First, I do apologize for NOT doing a trip report last year. 2013 found us in Florida visiting Dad and brother Rick before flying to Puerto Rico and embarking on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas heading for the southern caribbean.
I never got around to a trip report and I think part of the reason was the days were basically the same. New island, eat, go out on our snorkeling excursion, come back and eat lunch, relax, get ready for dinner, meander around for a bit before going to bed. The only thing different was that was our first cruise with a balcony. Which, we spent our entire last day at sea on and really liked. We will probably always get a balcony from now on, but who doesn't say that? If anyone has any questions about that ship or itinerary, I would be happy to answer and help out though!
Moving on, this year we found ourselves at Dad's prior to 10 days of sailing the BVI. We rented the same kind of catamaran and took the kids. The cast of characters is the same as 2012:
me
my husband Randy
my 15.5 yr. old son (at the time) Ryan (aka: Bubba)
Brother-in-law Rick
his wife Michele
Rick's son Ricky (18.5 yrs at the time)
Michele's daughters: Corinne (18.5 yrs.) and Casey (16.5 at the time)
We spent some time at Dad's, then 2 nights at Rick's before departing for the islands from Daytona Beach airport.
Change of routine this year. Randy decided not to work at all the day we left, so we ended up with an 11:40am flight. This meant Max the dog was at my friend's house the night before. We wouldn't have time to drop him off in the morning, so he got an extra night of vacation. It's really weird being home without him here. We tease we should've named him Fomo instead of Max because Max has a serious "Fear Of Missing Out". So, he was settled at place #1 this evening. In about a week, my friend who usually watches him will pick him up and he'll be at vacation destination #2 for the next 2 weeks.
Our plan was to leave home no later than 8:30am because of traffic into Philly. We actually left home at 8:15, checked my car in 9:15 and arrived at the airport in plenty of time. Checked our 2 bags quickly and easily. Went thru 'priority' TSA checkin. I found this odd. We all got to keep our shoes on, liquids and laptop in bag. Still not sure why we were able to do this and I'm not too sure I feel 100% okay with it. Nobody knew us, how did they know we were okay? And, with the breeze through security, it was not busy, of course.
Our flight was only approximately 10 min late, but we left only a few minutes late...full flight. We are flying Southwest and had A 52, 53 & 54 boarding passes...sweet. This year we are already off to a better start than last summer's vacation....when we were delayed 6 hours until our midnight departure. In flight, we watched The Lego Movie. We were looking forward to seeing it and son tried hard not to laugh and enjoy it (15 yo ya know). We all enjoyed it. The flight was good, only a bit bumpy by Daytona because of TS Arthur. It wasn't a big deal and didn't last long, but I did make sure to hang onto my laptop while watching movie though.
We arrrived at MCO relatively on time. We left the boy to fetch our 2 bags while we checked in for rental car at Alamo. This year, it was really tough to find anything under $200 for the week, but, as usual, I managed to with Alamo. We usually get an economy car, but a few days before we left, I found a compact for $5 less...so, I switched it. (For whatever reason, I have a hard time remembering a compact is larger than an economy?) Woohoo! What a deal.
We usually hustle to the rental car counter to beat the crowds (which is why we left the boy to retrieve the luggage), but there wasn't a line and it was a quick check in to get car. We headed back to the carousel to retrieve the boy and our bags. He was a waitin'...with all 3 bags (he had our carryon too). We headed out to the garage for our car. We have a Hyundai Accent, which, is not a car we'd ever buy! Must be the basic model...no passenger armrest and no cruise control. Oh well...the price was right for the little we use it while we have it.
It rained a little on the way out of Orlando, but we still made good time to Dad's. We left the airport around 3:00 and rolled into Dad's about 4:15. It was very strange arriving during the daylight...that drive looks VERY different! Being used to arriving late at night, it was nice to arrive, have some dinner and just relax. Dinner tonight was shrimp and fries, and since I don't eat shrimp, I had made myself some chicken and snap peas. Randy & I ended up doing our Walmart run about 9pm for some of the things we need/use while there. Dad & Joyce thought that was strange, but they don't "go out shopping" at night (that's a "daytime" chore for them).
So, having everything settled BUT unpacking, I dug out necessities for the night: toothbrushes, jammies, meds for the morning, etc.... Didn't go to bed too late, we were there before midnight easily.
Not too bad of a travel day for a change. That was nice.
Today is unpacking day. And, I seemed to procrastinate all morning.
