I Am A Celebrity!

Sunday, November 2, 2025

St. Kitts (Again)

Port Zante Entrance to St. Kitts from Cruise Ships
Copyright Andy Richards 2014

WOULD OUR third time stopping at St. Kitts be "a charm?" Not really. In the next several years we would stop there 2 more times, with a planned 6th stop on a scheduled cruise in 2027. Having done the island tour/catamaran ride and the narrow guage railway on our first two trips, we were kind of "excursioned - out." For the next 3 trips, I didn't really do much. Time will tell what we do in 2027.

St. Kitts Cruise Pier - Port Zante - St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

ON THIS trip, we had 5 guys and 3 of them were pretty active and athletic. Two of us were less so-inclined. The three "athletes:" Bob, Mark and Bob decided to join an excursion that was designated a "volcano" climb. The 5 ladies decided to take a Jeep tour (which they reported later, was fun). Jon and I demurred on both counts (for the volcano climb, we made the right choice - even our "athletes" agreed and said it was torture). Instead, we met in the buffet for breakfast and agree to meet up down in the port later.

St. Kitts Cruise Pier - Tug - Port Zante - St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

I SOON got a little "stir - crazy," so I grabbed my camera and went ashore. Its always enjoyable for me to get some time off to myself with my camera - exploring. On our first two stops on St. Kitts, we really didn't get much time to just walk around. Not knowing much about our port city (Bassetere), I didn't really leave the port area. But I always seem to find some interesting, often colorful subjects in the ports. I have always liked "marine" subjects - especially boats of every description. I started with the Tug. It has been in the marina every time I have been there. Usually it is berthed over a bit from the ship pier, but today it was moored right on our pier, so I was able to get rather close to it. I like the colors and reflections, but probably my favorite shot was a closeup I made of the bow and reflection. I have photographed it a number of times over the years - an probably will do so again.

Looking around, I had a funny sense there might be a photo here

ONE OF the unique features of Port Zante at St. Kitts is its classic arched, bright yellow entrance portico. Not only must you walk through it to get to shore, but it has become - for me - a kind of beacon of familiarity whenever we approach (or leave) St. Kitts. It immediately attracts the eye.

Port Zante - St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

THE PORT Zante cruise port is one of the largest, most modern, and clean of the tourist/cruise port entrances to any island we have visited in the Caribbean. It is very commercial, but also very lively. Directly inside there is a large courtyard area. It is not uncommon for performers to be out there (hoping, of course, for "donations"). There is also a large area of bar - seating, with a Gazebo style bar in the middle. It is always hopping. The drinks are good, but it is probably not your best bet. Especially if your drink of choice is beer. There are several spots in the port where there are "specials" on one of the local beers (Caribe). I would be meeting up with Jon in a short while, and we would probably be finding one of those spots.

As an unkowing viewer, my first thought would be to wonder who belonged to those sandals?
St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2014

ON MY own time, I wandered some of the side streets of the port. It is really kind of misleading to call them side-streets, as there is not very far you can go in either direction before hitting water, while in the port area. So these "side-streets" were mainly just more tourist shops. And St. Kitts has all the "regulars:" Diamonds International, Kay's, Luis Vuitton, Nike, Duty Free stores, Cigars (remember my admonition: "Just Don't Do it"), and even a Harley Davidson store. One of my partners at the time had a thing for Harley Davidson "stuff" (he didn't - nor had he ever - owned a bike 😕), but thinking of him, I wandered down that side street. I saw a young woman (she worked in the Harley store), sitting on a picnic table, but as I walked that way, someone entered the store and she quickly walked back in. I took the brief opportunity to make what I thought was a kind of interesting photo before she returned.

