Key West and the Florida Keys

I met Alicia, Aimee, and Laurie when we lived in North Carolina in 2002. After we moved to Illinois, they invited me to meet up in Miami with them in 2003...and we've been traveling together ever since!

(Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and Belize should have gotten a writeup for sure. The time the bridge detour was driving on two planks over a ravine...trusting a guide will catch you before you plunge down a waterfall...riding a galloping horse when you have zero experience...)

This time we decided to explore Key West. Alicia and Laurie had been there long ago, but Aimee and I never had.

Day one
We all met up in Fort Lauderdale. The car rental line Aimee and Laurie had to wait in for Budget at the airport was so long, but I don’t know how to make the car rental process any better. They are still expensive and the lines are horribly slow, because there’s only ever one person working. I thought by now there would be a better option, but it hasn’t happened yet.

Aimee and Laurie were a couple of hours behind us, so Alicia and I took an Uber to the Fort Lauderdale boardwalk, where we walked a long way in the warm sunshine, people watched, and put our toes in the water. It is a beautiful beach and there are many choices for eating – I had my first blackened mahi sandwich, which I then ate at almost every place we went on the trip. So good!

Aimee and Laurie picked us up and we headed to Key West, stopping along the way at Mile Marker 88 for dinner and sunset. It’s right on the water, they have a serene, picturesque spot, and it was super pretty and popular.

We made it to Key West in the dark, wishing that we had the two hours back they waited in line for the car so we could see the drive but – not to worry! We’d be back the same way in the light.

Alicia found a rental house right off Duval Sreet (the main strip) on Petronia, and it had a back yard and pool! We hung out in the backyard and were surprised by a possum, but hey – that’s a city. Everybody wants to be there.

Day Two

I got up early and ran to the southernmost point, noting that there were chickens and roosters and chicks the entire way, the roosters crowing so enthusiastically! I then realized they were everywhere, and a lot of people put out feed for them. I thought it was super charming.

Alicia got us croissants from Croissants de France, and I ate my first chocolate croissant.   

We rented bikes at Blue Sky Rentals, which were $10 a day, because it was within walking distance of our place. We rode to Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, and it was fantastic! Name any facts you can about Zachary Taylor. Done? Didn't take long? You will have MORE when you leave! We walked all around, rode our bikes on the trails, and then went to the beach there. It was picture perfect. White sand, blue sky, rocks, a little concession stand - and warm! Looked like paradise. Definitely a great spot.

Riding bikes around Key West is great if you aren't afraid of traffic. Even though you're riding a vintage bike, no helmet, right with cars...I still felt safe since it's the city, so no one can go very fast, and there are bikers and walkers everywhere so people are always watching for them. There are also lots of bike racks for locking up.

We rode to Schooners Wharf and ate right by the water, where a couple of charter boats were coming back with their fish. The pelicans gathered around and hoped for scraps, and the people all admired the fish. There were giant tarpons and nurse sharks in the water too. The pelicans were so tame! I've never gotten that close to them.

We rode to South Beach because Alicia said it had great people watching, and it did! Real characters there.

We walked to Mallory Square for the sunset, and there was a big crowd there to applaud it and watch street performers. On the way we stopped at the Mile 0 sign and then the Mile 222 sign - my favorite number!

We stopped by the Green Parrot for a drink and to watch the MSU basketball game, and then we went to Blue Heaven for ping pong (yay!) in their outer spot and dinner across the street. I love outdoor ping pong, even though you spend most of the time chasing the ball.

Day Three

Another run to see the sunrise...but this time as I started down the block, a rooster started chasing me! He was fast and chased me so long that I even took a video while running! This was a definite first.

We had booked paddleboards the day before with Lazy Dog in Cow Key. We drove the six miles there. The guide gave us a map and a suggested route, which we tried to follow but have no idea if we actually did. Do you know how alike mangroves look? THEY ALL LOOK ALIKE. So you're paddling and turning, pulling yourself through mangrove tunnels, looking at a map that basically is meaningless to you, and just hoping you make it back in time because maybe one of you has a work meeting you can't miss! (Yes, me.)