We were awake just after 7am, and by 7:30am, we decided to get up and take a walk. At home, I had been walking Max early because of the heat and humidity at home. I'm not a morning person, so to have my dog out by 6:30am is early for me. (And, Max too, because we'd come home and he'd go back to bed! ) So, the last few days being home, I was getting up at 5:30am, with my husband when he got up for work, and staying up to walk Max and just getting stuff done and ready to go away.
So, we walked around Dad's neighborhood for 45 minutes (which is how long Max's walks are, but he 'stops' more than we did ). We logged a little over 2 miles, which, is also normal for Max's walks. After we were home and chatting with Dad & Joyce, Randy made us breakfast. Omlets, and eggs for me, were on the menu for the week; so he started breakfast around 9am or so while I changed out of workout clothes into a regular t-shirt & shorts.
We were still chatting around the breakfast table after eating and I was still procrastinating unpacking when Joyce received a phone call from a lady named Connie who lives in Wisconsin. She called Joyce because years ago, Joyce (retired relator) sold her parents their house in Florida which was nearby. She couldn't reach her Dad, so she wanted Joyce to go over and check on him (they had given her a key to hold onto after they bought the house, so that's why Connie called Joyce...because she has a key). Joyce said it was no problem (only like 5-10 minutes away) and asked if I would go with her. Actually she asked if I wanted to take a ride with her and I said, "Sure, why not?" I had no idea why or where we were going. She did tell me on the way over and my first thought was, "Oh my gosh...he's probably not well and I don't want her to "find" him, so I'll have to go in first." Luckily for me, his two neighbors were there at the time trying to break into his house, and after some time, they got in. Let's just say that it was a good thing I did not have to go in. I would have not wanted to be the person to find him. May he rest in peace.
Joyce was quite shaken as she had just seen him a couple weeks ago because he was going to be going up north at the end of the month and she was going to watch the house and he wanted to give her instructions. After a while, when she was ready to leave, I offered to drive her, which, she gladly took me up on. I drove her home.
Now it wasn't quite noon yet, and our day & vacation wasn't off to the best start Lunch was around the corner and I figured I'd better start unpacking! Which...I did. I got all our clothes unpacked and was just starting tolietries when it was time to eat.
I didn't have any lunch (not hungry), but did sit with everyone. Just more chatting and hanging out.
After lunch, I did finish unpacking and hit the pool. A lil relaxing and hanging out.
Before I knew it, we were getting ready for dinner. Dad wanted to take us to the local pizza place to eat and we were going to bring home a couple pizzas for Rick's family who would be over later that night.
I had a nice meatball sandwich and Ryan had stuffed shells. Dad had chicken parm & Joyce and Randy had veal parm. All good...as usual. We ordered the 2 pizzas during the meal so they'd be ready when we left, but they weren't because they claimed they were busy. No matter. Pizza joint is at the end of the strip mall....grocery store at the other end. We needed a couple things from the grocery store anyway, so we went there and got what we needed while waiting on the pizzas. Worked perfectly. Pizzas were ready when we were finished at the grocery store.
With pizzas in (Randy's) hand, we headed home.
Settled in to watch the Phillies game Dad had recorded and before we could finish watching it, Rick, Michele & Ricky rolled in around 8:45pm. We stopped the game, sat around the table chatting and, those who were hungry, gnawed on some pizza.
I finally called it a night around 11:30-12:00 that night. Randy, Rick, Ryan and Ricky sat up talking around the table longer that night (everyone but Ryan having beers). From what I heard, around 3am, Dad poked his head out of his bedroom door and grumbled it was time to wrap the night up. You have to realize, Dad's bedroom is right off the kitchen, so with beers, I can totally see them being loud! Glad I was already IN bed
Friday, July 4, 2014
Happy 4th of July and Dad's 79th birthday!
Imagine my surprise when I woke up after 7am and was about ready to get up and take my walk and Randy was awake! On that little bit of sleep (on vacation!), he was ready to go walk with me. Okay! I can't remember why, but I looked in the trash can on our way out and it was nothing but empty bottles! I heard Dad took that bag of trash out in the morning and it was quite heavy.
We walked again...out for an hour. Can't remember how far, but it was over 2 miles again. Came home and almost everyone was up. Since Rick was here now, he was the chef for breakfast....except Randy made Ryan an omlet and Corinne scrambled eggs and Michele had a yogurt with granola and blueberries in it. Eggs and bacon for everyone this morning...except Ricky, who somehow slept on the air mattress in the living room through all the noise at breakfast?