Streets of Port Zante - St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2014

BUT I probably enjoyed the next two images as much as any I have ever made - certainly one of my lasting memories of St. Kitts. I had seen the little shack with the Caribe Beer sign (3 for $5 USD), and wandered down that street; the colors attracting me as usual. I made a few images from that spot, including some of the street activity. Finding a shady spot,I sat for a few minutes. Shortly, this very attractive, well-dressed, local woman came walking down the street. She was clearly on her way somewhere with a purpose. Looking around, I had a funny sense there might be a photo here, so I got ready. I immediately knew this was one of those "moments" that happen on the streets. Watch the guy in the blue shirt from the first to the second image. 😈 LOL. I don't blame him for looking. I did! I doubt either of them even knew I was there.

Streets of Port Zante - St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2014

I HAVE seen the National Museum of St. Kitts a few times when we have visited. I have never been inside. It is one of those places that I probably should visit. Maybe on our next stop. It is, as you can see, a very photogenic building, and as I was looking at framing it up, I was having a hard time isolating it for any kind of interesting shot, when I realized that the people in the foreground were the interesting shot.

The National Museum of St. Kitts
Copyright Andy Richards 2014

WE KNEW the beer would be cold and cheep somewhere in the port, so as soon as Jon and I met at the appointed time and place, we began our search. I had done some scoping earlier, and it turns out we didn't have far to go. Out of the arch and immediately to the right. Caribe at The Sweet Lime for $0.99 USD! 😋 The other guys met us there at the end of their excursion and we "reminisced" about our "eventful" days before returning to our ship to clean up and get ready for sunset cocktails.

Sunday, October 26, 2025

St. Croix, USVI

Celebrity Summit - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

OUR FIRST port of call after departing San Juan was nearby St. Croix, USVI. The sail was just over 100 miles from the Port of Old San Juan to Frederiksted, at the western end of St. Croix. To date, this was our one and only stop in St. Croix. It was rather different from any stop we have made in the eastern Caribbean, but we had a nice, relaxing day there. At times, it felt like we were the only ones in the port. We docked there on a Sunday morning, and the whole port was very quiet. The port and town of Frederiksted felt like "old" Caribbean ports were probably like. No EFFY, or name brand designer shops and no brand new construction My own impression is that St. Croix is not one of the very popular and heavily visited cruise stops

St. Patrick Catholic Church - Frederiksted, St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

THERE WERE a lot of very old, weathered buildings that house shops, bars and restaurants. On this particular Sunday morning, things were pretty dead. Frederiksted has a population of only about 1,000 people, so I am sure the tourism is what makes it crowded. I think we were the only ship in the port that morning, At just over 2,000 passengers, the area seemed to absorb those that got off the ship rather easily.

Main Street - Frederiksted - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

ST. CROIX is the largest of the USVI chain, and yet is a relatively small island, with the primary port in Christianstadt (though the cruise ships do not come in there). The entire island has a population somewhere around 40,000. There are about 3,000 between the town and suburban part of Christanstadt. There was very little going on in the cruise port area. Because we had not made major plans for excursions, we stayed right in Frederiksted. It looks like we might have found more to do over in Christianstadt, but we didn't know about it, and to get there would have required transportation. We didn't even see any taxis out and about the day we were there.

Main Street - Frederisted - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

EVEN THOUGH clearly exposed and beaten by the Caribbean weather, the old buildings had a beauty all of their own (in it felt like each of them had soul, character, and pride that it was still standing, though sadly a couple major hurricanes came through in the years after we visited and did catastrophic damage to much of the town).

Frederiksted - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

ON THE main street, there were signs (mostly in similar buildings to what I have published here) for dentists, lawyers, and there is even a USVI Supreme Court Building. I found the sign on the pink restaurant humorous. Here we were. But they didn't appear to be open for business.

One of few bars and restaurants in the downtown Frederiksted area
Frederiksted, St. Croix - USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

THERE ARE said to be a number of nice, sandy beaches around the island, and it looks like it might be place for adult families to do an extended vacation in a very laid back atmosphere. Certainly not a "wild party" destination.

Frederiksted Cemetery - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

WE WALKED around the main street and up a back street to a beautiful cemetery with a very "caribbean" scheme of bright colors and burial tombs, and then back down past a large, Catholic church (St. Patrick's) that was in full Sunday ceremony. We stopped outside the doors and listened to the music for a bit.

