Day 3 – Monday, July 26th – “Drunk Night”: Enjoyed sleeping late after the last two days. Enjoyed coffee on the deck and the beautiful view from the villa, then prepared to head to town for provisioning. The original plan was to laze around Brewer’s Bay that afternoon, but since the water was still murky I suggested we head down to Smuggler’s Cove. Since we also wanted to do Bananakeet that evening, I suggested we bring a change of clothes and go directly there from Smuggler’s. This is a good plan if you don’t mind doing dinner with salt water skin and beach hair. We didn’t mind.

Ah, Smuggler’s, what can I say. It has to be one of the most beautiful beaches anywhere. Bill heads straight for Stephen’s bar and re-acquaints himself (the Jimmy Buffett banner he has flying was brought there by Bill a couple of years ago). The water is crystal clear there and so refreshing. We are all standing around when the guy in front of us goes “are you stalking us?” to Bill, and it turns out to be the Spanish couple we had seen at the ferry dock and then Cane Garden Bay. Bill loves talking to people, it is truly one of his gifts, and he and Lyne strike up the conversation with them. The father, George (Jorge) speaks English the best and is very outgoing. Bill mentions seeing them in CGB the night before and then asks “where are you from?” to which George answers Spain. Bill goes “oh really, I thought your accent was more French”… Jack and I look at each other and think, wow, that could be a little insulting, and we all laugh, and George is the most easy going and nicest guy you could ever meet. He and his wife and daughter (around age 10 I think) have been spending the summer traveling, including several US cities.

Lyne snorkels with the wife and daughter while Bill and George chat. Jack and I spend a lot of time in the water, enjoying some beers and plenty of people watching. Talk to a lady from St. John there with her kids and nieces and nephews, and also an expat who has the cutest ever dog – we all decide it HAS to be part Golden, part poodle, and Bill and Lyne find out that it is in fact just that. They also find out the history behind its birth, including the “marriage” its parents had on the beach (as I recall).

We enjoy lunch and drinks at Stephen’s (Steven???) and the beautiful water. A power boat comes in and anchors in really close, which really bothers me but what can you do? Lyne and/or Bill make friends again, this time it’s a young guy from Philly, Peter. He is here on a last minute one week trip while on hiatus between jobs. Very nice guy. We’ll see him again, too.

We get to Bananakeet a bit early for our reservation, but that is no problem and we are happy our table is not out at the end as it is blazing hot. We still get a good dose of it, but those happy hour drinks make it all worth it (a couple of them free thanks to Bill remembering to bring 2 Drinking Man’s Guides with us!). Our server, Denise, remembers me from the last couple of trips, she is great and I always remember to give her a little something for her outstanding service and smiling face. Everyone loved their dinner – the pork loin for Bill, tuna for Lyne, seafood pasta for me and coconut shrimp for Jack, as I recall.

Sorry, I didn't get a decent sunset shot at Bananakeet.

Make it back to the villa without any problems, and this is where it gets a little hazy. I know I was drinking my wine, I think Jack had wine too. Bill was mixing rum drinks for them (the booze is ridiculously cheap at the Tico Cash N Carry store!) and then much talking, laughing, more drinking, and jumping into the pool ensued (bathing suits on, thank you very much). Great way to celebrate Bill’s birthday eve, but he would pay for it the next day…

Day 4, Tuesday, July 27th – “Jost!”: So we all wake up with hangovers, some worse than others, and despite that and the extreme difficulty getting Jack off the phone with work, we make the 10:00 a.m. ferry to Jost Van Dyke. They now make you sign in on a manifest, so formal… Also on the ferry is the Spanish family and Peter from Philly. At some point the previous night Bill decided to rent a car on Jost so that we could see more of the island, as Jack and I had only been to White Bay during our previous trips there. In hindsight, we should have researched this idea a little better, but it was “drunk night” and the internet at the house was out.

So the lady from Abe’s & Eunicy’s is there to pick us up, but there is no way we are all going to fit in her little car. George decided to rent a car for his family as well, so Bill and George go off with her to get the cars. What none of us were aware of was that Abe’s & Eunicy’s is all the way over in Little Harbour so we wait and wait and wait some more. Jack and I got breakfast at the little snack bar right by the ferry dock (egg & cheese sandwich + Carib = hangover cure!) while we wait.



Next stop, White Bay, where Jack and I have a couple of Painkillers and Lyne and Bill have rotis at the Soggy Dollar Bar.



While they are enjoying their rotis, Jack and I head down to One Love for Bushwackers and Lobster Quesadillas (yum!).



I could just laze around here all day, but I was anxious to see the other parts of Jost as well. Next stop was Ivan’s, where we enjoyed a few cold Caribs (until they ran out) and a nice quiet swim in the sea. George and family were following us on this journey, as they had never been to Jost. Lyne snorkeled with the Spanish lady and daughter, and a good time was had by all.

Next up was a trip to Foxy’s Taboo. We were told by the locals that the bubbly pool wasn’t “bubbling” that day, but we decided to head over there anyway. Along the way Bill’s rental car had a little mishap, having its passenger side mirror clipped by a car going the other way. Oops! Oddly enough, the driver of the other car was one of the locals we had talked to earlier who told us the bubbly pool wasn’t running….

So, with nothing happening in Diamond Cay we have one beer and then head for Great Harbour and Foxy’s. We all wait there while Bill and George take the rental cars back. We started to get a little concerned about missing the last ferry back to Tortola, so Jack and I start walking to the ferry dock, joined by Peter from Philly, Lyne and George’s daughter. Not really sure what Plan B would’ve been, but Bill, George and his wife made it to the ferry in the nick of time.

Back at West End we bid farewell to George and his family, as they were headed to Anegada the next day for a couple days. This is how nice, they were – he waited while Jack and I used the restrooms at the ferry dock to personally say goodbye to each of us.

Bill with George and family at Ivans:



Grilled steaks back at the villa, drank some wine, and did some stargazing. The cable and internet are finally on and I tried to stay awake for one of my favorite shows, “Chopped” on the Food Network, but didn’t make it. I sure hope Lyne doesn’t have a picture of me snoozing on the couch...