' COUNSELORS
Efficiency N/A
Service N/A
Attitude N/A
TOUR DESK STAFF
Efficiency Average
Service Average Poor
Attitude Average Poor
TOURS
Selection N/A
Quality N/A
Value N/A
Guide's Attitude N/A
Transport Vehicle N/A
Condition N/A
ROOMS
Comfort Average
Condition Average
Cleanliness Good Average
Decor Average
Housekeeping Good Average
Air Conditioning Average
Rodents/Pest Control Average
(why is the above topic/rating even here!)
PUBLIC AREAS
Condition Average
Cleanliness Average Poor
Decor Average
Air Conditioning N/A
DINING AREAS
Condition Average
Cleanliness Average Poor
Decor Average
Air Conditioning N/A
FOOD
Presentation Poor
Quality Poor
Value Poor
Service (Waiters) Poor
Attitude (Waiters) Poor
LOUNGES/BARS/NIGHT CLUBS
Condition Average
Cleanliness Average Poor
Decor Average
Air Conditioning N/A
BEVERAGE
Presentation Average Poor
Quality Average Poor
Value Average Poor
Service Average Poor
Attitude Average Poor
TELEPHONE
Efficiency Average
Service Average
Attitude Average
POOL/BEACH AREA
Condition Average
Cleanliness Average Poor
Service Average
Attitude Average
SPORTS/WATERSPORTS
Equipment N/A
Service N/A
Attitude N/A
GROUNDS/GARDENS
Condition Average
Cleanliness Poor
FRONT DESK CASHIERS
Efficiency Average
Service Average
Attitude Average
RESTAURANT CASHIERS
Efficiency Average
Service Average
Attitude Average
SECURITY
Efficiency Average
Service Average
Attitude Average
Value for Money Poor
Would you recommend our hotel to your friends. Definitely Not!!
My wife and I enjoyed a vacation of a lifetime in St. Barth (St. Bart to most Americans) this past Spring of '95. Following is a review of some of the restaurants and accommodations on the island at that time.
If you want gourmet cuisine with a French flavor, and price is not the concern, St. Barth is the place to go. Without a doubt, it was the best food we have ever had anywhere (my wife has traveled to over 100 countries and can verify the quality of the cuisine), and the people, accommodations, and setting are absolutely perfect.
Following are some of the restaurant highlights:
Don't be concerned about the language or currency. This is French in name and culture only. These are genuine, outside of Paris French, and they treat you like royalty. Dollars are welcome (preferred) and more places are taking credit cards than we were led to believe, although cash is still king. Don't mix currencies when making payment, i.e. 50% $$ and 50% francs, because the natives have a habit of rounding off, rarely to your favor. The exchange rate is not that good, and you are better to just pay in greenbacks.
We stayed in a villa leased by Wimco, who I highly recommend. The view was huge, and included the airstrip the ocean, and the mountains. Spectacular place, complete with satellite dish beautiful patio, and every item to make your trip wonderful, right down to a pair of high powered binoculars to see the whole island. Ask for villa "DEG"---I can't imagine it gets any better. Not luxurious, but perfect for an island vacation.
If you want to relax with your spouse, don't care about snorkeling, diving, or sightseeing, this is the place. Extremely private, extremely beautiful, and extremely expensive, and I'd go back tomorrow if I could. Don't miss it!
After fifteen years of marriage and three boys, this was a badly needed vacation from soccer, baseball, swimming, scouts, band, school, and fighting kids. St. Croix. The brochures had the proper romantic allure, and our wits were suitably frayed. Looked like a winner.
Thursday's trip from O'Hare field in Chicago to San Juan to Alexander Hamilton Airport went smoothly, excepting our that baggage arrived about 8 hours after us. Thanks to American Airlines and staff at The Westin Carambola, our bags were waiting for us on our return from our first night out exploring.
We rented a Suzuki Tracker from Thrifty rent-a-car for $40 a day. I strongly recommend this sort of vehicle, as some of the most scenic roads are dirt and stones, and VERY steep. We encourage you to try them, as some of earth's most beautiful vistas can be seen from these out-of-the-way trails.
