Last Update: 01-SEP-2018
I arranged an island tour before we left with Jim & Rose. We had been to St. Kitts twice before and had never been to Brimstone Hill. This tour starts at your Cruise ship and includes a tour of Basseterre, Romney Manor (Batik Factory) Brimstone Hill Fortress, Gibbons Hill (Caribbean & Atlantic) & the spectacular Black Rocks. The tour then continued on to Cockleshell Beach, this allowed for a scenic drive over the Peninsula & swim in the crystal clear waters.
Rose was waiting for us and since we were with another couple, we had the taxi to ourselves, which was nice since we wanted to spend a good amount of time at Brimstone Hill and she allowed us 1 1/2 hours, which was perfect. The fort is the most impressive one in the Caribbean, and afforded great views--I highly recommend this. Also we arrived before the tours so go early!
We were amazed at how loudly they were singing in the churches--it was Sunday and we saw folks dressed in their best. We saw some nice scenery and ended up at Cockleshell Beach. The beach at Cockleshell Bay was OK, but could stand to be cleaned of debris and seaweed. The water offshore was rocky with seaweed growing in patches. Cockleshell Bay had fair water visibility for snorkeling, but aside from some rocks and bits of coral at the at the end of the eastern point of the bay, there was nothing but garbage, debris, seaweed, a few fish, and urchins to see.
Reggae Beach Bar is the bar Rose took us to on the beach where I snorkeled. My friends ate lunch and had beer. They do have Wilbur sr and jr (giant pigs) and a monkey and goat in cages. Be careful with the monkey--he will grab anything that he can. Ken fed the blind Wilbur a bagel, which he gratefully accepted and wagged his tail.
The tour was very good and well worth the $41 a person--even included the Brimstone Hill fee. I would suggest a different beach however.
We went back to the ship, showered and ate lunch, and then did some shopping in the cruise terminal. Earlier we had bought some Batik scarves at the Batik factory (nice and made there). Ken bought some CSR rum, also made in St. Kitts.
Looking back at Port Zante (Basseterre) with the island of Nevis in the background
An egret rookery along the road with the island of Nevis in the background
An interesting tree with lots of bottles on it !
RR bridge on the way up to Romney Manor Caribelle Batik
Romney Manor - Caribelle Batik - Once owned by Sam Jefferson II, the great great great grandfather of Thomas Jefferson (3rd President of U.S.A.). The great house was renamed Romney Manor following its acquisition in the early 17th century by the Earl of Romney.
Mount Liamuiga (Mount Misery) - 3,792 feet (1,156 meters) - Highest altitude in Saint Kitts and Nevis
Brimstone Hill Fortress from Romney Manor
Drove by Middle Island Angelican Church
Brimstone Hill Fortress - The Gibraltar of the Caribbean, a well preserved and restored colonial fortification. UN World Heritage Site
View from the parking area at Brimstone Hill Fortress
Looking down the steps to the parking area. Island of Nevis in the background
Lower area.
Sint Eustatius 20 miles away and Saba (Netherlands Antilles) 45 miles away.
Mary, cannons and Saint-Barthelemy (France) 40 miles away (over the end of the cannon)
Dave and Monika
Sint Eustatius 20 miles away and Saba (Netherlands Antilles) 45 miles away.
various views
Sandy Point Town
various views
Back down to the parking area and looking back up to the upper fort area
Narrow Streets
Sugarcane areas (not harvested anymore)
Imposing monument of the late and former Premier of St. Kitts and Nevis, the Rt. Excellent Sir Robert L Bradshaw
We got goats
Gibbons Hill (Where the Caribbean & Atlantic)
Starting down the east side of the island
On the Atlantic side - spectacular Black Rocks
Our tour guide at Black Rocks
Good way to keep the Toyota hub caps on
RR Bridge in use for the tourist train. Old Sugarcane processing area
Looking back at North Frigate Bay
Looking at the South East Peninsular with the island of Nevis in the clouds in the background
Cockleshell Beach. Interesting mix of critters, beach, bars and people
Back in town. You can buy Absinthe in the stores
Our ship on the left. P&O Azura on the right. 3,000 passenger monster. Entered service early in 2010
Various port views
Frigate birds
Monster ship blocking my sunset !
Finally the monster ship P&O Azura Departs !
Sunset and port views
We were hoping that it would flip over when it turned. It did lean a bit but made it
Almost 11 and St. Kitts is not that far away
We decided to go to a nearby beach, Dickenson Bay. Most hotels, restaurants, beach bars, and watersports facilities lie north of the capital of St. John's, in the northwest. St. John's is a large, neatly laid-out town 10km (6 1/4 miles) from the airport and less than a mile from Deep Water Harbour Terminal. This port city is the focal point of commerce and industry and the seat of government and shopping. Protected within a narrow bay, St. John's is charming, with cobblestone sidewalks and weather-beaten wooden houses with corrugated iron roofs and louvered Caribbean verandas. Trade winds keep the wide streets cool. Since all the major resorts are on good beaches, most visitors tend to stay put, going into St. John's for a day's shopping jaunt or to English Harbour for some history.
We were packed into a van and driven to Dickensen Bay and left at a beach bar which was along Sandal's Resort. The beach was long and we rented 2 chairs for $5 a piece. The water was warm and enjoyable and we had waves so the clarity was poor for snorkeling. A local told us that it is rough in winter and calm in summer, so snorkeling is better in the summer. After 3 hours we went back to the ship for lunch and a shower. Then we went back to explore the town. The town is run down but we saw a beautiful old church and walked onto the cemetary. But there were bums around and we decided to get back to the shopping area. We went to a "grocery store" that was the smallest we had ever seen. You had to point to items up on a shelf behind the cash register. They had limited stock but we do remember freshly baked bread.