Alicia: I should have told you I wasn't listening to the directions.

Laurie: This is not the direction we came.

Aimee: The salt pond might be this way.

Me: This mangrove has a rope tied to it for people just like me.

Right as we were heading back, we saw manatees! One came right up beside my paddleboards and it was so cool! We were all so happy we saw them. Then a man in a kayak with a child leaned over to look, fell out, then jumped back in when he realized his phone had been in his pocket. He did not find it. Meanwhile, while on the trip my waterproof phone case somehow broke, so I was really careful on the way back so I didn't end up like him.

Near the end, we also saw many, many nurse sharks below us in the water. They were huge! Even though they don't bite people, it is a little bit of a thrill to see them waiting for you under your board to fall off.

Alicia picked up key lime pie from the Southernmost Key Lime Shop on Duval. It was frozen and covered in chocolate and perhaps the best food I ate all vacation. I'm not even a huge fan of pie, but this was more to me in the cheesecake family.

We swam in the pool, and then Aimee and I biked to Higgs Beach and see amazing kite surfers and some sort of other surfers with butterfly-shaped sails. They were doing tricks, there's a long pier to walk out on, and it was a cool spot.

We then had to get back in time to return our bikes and shower before we had to leave for the sunset sail. It took us longer than we planned, since we thought we knew the way and did not, but it turned into a nice little 50 minute bike ride!

We walked to Schooners Wharf dock to go on the Schooner Spirit of Independence sail boat. As soon as we got on, they asked it there were any volunteers to help, and I was so excited! I thought it would be pretend help, but I had to pull on ropes to lift the sail the same speed as the girl beside me, and it really did take some work. The skipper (is that the right word? It feels right. Or ...starboard.) said that when no one volunteers it's a real pain.

It was a beautiful sail! The weather was so warm, the water was so pretty, and we sailed for about two hours and watched the sun set.

We went to Caroline's, Irish Kevin's, and then to my favorite place Sloppy Joe's, because they had a live band and everyone was dancing! The band was the Lima Bean Riot,  and they were so fun to dance to - they hit the highlights of cover songs, so you didn't even have time to get tired of the repetitive parts!

Day Four

I ran to Higgs Beach to watch the sunrise and to figure out the way home. Unfortunately, it was hard to watch, because when Aimee and I went on our bike ride, I forgot my sunglasses and sunburnt my eyes. Can you tell I don't live close to the equator?

We left Key West and stopped in Marathon to eat at a waterfront restaurant called Key Fisheries. We drove on to Long Key State Park and went on their nature trail and through the park. Very secluded, very serene, and very hot if you went away from the water.

We drove over the Seven Mile Bridge and admired the view all the way to Islamorada Key. We stayed at Chesapeake Resort and went right out to their very open and pretty beach, pool, and hot tub.

We ate at Lazy Days, which was really popular, but it was right on the water so we didn't mind waiting - and saw more tarpon and nurse sharks. We ended the night by going to Florida Keys Brewing Company in their beer garden, where - this doesn't get old - it was so warm we didn't even need a jacket.

So! Key West was different than other places I've been in Florida, and I liked it and can see why it's popular. Hot, nice beaches, tourist town feel, and everything is open to the outside. I particularly liked biking and running around, the urban chickens, paddleboarding, and sailing. And of course - the company. Here's to lifelong travel partners!

And finally ... our first trip in Miami in 2003:

Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas anniversary trip

We like to go on a trip for our anniversary, so we decided to knock out two states Kris hadn't visited yet - Mississippi and Arkansas. It was cheapest for us to fly into Memphis on Southwest. 

Memphis, Tennessee

We visited Beale Street at about 2:00 p.m., and it was lonely. Very few people, not much open, and we didn't see anywhere we wanted to eat. We searched 'best BBQ in Memphis' and it directed us to Central BBQ. There was a line outside, which we knew was great. Then I ate a fantastic, delicious pulled pork sandwich, which I haven't eaten since I was a child. We then drove to ...