Via computer bulletin boards, we met several locals before we even set foot there, including Ed Buckley. He and his wife Molly run Virgin Island Divers, a first class dive operation. It's fully equipped, reasonably priced, and they're about to start running snorkel trips to Green Cay nearer to Christiansted than Buck Island. Their boat, Mr. Barracuda, departs from just down the street from the store. Troy was captaining, and made sure everyone on board had a great time, including helping all us novices with our equipment. Ed and Jan were our dive masters, and were safety conscious, without being oppressive.
Our accommodations were excellent at The Westin Carambola located along the north shore, west of C'sted. Our oceanfront room was huge, with the gentle sound of the waves against the shore, and soft ocean breezes acting as a delightful aphrodisiac. Remember those three boys? <g>
Our first morning we had arranged to meet up with Ed and Molly to escort us into town for a two tank boat trip. Joanne had been certified on our last trip to Jamaica three months ago, so this was her first dive since. If anything could go wrong her first dive, it did.
Fighting seasickness (which she is famous for), we arrived at the first dive site off Cane Bay. Her weight belt fell off when she hit the water, and when it was retrieved, it was inadequate. Not enough weight; she floated like a cork. By the time Ed finished clipping 2 LB weights onto her BC, she looked like a Christmas tree.
Once she started down, her tank fell out of her BC. No problem, just strap it back in. Her mask leaked, and then her weight belt fell off again. Hmmm...
Believe it or not, she finally got comfortable. Then a nice treat: One of our fellow divers found a jewfish hiding under a coral overhang. While Jan was trying to coax him out by poking him in the back and grabbing his tail, we realized it was bigger than she was, including her fins! (I'll forgo the short jokes for her sake.)
We also got to see some nice spotted morays, who seemed to have an affinity for cheap hot dogs. Lots of beautiful tropicals as well: Damsels, Blennies, a French Angel, Lobsters, as well as a lot of sea fans, sponges, and corals in a wide variety of shapes and colors. Now THIS is why we SCUBA.
We also did two shore dives together with Rick, the dive master at Carambola. These were easy and relaxing, with no seasickness to worry about. I also did my first night dive at Fredricksted Pier back with Jan from V.I. Divers. Now that was an experience!
Seahorses, morays, lobster, shrimp. And now I know where parrotfish sleep.
The food was great, and reasonably priced everywhere we went. The restaurants and deli at the resort were outstanding. The island chicken sandwiches from the deli are a must. Off the Wall is a really neat little open air joint on Cane Bay. We had a really nice conversation (and great onion rings) with some of the locals and expats there. The burgers looked good, but we took a pass.
The Waves at Cane Bay is another excellent restaurant. We had one dinner there, overlooking the bay. Excellent service to go with the excellent food. This is the stuff of which romance is made.
We stopped in for lunch before our snorkel trip to Buck Island.
, an open air restaurant overlooking the water in C'sted. Great "spliff" sandwiches (like a burrito, except mine was fried shrimp after we came back in.
The best pina coladas on the island (and we sampled a few!) are at the Alley Deli in Christiansted. Here is the best use yet for a Taylor Frozen Confection machine. Check in with V.I. Divers in the Pan American Plaza, and they'll show the way. Lots of nice shops nearby too.
As we've been to Jamaica on four different occasions, comparisons are inevitable. In Jamaica, we wouldn't feel comfortable leaving the property after dark. Not so in St. Croix. Here, the dollar is the coin of the realm--no conversions to Jamaican dollars needed. St. Croix is somewhat more expensive, but much less crowded. Perhaps those two factors are related.
The scenery at both locations was incredibly beautiful, and the locals are wonderful everywhere we've visited in the Caribbean. Their colorful manner of speaking lends a wonderfully casual air to each place. As we were dressed to depart, we stopped at the deli in Carambola during the only tropical rainstorm we had our entire visit. The person serving us asked if we were leaving, and we acknowledged we were. Her reply? "Look, even the sky is crying for you." What class...
