Posts from — February 2017

By week #2 we were getting very settled in at the Villa and we had a bit of a regular routine going in the morning after breakfast which was to hike to hill to the top of Grand Fond and then down towards Lorient and then back over the top again back to our Villa. The hike took 45 minutes to an hour and was a good workout. When we got back the dip in the pool felt amazing.

After that we would head into Gustavia to walk around town or sit and have a drink at Le Select and just watch the activities going on. Between cruise-ship tourists, luxury yacht owners and residents of St. Bart’s there was always lots to see. Le Select is famous and was made famous by Jimmy Buffet because it is where he got the idea for the song “Cheeseburger in Paradise”.

Parking in Gustavia is at a premium. There are a couple pay lots which are quite reasonable and if you serach around enough you can always find a spot to park on the street. It’s just that their idea of parking on the street and what we accept for parking on the street is totally different. See the vehicle is parked…….. who cares you had to climb the sidewalk to do it!

Look at some of these Super Luxury Yachts that are tied up the the main pier in Gustavia. The small ones are about 80′ long and couple of these are 200′ in length. Check out this rental link for “Excellence V” the first yacht pictured http://www.charterbrochure.com/excellencev . By the way the rental price is 650,000 USD/week + expenses!

Also in week #2 we had a couple more animal visits to the pool area. First off was an Iguana and he/she was a big one; close to three feet long tip to tail. He/she decided to come to the pool for a drink.

Then late in the week we heard a clacking sound on the deck and looked around and there was a crab scurrying across the deck. Now, Villa Apiano is at least 1/2 a kilometre from the ocean “as the crow flies” and it is forest/bush, open field and cactus between the ocean and the villa. This one was big. Take a look at the pictures, the deck board are just under 5″ in width and stretched out the crab was probably 18″ wide.

So the 2nd week flew by and before we knew it, it was time to leave. So Sunday morning we board our Winair Flight back to St. Maarten to stay overnight at The Turquoise Shell Inn. Monday afternoon we flew to Atlanta and Tuesday morning back to Vancouver.

So, that’s it for our winter vacation this year.

Well after Dean and Judy left it was very lonely and very quiet at the Villa, we missed their companionship

So, much room and such great accommodations. It is hard to explain the layout, so here are a few pictures to give some idea.

However, we still had 12 days left so we were going to make the most of it and enjoy every minute……… because who knows when we will get a chance to come back.

Near the end of the first week we were walking in downtown Gustavia and stopped to talk to a couple from Ohio. They mentioned that the Anglican Church had a Sunday service that was not to be missed.

So, on Sunday morning we headed off to Church and what an experience. Much of the service was similar to a Sunday service here in an Anglican Church in Canada. However, some of it was quite different. For example the music was provided by a group that included a guitar player, a violinist and a piano player; all were very talented. Then part way through the service a gentlemen got up and sang “Moon River” accompanied by the musicians; what a voice he had and you would never know it but he was 90 years old.

The service started with about 30 people in the congregation and by the end there was probably 50 in attendance. The Church in on one of the main streets in Gustavia.

Also in the first week we had a daily visit from a Tortoise. Judy had warned us that we would be getting a daily visit and that he/she liked strawberries. Well sure enough we are sitting by the pool in the afternoon and guess who comes along looking for a treat. So we peeled part of a mango that we were having for dinner and he ate that as his treat.Guess who returned every day right around the same time. We mixed up his/her diet by adding orange rind along with mango…….. and he/she ate every piece.

On Sunday morning we met Dean and Judy near the airport and then drove towards an area called Lorient to have a lunch and then buy some supplies/groceries for our move to Villa Apiano for the next 2 weeks.

In the early afternoon we met the Villa Company representative at the Villa and he showed us our accommodations for the next 2 weeks. WOW! Dean and Judy have stayed here before and often talk about how beautiful it is; very private yet lots of open areas and it is a large 4 bedroom villa.

We were given first choice of rooms and we selected one of the bedrooms on the main living area.

After emptying our suitcases and loading the fridge with food and the cupboards with the necessary supplies it was later into the afternoon so instead of the beach we opted for an afternoon and early evening around the pool. Pretty hard to take:)

Dean and Judy served a delicious dinner this evening with the proper wine pairings and followed it up with chilled Vanilla Rum…… yummy!

However, this is where our St Bart’s adventure takes a bit of a turn. Prior to flying out to the Caribbean Judy’s mom Betty had a medical incident and was hospitalized. All through the early part of their vacation the daily calls back home said she seemed to be getting better one day and then she would have a relapse the next day. Well about day #2 at Villa Apiano Betty really took a turn for the worse and it was then that Judy and Dean decided to fly back to Kamloops to be there for her mom. It was a very tough decision and we certainly missed them when they left.

