Hooray, Cupcake (AKA Israel) is coming to see us for part 2 of his 50th birthday celebration! Yeah, he's over the proverbial hill, but his ego doesn't get what his body is trying to tell him. The catch is, there's always a catch, Israel will only be with us for 3 days which is like going to Disney World for 3 hours, just not enough time. Now I really want Israel to experience the magnificent beauty of Virgin Islands so that he might return home, and tell all of you about it, and then you will want to visit me...quite the sinister scheme!
In any case, we took a slip at a marina, and rented a car to pick him up at the airport because a taxi just costs too much. We went straight to the grocery store to provision for the weekend. At the end of the shopping spree we had more liquor than food, but it's better to be safe than sorry.
The next morning Marie returned the car while I readied the boat. Our first stop would be Christmas Cove, only a short couple of miles away, or about 30 minutes. Our friends on Necesse were there to join us. There are usually moorings that you can pick up but they were all taken. We dropped anchor in about 20 feet of water. Since it was kinda crowded I dove in to check that the anchor was well placed. Well, since I was already wet I coaxed Israel to don his gear, and we went for a nice long snorkel around a large reef that splits the cove in half. The reef was beautiful, and full of colorful fish, but there was a 15 pound mouton snapper that was just amazing. You can't spearfish in this area, and I think the snapper knew it. And so our appetite grew.
That night I had something special planned for dinner. I found goat at a local market, and I knew Israel wound really appreciate it. Again, I out did myself, and Israel had it three meals in a row!
The next morning we lifted the anchor, and headed for the infamous Jost Van Dyke. It was a really nice 3 hour sail through the blue waters between St. Thomas, St. John, Jost. When we arrived at Great Harbor there was only one mooring remaining. As we made our way towards it a catamaran that was behind us sped up, and beat us to it. It reminded me of holiday season parking at the malls in Miami. It seems the Jerks follow me everywhere. We were left circling the harbor, looking for a spot to anchor. My anchoring angel showed its face, and found us a really nice opening close to shore, the best spot in the house. In the British Virgin Islands most moorings cost $30 a day, and they are in the best spots, leaving little or no room for anchoring. We got lucky, we have a great spot, and it's free...more drinking money!
Israel and I went to shore at about 2 pm. After a quick walk down the only street in town, we sat down at Foxy's for some drinks. There is something peculiar about the drinks at Foxy's. It seems that there is some phenomena occurring that makes people drunk faster than usual. We stumbled back home after only 2 hours, drooling like babies, and went to sleep. We awoke in the early evening, about 6:30 or 7:00. The party a Foxy's was full swing, but we dared not go for a second round. We settled for a milder social exchange on our boat that evening.
The next morning we had to head back to St. Thomas as Israel had to fly out the next day. We sailed back in half the time that it took us to get there. We picked up a mooring at Christmas Cove, and had dinner with our friends on Necesse The next morning, for the sake of comfort, Israel said that he would pay for a night the marina. We called American Yacht Harbor, and they had a slip available. The marina is located in an area called Red Hook. It's a bit like Key West, but smaller. There are over 10 bars on a 500 foot stretch of road, and Israel thought it was heaven. This is where he wanted to be all along. It's ironic that I had exhausted myself thinking of where to take him on such a short visit, and the answer was right under my nose!
That night I had something special planned for dinner. I found goat at a local market, and I knew Israel wound really appreciate it. Again, I out did myself, and Israel had it three meals in a row!
The next morning we lifted the anchor, and headed for the infamous Jost Van Dyke. It was a really nice 3 hour sail through the blue waters between St. Thomas, St. John, Jost. When we arrived at Great Harbor there was only one mooring remaining. As we made our way towards it a catamaran that was behind us sped up, and beat us to it. It reminded me of holiday season parking at the malls in Miami. It seems the Jerks follow me everywhere. We were left circling the harbor, looking for a spot to anchor. My anchoring angel showed its face, and found us a really nice opening close to shore, the best spot in the house. In the British Virgin Islands most moorings cost $30 a day, and they are in the best spots, leaving little or no room for anchoring. We got lucky, we have a great spot, and it's free...more drinking money!
Israel and I went to shore at about 2 pm. After a quick walk down the only street in town, we sat down at Foxy's for some drinks. There is something peculiar about the drinks at Foxy's. It seems that there is some phenomena occurring that makes people drunk faster than usual. We stumbled back home after only 2 hours, drooling like babies, and went to sleep. We awoke in the early evening, about 6:30 or 7:00. The party a Foxy's was full swing, but we dared not go for a second round. We settled for a milder social exchange on our boat that evening.
The next morning we had to head back to St. Thomas as Israel had to fly out the next day. We sailed back in half the time that it took us to get there. We picked up a mooring at Christmas Cove, and had dinner with our friends on Necesse The next morning, for the sake of comfort, Israel said that he would pay for a night the marina. We called American Yacht Harbor, and they had a slip available. The marina is located in an area called Red Hook. It's a bit like Key West, but smaller. There are over 10 bars on a 500 foot stretch of road, and Israel thought it was heaven. This is where he wanted to be all along. It's ironic that I had exhausted myself thinking of where to take him on such a short visit, and the answer was right under my nose!
Good to hear from Mirador....
ReplyDeleteJorge & Made
Calypso Cat