On a more personal note, we've found that five days away from the boys is enough. By the end of the fourth day, we really start to miss them. But we also promised ourselves to do this sort of trip once per year, just for us. St. Croix will certainly be in the plans again someday.
Just got back from St. Lucia. It was the most beautiful island we have ever been to and the Jalousie Plantation was first class! The food and drinks along with the service was outstanding at this all-inclusive resort. Watersports included everything possible and the snorkeling on their own beach was outstanding.
We stayed in a 2 bdm cottage on the mountainside with a private plunge pool and a well stocked mini bar. The view of the sea was very nice. The cottages were very quiet and had AIR! The plantation also had tennis, horse back riding, spa, fitness center and 3 rest. Grounds ere lush with tropical setting that included every fruit tree native to that area.
Beach was great although the sand was on the darker side but the water was very clear. I forgot to mention that the resort is located right between the Pitons which makes it a unique setting, not to mention a beautiful one. The resort also has a huge pool on the beach.
There were many tours that the services desk can arrange by local taxi and water taxi. Do not rent a car because the roads are very narrow, not well marked, steep and crowded with goats, cows, chickens and people- especially in and around fishing villages, 20 miles can take up to 1.5 hours to travel. We used local taxi service and they can give you great tours.
We could not find anyone who had stayed at Jalousie Plantation because it is only a few years old, we took a chance and it could not have been better!
All trips to St. Croix are wonderful but, this one was especially nice. For weeks, friends had been phoning to tell me how dry and hot (no trade winds) the island was. What a surprise to land on the greenest island I've seen in months! Seems that a couple of days before my arrival, there was about 12hrs of rain that turned the entire island (even the East End) into a beautiful shade of emerald. The storm also brought back the trade winds so even with temps in the mid 90's (and where weren't they?), it was pleasant.
My aunt and uncle from MI arrived the next day. Their first question was, "What's the population?". When I told them about 55k, my uncle said, "That's all? That many people could fit into a ball park!" They were very surprised at how undeveloped the island was. Their only other Caribbean experience was to Nassau, Jamaica and San Juan. It was delightful seeing the island through these young 74yr old eyes. They couldn't get over how thrilled I was about our full cisterns and that I didn't have to ask them to ration showers. Coming from a state like MI, they've never even had to give water rationing a second thought.
After they left, we had a couple days alone and then friends from Dallas arrived. Karen didn't think we'd be able to put up with her teenagers so they rented the house next door. The girls and her husband had a marvelous time windsurfing and jet skiing while Karen and I did some catching up and socializing with some of my other women friends on the island.
As usual, no trip report of mine is complete without talking about food! Of course, we hit all our favorites-- Duggans, Cultured Pelican, Dino's, Kendricks, Sti. , No Bones, Cheeseburgers and others. The new stop this time was Oskar's. Believing in the adage that anything that survives a decade must not be too bad, we decided to give it a try. This is definitely the place to go if you are home sick for home cooking. Big hearty portions of meat, gravy and mashed potatoes comprised most of the menu. The food was good and the prices were certainly right! You Kendrick's fans will be interested to know that they are moving to Gallows Bay in late Sept. and will be serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.
One of the highlights of the trip was talking my aunt and uncle to the Caribbean Dance Co. show at Hibiscus. The dancers were magnificent! And, considering that the kitchen turned out almost 200 meals at the same time, the food was very good. This is one of the nicest evenings anyone could spend on the island. The show and 5 course dinner was only $27. The dancers are on a 6 week hiatus now but I strongly urge all of you to see it and make reservations well in advance because every show (Fri. only) is sold out.
Economically, the island is still seeing hard times but, things are looking up and every one we talked to is enthusiastic about it's future. There still has not been a gambling license issued, but, ALCOA bought VIALCO and that will bring back a few hundred jobs. DIVI DIVI is also going to do a $6m renovation to their hotel on the south shore that closed after Hugo. It will be reopened sometime next year.
