Hello everyone!

We finally made it back to Anegada after 2 years and 3 cancellations. It was truly good to see our island friends again.

So the trip down was interesting. We flew CLT-SJU-EIS. Everything went smooth to EIS. We had done our eMed test before we left and all was good. Filled out the Hummingbird portal while sitting in SJU. We had to show proof of vaccination and our eMed results before we boarded AirCaribbean. Upon arrival at EIS we were escorted to the building for our entry test. I am assuming because two flights arrived at the same time we were at the airport for 1.5 hours. Not what I was expecting. I also was not asked for proof of insurance. After finally being released we caught a taxi to the Wyndham at Lambert Beach for our overnight stay as it was too late for the ferry to Anegada. This spot was a recommendation by Jason. It was perfect. Thank you Jason.

We set up a 4:30am wake up call to catch the 7:00 ferry. I actually woke up a few minutes before 4:30 and was on the patio when I noticed a gentleman approaching me. I said Good Morning. He said I am your wake up call. I can honestly say I have never had an in person wake up call. But hey, we are on vacation.

The ferry to Anegada was a bit bumpy as it was pretty windy most of the time we were down there. Of course Dean was there to greet us and hand us our keys to the vehicle and our villa. Then it was off to ARH for breakfast and a stop at Lil Bits for provisioning. After unpacking and stocking our supplies we went to Cow Wreck for a few drinks. Since Ann is opening her own place it was just Belle and one girl in the kitchen. After we had lunch the Cow Wreck was filling up quickly. Now this may sound silly, but a dream of mine has always been to be a bartender at a beach bar on a remote island. So I asked Belle if I could help out since everyone who was ordering drinks was also ordering food. This freed her up to help in the kitchen as I tended bar. I ended up working for about 5 hours. I had an absolute blast! Engaging with everyone was a lot of fun. It is also the first job I've had that I could drink while working! But apparently I am not a very good bartender. After 5 hours of pouring drinks, NOT ONE TIP!!! Honestly though, I'm pretty sure the tip was added to the bills when everyone closed out. I refused to take cash or run anyone's cards as it is not my money. I left that part to Belle.

The rest of our time on the island was spent snorkeling at Flash of Beauty (current was very strong), visiting with island friends and swimming at our villa. A day on the water with Sherwin. The villa we always stay in (D&H Sunshine Villas) has been upgraded since we were last there. The furnishings were new, now have wifi and the back deck has a roof that we took full advantage of.

Wait until y'all see Ann's new place. Tipsy's is absolutely beautiful. They have done a really nice job. Of course it opened the day after we left. This is where we finally ran into Walker. It was good to see him again.

Dinners were at Sid's (3 times), Wonky Dog, ABC, ARH and Potters. All were very good. Really loved the lobster tacos at Sid's.

Now I have to admit my mistake. 3 days before we were to leave the island it was time to do our eMed test to go home. I tore our villa apart looking for the test kits. They were nowhere to be found. Now it is panic time. I reached out to Henny to see if she could help somehow. She told me the clinic on Anegada does the necessary testing and provided me with their phone number. I called and after a few basic questions we had an appointment to be tested at 3:30 that afternoon. So it is off to Cow Wreck for lunch a few drinks. Mistake #2: We left Cow Wreck at 3:00 for the clinic. Obviously we had to drive by our villa on the way to the clinic. Did I stop to get our vax cards and passports? Nope. We arrived at the clinic empty handed. The lady at the clinic was awesome. By chance I had photos of our passports and she took our word on the vaccinations. $50 each and 15 minutes later we are cleared and on our way. Before we even got back to the villa the results had already been emailed to us.

Our last morning on the island we decided to have breakfast at ARH knowing it will be a while before we eat again. When we got to ARH there was a large table of guests already seated. Shortly after we sat down one of the said, "look, its the bartender from Cow Wreck". We got a good laugh in. The ferry ride was much smoother returning to Tortola. At EIS we were in line to check in with AirCaribbean for about 20 minutes. The security line was nearly an hour long. This part was a bit surprising to us. Not at EIS or SJU were we once asked for our test results. Not once! I am not suggesting skipping that test. But very surprising we were never asked for proof.

So as others have said, a bit of a hassle. But well worth it. We look forward to going back in May.