Link

Can you say, "no way, Jose!!" ??

Any news on private vessels entering the BVI or still nothing?

Thanks

I was checking their website and it says the laundromat is currently unavailable due construction of the new Chef's Pantry building. Has anyone visited recently and can give an update? We aren't going until July

Also, and I certainly don't want to open up a BoatyBall discussion, but from their map it appears that mooring balls close to Leverick are reserve only and out towards Malone Bay are BoatBall FCFS balls. Does that leave any strictly Leverick Bay controlled balls or all of them BoatyBall.

Finally, it appears we won't be stuck with a 4 day quarantine but if something were to change, in looking at the map of mooring balls, how does one tell where Leverick Bay ends and Malone Bay begins?

Sadly our last full day. Nothing major to report except dinner.

We were looking for something different and after much debate we decided on Avantika. What a great last night dinner. We sat outside and really loved the setting.

Started with fried spring rolls. Absolutely scrumptious. And not too much, saving room for dinner. Also started with mojitos. My first ever. I'm not much for mint but now I think I've found a new summer drink. Dinner for me was the Jungle Curry with shrimp. I ordered it medium hot and it was that and more. Loved it. Lots of shrimp and fresh veggies. My wife had Thai Basil with roasted duck. She loved it and we agreed this was the best meal of the trip. Great ambience, a delightful server, Gee. Oh and tiramiso was delightful too.

Home to pack for the trip home.

What's the parking like in Philipsburg these days? Is there parking along the salt pond or in the government lot now? Thanks.

So, could someone remind me where the 'new' Rima store is? If I were standing in front of the courthouse with my back to the ocean, which way would I head, and about how far? Thanks!

We tested on a Monday for a Friday arrival. We took our chances that we were getting the correct test (rt-pcr) versus standard pcr. The results came back negative, and in the lab report, it does say rt-pcr somewhere, but it also refers to the test as just pcr too. We received our test results back on Tuesday, submitted our applications, and were approved within a half hour. Then I read that if you stay on the French side, which we are, you need a negative pcr test within 72 hours. On Wednesday, we tested again, had our results back that day, and arrived with test results in hand; nobody at immigration asked about 72h results. We only handed over our EHAS pre-approval form and 120h test results. All is well as we sit on our balcony overlooking the beautiful sea.

We flew JetBlue out of JFK. At the gate, an announcement was made that our EHAS pre-approval forms would be checked before boarding but that someone would be coming through the waiting area to do it. We didn't see anyone checking, so we went up to the desk and had it checked. Glad we did because anyone who had their docs checked before boarding was allowed to board regardless of boarding group. Although, I'm not sure if they adhered to the boarding groups after we went through. The plane was about half full.

Also, JFK was a zoo at 6:30am. Even TSA PreCheck line was long in comparison to past trips.

Another chapter done.....

We’re home a week today and already it seems like a lifetime ago that we were basking in that warm Caribbean sunshine. And it also seems like another lifetime until we get to go back again but I know in my heart, November will be here before we know it.

We had great flights down flying AA First Class from HPN, our local regional area and connecting to AA Business in Charlotte. Due to some newly emerging health issues I opted for wheelchair service there and it really makes a difference in navigating that airport, though it didn’t seem to help too much in Miami.

We arrived a few minutes early and navigated and cleared the SXM airport in almost no time flat and of course, Lesley Bruce of Kenny’s Car Rental was right there with our chariot, but low - no white Toyota this trip - our chariot for the two plus weeks was a bright shiny red Hyundai and it served us well.

We stayed at BSV on Simpson Bay again - why wouldn’t we when they’ve covered every creature comfort you could ask for and then some. The suites are complete, the pool has plenty of chaises and is almost deserted most of the day, and the grounds are beautiful. Airplanes out the front door and luxury yachts off the rear deck. Could it get any better?! Actually, for those of us who enjoy eating in - we do - it could and did as Jeannie Gee of ShopndropSXM had already been in and stocked our larder. And then there’s the staff - Smarthie, the ever smiling maid who took care of our suite most days and the main man, Emanuel, who basically takes care of everything else.

We didn’t do anything exciting this trip - John was still recuperating from surgery and I was busy being best buddies with my newly and recently acquired cane, so no sailing trips or other island adventures and yes, Covid practices are still in effect there when in stores or crowded situations and when entering eateries at least until seated.

So what did we do? We ate at some great spots:

The new Lee’s was good but believe it or not, no lobster the night we were there. And contradictory to what we thought there is plenty of parking but the upper lot is a trek down to the dining room and shouldn’t even be considered if you need crutches or canes. Leaving and climbing those stairs would not be for the feint- hearted. We parked on top at first but then moved the car down at the insistence of the staff. We spent the evening with dear and long-time friends and enjoyed every moment.

Mario’s at the Cliff was lovely. We had a great table and excellent service. Personally speaking, while I thought the food was very good it didn’t meet my expectations based on our last Mario’s venture at Porto Cupecoy. And I was surprised at how quickly the dinner check climbed into multiple hundreds. But the company was a joy ergo it was worth it.

