Land based trip report June 4th - 13th, 2004

This was our return trip to reunite and renew our friendship
with 2 other couples with whom we've been best friends for 13 years.
We all arrived in phases, my wife and I on the 4th with Fred & Rakale
arriving on the 5th and Richard & Barbie on the 6th. This was F&R's
second trip to Tortola, R&B's third, and our 7th visit to paradise.

Summary: lots of great food, excellent weather with only 45 minutes of
daytime rain the whole trip, the Drinking Mans Guide is a must, if
you ever pass by a place and say "should we stop here?" then just do
it, you won't regret it.

In reading through this before posting it, I realized that it's full of personal interactions,
experiences, and less about the places where these events occur. That seems to
always be the nature of our trips to the BVI. It's the people that make it the treasure
that it is. I hope you enjoy the personal side of our trip to the BVI.


Friday June 4th
---------------

Kim and I had a 6:45am departure out of Raleigh, thru Miami, then
to San Juan and finally Beef Island. American did a fine job, all
flights were on time and we landed at EIS at 3:10pm. Immigration
was smooth, but a second Eagle flight landed just as we did, and it
caused havoc for the sole baggage handler on duty. We waited 30
minutes as he unloaded both planes, then loaded in the new passengers'
bags before bringing our luggage to the terminal. Many stressed
out people including a group of older gentlemen with what could be
described as "trophy" wives who were none too pleased
over the delays. We sat back and enjoyed the transition to Island
Time as we waited for the bags.

Grabbed a cab and a couple Caribs from the truck in the parking lot, then
ran over to Cane Garden Bay to check in at Ole Works Inn. The room was
clean, comfortable, and had a nice view. The water pressure and AC worked
well, but the mattress was a bit tired. Overall it was an excellent value
and a great place for a short stay in Cane Garden Bay. We shopped for the
recently released CD's in the gift shop, and picked up some shirts as
well. Kim took a short nap while I walked the beach, There was a group of
3 boys and one girl who were playing on the beach. The boys were
taking the girl's sandals and playing "keep away" with them. They
eventually noticed me and came over to chat playfully. They asked
me for a dollar, but I told them that I don't give money to little boys
that are mean to little girls. Then one boy tried to serenade me with
the 8 year old version of Happy Birthday ".... you live in a zoo..."
but I beat him to it with a new version and punchline that he had
never heard. He made me teach him the new version and quickly became
my friend. I headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up and get
ready for dinner. We had drinks and dinner at the Big Banana and headed
back to listen to Quito and the Edge. We only made it through the first
set, and left early thanks to a 4:00am wakeup that morning and a
long travel day.


Saturday June 5th
-----------------

Kim woke with a migraine. I walked down to the new Bobby's market
to get some muffins and sodas. Unfortunately the food did not help
with the nausea and pain from the migraine, so as Kim slept it off, I
walked down the street to find Glen at Cane Garden Bay Pleasureboats.
I had spoken with him about a daytrip to Jost to avoid the crowds at CGB,
since the Carnival cruiseship was in Roadtown today. Since Kim wasn't
up to the trip, I notified Glen and then grabbed a chair at Rhymers
to watch the people arrive in droves.

The transformation of Cane Garden Bay from a laid back beach
into a cruise ship daytripper base was remarkable. Chairs,
umbrellas, beach stands, and vendors seemed to have sprouted up overnight
like mushrooms! With only one ship in port, the crowds on the beach were
manageable and the people were spending money on drinks, braiding, food,
jet skis, pedal boats, and chair rentals. From my chair near the bar
at Rhymers, I spent about 90 minutes just chilling out, watching the
day unfold. I also took a walk the length of the beach to take it
all in. Sure, there were some visitors who were rude, but many of them
were genuinely interested in learning more about the BVI. I am no
huge fan of the jet skis, but many of the other businesses were
also benefiting from the business. Watching the day progress, I
gradually changed my mind on this whole cruise ship issue. One large
ship per day is a manageable number of visitors. They really do get
a small taste of the BVI experience when it's not so crowded. The
businesses benefit and it balances out to benefit many folks.