Frederiksted Cemetery - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

BRIGHT COLORS is a recurring theme for me photographically, and it is my good fortune that it is also a recurring theme throughout the Caribbean. St. Croix is no exception as you can see from the cemetery, and some of the brightly painted buildings in the town. So you can see where my eye was immediately attracted to this building (the Oscar E. Henry Customs House), with a large "square" or plaza in front of it and more colorful buildings off in the background.

Oscar E. Henry Danish Customs House - Frederiksted - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

BUILT IN the 1800's the Oscar E. Henry Danish Customs house is just a block off the cruise pier and within a stone's throw to the 1700's Fort Frederik. Back in the 1800's, St. Croix was a Danish colony and these houses (this one and a larger and grander one over at the port in Christianstadt - which is not a national historic place) were the first points of entry, where customs duties were collected and administered. The building is owned by the USVI government, and though there have been plans in the miss for several years to create restaurants, shops and a museum there, sadly the building remains unused - save a fresh coat of paint shortly before we visited.

Old Canons on Fort Frederik - St. Croix, USVI
Copyright Andy Richards 2014 - All Rights Reserved

BACK AT the pier, we passed nearby the historic, 1700's, Danish Fort Frederick, at the harbor, now a National Historic Landmark, before re-boarding our ship. The promenade in front of the fort and along the waterfront yields up one of those sandy beaches off in the distance.

Sunday, October 19, 2025

The Caribbean Again (This time from San Juan)

FOLLOWING WHAT perhaps could be characterized as a disastrous 2013 cruising season (we don't think so), 2014 was short and mostly uneventful. But we certainly hadn't soured on cruising. Indeed we were all in. Our single cruise this year, was a short, 7-day Caribbean Cruise. By February, 2014, we had 4 cruises under our belt, including the adventure in Europe. My good friend (and partner in our law firm) and I got talking about wanting to go somewhere warm during the dead of winter. In Saginaw, Michigan, where we lived, Mid-January to about mid-March was the poster child for SAD ("seasonal affective disorder). It was grey (partly from the skies and partly from the dirty, accumulated snow and slush), cold, damp and dark. It had been some years since Bob had been on a cruise ship, and he could tell by my enthusiasm that it was time for him to get on board again.

HE HAD cruised before on Carnival and on Celebrity. We agreed that any choice there would be a no-brainer. Three of our first four cruises had been on Princesses, but I had really enjoyed our Celebrity Cruise and wanted to do that again. We found a nice, 10-day cruise that originated out of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and visited 5 Caribbean islands, all in a 7-day cruise.

we expected (and experienced) a relaxing, enjoyable week in the sun!

WE HAD a group of guys that belonged to a local social club and the couples occasionally would go out to dinner together. Jon and Peg were also neighbors and our boys went to school together. Another "Bob" (you may find by reading here that I have a lot of "Bob" friends) - and his wife heard about it and decided to join us. Jon and Peg signed on soon afterward. Then another friend Mark decided he and his wife needed some relief from the "winter doldrums" Suddenly, we were 5 couples. It worked well. This was the first cruise since very early on where we would actually have friends along. It was a fun group who all got along well, so we expected (and experienced) a relaxing, enjoyable week in the sun!

