Coming from Anegada to Roadtown the ferry was right on time and I headed down to the Jolly Roger to wait for the JVD ferry. Ran into Gertrude as she was getting off the ferry and teased her about not being there to check me in and she laughed saying you know where the room is. Quick ride over and met by by good ole Roger (aka. RogerG). We went straight to the Soggy Dollar and when I walked into the bar area I found my chair waiting for me with a reserved sign sitting on it. It was great to be there. Saw Tina, Sandy and Mic right away then looked into the kitchen to say hi. Like every other BVI traveler I then hit the bar. Everything there was in full swing, it was a Monday which is usually a lighter day as far as the number of visitors but there were enough folks to get in a comfortable amount of people watching. Since this was a last minute trip there was no room available at Sandcastle and I was able to get the room Gertrude, next door, rents on occasion. It is a comfortable room but did have some water pressure issues, she has not hooked up to the island water yet but the trenches are being dug. As always Gertrude was a great hostess. It is a quick and easy walk between my room and Soggy and my room. Gertrude’s still wasn’t serving food and the bar was extremely quiet during my stay, but they are rebuilding the kitchen and it will be a nice modern facility. I don’t spend much time in the room, am there just to shower and sleep, so my days were spent visiting over at the Soggy Dollar. Ran into several TTOL’ers, Tina’s husband Freddie came over to say hi, he is a very entertaining fellow who used to be chef at Foxy’s and is JVD born and bred, also got a visit from Sylvester who is the island police Sgt., and is from St. Kitt’s. If you have the opportunity make sure and say hi he’ll be the big guy with a police T shirt on and a big smile. Since this was by far the shortest trip I’ve made to JVD as an land visitor I didn’t really go anywhere during the day except up the beach some. Like all places one visits regularly there are staff changes, happens in all businesses and I truly miss some of the folks who have worked there. But I have to say that the current staff is top notch. Service is better than ever and everyone is so pleasant. Roger and Sandy have done a great job in improving an already great place. Sandy recently won a service award from the Government, congrats Sandy. Clayvorne and Simone as floor managers are right on top of things and Mic the bartender has more energy than most anyone I know. However I find that Shaneek and Sana are much better looking. Chef Oliver is back and doing great. His cooking was superb as always. One night Roger, Sandy and I went over to Abe’s for dinner. I do like their ribs. We had a great time and it was good to be able to talk without all the interruptions. Thanks for a great night guys. Roger and Sandy have become great friends. The weather was perfect and of all things I think the bar might have been a touch quieter than when I was there in August. One thing is that the small cruise ships that come to White Bay don’t seem to impact the Soggy Dollar. The usually go down to the end of the beach by the trampoline, and I did see a bunch go to Ivan’s. It’s the day trip boats from STT and STJ that bring most of the visitors. The seas were a bit high which discouraged some. As always it’s a treat watching the “credit card” sailors trying to maneuver. It is an amazing view sitting in my chair looking at all that beauty. I was sorry not to be there on a Sunday when Rueben plays. Everybody’s favorite, Trixie, got a new companion in Dollar last August and while it took a little while to adapt to having another dog around they now go hunting together. Roger had a few funny stories about how they team up against the mongeese and have caught a few. It was much too short a time but had to leave after only 3 nights and back to Tortola and Maria’s for my last night in the BVI this trip. Had an early flight so the logistics in coming from JVD that early are just not worth it. That night I went to Spaghetti Junction and had a great meal. The menu says the Cioppino has been described as better than what you find in San Francisco, and having eaten there many times as well as cooked my own the challenge was on. Yes, it was better. The flavors were great and of course so was the service. John and April are great hosts.

I had a previous post with a description of my trip home on Jet Blue so won’t go into those complaints again.

I do love the BVI.