ST. JOHN: CANEEL BAY WEDDING AND HONEYMOON BY MARIANNE JONES
Having just returned from St. John U.S.V.I., I can say without a doubt that I have come home with a BAD case of island fever! I'm ready to pack up and move to this wondrous island paradise forever (if only I could).
We arrived to St. Thomas via American Airlines tired. It's a long trip from Seattle and we had stopped for 7 hours in Los Angeles to drop off the kids with my sister. After the stop in L.A. we were off to get married and honeymoon at Caneel Bay. At the airport in St. Thomas we checked in at the Caneel Desk. They took care of everything. Our luggage was loaded onto a bus and off we went to the ferry dock at Charlotte Amalie. They served us rum punch on the 35 minute ferry ride while we took in all the beautiful scenery. Once we docked at Caneel Bay we were given a brief orientation, that I totally missed as I went to find a restroom. They then took us by bus to our room. Caneel Bay is 170 acre's with 171 rooms. They wisely have a shuttle bus that goes around the property every 15 to 20 minutes to get guests where they want to go. Our luggage was brought to our room shortly after arriving. The rooms at Caneel are basic but comfortable. We had heard about problems with bugs and complaints about no air conditioning, but our room was stocked with 2 cans of "Raid", 2 cans of "Off" and a stand up floor fan to help out the ceiling fan. During our 10 day stay we only had 1 mahogany bug in our room. Yes, they are quite large and intimidating, but they are truly harmless.
The view from our room (#63) was incredible. We booked an Oceanview room as it was $100 a night less expensive. I feel we made the right choice. Our room was much more private than the ones I saw on the beach, we were a 1 minute walk to Paradise beach which was empty most of the time. If I were to complain about anything it was that we did not have a dresser, but rather shelves in the closet area. I never had an "unpacked" feeling. My other complaint would be with housekeeping. At night when they would
come in to turn down the bed they would take the wet bath towels (not the beach ones) but they wouldn't replace them. They also took the shower mat. Consequently we would be short of towels and have a slippery tile floor to stand on in the morning. I also had a pair of tweezers taken from the room. Who knew I needed to keep the tweezers in the wall safe? All in all though everything else was great.
The beaches at Caneel Bay (7 of them) are soft pure white sand. We went snorkeling at Paradise, Scott Beach and Caneel Beach. Once you get settled at Caneel, go to the beach shop on Caneel Beach by the ferry dock and get you complimentary snorkeling gear.
It's yours to keep for the duration of your stay. You can also get floats at that beach shop or the hut on Scott Beach. The snorkeling was wonderful. We saw multi colored beautiful fish everywhere. Off of Scott Beach we would walk into the water and be swarmed with Sargent Major's. We also took a side trip to Trunk Bay to snorkel the underwater trail. Trunk Bay was wonderful, but go early as it gets quite crowed after about 10:00 or 10:30. At about 2:00 in the afternoon snorkeling off Caneel Beach we saw 3 sea turtles that had come in to feed. What an experience! They are SO graceful. We just followed one of them around for about 30 minutes. They are truly magnificent and I got some wonderful photo's with my little disposable underwater camera. One of my favorite activities was just lounging on a yellow Caneel float aimlessly in the clear warm water. What a way to relax! If you want more activity Caneel offers kayaks, little sail boats, and more. We didn't do any of that, we just ran out of time.
The food at Caneel was very good. We opted for the European plan as we figured we'd want to eat in town at times. When we were up early enough (6:30 - 8:00) we took advantage of the complimentary continental breakfast in the breezeway. Otherwise we ordered the buffet. We had dinner one night in the Equator Restaurant which was very good. The Monday night Grand Buffet should not be missed. It is too bad that the human body can only consume so much food because it's impossible to sample everything they have to offer on that buffet! We didn't get to eat at the Turtle Bay restaurant on Caneel as it was closed for renovations. Actually it looked gutted, like they are starting totally over. Twice we had dinner and once breakfast at the Mongoose Junction Restaurant. It was very nice in a beautiful atmosphere. You had the feeling of eating in a large open air tropical bid cage. We also ordered sub sandwiches from their deli on the 4th of July and they were great.