After breakfast, Dad's birthday cake was due to be picked up starting at noon. I needed some more soda for Randy's rum and cokes, so I volunteered to go and Corinne offered to come with me. I picked up some more beer too (since most of Dad's stash was drunk the night before ) and some other stuff. Her and I went to the store and returned rather quickly.
Once things were put away, I got my suit on and joined everyone out in/around the pool. I took this picture of Rick (joke about [lack of] hair and he didn't know I took it). Randy, however, DID know I took it and got a chuckle out of it! Dad was chatting stuff with his boys and Michele and I talked about the sailing trip coming up and the packing list, bathing suits, the kids, etc.... Just stuff "sisters" talk about.
"Lunner" was going to be 3:00 today because Rick's family had to leave early, so there was no lunch, just snacks. We were having hot dogs, burgers, corn on the cob, etc.... Picnic fare was what he wanted for his birthday dinner.
After dinner, there were presents and cake . Dad is hard to buy for, so we buy him t-shirts with Philly sports on them. It is the one thing he can't get in Florida, and for some reason, he always seems to need t-shirts? He was very happy with the ones he got this year. Dad keeps his brain young by doing jigsaw puzzles everyday. He has a setup on the lanai at home and makes sure to do a little bit each day. Randy found these t-shirts for him and Ryan (who is now an employed taekwondo instructor) got him this one. Perfect and he loved them!
After cake and gifts, Rick and crew had to leave. We took the annual pictures: Dad & his boys, Dad & grandsons and Dad with sons and their sons. Amazing the height differences there! Ryan is the youngest, yet the tallest! As of October (3 months after these pictures), he's coming in at 6'2".....he has 5" on ME! I have to tippy toe to hug my son now.
They left around 6:00-6:30 that night. After they left, we settled in to watch the Phillies game before bed. (Dad was tired since he didn't sleep well last night )
I was tired by 11:00 and was in bed myself by then...which, isn't too much later than I usually go to bed at home. Up early, just can't stay up late. I'ma getting old
Awake again this morning around 7:15am (this is around the normal time I wake up). Randy was sound asleep when I got up 7:30. I quietly got ready for my walk and left at 7:45am. I walked 'so far' to warm up and then decided to run since the development is flatter than ours at home. I'm not a runner (but I do exercise) and I wanted to see how far I could go. Surprisingly, pretty far. I was out for about an hour that morning and I would say I ran about 95% of it. There were definitely more people out because it was Saturday...and more puppy dogs getting a walk. By the time I got home, according to my pedometer, I had covered 3.5 miles with 7400+ steps. Not bad. I was happy and proud of myself (Randy was proud of me too). Speaking of, he missed me leaving by only about 15 minutes or so. When I got home, he gave me a face. I told him I jogged most of it, so hopefully that made him feel better (since he doesn't run either). I'm happy to say, the running thing is something I've stuck with and incorporated into my workout regimen at home.
So, now I was back, I wanted breakfast He started making me eggs and then omlets for him and the boy. While he was doing that, I got changed and cooled off in some dry clothes.
After breakfast, Randy had some things to take care of on Joyce's computer and after breakfast had settled, I decided to get a (free weight) workout in. I didn't realize they were waiting on me to finish that to eat lunch! Mostly because, I don't really eat a lunch. I have a banana or protein bar or something snacky after working out. But, while they ate, I sat with everyone...eating my banana.
Today was a relaxing day and after lunch, I was going to get in the pool, but I remembered we needed to buy a spare battery for Randy's underwater videocamera. We were missing 2 spare batteries at home; the spare for his underwater videocamera and the spare for my underwater camera are together....wherever they are! (While away sailing, I would remember where they were at home.) We didn't worry about the spare for my camera because for Mother's Day and my birthday (in August), I got a new underwater camera. An Olympus TG-2. I bought a wall charger that came with 2 spare batteries for that camera, so my old camera is now my backup camera (and I don't need a spare for it). So, I put my suit on and threw clothes on over it and we drove up the road to Radio Shack. Who, didn't carry it, but referred us about 7 miles up the road to Batteries and Bulbs who did have one. ($ was way more than we could've gotten it for had we realized we were missing it before the night we left!) Needing the spare, because you don't want to miss capturing a memory because you don't have one, we bought it and headed home.
Where, we got into the pool. And...relaxed. Until we heard the thunder coming and finally saw lightening. While waiting for the storm to pass, I decided to sit outside and 'play' with my new underwater camera. I love this camera! Almost as many features as my Nikon DSLR camera! There are some neat effects with this camera, so it makes for a great little point and shoot camera even if you're not using it in the water! Here's some of the effects: pinhole, punk, watercolor, fragmented, soft and reflection (which, wasn't at this time, it was earlier, but it was the best one of that effect I took!)