Jackson, Mississippi

We have friends who have spent time in Jackson, and they gave us tons of ideas of places to go. Unfortunately, those weren't walking distance from our hotel, and when we're in cities we like to walk because then we feel like real, live city-dwellers. We checked into our downtown Hampton Inn and the front desk gave us bottles of water and a glass of champagne. This has never once happened to be before at a Hampton Inn, and I don't even particularly like champagne, but YOU CAN BET I accepted it. What a surprise! Everyone working was so friendly and talkative and nice. I waited for Kris to park and soon enough I knew about all of their histories and suggestions on where to go in the area.

We walked to Iron Horse Grill, which was full, fun, and had good food. Kris suggested we go for a nightcap at Johnny T's, and we proceeded to walk down abandoned, empty streets toward it. I told Kris that all of my instincts that had so far kept me alive told me NOT to do that, but we did it anyway. They wouldn't serve us a drink without buying an entree, so we did the walk of shame out. Ha!

The next morning we ran to the capitol building and war memorial. The rest of the city was pretty empty, and we left to drive to ...

Hattiesburg, Mississippi

We didn't really mean to go to Hattiesburg, but we wanted lunch and there was the promise of a rose garden at The University of Southern Mississippi. The rose garden was on beautiful grounds, but short on roses as it was WINTER. We happened upon a perfect southern breakfast place (and we had not had coffee, which was a recurring theme on this trip) called Midtowner. It was not even ruined by the phone call that at home one of our tractors was on fire. And you know that's a good breakfast. 

Biloxi, Mississippi

White sand! Ocean! Sunshine! I love going to the ocean anytime, and this place is beach oriented. There were many, many hotels right along the beach, and we stayed at the Hampton Inn. Inexpensive and just one road between you and the water!

We walked on the beach toward the casinos, which look like Vegas places inside and out. There was still apparent hurricane damage from years ago, which you could especially tell because docks were half gone and the boardwalk was missing 25 percent of its boards. It didn't diminish my enjoyment at all, because it was beautiful. We walked all around downtown, in and out of the casinos, and along the beach. 

We drove a little bit to Ocean Springs, which reminded us of a little Michigan beach town. Lots of shops, lots of outdoor restaurants. We stopped at a few, and the locals were all so friendly and talked to us. We especially liked Mosaic. 

We went in our hotel hot tub and met people from two different countries, then went for a late dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe in the casino. Kris and I don't gamble and don't especially love casinos, but ... it was packed full of people! It was New Year's Eve, we were looking for a fun place to be, and during a pandemic apparently casinos are the place to be! They had a DJ, people were dressed to the nines, and it was awesome. Kris and I were the only two people who cared about it turning midnight. The crowd in the casino looked up from their gambling for only the 10, 9, 8 ... yelled happy new year, kissed their partner, and then turned immediately back to gambling. Funny!

At 12:19 a.m. as we got into our Uber, I got my first swimming lesson registration, since I open it on Jan 1. People are ON IT.

On New Year's Day, we ran along the beach and did a polar plunge to start the new year, as is our tradition. However it was really cold and we didn't think the hotel would appreciate us walking through their lobby, dripping. We went up to our shorts. Close enough. 

We drove through Gulfport and it had a much more kid-stuff, touristy, Myrtle Beach kind of vibe. We also went there for coffee, because the south just doesn't have coffee shops every two blocks like the north. We went there on our way to ...

Lake Chicot State Park, Arkansas

I couldn't get over the trees that were emerging from Lake Chicot. They were very unusual, and later a friend identified them as bald cypress.

