St Kitts (Wednesday, 1/30/19)
Today we took a tour of St Kitts that we had arranged ahead of the trip via recommendations from trip advisor. We booked directly with a local operator ensuring our tour dollars made it into the hands of locals. It was a very pleasant island, complete with wild (and not so wild) monkeys, a colonial fort, a rich history, and even the tomb of the great great grandfather of the third president of the United States. Porter found a fabric store of all things. They make designs on the material by applying wax to areas destined to not have pigment and then dipping the whole fabric in a dye solution, leaving behind areas without any dye after removing the wax. The island was really beautiful, boasting mountainous views of both the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.
St Maarten (Thursday, 1/31/19)
St Maarten was divided by the Dutch and French back in the colonial era and still has two separate nations occupying the tiny island. We spent time on the Dutch side. The highlight is the beach right below the airport runway. Planes come in very low making for some really interesting photo ops. Travel tip- if you want to come to see the airport, don’t take the $20 taxi like we did, take the $2 city bus. Also, there is a water taxi that takes you to the main town of Philipsburg from the cruise ship terminal. Cabs are cheaper and walking is free (and probably the same time as the wait for the water taxi). You live and you learn. If we ever make it back, we will just grab a beach chair rental right there in town. They have free WiFi, 2 chairs, and a bucket of beer (if that’s your thing) all for $20! This was probably the prettiest place we visited, with stunning turquoise beaches, jungly mountains, harbors, plenty of recent ship wrecks from hurricane Irma, and colorful houses.
Sea day (Friday, 2/1/19)
Today, the ship had lessons on how to make towel animals. We think the elephants turned out pretty awesome! The rest of the day was spent eating, digesting, and repeating. The food has not gotten old yet!
Sea day (Saturday, 2/2/19)
Want to know how to save $150 on a cruise ship? Don’t use the $50 spa “coupon” they give you :). Okay we were suckers for the photos instead and bought a bunch today. Here is one that sums up the trip pretty well. All in all a fun vacation. Tomorrow we disembark.
Last tip- if you can afford it, splurge and get a balcony room. This is what cruising is all about:
Hike the Good Hike!
-Sherpa and Porter
