Getting There

We all took the same flights, starting with the red eye from SFO to NY JFK, then to Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas. This island is the most populated of the U.S. Virgin Islands. The other two being St. John just to the East, being predominantly a National Park, and their ugly and distant cousin, St Croix (not shown), 30 miles south. Upon disembarking from the plane, the warm, humid tropical air engulfed our dry, cold bones as we walked down the old-fashioned stairs and across the tarmac. We are NOT in Kansas Toto! Immediately inside the terminal, a young local woman greeted us and invited us to sample some Cruzan Rum. Gladly, I poured several small shots down, warming the inside of my body as well. You gotta try them all to know which you prefer, right? Our taxi driver greeted us by name and, after claiming bags, we all strode outside and loaded into a van headed for the Charlotte Amalie ferry. Everything is going exactly according to plan!

We were two hours early for the ferry to Road Town, on the BVI island of Tortola. So we checked our baggage at the ferry and walked down the waterfront to the Greenhouse, our first of many restaurant experiences in the US and British Virgin Islands.

Sidebar: Several of us observed, and later confirmed through an unsolicited comment by a fellow traveler, that service in VI is a bit slow and generally unfriendly. Just saying, it is a bit odd that their economy relies on tourism, yet many seem to do little to endear themselves to the tourist. If for no other reason, common sense dictates that a smile and friendly greeting may get the server a larger tip.

This is the first pic I took in VI. It seems a little blurry, right? I check out the lens and it is fogged up from the humidity. A few minutes later, all clear! BTW: this is the holding area for the ferry to Tortola. It will be packed in two hours.


Short walk down the waterfront to Greenhouse restaurant. A perfect 82 degrees outside, pretty much the entire 10 days we were there.


In the restaurant. We had an assortment of local favorites: Fish jambalaya, Conch fritters (pronounced 'conk'). Good stuff!

Steve and I enjoyed a beer or two with lunch, then back to the ferry for another beer or two. The local brew favorites are two: Carib and Presidente, both from the Caribbean. The ladies always opted for a fruity rum drink, the local favorite being the renowned Painkiller from the Soggy Dollar bar. Steve and I managed to choke down more than our share of those as well.

The ferry ride was about an hour long, passing St. John to the south. June and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. Steve and Sherlyn were apparently a bit bored.


In all fairness, we were awake pretty much all night on the red eye. Thanks to June for this pic!

Since BVI is in British territory, we had to pass through a painfully slow customs inspection. Eventually, we again met a taxi driver who had our name, and he gave us a 15 minute ride to the Sunsail base, a gorgeous facility in a secure area of the very busy Road Town harbor. We checked in and they quickly escorted us to our yacht.

Weeks before our trip, I got an email advising us that, for some unknown reason, our 'classic' (old) 38 ft. yacht was unavailable that week, and we have been upgraded to a new 47 ft yacht. Would that be okay? Hell YES, that would be just fine. In fact the boat was so new that it had not yet been named. It was therefore called for the week, 'Hull 908'. I like it!  I like everything about it! Reminds me of PT 109, JFK's Navy boat.

So we get to the boat and everything is pristine. Except for one thing: Several days before our trip, June and I went online and bought provisions though Sunsail. They were to be delivered to and stowed on the boat when we arrived. Upon inspection, we quickly noted that our provisions were not there. Back to the front desk, who confirmed that they were delivered but they would look into it. As it turns out, they were delivered to another boat with a hull number of 908. Small world. That's ok, honest mistake. Please, just get our stuff before the other Hull 908 residents start drinking our beer.

So we settled in for our first night on board. We poured some fruity rum drinks, tried to figure out what we could about the boat, then got to bed early. It was the end of a full day of traveling, and tomorrow, the adventure begins!

Next: Peter Island and a Comedy of Errors