2013 - 4 St. Kitts "Part II"

St. Kitts and Nevis - Celebrity Reflection
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

WE HAD made our first visit to St. Kitts and Nevis the year before aboard the Ruby Princess. Our tour around Bassettere was educational and a bit eye-opening for us. This time we "ramped it up," slightly, booking a tour which began on the country's narrow gauge, open coach, railroad which circled the high ground of the island.

Aboard the St. Kitts Narrow Gauge Railway
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

TOURISM, OF course, is now the single largest industry for virtually all Caribbean countries. Originally, though, St. Kitts was best known for its production of sugar cane. Grown on the hillsides, the narrow gauge rail was originally built and used to collect and carry the harvested sugar cane down to the sea-level where it was processed. From the mid 1600's for about 150 years, St. Kitt's was the dominant producer and supplier of sugar to Europe.  Several factors combined to create its downfall and ultimate demise, including the outlawing of slavery in the 1800's, the introduction of the sugar beet in the 19th century, and growing competition around the Caribbean. The final death knell, though, was probably the 2005 establishment in the European Union of its Common Market Organization which strove to stabilize (and for the Caribbean sugar producers: reduce and regulate) the cost of sugar. This marked the final end of Nevis' domination of  world sugar production.

Rural St. Kitts - West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

AS THE economy transformed to a tourism-based economy, the narrow gauge rail followed suit, being converted into a passenger coach style train offering tours of the high ground. We enjoyed it, got some great views from on high, and saw the remains of some of the sugar plantations.

St. Kitts
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

THE LAST leg of our tour was on a catamaran sailboat for a sail around part of the island, back to our cruise berth. That too, was a lot of fun, with plenty of the famous Caribbean "Rum Punch" being consumed and some spectacular views of the island coastline.

Catamaran Cruise - Basseterre - St. Kitts, West Indies
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

IN LATER years, my wife would go on a "girls" trip with one of our groups - jeep tour/ride. But my own exploration of the island would be more or less confined to the immediate port near the ships berths. No particular reason. It just seems to have worked out that way. I have sampled a fair amount of the local beer. 😊 This was the final stop of our relatively short, "maiden" Celebrity voyage. We had fun, made great friends and thoroughly enjoyed the cruise. Though we didn't realize it at the time, there would be many more Celebrity cruises.

St. Maarten - Reprise

Cruise Port - Phillipsburg, St. Maarten
Copyright Andy Richards 2012 - All Rights Reserved

JUST ONE year prior, we stopped at St. Maarten. We bought a bunch of jewelry. We walked around Philllipsburg and just explored that very small area. We sat in the shade by the beach. It was nice. But this time, we were ready for some more in-depth exploring. Maybe for some culture. We only had 3 stops on this very short cruise: San Juan, St. Maarten, and St. Kitts. Only San Juan was new to us. Were we becoming "experienced cruisers"? Hardly. I think - with 20 plus under our belt today, we probably qualify as "experienced." Then? only 3. so not yet.

St. Maarten Cruise Port - Phillipsburg
Copyright Andy Richards 2012  - All Rights Reserved

BUT WE had learned some things. Particularly that there are opportunities in every port, if you seek them out. Sometimes we still don't do excursions for various reasons. But this cruise, particularly since we knew we were basically on our own in ports, was the one where we really started to find and do excursions. My wife, who would make a splendid travel agent, started finding them on our own (in fairness to her, she had done that before - in Alaska). Over the years, we have done a handful of the cruise-ship sponsored tours. Some of them have been o.k. But mostly, we have been underwhelmed. As we cruised more and more, this became even more apparent to us. Anyway, for whatever reason, she looked for excursions that ran on their own. For St. Maarten, we found a driver who took a small group on a tour of the island and its main tourist sights. Not much culture. But a start, and a change from just walking around downtown Phillipsburg or going to the beach.

Maho Beach - Princess Juliana Airport - Phillipsburg, St. Maarten
(unknown)

ST. MAARTEN, for those who don't already know it, is actually occupied by two different European nations: Holland and France. Techically, the French side is "Saint Martin," and the Dutch side "Sint Maarten." Roughly divided north and south, for cruise passengers, the Dutch side is probably better known to cruisers. The island's deep water port is Phillipsburg (capitol of Dutch St. Maarten), and all major cruise passengers port there. It is a pretty large capacity port (I have counted 7 ships there all at once during one of our visits). The rather famous airport: Princess Juliana Airport (where you can see the planes land up close and personal from Maho Beach, or perhap more comfortably and safely, the Maho Beach Bar) is on the Dutch Side, as well as the primary casinos on the island (Casino Royale and Tropicale Princess) are also on the Dutch Side, adjacent to the airport. For many of us North Americans, English is the predominant language spoken on the Dutch Side. There are many beaches and bars very close to the cruise port.