Tonight's dinner was 'mustgo'....aka leftovers from last night.
After Ryan & I did dishes, we watched the Phils game. Ryan went to his room by 9pm to start reading his summer reading assignment for English next year (all honors English classes have an assigned book to read and journal report due by mid August...a couple weeks before school starts). His last day of school was June 6th and since he had a KILLER of a semester, we let him have the rest of June "off". True summer vacation. But, now it's July and he has to read that book and start studying his drivers manual.
By 10pm, I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open again, and went to bed shortly after. I checked on Ryan, who fell asleep reading his book. He got to page 10. Uh....okay. We'll deal with that in the morning. Amazing how he can stay up chatting with friends till 1am and not fall asleep, yet when he has to read his book, he's out in no time.
Randy was up just after me this morning, so we walked together this morning. Another hour and about 3 miles.
When we got back, he made my breakfast and omlets for Ryan, Joyce and himself! Joyce loved her omlet and was probably kicking herself for waiting until our second to last day to have Randy make her one. She had made Dad his "omlet" earlier....scrambled eggs with a slice of ham on top. He's a "particular" eater, so that made sense! Randy's omlets are: ham, cheese, tomato, sun dried tomato, pepper, onion and spinach. He hasn't had an unsatisfied customer yet
When Ryan got up, we had told him he had to read a "substantial" amount of pages before hopping on the internet this morning. We left "substantial" up to his definition... (ya know, just to see what he would do...turns out, he read appx. 50-odd pages). So, after he ate breakfast, I did dishes and he got busy with reading.
Our last day here, determined to relax. The moment I put my swimsuit on and got into the pool, the sun went in. Of course....my typical luck. So, at lunchtime, I got out and sat with everyone again. After lunch, I got my workout in. Had a chance to hop back in the pool...until the thunder started and lightening was finally seen. Nope...not in the cards this afternoon. But, since I am island bound in a few days, I'm not worrying about it.
Late afternoon, I felt like I needed a nap!? My eyes were so tired, and I did close them on and off for about a half an hour while watching tv. I finally decided I had to shower off and got up and went outside to talk with Dad (who was in the pool). Randy eventually came out and hopped in the pool....then it started lightening and he wasn't in long!
We had baked potato, corn, snap peas, mac salad and filet for dinner tonight. I made the boy do dishes (he wasn't too happy with me) before he started reading his book again. I did help him though by loading the dishwasher and drying pots/lids.
Watched the Phils game after dishes were done and then we watched an episode of True Detective on HBO to Go via Apple TV. Not a fan...thought it was boring. Which, is good, because I have like zero extra time to get involved in a new show!
We were up the usual 7:30ish to walk this morning. Cloudy today, no sun. In Florida, that means a cooler morning. Took the same route and about 5 minutes from home, started to drizzle on us. Gotta love sunny Florida
Once home, Randy made breakfast for everyone. Although I still had my regular eggs and Dad's omlet consisted of scrambled eggs with a bit of ham in them, breakfast was very good and after we were finished and I had done dishes, I had to run to the grocery store for some last minute things (for the second part of the trip).
Once I returned from there (I was only gone about 20 minutes), I had the guys put their swimsuits on while I did all the laundry. After a bit, they ended up in the pool anyway, so it worked out well!
Once all the laundry was finished, not too long before lunch, it was time to repack. Making sure to keep clothes 'handy' for the next couple days because I don't want to be ripping both bags apart while we are here for only a couple more days.
By about 2:30 everything was packed and ready to go. We did a final sweep and loaded up the car. Took a few pictures and we were on our way by about 2:45.
No rain on our 2 hour ride to Rick's this time. Always seems to rain and believe me, we looked for it! Nope, none.
We arrived and Rick and Michele had both just gotten home not too long before we got there. We toured their new house and chatted over snacks.
We had chicken, potatoes, veggies and salad for dinner....the boys did the dishes. That was a nice change...no dishes for me (that will change in the islands).
After dinner, the guys sat and watched some tv and I kept Michele company while she was gathering clothes to pack. It was a relaxing evening at the house..... (when do you think I typed this up? )
Bed not too late ....they have to work one last/half day..... They own two businesses and they each run one of them. When you own the business, you have to get things in order to be able to go away for 10 days!
We were up at 8am today (little later than usual) but we still walked. Walked around Rick & Michele's neighborhood this morning. A different route with different scenery.