Kim was feeling better by around 1:00, so we went down to the beach
and relaxed in the sand. Took a nice walk and had a late lunch at
Stanleys. Then we got cleaned up as we waited to hear from Fred &
Rakale. They were on the US Air flight into St Thomas and should
have made the 4:00 ferry, arriving in CGB by 5:45 or so.
By 6:15 we were getting worried, so we headed down to check with Fitz
at the bar. Sure enough, F&R were perched on a beach chair in the
sand, enjoying their complementary rum punch. Many hugs and catching
up followed. We went down to Stanleys to watch the Belmont Stakes
and went down to Myetts for dinner. Had a great dinner of Mahi,
chicken, rice, and veggies.
Kim, Fred, and I took in a whole evening of fine reggae from Quito and
the Edge. Kim requested "No Tears" from Quito during the break,
but he said that his new bass player didn't know it yet. When
they took the stage he played "Hotter on the Phone" and
apologized since they couldn't play the exact request. We just love
all his music. It does seem that the band is playing less than 50%
of Quito's songs in their setlist. Not sure why that is, but we'd
have loved to hear more of the classic music from The Edge too.

There was a blonde gal there who was dancing with two different
local fellows. She was rather scantily clad and was not leaving much
to the imagination regarding her dance moves with the guys. They
would take a break back at the bar where she would turn to one side
and kiss one guy, then spin around to start kissing on the other. It
made for some interesting people watching, but little did we know how
it would weave its way through our weeklong stay.


Sunday June 6th
---------------

Moving day. The 4 of us checked out of the Ole Works Inn. Brian from
Denzil Clyne came to pick us up in a nice Mitsubishi Pajero that would be
our wheels for the week. It was in good shape, A/C was real cold, and
we were on our way quickly. They always treat us well, and we delight
in returning to them year after year.

Went to check in at Long Bay Beach Resort. We had booked a 3 bedroom
hillside villa for our stay. I called a week prior to our arrival to
request a unit on the west side of the property. I spoke with my old
friend Carlotta and she remembered me and assured that we'd have a
nice villa for our stay. Upon arrival at the reception area, Carlotta
greeted me us with hugs and kisses and stored our luggage until the villa
would be ready. We changed into swimsuits, picked up some beach towels,
and drove over to Brewers Bay for a wonderful day of snorkeling, drinking
and eating at Nicole's place, and walking the length of the beach.

Headed back to Long Bay and checked in to the villa. Man, what an
awesome place! We've stayed in every different room type at the
resort and this was the best one yet. It's IDEAL for 3 couples. Each
bedroom/bath is on a separate level with excellent privacy. The
common living and kitchen was big and roomy, and the covered veranda
was a great place to sit and relax.

While checking out the views, Kim noticed Richard & Barbie down by
the pool. They were on the Delta flight into St Thomas that arrived
at 3:20. The planets were totally aligned for them to reach Tortola
in record time. They only brought carry-on luggage,
and as they got off the plane they were the last 2 passengers to fill up
a van headed to the ferry dock. They got to the dock at 3:35 and were
able to get on the 3:30 ferry that had not yet departed. Arrive at 4:25
at West End, breezed through customs, and were at Long Bay by 4:45. Kim
said "that's Richard, I know by the way he walks" and sure enough, it was!

We yelled down to them, and drove down to pick them up. We had a few
drinks at the villa then headed over to Jolly Roger for dinner. The
food was excellent and service was wonderful. We ate down by the
water and enjoyed great Mahi, steak, chicken roti, and pizza. Then
we went over to Bombas for a little while and met Johnny, a great guy
who would figure into many events later in the week. Johnny is a
big teddy bear of a guy who works for Nubian Princess and
can be found at Bombas most nights. He made me aware that "you
have a girls name, Shannon, Ha Ha Ha!" and also informed us that he
plans to marry an Asian woman. He was great to talk to and we had a
great time. We'll always remember his famous quote "spin it like a top".

Back to the villa for an early bedtime, saving some energy for
Jost tomorrow.