I can't say Orient Beach was a "highlight" of the tour

THE FRENCH side should not be overlooked, however. The island is a popular vacation spot for other - than - cruise vacationers, with jet service to Princess Juliana, and some very nice resorts on both the Dutch and French side of the island. Also, the famous "Orient Beach" which includes a "nude" area (which is probably what has made it famous) and the popular Grand Case beach, bar and restaurant area along the western side of the island are on the French side and are known for top-drawer cuisine. Marigot, the French side capitol is also beautiful.

Marigot, St. Martin
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OUR TOUR took us up through the center of the island and then over toward the eastern side, with our eventual first destination being Orient Beach on the northeast coast. Along the way, we saw what I thought was an ironic, but also sad, mix of apparent poverty and wealth. Over the years, we have heard of several of the world's "rich and famous" owning residences on the island, including Bill Gates and Oprah Winfrey, among others. Our driver pointed out what he told us was Gates residence high up on a hill. I was struck by the clearly poverty-leaning structures that dotted the road along the way and on the way up to the purported Gates compound.

View From Orient Beach - St. Martin
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WE STOPPED for 1/2 hour at Orient Beach. Enough time to make a bathroom stop and get a bottle of water and walk around. As beautiful as the "Caribbean" water was there, this beach gets its prevailing weather from the Atlantic and it tends to be rough. My own recollection of the beach was that it was rather narrow and kind of dirty. And very crowded. Near the middle of the large parking area, there is a sign demarcing the split between the "family" section and the "clothing optional" section. I walked around with my camera (although for obvious reasons, not in the nude area). 😓 My photos were mostly toward the water, away from the beach. A brief (maybe) humorous anecdote comes to mind here. There is a large rock with a path down behind it at the beginning of the "clothing optional" area. That, I learned, is where the folks walk down to the beach, stopping behind the rock to "drop-trou" as it were. Guys - if you are thinking San Tropez - like beach covered with scantily to not at all dressed movie stars and models? Think again. We saw two "elderly" (advanced elderly, believe me) head down there and begin to disrobe. I walked away, not wanting to have to try to find a way to "unsee" that. 😐 I can't say Orient Beach was a "highlight" of the tour. We have never been back there and wouldn't do so purposely.

Marigot Bay - Marigot, St. Martin
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

FROM ORIENT Beach, our tour continued, heading west, across the island, through Grand Case, and back south to Marigot, now on the western coastline of the island. We stopped again in Marigot, this time for about 45 minutes, to walk around the downtown area of Marigot Market. The little downtown had a decided French "feel" to it, while at the same time, still feeling "Caribbean" and, of course, touristy. I was quickly drawn to the the colorful Gazebo in the above image, in the center of the marketplace. Lines, patterns, color!

Sarafina's Patisserie - Marigot, St. Martin
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BEFORE RETURNING to our van, we stopped in a little French Cafe and Pastry shop that our driver had recommended. For certain, a tourist draw, but again, colorful and "French." No English was spoken in the shop, so there was a certain amount of pointing and gesturing, but the pastry and the coffee was very good!

Bar at Maho Beach/Princess Juliana - Phillipsburg, St. Maarten
Copyright Andy Richards 2013

OUR FINAL stop was at the Maho Beach Bar, immediately adjacent to the Princess Juliana Airport runway. A lot of people these days know that this airport is famous for being able to be so close to landing jet aircraft that you feel like you could reach up and bang on the fusilage with your knuckles. There is a small, narrow, beach across the front section of the runway, and then a fenced - off area and road in front of the actual tarmac. There are people (braver - or perhas just dumber) than I, who set up beach chairs on that beach to be directly underneath the belly of the landing planes. I have heard that the jet wash on the sand creates a sandblasting effect. Fun! Not. There have been numerous accounts of people clinging to the wire fence as the planes land, more often that they should, resulting in severe injuries to these ignorant onlookers. Indeed, in 2017, a 57 year old tourist was killed when the blast from a jet taking off (they back the tail out over the fence as far back as they can to gain runway length), as the blast tore her from the fence and threw her into a wall.

in 2017, a 57 year old tourist was killed when the blast from a jet taking off

UNFORTUNATELY FOR us, the bar was an absolute madhouse. There is a sign giving approximate landing times for planes and we were there for one. But getting a seat anywhere near the front where the planes come by was impossible. There is also the challenge of overhanging sun umbrellas. As you can see from my photo of the people, I missed the actual plane and would not have had a very good perspective on it anyway. I think the folks who have made images like the one further above, have either been just lucky, or they have sat and waited through a few. The sound is deafening. I did get to watch one take off, but that is not very exciting.