After getting back about an hour later, we rallied the boy and our niece Corinne (the only other one home) to give them a "within the hour" warning we were leaving for breakfast. We were headed to....Dennys. Yep.
After breakfast, we made a stop for some convenient breakfast foods. Individually wrapped muffins and danishes....because someone WILL be hungry in the morning rush through the airports.
Back at home, Michele's sister stopped by with her kids (they had finished a swim lesson up the road and stopped in to say 'hi'). After visiting with them for a bit, Michele had errands to run for work and getting ready to leave and I volunteered to take our other (now home) niece Casey to get her nails done.
We were home within the hour and since we were going out to dinner tonight, I wanted to have my shower and be done and out of the way and ready to go. I enjoyed that last nice, long, warm shower (on the boat, it's not really a shower per se... It's more of a "get wet, turn water off, lather, rinse" type of shower). So, I made sure to savor it.
I helped everyone do some packing the rest of the afternoon/evening while waiting for everyone to get ready for dinner.
Dinner was 7:00ish and we were meeting other people and running a bit late. We had met some friends and had a nice dinner. Altho, we didn't stay long to chat afterwards....had to get to bed early tonight! REALLY early morning tomorrow!
We decided to stop and fill our rental car up on gas on the way home. Good thing because of how the morning went!
We were back 'home' and hit the hay by 10pm. The plan was to be up 4:15am and leave the house by 5:15am.
Best. Laid. Plans.
...and, of course....didn't sleep all that well....was up starting 2:30am-ish for the rest of the morning......
I'm all caught up.
I can't believe how tall Ryan has gotten. Who allowed this???
And he has a job now too. Wow he is doing so well.
It sounds like a nice visit with Dad and the rest of the family.
When you are started talking about Joyces phone call and having to go check on that man I immediately thought the worst too. I am so glad you didn't have to go in and find him.
We weren't off to the best start, but it only got better from there on out.
Yes, my boy has grown. I joined this board when he was 5 and planning his first trip to Disney...my how time has flown! Almost 16, learning to drive, half way through high school, now be paid to teach the martial art he enjoys so much (for over 11 years now), researching colleges, etc..... Yes, life is busy with a teen! I'm just glad I found time to do this year's report because we will go back and read/reference them from time to time (why I always start with Dad's house visit).
Since I had been up for awhile, I waited for the alarm, got up and hit the potty (didn't want to disturb Randy, so I had been waiting). Music was cranking in the house and Rick & Michele were up (I had actually heard her around 12:30am....thought maybe she didn't GO to sleep...but, she said she did!)
I went upstairs to rally the teens. Corinne was up and applying makeup. Ryan was awake, but not vertical, Casey was in bed and Ricky....well, Ricky was sound asleep. Apparently he fell asleep ON his bed while doing laundry last night. He still had to pack. Teenagers I gave them all the 1 hour warning and I thought Casey hit the ceiling she jumped outta bed so fast! We kept shouting 'warnings' to them....45 minutes, 30 minutes, 15 minutes..... Our goal was to leave at 5:15am. We actually left the house at 5:35am. Now, Daytona International isn't all that far from where they live, HOWEVER, per Delta, you need to have your bags checked at least 1 hour prior to flight....which was 6:15am for us.
Luckily, at that time of the morning, traffic is virtually non-existant. We buzzed to the airport and maybe even ran a red light with nobody coming when we should've had the green arrow. We had to find the car rental return, so we followed the signs while the others went to park their car. We finally found the place to park the Alamo car returns, but had no idea where the terminal was? We were parked in front of the international terminal, where there was a sign that said "car rental returns inside terminal" with an arrow pointing to the other building. The sign also said to make note of mileage and fuel....which, in panic, I was looking for something to write it down on (in the darn dark!) when my brilliant husband just took a picture of the dash information with his phone! It was 6:05am and we STILL weren't IN the terminal! In a rush, we grabbed our bags and 'ran' towards the terminal.
Not quite halfway, I realized I had left the bag of breakfast munchies IN the car! Ugh...I was SO pissed and couldn't believe I did that! Normally, they'd be in my carry-on, but there was so many munchies and I didn't want to squish any of them; so I had put the bag on the floor between my feet. Well, I guess that bag slid toward the seat, because in the dark and the rush, I didn't even see, feel or think about it. Looking back, I should have sent the boys ahead with the bags and gone back, but Randy yelled "Forget it, we don't have time.", so I left it. Off to a stellar start.