Little Rock, Arkansas

We didn't know what to expect in Little Rock, and we didn't even know if we were driving all the way there, since this was a freewheeling vacation, but we're so glad we went! Little Rock's nightlife was great! So many people out, so many cool places. Lost Forty was the first stop we made. They told us that since it was New Year's weekend, they were serving brunch all weekend. We had a first-for-me breakfast pizza with a fried egg right in the middle of it. We also loved the atmosphere of the place. We next hit up Flyway Brewing which was okay but empty, and then landed on Fassler Hall, a lovely German-themed place! We ate our giant pretzels and ordered giant mugs and reminisced about the time we went to Oktoberfest in Munich. They had music and picnic style tables and a ventilation system that is exactly what we have in our calf barn at home. Delightful place.

We ran to the capital building in the morning, and then went downtown for coffee and the sculpture park along the water. It was raining, so we took our time, but then I was itching to get on a hike. It kindly stopped raining long enough for us to hike up ...

Pinnacle Mountain State Park, Arkansas

I loved this hike, and it is one of the highlights of the trip. It was as if someone just dumped rocks on a mountain. It was SO rocky. Sometimes you go on a hike and they say it's challenging, and it never is. I actually slipped and fell on this hike - I can't even remember ever falling on a hike! So yes - AWESOME hike. Great path, gorgeous view at the top, and it even started SNOWING on our way down. Thus the slippery rocks. I love, loved the hike.

We checked out and ate in trendy East Little Rock and made our way to...

Big River Crossing

This is the country's longest pedestrian bridge, it's right along a train track, and it connects Arkansas and Tennessee! So, right after we crossed into Tennessee, we parked and walked on this ... right back to Arkansas. It was a beautiful walk and view right over the Mississippi River. We then checked in our downtown Doubletree, which was walking distance from ...

Beale Street 

This was a complete and total different scene than it was during the day. Much like Nashville or Austin, there was live music pouring from every place! It was lively and fun, and everyone walking around was having a good time. We listened to awesome music in one place, then even better music in another, and so on until late. I love cities like this that are just designed for music and people who love it! 

We left our hotel at 3:30 a.m. the next day to head to the airport in Memphis and begin our real lives of 2021. 

As for numbers - this is our 19th anniversary, Kris' 47th and 48th state, and he has one more before we both hit 49. For us, 2020 was a great year of travel, and we look forward to many more!

Austin and nearby places in Texas - yeehaw!

I've been to Austin a number of times.  My family and I just went to visit Kris' family in March, so here's what we did and what I think is worth seeing ...

FROM THE AIRPORT -

DAY 1 -

The Texas Capitol

We just parked in a downtown parking garage, so we could leave the car there and walk around.  What's not to like about this?  It's usually open, it's free, and it's pretty inside.  If you want to spend just a little time, go in and look, and if you want to spend more, you can take a tour.  I like going into state capitol buildings and hit them whenever I can.

6th Street

Sometimes 6th Street looks trashy, as in actually has trash on it, and there are lots of people asking for money.  But at night it's transformed into a musical wonderland.  When the music is coming from every place, the street is closed off, and everyone's walking around it's just ... exciting and fun.  It just gives you that city feeling.  I love walking here at night and ducking in to listen to different bands. 

Places to Eat

Cooper's Old Time Pit BBQ is Kris' favorite Texas BBQ, and he's tried a lot of them.  We've been to the one in Llano, but there's one on Congress in Austin.  (If you like BBQ, which I don't.)  If you're more into giant pretzels and beer gardens, then Scholz Garten is your place.  It was a fun outside area with tons of taps, a giant pretzel, and when we were there, a trio of string musicians jamming together.  They weren't doing it for us, just for them.  Nice atmosphere.

We've also enjoyed the Iron Cactus, because you can sit outside on a balcony and look at all the Austin weirdos.  Easy Tiger is another outdoor place we've been a couple of times.  I love the ping pong tables and the greenery wall.  I could easily spend a few hours here ... and again, they have a giant pretzel.  (You may be picking up on my food favorites.  BBQ, no, huge hunks of bread covered in salt, yes.)