HAVING STOPPED in San Juan on the "O'Brien" cruise the year before, I was looking forward again to doing some exploring around Old San Juan. What I wasn't aware of was that there are actually 2 cruise ports in San Juan. The one we have stopped at now multiple times is on the north side of San Juan Bay, adjacent to the two forts and located in the lee (south) of the peninsula where Old San Juan is located. The new and second port is diagonally across the bay, further to the southeast, near an industrial channel at the end of the bay, and immediately adjacent to the airport. It was midafternoon by the time we landed, sorted transportation to the cruise port, and got boarded. We had started out the day in Saginaw early that morning and had a long day of travel. Though less than a mile apart as the crow flies, by vehicle it is closer to 4 miles - through the city. With little or no planning or organization, the transportation to the port has been a bit of a circus, and I could just image that group trying to organize it self for the short trip to Old San Juan and back for just a couple hours before our sail-away. I had to laugh, though. There is another Senior Frogs right on the edge of the second cruise terminal. It looks like a military building (hangar maybe)? Already on board, with a bar right at hand, we didn't even make the walk. And in spite of it being not a very "pretty" cruise port, I actually got some nice photos of Norwegian Cruise Lines ship coming in. This is the only time (so far) that we have ever done a Caribbean sailing out of anywhere but Miami, Fort Lauderdale, or Tampa (in just under a month, we will be adding another Caribbean departure port: Cape Canaveral).

We continued to give a decided edge to Celebrity for its food

I WAS still new to Celebrity (this would be only our second cruise with them) and didn't really know the ships very well. When we sailed on the Reflection in 2012, it was the newest of the Celebrity fleet. Our ship on this cruise would be the older, Celebrity Summit. At that time Celebrity had two "classes" (it really isn't a quality descriptor, more of a size and design thing) of ships: The Millenium Class and the newer "Solstice Class." At that time, we were still 4 years away from the introduction of Celebrity's newest (and currently "top") class. There were only 4 ships in the Millenium Class, and they essentially replaced a few of the cruise line's aging vessels. The "Millenium" was the first and was launched in 2000, with the Infinity, the Summit, and finally The Constellation (which became Celebrity's "flagship" until the launching the Celebrity Edge in 2018, the first of the currently newest: "Edge Class."

MILLENIUM CLASS ships were older and a bit smaller, but certainly not inferior. In my view, they were every bit the equivalent of the smaller Princess ships we sailed on. Over time, it seemed to me that Celebrity kind of pulled away from the traditional mainstream cruise ships that Princess and HAL continued to float. They all modernized as the rolled new ships and classes out. And in some ways, Princess out-teched Celebrity (in particular with their medallion system). But Celebrity began to have a more modern edge (beginning with the Solstice class and then really moving forward with the Edge class ships). We have not been on a Millenium class ship since. But in November of this year (2025) we again board the Summit for a short Bahamas cruise.

THE SUMMIT was still mostly "old school," but still very clean. They did not have the top deck aft bar that would become a centerpiece social gathering spot, especially in the afternoons, on the newer class ships. Instead the bar on the back was kind of an extension of the buffet. But it was still a "happening" place and we spent a fair amount of our onboard time back there. Their dining room was traditional, at that time, still mainly by set time and assigned table. The 10 of us, of course, had our own table. We continued to give a decided edge to Celebrity for its food (in fact, the "latest, greatest" Royal Princess, I thought the food was mediocre and certainly the worst we had had on any cruise so far). The buffet was also very good. That was back in the days when Celebrity would bring out sushi rolls in the mid-afternoon and we started a daily habit of a plate of sushi out on the back deck with our sunset cocktails. Sadly, they figured out how to monetize sushi a few years later and have discontinued the afternoon buffet sushi (indeed, the current version of the Summit has a "Sushi on 5," which has become one of Celebrity's most popular "specialty" restaurants - it was nonexistent in 2014). One of the signature venues on Celebrity ships was their Martini Bar. We were first introduced to it on that cruise. It was a very cozy, oblong bar with a unique iced bartop. There was nice seating around the bar, which was situated mid-ship on deck 4. There was also a small dance floor at the bottom of the stairway from the atrium that Celebrity calls "The Grand Foyer." It quickly became our first-stop meetup location just before dinner.

None of us were on this one for heavy cultural experiences

THIS CRUISE came together kind of quickly, and with the size and nature of the group, we didn't really try to set up any excursions. We had - by this time - also learned that in the Caribbean, it was often possible to hook up an island tour on-the-fly, once ashore. None of us were on this one for heavy cultural experiences - we were looking for fun, sun, and good company. There were very few planned excursions.