Turns out, this airport is SO small that the dropbox for keys was just inside the door and baggage check was right there across from it. So I returned the keys and we checked our bags....just in time! Line for security was a bit long, but moved steadily....not that we were in any hurry because we had time till boarding. I had forgotten with my nail products I brought with me (because if you break a nail, you have to be able to fix it!), I brought my small pliers (to open a bottle of resin if it got stuck shut). Well, the x-ray picked them up and the TSA lady had to dig through my bag. She finally found them and let them through because they were small. Seriously, what am I really gonna do with small pliers? (They ended up in checked luggage on the way home!)
We sat for about an hour waiting to board...looking at the Daytona racetrack and watching the sun come up. This was just a short flight to Atlanta (because on Delta, EVERYTHING goes through Atlanta!), so there weren't any movies or anything. If nothing else, most of us closed our eyes and rested since it was a 'short' night last night and there is some serious sleep deprivation going on with everyone.
We arrived about on time with a half an hour layover in Atlanta. Here we got some breakfast foods and waited our turn to board. For such a big plane, boarding went quickly and efficiently. We also had our own private tvs in the seatbacks in front of us. You could listen to music, watch a tv show or a movie. Not much on there I wanted to see, but my guys watched Need for Speed while I decided to watch American Hustle. (I thought it was very good btw!) That killed most of the flight time to St. Thomas. Here we are flying over Cape Canaveral.
We arrived in St. Thomas approximately 10 minutes early (always nice to get TO vacation early instead of getting HOME early!) Realized another plane arrived the same time we did and I couldn't figure out why the lines were moving so slow to the baggage claim. Well, we soon found out...they were giving free shots of something rum laced as you entered the area. C'mon people! Get moving and drink all you want once you get there!!! Don't these people know how long a travel day we have? And, on little sleep? Oh wait, maybe not.....
They are doing some construction around the area of restrooms and baggage claim, so we went to the ladies room outside of where you check your bags (the opposite way of the crowds). Arrived back to baggage claim and the guys were looking for bags (8 bags & 2 coolers total) while the gals stood guard over the pile of luggage that was slowly growing. Everytime they'd get a bag, they'd bring it to us and we'd watch it while they went back for another. It really is a good system we have.
We managed to haul a taxi to the ferry terminal, and even though we were a party of 8, they still managed to squeeze another party in our taxi/van. It was a good time, and always an adventure through St. Thomas, riding to the ferry terminal with a full taxi....and luggage to boot!
Turns out, we JUST missed the 2:15 ferry, so we decided to go upstairs and have lunch while waiting for the 4:15 ferry. You never want to fill out your customs/immigration form ON the ferry, so Michele and I filled them out over lunch. We all had sandwiches and drinks and just chilled out while Ricky slept.
It's a long day.
We waited longer than 2 hours because the 4:15 ferry was actually a 4:30 ferry, that was running late. We finally left at 4:50pm for Roadtown, Tortola...BVI!
The ferry ride was about 50 minutes and I think just about everyone either napped or at least closed their eyes and relaxed. We didn't go right to Roadtown, we had to stop at the West End of Tortola at Soper's Hole to let a group off. That group was probably about 75% of the ferry!
We finally arrived in Roadtown and went through customs & immigration, grabbed our bags, went through x-ray and our family ended up ahead of Rick's (just because we had less people and they had the coolers). We went out ahead to wait for them, and I saw the Sunsail man holding his sign. I went right up to him and told him our party's name. Thank goodness I did this, because right behind me, was another party of 8 for the same destination. They could only fit 2 of their party on our taxi with us and all 10 of our bags! I wouldn't have wanted us split up like that! So, it was off to Sunsail...all of us!
When we got to the marina around 7:00pm, we were all turned around. Apparently in the 2 years since we'd been there last, they had built a new, huge check-in area, a restaurant and more shops. We got checked in and headed 3 docks away to get our catamaran; named Tender II this year. We loaded our bags and put the meat in the freezer and then we headed out to the store to get provisions. I have only a couple pictures of the catamaran because it's the same exact style we rented last time (refer to 2012 TR for those pix), but I DID notice this boat was LOADED! Not only did we have a toaster, but also: blender, coffee pot AND microwave! I like THESE owners! Sometimes it really IS the simplest things!
We ended up in a bulk type grocery store, not the grocery store Rick was thinking of. Ryan thinks this is funny every year we see it in the store. Teenage boy. We were so far behind schedule (because of missing that 2:15 ferry), this store was closing while we were shopping (granted, it WAS 8:00pm). We found out the 'grocery store' we originally wanted was RIGHT. NEXT. DOOR. Our plan was to get the bare minimum of what we already had/wanted, and Michele & I would go to that other grocery store in the morning....without the kids and husbands (who had other things to do anyway). So, we paid the bill for what we had (just under $400) and headed back to the boat.