Bats at Congress Bridge

After seeing the Capitol, 6th street, stopping at Easy Tiger and a few other places, Kris' sister Meghan said, "We're about a half mile from Congress Bridge!"  I knew just what she meant because although I've been here before, I've never been here at a time I could see the bats fly out from under Congress Bridge.  It happens March-ish through Septemberi-sh at sunset.  People gather in huge crowds - and in kayaks on the water - to watch 1.5 million bats head out from their batcave for the night.

We have bats here in Michigan ... every night in the summer we have a few that circle the yard.  But to see a stream of them that went on and on and ON was pretty cool.  There were just so many of them.  It made you wonder how the bridge stayed up with all that extra weight!

DAY 2 -

Enchanted Rock

I love cities, but I love nature even more.  Enchanted Rock is a fun, easy hike up a giant rock.  Once you reach the peak and hit the other side, there are rock caves to explore, the scenery to admire, and the fun of looking at being on such a giant rock that is, ostensibly, enchanted.  How else did it get that name?

While we were up there Ty found a 20-lb weight someone had apparently lugged up it.  THAT'S a workout.  I once walked up here when I was pregnant with twins, and they didn't even weigh that much.

Fredericksburg

Fredericksburg is a touristy town that is German, so it reminds me of Frankenmuth, MI, and every tourist beach town in Michigan.  Cute stores, ice cream, pretty parks - all the markers of a tourist town if you feel like walking around and sitting in cow seats.  This cow must be German!

We ate at the Fredericksburg Brewery which was beautiful and almost empty.  Great outdoor seating - perhaps it's more popular in the summer and not on a spring Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.

DAY 3 -

Pedernales Falls State Park

This is more exploring than hike, but there are a lot of places to explore.  The water and rock mix makes for some pretty beautiful scenery.  It warns you everywhere to not swim in it, but I can see how that would be difficult to follow when it was hot outside.  We jumped around, skipped rocks, and then went left from the entrance, where there were spots you could climb even farther and higher.

We stopped off at Bear King Brewing Company in Marble Falls later that night.  It had recently opened and didn't offer pretzels...yet.  Better call and ask before going here!

DAY 4 -

Inks Lake State Park

This is the prettiest park of the three in my opinion.  It has nice, twisty, cool hikes through it.  We brought kayaks and kayaked on the water, which was fun, and we jumped off a cliff into the water.

There are two places you can jump off - a high cliff and a lower cliff.  I was sure I was going to jump off the higher cliff, but then once I went there, I was really uncertain.  For one, you can't see into the water to make sure you're not going to hit something, because it's not clear.  For two, the other people jumping off told me to make sure I jumped toward the sign, because there weren't rocks that way.  For three, the cliff is not straight down - it's angled out so you also have to jump OUT to make sure you clear it.

As a result, I went on the lower cliff, since I was weighing how mad I would be if I hit something in the water and was paralyzed for life.  It didn't seem worth it.

My first jump off the lower cliff was fine.  The second time I jumped with my son, and in the water, I hit a big rock with my leg.  It wasn't painful or anything, but I did hit it, because there are rocks down there!  I'd probably pick a different park to cliff jump ... like one that DOESN'T have big rocks that you can't see in the water!  But hiking and kayaking here?  Totally fun.

DAY 5 -

We flew home out of Austin, because there are some really cheap flights to here.  Spirit flies into here, so you're always going to be able to find something reasonable from a big airport.

Other things in Austin and surrounding areas?  E-scooters - this is the first place I saw them, last summer!  My friend Aimee just did a line dancing class at the White Horse, rented bikes to ride all around the city, and liked the Hops & Grain Brewery.  I also like running along the river early in the morning.  The difference between 6th Street at night and the early morning river is a nice comparison.

And any place you can get a pretzel.  I'm always in favor of that.

Questions?  Email carla.wardin@gmail.com.

St Thomas and the British Virgin Islands

My friend Alicia has been to the BVIs numerous times, and she really wanted us to see it.  Aimee, Annie, and I are game for going anywhere, and somewhere this beautiful was particularly exciting.

