Travel Day
Day 1: Monday December 3
The time has arrived for us to travel to our favorite destination - St. John USVI!
Wake at 2 am. Yes, 2 am. Dang that’s early. It’s snowing here in Hampton, New Hampshire. Car arrives to pick us up at 3:45 and take us to Logan airport. It’s a rough ride. And slow. White knuckle. We get the airport and just barely make our flight, but it’s OK as it’s an early (6:20) departure and it looks like we may be the only ones getting off the ground because of the raging blizzard. But we do. This is good.
After a quick connector in San Juan, we’re off to St. Thomas. Flight smooth and uneventful. As we deplane onto the tarmac the warm tropical air rushes to greet us. Ahhhh! Good to be in the Caribbean again. First stop – Rum Punch Lady. She’s a tradition. She’s got free rum punch. I like this girl. I fill her tip jar.
Rum Punch Lady
Sipping our fruity rum drinks, we get our bags and grab a taxi to Charlette Amalie. Since our ferry doesn’t depart until 4 pm, we head over to our first ‘official’ watering hole – Drakes. Drakes is a tiny little barstand tucked into an alley across from the ferry dock and a good place to get your first island drink. For me it’s a cold Caribe beer and for my girl… water? They don’t make Limin’ Coconuts, so she passes this time. Her loss. She needs to learn to like beer.
Your hosts at Drakes
Ferry ($24 for 2 plus 2 bags) arrives on time and we head off to St. John. It’s a wonderful 45 min boat ride and far better than a hot taxi to Red Hook and ferry. It’s a bit rainy as we near the St. John docks but that does not deter us from enjoying the welcoming view of Cruz Bay harbor. Off the boat we’re greeted by the shuttle from Gallows Point and taken to the resort (less than 5 min). Upon check-in at Gallows Point you’re treated with… free rum punch! I could get used to this.
We always book an Ocean-front upper unit at Gallows Point Resort as they have awesome unobstructed views of St. Thomas, Pilsbury Sound, and of course – the Caribbean Sea. Going into the unit, we have two rituals we must attend to: first, turn the radio to 105.3 JAMZ for real island music. Do it. Trust us. Next, we open all 4 floor-to-ceiling doors. This opens the room up big time and your now surrounded by Caribbean blue. A view to die for. Ahhh… breathe in the ocean air and gaze around from Frank Bay to Cruz Bay. We sip our tasty rum drinks. It’s good to be back.
The view from our room
While my wife Heidi moves in, I take a short walk over to Every-ting, the onsite convenience store at Gallows Point. It’s small but it has the basics, as I grab a six of Caribe, some water, and some misc fixins. They let us run a tab, which is always nice. With us settled in and our tummy’s starting to rumble, we quickly change clothes and head into town.
Cruz Bay is less than a 5 minute walk from Gallows Point and a key reason for us staying there, year after year. No car rental! Taxis. Walking, it’s good for you and helps keep the effects of the rum in check.
First stop – Joes Rum Hut for a Pain Killer for me, and the fine bartender Ashley sets my girl up with a Vodka Mohito. This drink is so good, it ends up being her go-to drink for our entire trip. Thank you Ashley.
Ashley taking care of business at Joes Rum Hut
I think we knew where we would go first back on the plane. Happy Fish (or as we call it, Happy Feet). This place has phenomenal sushi. We eat here all the time. It’s that good. It’s about a mile walk, so don’t forget to have your ‘to go’ drinks in hand. Be sure to sit at the sushi bar so you converse with the chefs from... Iowa. Better known as Larry, Steve-O, and Zach. Great people with sharp knives. We opt for Tuna Tatake, Maki, and a Spicy Salmon & Shrimp Don (rice bowl). The food scores a 10! Tab runs about $70. Megan and Kelly feed us cocktails non-stop. We close the place. This happens a lot. I hope they don’t mind.
Service with a smile at Happy Fish
We stumble out of there around 11 pm and we trek back to Cruz Bay. It can be a bit dark in areas, so just keep your senses. Nothing has ever happened to us, but it’s good to be aware. Especially of that missing utility hole cover. That thing will tweak an ankle, so watch out.
The Patriots are playing this evening so we go up to the Quiet Mon Pub, just above LaTapa / next to Woody’s. Very low key in here with folks drinking and watching football. Some salty guy talks up Heidi and proves to be quite entertaining, though maybe had a few too many. It’s all good at the Quiet Mon.
Quiet Mon Pub
After we had our fill of local flavor and football, we head through town and stop by... the Beach Bar. And you thought I was going to say Joes. We support all of the local watering holes. We’re equal opportunity, as long as you serve us cold drinks. Heidi opts for her ‘Bushwhacker’ nightcap (so yummy!) and I stick with the PainKiller. We walk up the short, but steep, incline to Gallows. Inside our room, we crash hard. It’s been a long day.
Beach Bar
St. John Travel Log 2007
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See you on the Island,
John "Big Hat" Walsh
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