Monday June 7th
---------------

Headed down to the breakfast buffet at Long Bay before making the trek
to Cane Garden Bay. The food was great, service prompt and friendly,
and we ate just enough to tide us over to a much anticipated lunch at
the Soggy Dollar. Drove over to CGB and met up with Glen at CGB
Pleasure Boats. He used a nice cabin cruiser to take us over in the
morning. With Bob Marley playing on the stereo we made our way out
and toward Sandy Cay. Glen stopped and suggested we take a few pictures
off the stern with Sandy Cay in the background. We chatted with him
as pointed out areas of Little Jost and Jost, then he dropped us off
at White Bay. We arranged for a 5:30 pickup in Great Harbor and then
set up camp at Sandcastle. We rounded up some chairs, arranged them
near a hammock, and proceeded to grab a round of Caribs to start the
day off. The fellas took a walk over to the eastern half of White Bay
and quickly realized that the lack of shoes was a major problem. We
opted to swim around the point on the way back rather than walk the
torturous path again. A few separate bouts with the ring and hook
game interspersed with some beers got us up to lunchtime.

Lunch of jerk chicken and flying fish sandwiches, conch fritters, and
fries was delicious. We collected our 4 painkillers off the board,
used our Drinking Mans Guide for some more, then proceeded to buy
another round for the ride to Foxy's. Once we made it to Foxy's we
got down to serious business of retrieving a pair of panties that
were left in the rafters back in 2002, then hanging up a shirt to
commemorate this 2004 trip.

At 5:30 Glen came into the dock to pick us up. Riding on the bow of
the boat were my little buddies from Friday at Cane Garden Bay. Turns
out that one of the boys is Glen's son, and the others are his
nephews. We made it back to Big Banana for some excellent pizzas and
rum punch, and a truly magnificent sunset over Jost. Then we headed
back to Long Bay for a late night trip to the pool and hottub.


Tuesday June 8th
----------------

Slept in a bit, headed down for another great breakfast, then off to
the Ridge Road to see the mural wall. We took a slight off-road
detour from Sea Cows Bay up to the Ridge Road. Stopped to see
the excellent depictions of early days on Tortola, then drove on
toward Josiahs Bay. Unfortunately a section of Ridge
Road is closed between the murals and Josiahs Bay. Detoured down
through Roadtown then back over to Josiahs. Settled in out front of
the Grape Tree beach bar and proceeded to snorkel along the rocky
edge among thousands of fish. Had a great lunch of burgers, chicken,
hot dogs and fries, and Carib. The owners young boy was there with
his dog, "chicken Dog". We were informed that "chicken dog will bite
you if you try to pick him up" so we heeded the warning and merely
petted him. During the meal ol' Chicken Dog made it known that he'd
appreciate some food. Richard tried to push him backwards with his
heels, but Chicken Dog held firm. Richard said "move BACK
Chiecken Dog, and I'll take care of you". For some reason this was
the absolute funniest thing to me, and I lost it in a laughing fit
that brought tears to my eyes. That little tan dog was not budging.
We tossed him a fry but he was not interested in anything but meat.
Incidentally, the chicken sandwich was awesome, small slices of
marinated white meat on a toasted bun, yum!

The little boy spent the afternoon playing on the beach and walked
the length of it with me. Then he played on one of our inflatable
floats until Kim found a baby hermit crab. He came to check it out,
then took it to show his grandma. We never saw him after that to
say goodbye.

Back to Long Bay to get cleaned up, then off to Carrot Bay and a much
anticipated dinner at Palms Delight. Shrimp Roti and Gingerwine Chicken
were the order of the evening and did not disappoint. This is one of our
favorite meals in the BVI. After dinner we returned home to rest up
for the big day tomorrow.


Wednesday June 9th
------------------

Up early and packed to head to Anegada. Quick breakfast then off through
Roadtown toward the dock at Trellis Bay. Oops, why is traffic totally
stopped at the roudabout near Prospect Reef? Snarls in the morning
commute cause us to be 15 minutes late, but luckily Corinne (sp?)
from DoubleD Charters is there waiting for us. We hop aboard and
wait until 9:30 for JT & crew to show up, but they are a no-show. We
had to leave the dock at 9:30 to let the North Sound Express onto the
dock, so we pulled off and headed toward Anegada. The ride was just
over one hour and we all enjoyed sitting up top and talking with
the captain during the somewhat rolly ride. There was some spray over
the bow of the Northern Sun as we made way up to Anegada, but the ride
was very smooth and we made great time.