DAY 1 -

St Thomas

We flew into St Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands from our various states.  I LOVE meeting up with my friends in other places.  It's always a sort of - where am I going to see you and is this really going to work out - type of thing.  It always has so far!

Aimee and Alicia had gotten there a few hours before me, so I took a taxi to meet them at our Airbnb.  We were taking some steep, twisty roads up a mountain, and I said, "This is really steep," and the driver didn't respond.  As I found out later, he didn't respond because THIS WAS NOTHING COMPARED TO THE REST OF THE ISLANDS.  Twisty, incredibly steep, incredibly narrow roads were the norm.

It was so steep that the taxi driver didn't even drive me all the way to the hotel.  He left me at the bottom of the driveway and I walked up.  I didn't think anything of it, but the Airbnb owners couldn't believe it.

Aimee and Alicia had already befriended the owners, (this is also the norm), so they drove us to see the sunset on a pretty beach, and then they made us dinner.

DAY 2 -

Tortola

We got up early to catch the ferry to Tortola.  We had bought tickets in advance, but this didn't seem to matter.  The person who worked for our ferry company wasn't in yet, so another woman just processed our tickets and passports for us.  Very island-like!

The ferry ride was pretty, because the water was so blue, and the islands were so mountainous.

We rented a car, and the Airbnb owner Karen said she would meet us on the road and we could follow her up to our house.

This is why - there is no way we would have thought we were going the right way.  We drove on the tightest turn, narrowest, twistiest, steepest cliff roads I'd ever been on before.  If she had directed us up there, we would have said, "There's no way this is a road.  This is clearly a path to our doom."  But!  Aimee drove like a champ and we made it to the top with no problem.  Night, rain, other cars - Aimee never had any problems doing it.

The view from the Airbnb was worth it - all open, all island and water.  We had lunch in town and found out it was election day, and as a result, there were no alcohol sales.  We made many jokes about this, as everyone went out of their way to tell us about it.  We drove to Smuggler's Beach on an awful road - and bottomed out the car on the way - and enjoyed the pretty beach.  Check out Nigel's Boom Boom Beach Bar & Grill - we ran into Nigel himself around town three times on our trip!

We were heading across the island and stopped to ask for directions at Stoutt's Look Out, a really happening place on top of a mountain.  The owner was very friendly, as were all the people in there - and then a political candidate drove by and they beckoned him in, wishing him luck.  It had an amazing view and a GREAT atmosphere!  You should definitely go here.

It is here we were introduced to a different definition for the word 'lime.'  Some super fun women told us it means to hang out and have drinks.  "We lime all the time," "He just likes to lime," and "Just liming," are all proper uses.  Go ahead, try and use it - we did!

DAY 3 -

The Baths on Virgin Gorda

There is an interesting thing about the BVIs.  There are no signs.  No street signs, no gas station signs, no grocery store signs - everyone just tells you 'You can't miss it.'  We missed it A LOT.

One spa brochure read, "West End, Tortola.  Right after Jerry Car Rental.  Exactly where Kelly's Hardware used to be."

Another factor is that there was a gigantic hurricane - Irma - here in 2017.  It majorly affected the island and they are still recovering.  Everyone local will talk to you about it, because it was massive and changed everyone's lives.

Through a friend of a friend, ahead of time Alicia found a private ship captain - Bryson - and boat for hire.  We met up with him at a restaurant on the water (without an easily visible sign) and he used his sailboat to take us about two hours to another island - Virgin Gorda, to the Baths.

The Baths are giant rocks you can climb through, under, over - and it's gorgeous.  The water, the rocks, everything.  (I simply cannot get over the water color in the BVIs.)  This is a must see in the BVIs.  We went all through them and then ate lunch at the Top of the Baths Restaurant and Bar.