Back at the marina, someone (I don't know who) asked how late the restaurant was open. They said we needed to be there in 5 minutes if we wanted to be seated. I'd later find out that the chef calls it a night at 8:45 to be able to leave by 9pm. We quickly put the cold stuff away and rushed to the restaurant. Just made it.
Mostly cheeseburgers were had, a pasta dish, Michele had a chicken wrap and I had chicken quesadillas for dinner. That was about $150 for that evening's dinner and drinks.
After dinner, it was back to the boat to finish putting the last of the groceries away. Then, I pulled the luggage apart to 'unpack'. Both husbands thought they were going to bed "early" tonight........we wives had other plans. I told him if he could get INTO the bed, have at it (knowing full well, everything was ON the bed...no way he was getting INTO it). I just put piles of clothes away in spots, I didn't sort them or do a through job because it WAS 10pm and I was getting tired too..after all, I didn't sleep well last night and we were up early this morning. The husbands were so tired and couldn't wait to go to bed, but so were we gals. Not to mention, we did everything that they did that day AND we unpacked too. Point for the gals
I gave Ryan my carry-on blanket for bed because we had to get blankets and extra towels in the morning. Good thing I did, their cabin was like an ice cube that night!
not that I have much experience with catamarans but that type is among the nicest I've seen. nice to be on your own schedule to mill about, that is after the wacky start you had. guess when u travel enough, it's bound to happen.
Ryan was awake, but not vertical
/\ lolol unless there's a foot on the floor it doesn't count as being awake.
No foot on the floor, but he was on his iPod "chatting" and coherent talking to me. At THAT time of the morning, that in itself was good enough for me to declare him "awake".
Holy cow did we freeze last night!!! I remember we had an issue with the land power the last time and it was hotter than Hades on our side of the boat last time. Quite the opposite this year....we FROZE! I was so glad I gave Ryan my blanket...he was still cold with that!
My eyes popped open around 7am and I got up and dressed about 15 minutes later. Michele and I were heading to the grocery store that opened at 8am this morning. We grabbed a taxi and headed over (although it was only about a 15 minute walk, we decided since we were on vacation and a time limit, we'd ride over). Going early was a GREAT idea! It wasn't crowded (yet) and we breezed right through getting the rest of what we needed. We got in and out within an hour and a half. Having NO kids was great....saved money AND time! That's the new plan from now on!
While we were at the store, the guys were getting another grill and dinghy, extra towels, blankets, a paddle board and rafts. They had their walk through (which was quick because we took out the same kind of boat last time) and chart meeting while we were gone. All we were waiting for was the paddle board to come. Meanwhile, one of the customer serivce gals stopped by to say hello and chat. Her name is Sally and she's become friends with Rick & Michele. She wasn't working today, but she did stop by to say hello...which I thought was nice and get some things Rick & Michele brought her from the states (things I assume she can't get on the island). This year, we remembered to "test drive" the dinghys. The last time we got stuck with a slow one, so we wanted to make sure both of ours could move this time. No problems.
Paddle board finally arrived and we were ready to go. The boys grabbed the dinghys at the front of the boat to bring them around when we pulled out and tie them up at the back. We finally pulled out after noon and had at least a 2 hour ride to Leverick Bay, Virgin Gorda. Normally, this ride should NOT take so long, but we were heading into the wind and had 4-6' seas. That is not normal for the Sir Francis Drake channel. We dubbed it "baptism by fire" because you normally have calmer waters in the channel and it takes the first day to get your 'sea legs'. After the last time being sick, I decided to be proactive that morning, and I took a half of a non-drowsy Bonine pill. Thank goodness I did! Even with that, there was about 3 minutes (mid trip) I felt a little off in the tummy area. I kept thinking "just don't puke....granted, it'll go overboard, but Michele is sitting on the deck behind you and it just might blow ON her!" Luckily, it was only a few minutes and then I was perfectly fine again.
We finally made it and grabbed a mooring ball at Leverick Bay for the night. The day's plan started out to arrive at Virgin Gorda and take a taxi to the top and sightsee and to the "Top of the Baths", then swim/snorkel the Baths and head back to our boat. Since it took us so long to just get TO this point, we decided to bag our plan till tomorrow and just relax, hang out and make dinner.