Pulled in to Setting Point and got a beer at Anegada Reef hotel. Took a
short tour of the island and saw about 5 flamingos from the bridge
across the salt pond, then stopped at the iguana project before heading
to Loblolly Bay. Placed an order for 5 lobsters and 1 BBQ chicken
lunch to be served at 1:00. Then the guys snorkeled the reef at the
point while the girls enjoyed their Bamboo Teasers. Fred saw a large
(6 or 7 foot) shark in a gap in the reef out past the point. We got
in just in time for our lunch and man, it was Awesome!
Delicious fresh lobster, potatoes, rice, and veggies. That left enough
time for another snorkel and a walk on the beach before heading back
to the dock at 3:00. The gals took a look in the giftshop and
we each got a rum smoothie before taking the boat back to Trellis Bay.

The ride back was smoother, and we enjoyed a few beverages underway.
We stopped off for a walk along Long Bay East before making way to C&F
for some delicious ribs. A short rain shower moved in as we made it
over to Pussers and the Pub before driving back to Long Bay for the night.
Richard & Barbie decided to head back out to Bombas where they once
again ran into Johnny and saw him rather entralled with the same
blonde that was at Quitos over the weekend. They were dancing rather
closely and appeared that they were becoming "good friends".


Thursday June 10th
------------------

Another late day of sleeping in. Made our way over to Sopers Hole to do
some shopping after breakfast. Bought some stuff for all our kids at
home, had a few pints of Newcastle at Pussers, then headed back
over Zion Hill with Smugglers Cove on our minds. We dropped the ladies at
the Long Bay pool to place a lunch order while the guys went down to
make sure that Chris had his beach bar set up. Yes, he was there so
Richard and I went back to retrieve the gals and we all spent a great
afternoon on the beach and in the water. Cheryl at the pool bar had
cooked us a nice lunch of hot dogs and fries. We had many delicious
banana dacquris and pina coladas with Chris and enjoyed catching up
with him.

Back to get cleaned up and off to dinner at Quitos and to see him playing
solo. While Kim was in the shower, I fell asleep in a patented
"rum induced power nap". Kim woke me and said that the others would
just have to eat without us. I looked at the clock and saw it was
6:45, and informed her that they serve breakrast until 11:00. After
a nice showed I rebounded to head out for dinner with everyone else.

Quito came on just as our food arrived and we quickly ate so
we could get out on the dance floor to enjoy the music. We played the
part of ultimate "groupies" as we sung along to each and every song.
At one point he introduced himself and referred to us as his "choir".
We stayed through both sets of his wonderful music, and he autographed a
CD sleeve for our daughter. We made plans to return to see him Friday
night, but would miss Saturday since he was headed to a conference in
San Juan.


Friday June 11th
----------------

The usual routine of sleeping in and breakfast. Made a couple
of short stops along our route to see some sights that the
others in the group had never experienced. The first stop
was the North Shore Shell Museum. We toured the shell museum then
came upstairs to have a Fungi Band session with Egberth. He showed
us the new "history museum" with seemingly every piece of furniture
having been built in 1712. He gave Kim a really neat painted tin
sign as we were leaving. We left a nice donation for the work
that he is so passionate about. From there we went through CGB and
stopped at the Callwood Rum distillery. They were in the process
of distilling a batch of run when we arrived. We talked brewing process
and history with the fellow there and bought a bottle of the dark rum.
Then we headed over to Brewers Bay for another day of sun, sand,
snorkeling, and fun. We saw a couple of lobsters holed up in the reef
and nobody could muster the courage to reach up in there to "grab" us
some dinner. Another delicious lunch at Nicoles and we headed back
toward Long Bay to clean up for dinner. Stopped at Bombas when we
saw Johnny, and got a drink. He told us that the blonde "left me in
the dust" because her boyfriend was arriving Thursday.