I tried (unsuccessfully) to sail the boat on the way back.  We went to the Nanny Cay, pronounced key, Beach Bar to eat and hang out.  Our lovely Airbnb host Karen came and bought us drinks, as Annie, Aimee, and Alicia had already befriended her - the theme continues!  There were a lot of locals here, which made it an especially fun place to hang out.

DAY 4 -

The Indians, Willy T's, Cane Garden Bay Beach

We met up with Bryson again and he ferried us to The Indians, which are huge rocks that stick a little above the water and then are the size of skyscrapers under the water.  We snorkeled here and I loved it.

I don't actually snorkel.  I just wear the mask, no flippers, and no mouthpiece.  For me, it's far more enjoyable that way.  It was a little choppy in the water, but it was super exciting seeing how tall the rocks were in the clear water, and we saw lots of fish.  Swimming in the ocean here was great, and seemed almost magical - so far from the boat and any land, but no trouble staying up.  Aimee said, "I like being by the rocks, but when you go away from them, I can almost hear the shark music."  Ha!

We went to Willy T's, which is an iconic BVI stop.  It's a giant floating bar/restaurant!  People were feeding a barracuda chicken wings.  One of the things to do is jump off the second story of the boat.  The water was so clear that I wasn't sure how deep it was, but a guy showed me he could dive off of it.  So, I took the plunge!  It's a tourist thing - you have to!

We snorkeled around and Alicia saw the barracuda, but I didn't - thank goodness.

We hit Stoutt's Look Out again because Annie hadn't seen it, ate dinner at Bananakeet and watched the sunset, and spent the evening at Cane Garden Bay Beach, mostly at the Paradise Club Lounge.  Tons of people out, on the beach, all fun.

DAY 5 -

Jost Van Dyke

After a beautiful breakfast at Sebastian's on the Beach, (truly another gorgeous beach), we met up with our captain again.  We went to White Bay to the Soggy Dollar, which was full of people and sports memorabilia.  People bring flags from all across the world to hang up.

Did I mention the color of the water?!  You could hang out here for hours, but we decided to hike across the peak to take in the sweeping vistas.  It was like looking at a postcard.

We went to Foxy's and met the legendary owner himself, and then we boated over to Bubbly Pool.

Bubbly Pool is accessible from a short walk from the shore.  There are giant rocks that allow waves to swell in, and when they recede it leaves little bubbles.  We watched our Bryson play in the waves as we stayed back a safe distance, and then when he got out he told us that people have died there when they've been swept out past the rocks.  The waves are enough to knock you over, and at some point it had taken away a lot of our shoes that we were able to find.  We all made it, though!  It's worth going - as long as you don't get sucked past the rocks.

We went back to Smuggler's Beach at sunset, and we were the only ones there.  We watched flying fish leap into the air, then we ate dinner and headed for home.

DAY 6 -

Road Town

We took the car back - I should mention that we originally reserved an SUV, but they didn't have one.  We took it back to get one after we bottomed out and I had to tuck part of the broken plastic back under the car, and then it got a flat tire we half changed and then had to get the tire repaired.  Ah, rentals!

Annie and Alicia had an earlier flight, so they took an earlier ferry.  Aimee and I walked around Road Town and looked at people there from the cruise ships.

Everyone told us to NOT rely on the internet for the ferry schedule.  We found that the ferry schedule was very fluid.  When we got there, Annie and Alicia bought tickets for an earlier ferry, and the woman there told Aimee and me to come back later.  When we were walking by later, she said, "Come in and get on this ferry RIGHT NOW!"  about an hour earlier than she had said we should be there.  So we quickly processed our passports and paid the fee for getting out of the country - so many countries make you pay something to get in and leave - and walked in the ferry waiting area to see ... Annie and Alicia!  We were all on the same ferry!  Luckily they made it to their flights on time.

The sights, the different islands, the views, the snorkeling, the Baths, the boat, the amazingly twisty roads - all of it was exciting and fun.  My travel partners are hard to beat, too - just ask any Airbnb host, because they're already friends with them.  Lime away!


Any questions?  Email me at carla.wardin@gmail.com.