Water Taxi - Phillisburg - St. Marteen Cruise Terminal
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

OUR TOUR complete, we were dropped off back at the downtown Phillipsburg terminal where the ferry took us the short trip back across the "Great Bay," to the cruise terminal and back aboard the ship. A pretty full day. We saw some sights and experienced the tourist - side of St. Maarten. While we didn't realize it at the time, we would be back there at least 2 more times over the next few years. 

San Juan

WE HAVE been to San Juan 4 times now. The only thing we have done there is visit the National Park/Fort in Old San Juan, walk around the area a little bit, and drink the local beer and rum. One of these trips, we will organize a more meaningful tour. Maybe learn some culture. Maybe tour one of the distilleries. Who knows?

Port of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

PART OF the problem has been timing. In 3 of the 4 instances, we had a port stop in the Old San Juan port. In all three cases, they were abbreviated stops. Most of our stops involve coming into port in the morning and staying until late afternoon. Or sometimes evening. San Juan, I suppose because it is a convenient stopping point on the relatively long trip from Florida to the Caribbean, for some reason always seems to get short-changed. Even in the 4th case, when our cruise originated in San Juan, by the time we arrived at the airport and got transportation to the cruise port, we were left with a short 1/2 day in San Juan. So that has been a bit of a continuing frustration. The sail into The Bay of San Juan (Bahia de San Juan) was the most picturesque sail-in I can remember. It was late afternoon, and the light was flattering. The ships come in from the northeast around a peninsula that is a high bluff, protecting the harbor. Because of the high bluff, it was also an ideal place for a fort - also to protect the harbor. The views from the ship made some nice imagery. The ship in the photo is a Norwegian Cruise Line ship following us in.

Castillo San Felipe del Morro - San Juan, Puerto Rico
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THE 2013 cruise was our first time in San Juan. We had no real plan. But since we had a couple days on board, we had gotten to know our new friends, Lou and Penny, and they didn't really have a plan either. So we agreed we would go ashore together and "play it by ear." We arrived in the afternoon, on a federal holiday. One thing that meant was the National Park Service, which operates the 3 forts in Old San Juan, was not open.

The Old San Juan Forts - U.S. National Park Service - Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
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FORTUNATELY, HOWEVER, the gates were open and there were signs inviting visitors and saying that no ticket purchases were necessary. There are actually 2 cruise landings in San Juan - the Old San Juan Harbor port and the secondary cruise terminal down harbor and across the waterway, near the airport. We didn't know it was there at the time. It appears that only ships originating and terminating in San Juan use the 2nd terminal. We would learn that (kind of the hard way) on our next trip through. But for now, docked within walking distance, we hoofed it up to the forts that are accessible from the Old town, Castillos San Cristobal, and El Morro. The views are pretty spectacular from the fort. As for the fort itself, if is interesting architecture, but mostly stone walls and ramps up to them remain. Kind of illustrates why they were built there, as you could spot any ships approaching San Juan from the north.

Old San Juan from Castillo San Cristobal - San Juan, Puerto Rico
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DID I say the views were spectacular? Not only did the top walls of the San Cristobal Fort provide a great viewpoint down onto the city and off to the east, but the warm, late afternoon sun, and some wonderful cloud formations provided some drama in the skies. This afternoon also set up what might be my favorite ever photo of the Celebrity Reflection at one of its moorings.

Celebrity Reflection - Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
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AFTER SEEING the forts, we wandered back down the hill through town. One of my favorite photos was taken that afternoon, of a local artisan teaching a young boy how to craft pottery on a wheel. The warm afternoon light was a plus to this serendipitous opportunity.

Artisan demonstrating his pottery wheel - Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Copyright Andy Richards 2013 - All Rights Reserved

WE EVENTUALLY "wandered" far enough to find our way into the ultra-touristy Caribbean chain restaurant: Sen'or Frogs. Touristy as it is, the location in old San Juan may be one of the better ones and was certainly a fun place to finish up our San Juan visit. There is another Sen'or Frogs over by the other cruise port flanking the airport runways. From the top deck of a cruise ship, it looks like a cross between an airplane hanger and a quonset hut. Not much character. But the one in Old San Juan is built into the old storefront and has some character. Plus, it is a 2 minute walk to and from the ship.

WE HAD already learned how much fun Lou and Penny could be. Our time in Sen'or Frogs only underscored that. We laughed. Then we laughed some more. It was a fun, albeit brief, stop.