Unfortunately Betty passed away around 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday January 18th and Judy and Dean never arrived till 2:30 p.m. that afternoon. So, sad:( Betty was such a good person with a kind heart and a gentle soul. We all miss her.

Wednesday morning we headed back to St. Maarten airport to meet up with Dean and Judy and to fly over to the French island of St Bart’s.

The flight into St Bart’s is sooooo much fun. We flew with Winair which uses Twin Otter Aircraft. 

You generally approach from the west with the Capital of Gustavia off to your righthand side. Then as you near the airport there is a hill that the pilot aims for and then when the plane flys over the traffic circle at the top the pilot dives the plane downwards and lands on a very short runway! Yahoo!

Once we landed, cleared immigration and picked up our luggage we got our rental car.

Dean and Judy headed for the hotel they were staying at called L’Petit Morne located at the top of Colombier.

Meanwhile we headed for our accommodation in Corrosol for the next four days at L’Etoile du Marin. We have stayed here in the past and really enjoy the location and especially the view from the deck. The property is owned by Marie-Flore and Arnaud Questel. Arnaud built the addition to their main house about 10 years ago. It is absolutely perfect for  few days in St Bart’s.

We started each morning with a walk and when you live in St Bart’s there are very few flat spots. So, you are either climbing a hill or going down a hill which means you have to climb to get back home. Fortunately the steepest climb and walk we took peaked  near a local bakery that had chocolate croissants. After a morning walk, breakfast, etc our days were mostly spent at the beach or touring around the island and discovering many changes since our last visit.

After four nights we said goodbye to Marie-Flore and Arnaud. When we checked out they informed us that they were no longer going to be renting out “L’Etoile du Marin as they were both retiring and planning on traveling to see their families in France.

So, it was off to Villa Apiano with Dean and Judy

After leaving the airport Dean and Judy drove us to our accommodations at The Turquoise Shell Inn. We have stayed here on other visits and it’s an old time 2 level motel; certainly not the fanciest, but it’s clean and in a convenient location. The Turquoise Shell Inn is under new ownership and they are modernizing the rooms, so even though it is looking a little “travel weary” we are hopeful on our next visit to get one of the newly renovated rooms.

Once we signed in and dropped off our luggage we headed to a local bar for a drink and some appetizers. We arrived at the bar that is right next to where the main road bridge lifts to allow the sailboats and luxury private yachts enter Simpson Bay Lagoon. The bridge is only open at set times in the day and with all the boats coming and going it’s St Maarten’s version of the 5 o’clock rush traffic jam. Also while we were at the bar a small flotilla of a sailing school went by being pulled by a Zodiac.

Dean and Judy headed back to their hotel and we made plans to meet in a couple days for a trip to Phillipsburg.

The next morning we woke up to wonderful warm sunshine and went for a long beach walk.

Our first day we just chilled out, acclimatized and didn’t do a lot of anything except enjoy the beach and the warmth… Oh and the occasional cool beverage. 

The day before we headed to St Bart’s Dean and Judy picked us up in the morning and we headed to Phillipsburg for lunch and some shopping.

Phillipsburg was very busy as there were 5 cruise ships in port. So, lots going on with all the duty free shops, beach activities, tours, etc. After walking the boardwalk for a while and stopping in at a Holland Cheese Shop we found a great restaurant on the water to have lunch.

Then we headed back to Simpson Bay via the causeway bridge and over to the Summit Hotel to see Dean and Judy’s accommodations. They had a great view from their room of Simpson Bay Lagoon with the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean in the distance.

Tomorrow we are all off to St. Bart’s.

Wow! 2017 has arrived.

That must mean it is time for us to head to a warmer climate. So, that’s what we did and in early January we headed for St Maarten and then over to St. Bart’s.

Since we were flying out of Vancouver and the weather was looking good for driving to the coast we headed down a day early and spent a night in downtown Vancouver, prior to heading to our airport hotel.

From Vancouver we flew to Sea-Tac and then on to Atlanta. The flight to Atlanta was delayed about 2 1/2 hrs as it was delayed getting out of Atlanta due to winter conditions. It was -11C when we landed in Atlanta and only -5C in Kamloops. Plus there is no way that City or Airport are equipped to handle winter conditions like that. Anyway we made it to Atlanta, spent about 4 hrs at our Atlanta airport hotel and then it was back to the airport to catch the flight to St Maarten.

If you have never flown through Atlanta Airport you need to do it once in your life so you can experience it. Atlanta is the busiest airport in the world, but having said that, they are very efficient at moving travellers as long as you get there well ahead of your flight time. For example to get from the International Terminal to the Main Terminal is either a 15 minute bus ride or a long walk and a 10 minute underground train ride with stops at 6 other terminals.

Anyway, even though we were slightly delayed on our departure due to crew scheduling the pilot made the time up in the air and once out of customs/immigration at the airport Dean and Judy were there to meet us:)

So, our St Maarten and St Bart’s adventure started.