New to us this trip was Meza Luna. The food was delicious and even though the house was packed, the service was very good. I wouldn’t consider this to be the typical vacationers choice but they don’t know what they’re missing. I know I’ll return in the future. And again, the company was great.

People might laugh but I think my favorite dinners out were the Tuesday night steak plate at Fat Tonys and any of the two or three meals we enjoyed at the Spaghetti House in Jordan Village. Not fancy, for sure, but the food is excellent and if it isn’t made quite the way you like it, Katrina will make it to your needs and wants. Enzo’s magic touch and know-how is evident.

We ate at lots of other locations, ElZafiro, Mary’s Boon, Bar Code, Sublime and others whose names escape me and as usual, never had a bad meal anywhere. Breakfasts and lunches included Rosie’s ribs, The Sand Box, Zee Best, the French Touch on Old Street, and a bunch of other places whose names escape me at this point but they were all good.

We managed to catch up with island friends which is always a blessing and even got to dine out with the Millers, the Cannegieters, and Sharon Harris who arrived back on island during our stay and of course, Jeannie Gunthanen to mention but a few. And then the time spent with friends made through other island visits - Terry and Rit, Todd and MJ - it was priceless and too short. And to laughingirish - should you see this,it was nice to meet you and who knows, perhaps our paths will cross again on ilon time. And to BlackMercedes and Cathy and her sister from Michigan, it was so nice to meet you all. I wish our time for chatting had been longer - maybe next trip?

The golf course, always of interest to a few diehard fans, was a mess. Yes! I actually said that. We did see people playing a few times while driving through but between the lack of regular maintenance and the lack of rain early in our trip - YIKES. The grass was mostly brown although with the nighttime rains towards the end of our trip it was starting to green up and down there, it doesn’t take much.

We made one foray into Philipsberg and what we saw broke my heart and that one visit was more than enough. Too many shops closed; too few shoppers in those that were open. And the stories of many of the shopkeepers were enough to make you want to cry. Our jeweler has managed to keep most of his staff on board and when I questioned him about this he said he did it because it’s the right thing to do. They’ve been together so long they’re family. So if anyone is in doubt, they are definitely happy to see more and more visitors returning every week. They truly do appreciate our presence.

And some things never change. The suicycles still reign although supposedly the police are going to crack down on them, I hope at a faster tempo than they created the timeshare laws they’ve talked about for twenty years. The dredging of the lagoon is on-going and they’re removing an incredible amount of debris. The fun boat is still stuck on the cliff on the end of Simpson Bay by ElZafiro where it was wrecked a few years and storms back. The building, 14 on the Green at Mullet Bay, is butt ugly and I guess selling well since the hole for the second foundation is in place. It’s at least 21 stories and IMHO, it sticks out like a sore thumb. No change in the status of the Towers timeshare property or in any of the other real estate properties in limbo that we could see. But the flora on the island was breathtaking every where you looked - the beautiful colors couldn’t help but make you smile. And lastly, we got to enjoy the Nord off our beach every day and to see it beautifully lighted at night. Gorgeous!!

All trips have to come to an end and ours was no exception. We flew home First-class on AA and one thing I know - I will NEVER book a connecting flight through Miami again if I can possibly avoid it. We had almost an hour and forty-five minutes to clear C & I on a Friday evening and do all that happy stuff one needs to do when coming home and even using wheelchair service we got to our gate when they were already well into the boarding process.

And now we wait for November.

This is a great short YouTube video explaining how they are doing it.
LINK

Had our coffee and headed towards Simpson Bay. Got to MedWorks twentyfive minutes early. Went upstairs, poked our heads in the door and they said come on in. We checked in and sat down for two minutes and then the nurse took us in one at a time. Fifteen minutes. Done. In and out before our scheduled time. Smooth and seamless.

Drove two blocks to SMYC for breakfast. I changed it up from my usual Eggs Benedict and instead had the French Toast. Very good and very filling. Wife had the fruit and bagel (which she liked but some of the fruit was not ripe enough to eat.) And Bloody's of course. It was breezy and comfortable and we ate, lounged and watched the dinghies transporting people to the sail charters. Received emails with our negative test results. (Later, our front desk printed them out for us.)

I wondered if we could see our friend Capt. Neil's boat Enigma/C3 so I opened my Marine Tracker app and low and behold it's a couple hundred yards away straight in front of us. I realized I had been looking for a mast-less Lagoon cat, like it was in our last trip in 2018, but it's masted and all rigged out. How cool.

Finished boat and people watching (got to see the bridge opening and one of the big Coast Guard ships come through and raft up with the other big ship.) Yeah we're both boat geeks and love my tracker app

Headed to Marigot. Went to Chez Fernand la French and bought baguette sandwiches (for lunch later) and pastries. Headed back home.

Spent the day on the beach.

Cooked our own dinner. Ribeye Steaks, baked potatoes and sautéed onions and carrots. Excellent.

Another great day.