After dinner and cleaning up, I grabbed my laptop to load the day's pictures onto. I try to put pictures on my laptop at the end of each day, along with write notes for my trip report. Well, I powered it up, and nothing. I tried the power supply and other battery, still nothing. Well, that's not good. And, with no tools or internet to try and figure out what problem was, I was afraid my laptop was a goner. (turns out, when we got home, I'd find out I was right) Luckily, I knew I'd been having issues with it and back home, we backed up my documents, pictures, bookmarks & favorites. Not that it helps me NOW, but I was relieved to know I had them. I also wasn't sure if it was just "the time" for it to die, or if it was because it was in our backpack on the floor in our cabin....being bounced by the 4-6' seas that day? Whatever it was, from now on, backpack with electronics in it stays on our bed during the day!
So, upset I now have no computer, I showered the day's scuz off and climbed into bed. It was around 10pm when everyone called it a night....I think we were all still catching up on our sleep!
Well....thank goodness we had blankets last night! OMG! It was a freezer again last night! I guess better to be cool rather than warm (like the last boat we were on). I was awake 6:30-7:00 this morning, but was lazy and didn't get up until close to 8am. We had scrambled eggs, bacon, grapes, bagels/cream cheese and muffins for breakfast this morning. After everyone ate and got ready, we headed ashore for our day. Since our long trip here yesterday sidelined our plans, yesterday's plan was now today's plan...and we wanted to get an early start on the day!
We got a taxi and took a windey ride up to the top of Virgin Gorda. We stopped at a couple of lookout spots for photo ops. Photo op 1, this is Saba Rock where we'd go for drinks later tonight, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Absolutely beautiful views! We eventually made it to the "Top of the Baths". There we paid our entrance fee and proceeded down the trail to the beach. It was a nice walk, only challenging in a couple of places because of sand on the rocks. We stopped for pictures along the way and the restroom once we made it to the bottom. There are lockers to use here, but I didn't notice them until we were leaving. Pix to the beach: 1, 2, 3 and 4.
Pics of the Baths beach....starting with, my guys. 1, 2, 3and 4.
Casey didn't go in the water and neither did I. I wanted to explore the caves area. Last time we were here, we dinghyed in and snorkeled and walked the trail from Devil's Bay. Turns out, last time, I was *almost* at the beginning of where the caves start! I climbed up on some rocks and took some pictures: 1, 2, 3 and 4. I could only go so far into the caves because my camera lens is so big, I didn't want it to bang into the rocks as I was climbing along. I actually needed someone with me to go ahead of me and hand the camera to them as I climbed through. I enjoyed myself while waiting for the crew to return. I took pictures of the kids that had come back too. It's just an amazingly beautiful place.
My 'adventure' pictures: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. While waiting for the rest of the snorkelers, in addition to pictures of the kids and beach, I took two pictures of my nail art for my girl back home.
After lunch, we got our taxi back down and went back to our boat. Once onboard, we headed north up to Bitter End Yacht Club and then some of us took a mini nap or just relaxed. We hadn't taken dinner out of the freezer to defrost, so we put our steaks out on the back of the boat to start defrosting. Ricky was first to take the paddleboard out for a spin; then Michele took her turn. She couldn't wait to try it and she LOVED it! She did come back in time for Rick to give it a try. The first lesson we learned is to go wide of the boat. You don't want to have to encounter a dinghy (or rope) or a mooring rope while paddling around.
Before dark, we went ashore to Saba Rock for drinks (and free wifi). The kids got their internet fix and the adults sat around just talking and relaxing.
After dark, we went back to the boat for dinner. Steaks, potatoes for dinner tonight. The adults ate outside, the kids ate inside in the air conditioning (as they did EVERY night). After dishes were cleaned up, we played cards for awhile. Before going to bed, I wrote some notes about our day and we were all in bed by 11pm tonight.
Heading to our absolutely favorite island in the morning.....Anegada!
What a fun day. It looks like you had a good time just doing some exploring and picture taking. I like to do that kind of stuff too.
Lunch sounds good....nice basic food. And dinner sounds really good.
It's just amazing how blue the water is and how beautiful the whole area is.
My worry about it would be getting sea sick too. Sometimes I have no issues at all and then others it hits me and I think with those waves I would've left some food for the fishies.
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2013 found us in Florida visiting Dad and brother Rick before flying to Puerto Rico and embarking on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas heading for the southern caribbean.
If anyone has any questions about that ship or itinerary, I would be happy to answer and help out though!
I'm just glad I found time to do this year's report because we will go back and read/reference them from time to time (why I always start with Dad's house visit).
Yay! 