Cleaned up and headed to Myetts for dinner. Had more great food
while sitting off to the side of the stage as MJ Blues played. We
were loving the entertainment as the waitresses were dancing with
lit candles on their heads! It was great fun and the folks at Myetts
provided the best service and atmosphere of every place we visited.
We will definitely come back again and again.

Off to Quitos to catch Quito and the Edge. Lo and behold, there was the
infamous blonde with her boyfriend in tow. She introduced him to the
bartenders, but for some reason only stayed for one song before
leaving quickly. By the end of the first set Rakale was quite tired,
so Fred took her back to Long Bay and returned in time for
the second set. The break between sets was interesting as all the
local folks really enjoyed the DJ music and dancing. We lasted
until about 1:15 before heading back. Quito waved us goodbye as we
headed out. He is such a kind man and we are all very devoted fans.


Saturday June 12th
------------------

Richard and Barbie have to leave on the 10:30 ferry. Richard wasn't
feeling great after a few too many late night Caribs on top of the wine
we had with dinner. They hopped the ferry and we went to Sopers Hole
to watch them pull off toward St Thomas. Back toward Long Bay and over
to Smugglers for our last day there. We kept Chris busy making drinks,
then Fred and I snorkled out to the east point and all the way across
the bay, making it back to the reef beside the honor bar in about 45
minutes. We grabbed a refreshing drink and wandered around behind the
old bar and back to the old hotel. There are still alot of
old items inside the room where Bob was living before he died. We could
see an old wheelchair of Nell's and some ham radio magazines among
the items strewn about. Later Fred did some more snorkeling and found a
spear gun stuck down in the reef. We played around with it and tested
it out, then we hid it in a secret spot. We'll check back for it the
next time we return.

We took the road around Belmont Point to West End. It was surprisingly
smooth and we saw some really neat views from up there. Over to Sopers
for Pizza and Painkillers, and who should we see but the infamous blonde
and her boyfriend. Kim actually said hello to her and dropped a causal
comment that we had seen her all over the island this past week, and
at Quitos last weekend. Her eyes got pretty large, and after she
returned to her fellow she kept glancing our way to see if we were
going to come introduce ourselves to her beau.

Back home to Long Bay to clean up and pack a bit. We went back out to
Sebastians for soup and greek salads. The service was pretty slow due
to a very large group that was over from Voyage at Sopers Hole. We
just rolled with it and enjoyed the time to relax. However, there was
a group of 4 that consisted of an older couple, and a young couple with
an obviously expectant lady. The pregnant lady sent back her steak
when it arrived, and after another was prepared and brought to her
she actually stood up and carried it to the hostess station and
declared it unfit to eat. It is obvious that the relaxed pace of
the islands is lost on some folks. I couldn't help but sing Quitos lyric:

"man you so angry, with your steak you're not pleased,
but half of the world would give thanks for just bread and cheese"

Back for our last night of relaxing in the villa and listening to
some Quito CD's.


Sunday June 13th
----------------

Travel day. It's always sad to leave, but especially when you don't
have a return trip planned yet. Ate one last breakfast and checked out.
Loaded the jeep and went over to Sopers for a few last minute shopping
items. Fred dropped us at the ferry dock with our bags then drove back
to drop the jeep with the fine folks at Denzil Clyne. Again, who would
we see at the ferry dock but the blonde with her boyfriend. They were
on the 12:15 ferry, so we didn't get to compare notes with her to find
out how she enjoyed her stay. We hopped on the 12:00 ferry and took
off just a few minutes late.

Ferry ride was beautiful but hot. Got through to STT easily and had
a good lunch before Fred and Rakale had to start boarding. Powered up
the cell phone only to get a message that Kim's folks had a conflict
and couldn't bring the kids home on Sunday. Much scrambling to arrange
a sitter managed to straighten things out, but more snafus were to come.
Upon arrival in Miami, we found the flight to Raleigh delayed by an hour.
Then once the plane arrived, the crew didn't have enough time remaining
in their shift to fly us back. A crew was assembled and the 8:27
departure got airborne at 11:20pm. Upon arrival in Raleigh they
were short baggage handlers and taxi drivers, so we made it home at
a lovely 2:00am.