Well here it is . . . the story of my trip to the Carribean.
Heidi and I started our vacation by driving to CT . . . mainly because flying out of Bangor was $900 plus change for one ticket vs. $800 plus change for two tickets when flying out of CT). We made sure to arrive in Puerto Rico a day early . . . which was a great move since we arrived to find a sunny, 80+ degree day and greenery everywhere versus the overcast, 29 degree, snow-covered landscape we had left behind in Maine . . . my beloved snowmobile was quickly forgotten after only a half hour.
The flight from Connecticut was pretty uneventful . . . other than the fact that my name appears to be on the "No Fly" list as I had to check in with an American Airlines rep, give quite a bit of extra information (i.e. social security number, date of birth, etc.) and was the only passenger to get selected for the "random" pat-down check . . . fortunately there was no strip search or body cavity search.
Our taxi ride from the airport to Old San Juan gave us a taste of what to expect from island taxi cab drivers as the driver zipped through traffic, cutting in and out of traffic while making liberal use of his horn. We arrived at the Howard Johnson at the Plaza de Armes within 15 minutes and made our way to our room -- an inside room with no windows (this hotel is built in the old part of the city and is over 200 years old). While my mind wanted to go outside and take in the new sights, sounds and smells, my body simply wanted to take it easy and go to sleep . . . and in the end that's just what my wife and I did after grabbing a quick bite to eat . . . at the local Wendys. 
The next morning I woke up early so I headed out to do some early morning exploring and geocaching. After exploring a little bit of the walled city and seeing countless cats and lizards I headed back to the room and Heidi and I spent the morning walking around . . . checking out Pigeon Park (lots and lots of pigeons there) and the El Morro Fortress (along the way I was attacked by an errant kite being flown by one of the many, many families out flying kites and picnicing on this sunny Easter Sunday.)
Around mid-afternoon we returned to the hotel to collect our luggage and get on board the ship . . . that night we met a guy who actually works for Kraft making macaroni and cheese. On subsequent nights we had a table for two on the stern of the ship which meant we usually could catch some great sunsets and/or views of the islands we were leaving. Usually after dinner we would head back to our stateroom and read for awhile before heading to bed . . . the sun, heat and busy days really sapped us.
Ports of Call: We mixed up the ports of call with some tours (all independently booked) and some "down" days with visits to the beach. On most days we rarely spent more than $100 for the two of us, with the exception of the tour in Barbados (this included lunch.)
St. Thomas: Originally my wife and I were going to visit one of the many beaches on St. Thomas, but at the last minute we opted to check out Honeymoon Beach on Water Island . . . and as a result we got to meet some great people. On the ferry ride over to the island we met Jan Robinson . . . a cook and owner of a rental property on Water Island. Jan graciously invited us to a ride in her "limo" which was a golf cart with a rear seat.
After seeing her wonderful home on Water Island (with fantastic views of the bay and Honeymoon Beach) and meeting Tom, the local island handyman, and helping him hang a mirror at Jan's place we were whisked by Jan to the beach (after a quick stop at the dump). Honeymoon Beach was everything I wanted to find in a Caribbean beach . . . it was quiet, there were no crowds of people . . . just beautiful, warm, clear water to swim and snorkel in. Later a catamaran and pirate ship (I was looking for Hollora and Cache Maine to appear, but they never did) came to the beach, but even then the beach didn't seem very crowded. This was an absolutely wonderful way to relax and spend a day in the sun.
Dominica: On this day we booked the first of three tours. The tour was pretty good as we were able to learn about the flora and fauna of the island and see bananas, coconuts, pineapples, cashews, almonds, papaya, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger growing. Perhaps the best stop was Trafalgar Falls . . . the Falls were perhaps the most spectacular and Amanda the local tour guide there was great as she gave a great mini-tour. The only two negatives to this tour was that it seemed a bit long with a lot of driving and the fellow passengers -- a couple that were always concerned about the time and missing the boat (even though we were several hours from the boat leaving port) and two couples that were rude to the point of pushing in front of lines, mocking the Dominican's homes and standard of living, etc.
