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We are settling in and our hotel is decent enough. Although it is positioned as a 5 star resort, I’d say it is more like 3.5 star room, 4 star “island” central facilities and a 6 star beach and view. Our rooms are on the top floor of a two story building that has a total of four “suites”. We have one large room and a combination closet/bat/shower that is separated from the other room by two louvered doors. In the room we have two queen beds that are, let’s say, adequate. Outside the sliding glass door is a 10’ x 10’ covered patio which overlooks the palm-lined beach, crystal clear ocean and Jost Van Dyke Island off in the distance. The view is definitely the best part!
Last night Geoff and I woke around 1 am to a torrential downpour and extreme winds, the sound of which was accentuated by the metal roofs. We slept with the sliding door wide open and the fans going full speed. It probably got down to 75 degrees and was a bit on the humid side…but overall quite nice.
This morning Geoff got up early and went for a run and swim at the beach. It was a beautiful morning with Jost Van Dyke clear in the distance, crystal blue and aqua waves breaking and pelicans and white petrels diving for their breakfast. Later, when everyone was awake, we walked about 50 feet to the hotel restaurant for a nice breakfast, punctuated by a rooster crowing and families of chicken walking about looking for a bite to eat. The baby and youngster chickens were quite humorous, very friendly and always talkative.
After breakfast Jenn and Wes went to their in-pool PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) training, Geoff went to the beach to catch up on his reading and I ended up going to the pool to audit a portion of their dive training class as well as do some blog writing. The class went without a hitch and Wes and Jenn were model students. We went to lunch a couple hours later and they both said they are really enjoyed it and are feeling much more confident in their diving skills. Since both have “graduated” from their online PADI course, they only need 3 more open water dives to be certified.
After lunch found Geoff down at the beach and I went for a short swim in the ocean, took a shower and got ready for dinner. The troops followed in progression and before long we were walking up the STEEP hill towards town. And, I mean, it’s a steep hill! We checked out several restaurants, from the sublime (think Chez Panisse where Jenny works) to the ridiculously clichéd beach shack adult bar (no one was there fortunately). We picked the middle to upper end option closest to “home”, had drinks on the patio, filmed the sunset and sat inside with a beautiful view of the ocean. A good dinner and a good time.
The walk on the way back to the hotel seemed even steeper than it was earlier…and it starting to rain as we approached the hotel. We made it back safely and headed to the lounge to do a little picture and blog editing before packing our bags and flopping into bed.
Tomorrow is an early day — we have a cab picking us up at 7:15 am when we will head over to West End to catch the dive boat and do 3 more dives. Then, a cab back to the hotel to get our bags and then over to Road Town to shop for provisions before we board our catamaran! Not sure when we’ll have internet access next but as soon as we do we’ll let you know how things are going. Stay tuned!
Marlene Shirley - To me a beautiful view is always more important than the living accommodations. The sore back from a bad bed eventually goes away, but the memory of the view stays with us forever. I LOVE looking at crystal clear water! (Only seen it a couple of times.) We still talk about the crystal clear water that we saw at Lake Tahoe when we visiting there a couple of years ago. It’s breathtaking! I think I am the only sibling who has never been diving!