I can not say enough about the grounds, landscaping and flora at Caneel Bay. It is simply gorgeous. The old sugar mill ruins were a lot of fun to walk through. The Equator Restaurant is built into those ruins. The trees are full of hummingbirds and butterflies. I especially love the "flamboyant trees" with their fern like leaves and bright flame red flowers.
Our wedding was a dream come true thanks to the help of a few people. The photographer I used is Julianna (809) 775-6131/ P.O. Box 12317 St. Thomas, U.S.V.I. 00801-5317. (they also have 2 or 3 condo's that they rent to vacationer's for only $100 to $125 a night - a real deal) Julianna is fantastic and I couldn't have had the dream wedding of my life without her. She came highly recommended to me. I contacted her and we began talking about what I had in mind for the wedding. She sent me a small portfolio of her work and I was immediately convinced. Rather than getting married at Caneel Bay Resort who wanted $400.00 just to stand on their property and say our vows we decided to go on a Charter Sail on Julianna and her husband Wolf's sailboat. It was wonderful. They picked us up in the morning and off we sailed to Water Lemon Cay in Leinster Bay. The scenery was incredible. We saw ruins, the entrance into the British Virgin Islands and more than I can begin to describe. Wolf and Julianna are both adept sailors.
All Denny and I had to do was sit back under the shade of the awning and enjoy ourselves. Mid afternoon we had lunch. Julianna took the time to make everything look tropical and lovely. When we arrived at Leinster Bay Julianna did magic with my hair and make-up while Wolf went with his dinghy to pick up our minister (Anne Marie Porter, lots more on her later). With everyone back on the boat and dressed in our wedding clothes we were now ready to have Wolf take us by dinghy over to Walter Lemon Cay. Everything so far had been perfect. The moment of truth was at hand, but as all weddings have to have a glich, so did ours. Water Lemon Cay was already occupied. Occupied by four young, totally naked sunbathers. Now Water Lemon Cay is a tiny spit of land with a small patch of white sand. There was no way we could get married, have photo's taken and not have had these "all over tan sun worshipers" as part of the photographs. In the end, Julianna persuaded them to leave and our wedding went on and became more than I could have ever dreamed.
Anne Marie Porter gave the most beautiful ceremony I have ever seen (I've been to a lot of weddings). She didn't read from a bible or notes. Instead she gave a ceremony and vows that fit us perfectly and were totally from the heart. I cried through the whole thing. It was beautiful. I can not speak highly enough of Anne Marie. She is a fantastic, loving person that radiates light. I can not understand why anyone would want anyone else for a marriage or vow renewal service. Anne Marie can not be topped. She is perfectly willing to do the unusual (as we did), or conventional. She met with us two days before the wedding at Caneel to go over the ceremony and get a feeling of what we were like. The result could not have been more perfect. For any of you contemplating her services she can be reached at (809) 693-5153, or Estate Bloomingdale Box 7, Coral Bay, St. John, U.S.V.I. 00830.
Being that we were in St. John over the 4th of July, we were able to see Carnival. The parade began around 11:30 in the morning and went for 2 to 3 hours. It was the best parade I've ever seen. In no time at all I had snapped of 3 rolls of film. The costumes, music, dancing and vivid colors were amazing. I only wish I had brought the video camera now. Later that night we went out on the Caneel ferry to Cruz Bay to watch the fireworks. As a friend of ours said "they can't afford to fill the potholes in the road, but they put on a great fireworks display". And great it was. Even places like Disneyland would be rivaled by the show we saw.
Ten days really did go by way too quickly. I'm already planning when I can return. I loved St. John. Mr. Rockerfeller did a great service to St. John in deeding them so much land as National Park. It will ensure that this lovely island paradise is preserved rather than over built. As it becomes more and more difficult to find places that are small, quiet, quaint, charming and unforgettable, St. John will always rank high in my heart as the place to go.