Barbados: We booked a tour and as a result were able to get a lot of insight into the history and culture of Barbados . . . and at the same time managed to be the first tour company to Harrison's Cave. The sights in the Cave were fantastic with stalagmites, stalactites, underground lakes and streams and waterfalls, etc. After this we went to Orchid World . . . I was a bit surprised to find that I enjoyed this spot even though I'm not really much of a "flower" sort of guy. This was a nice spot to really relax and "stop and smell the roses" . . . or rather in our case the vanilla scented orchid. We then stopped for dinner after a few photo stops near the "Soup Bowl." Our final stop was the Wildlife Refuge and this was without a doubt one of the best places we visited . . . the iguanas, tortoises and other animals were neat to see, but the best part was that we were able to get there in time for the 2 p.m. feeding of the wild vervet monkeys -- these monkeys roam free and around 2 p.m. return for the free food. Afterwards my wife made friends with a captive vervet monkey which was quite expressive . . . making smacking sounds with his jaws, rubbing his belly, putting his hand out for a snack, etc. to show that he really wanted a snack. Unfortunately, we had no snacks and we were pretty sure feeding the animals would not be allowed.
Antigua: This day was a bit of a surprise for me . . . originally I had every intention of going to Darkwood Beach, but at the last minute Heidi and I decided to try Fort James Beach since it was closer and there was a geocache at Fort James (OK, mainly because there was a geocache there). This was one of my favorite beaches for the whole trip . . . it was very quiet, there were plenty of shells to collect and the swimming in the warm, turquoise blue water was absolutely wonderful. The only minor drawback is that the waters were too churned up to be able to snorkel . . . but the massage that my wife and I got from Stacy (a wonderful young lady from Jamaica who talked to us for a long time about her life) more than made up for the lack of snorkeling. I also cannot say how impressed I was with our taxi driver, Lewis, who drives a taxi and owns a small grocery store . . . he brought us to the beach I asked to go to without trying to convince me to go somewhere else like many of the other taxi drivers and he came back for us at the time we had agreed on.
St. Kitts: Without a doubt this was my favorite island to visit . . . in fact I really didn't want to leave. Maybe it's because this island is so beautiful and scenic . . . maybe because it didn't feel overly developed . . . or maybe it's because of folks like Thenford Grey who gave us one of the best, if not the best, tour of the whole trip. Thenford's knowledge and humor of the island's history, culture and wildlife surely cannot be surpassed . . . within just a few minutes of speaking with this great man you will realize that Thenford is a very well read and educated man. When I left this tour I felt as though I had not simply booked a tour, but rather that I had met a friend. After seeing Basseterre and realizing that Thenford knows a lot of folks on the island, we drove out to see the Carib petroglyphs . . . at which point we also met a couple with a baby vervet monkey which managed to give my wife a small nip on the hand. Thenford then gave us an excellent introduction to some of the flora at the Batik factory and then it was off to the awe-inspiring views and interesting history lesson at Brimstone Fortress. We finished out our day with the equally impressive views of the Southeast Peninsula and views of many, many goats and monkeys (do you notice a recurring theme yet . . . I have a "thing" for monkeys) before sharing lunch with Thenford at Cockleshell Beach. My one and only regret of my time in St. Kitts was that I had to leave . . . as Thenford said to us when we first met, "I know some folks are worried that they will miss the ship to which I say to them, if you miss the ship your punishment is that you have to spend more time with me here in paradise." I think truer words have never been spoken.
St. Martin: For our final island stop we took a taxi to St. Martin Park which was a nice way to kill a hour or so . . . it was there that a capuchin monkey pelted me in the chest with a small rock (it could have been worse . . . I could have been pelted with monkey poo)! Afterwards we took a ride with a young, Nascar-wannabe to nearby Dawn Beach. There were a lot of waves, but I could still snorkel and swim. Of all the beaches we visited this was the most crowded . . . but it was more a matter of degree as the other beaches had very few people at them. Swimming in the turquoise blue waters of Dawn Beach was a great way to cap our vacation.
"Courage is not the absence of fear, but the realization that there is something more important than fear."
"Death is only one of many ways to die."
Originally Posted by Team Richards
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