Dickenson Bay beach
Taxi ride in Saint Johns, the capitol city of the nation of Antigua and Barbuda
We were curious to see where our room was. Marked it with the Glen Beck book
We went out for our walk. This town gives me the creeps ! I have been all over the world but I must say I go to condition Yellow / Orange SA-wise here. It's poor, and it looks to be a place where they take advantage of the tourists who are not aware.
We walked up to Saint John the Divine Cathedral (Saint Johns). The first church was built here of wood as early as 1681. The second was constructed with English brick about 1720. The Cathedral is built of freestone in the years 1843 to 1848. The Cathedral is dominated by twin towers at the west end and provides a distinct baroque flavour. They are 70 ft high and the cupolas that crown the towers are aluminium in colour. Originally the south gate was the main entrance. On top of its pillars are the bronze figures of St. John the Divine and St. John the Baptist.
Various Harbor views from the safety of the boat (Also, it was in the mid/upper 80's here and very humid !)
Montserrat appx. 30 miles away - Montserrat is an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. Its Georgian-era capital city of Plymouth was destroyed and two-thirds of the island's population forced to flee abroad owing to an eruption of the long time dormant Soufriere Hills volcano that began on July 18, 1995. The eruption continues today on a much reduced scale, the damage being confined to the areas around Plymouth including its docking facilities and the former W.H. Bramble Airport. An exclusion zone extends from the south coast of the island north to parts of the Belham Valley. Parts of the zone may be open during the day, and provide visitors with a spectacular view of the volcano and the destruction it has wrought upon the town.
Bad sunset
Photo of the amout of silverware I was allocated each night. We would make great effort to use all of it !
Monika eating Escargot
Ice Carving party with dessert ! I watched from a distance
Dave & Monika broke our room by banging on the wall
This was Ken's favorite port because watching the planes land at the airport on the beach was the highlight. A fact so charming, it always has to be mentioned first: The island of Sint Maarten-Saint Martin is the smallest land mass in the world to be shared by two different nations. Only 37 square miles are owned by France and the Netherlands Antilles.
The French territory covers about two thirds of the island and is technically a part of Europe and the European Community. The Dutch side is a member island of the Netherlands Antilles and part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, but not considered European territory. There is no real border, just modest monuments and signs. The island is known as an almost perfect holiday environment; beaches and nightlife are spectacular, shopping and dining the best in the Caribbean.
We decided to go to Maho Beach and the Sunset Beach Bar. The airport's 7708' runway, barely enough for heavy jets, requires a low approach over the beach, as shown below, to the delight of plane spotters, some at the adjacent Sunset beach bar. I snorkeled along the rocks next to the bar and saw the usual fishes and some corals. This is the only place I've ever snorkeled while watching jets land above me.
We never made it to the French side, which is supposed to be prettier and have nude beaches, like the famous Orient. We did notice that traffic is a problem when 4 ships are in port. Therefore we had to leave before the 747 was due to land. And Tuesday is THE day to be there for that so we missed it by a half hour since we left at 1:30. We should have stayed an extra hour and would have seen it come in and still had plenty extra time to get on the ship. Oh well!
Celebrity Eclipse Entered service Spring 2010 - 2,852 Passengers
NCL Norwegian Epic Entered service Summer 2010 - 4,100 Passengers (insane -- Monster ship)
Fuel time for our ship
First time I saw the back of our ship
Looking back at Philipsburg the largest settlement on Dutch side of island.
Looking towards the airport
Strange monument in a traffic circle - Osborne Kruythoff - The traffic man
Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) time. The warning sign
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Mary and Kevin out for a snorkel in the approach area on Playa Maho beach
Incoming jet
Sunset bar and Grill lists the plane arrivals
Disney hell ship.
Saba ??
Oh the crowds
Container ship looks a bit low in the water
Thunderstorm over Saint-Barthelemy (France)
Sunset
Rainbow during the sunset in the thunderstorm over Saint-Barthelemy (France)
Looking back at (left to right) Celebrity Eclipse, NCL Norwegian Epic and a Disney hell ship.
Last land till The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel 1,718 miles away. The beach / runway area is lit up in red
Around the ship on a perfect evening
Christmas tree in main Dining room
Very long hall
Crazy painting that has squid and boobs !
Beautiful day. Super smooth
Sunset 300 miles north of Puerto Rico
6 pm and very quiet
Sargasso Sea - The Sargasso Sea is home to seaweed of the genus Sargassum, which floats en masse on the surface there. The sargassum is not a threat to shipping, and historic incidents of sailing ships being trapped there are due to the often calm winds of the horse latitudes. This is also home to the huge North Atlantic Garbage Patch with a high concentration of non-biodegradable plastic waste. We would see the Sargassum floating in the Atlantic.
Our hall
Everyone is ready for the Engine control room tour
Engine control room tour. Not allowed in the actual engine room. But, could see it on TV.
Boring sunset
Mary gets two dinners--the lobster tail and petit filet. This was the only time those 2 items were offerred, so she wanted both. The filet mignon was very tender! Even Dave went with the filet mignon instead of his usual steak!
Now only 200 miles or so from Cape Hatteras but still in the Gulf Stream. The day started out warm but by late afternoon it was in the upper 50's which is cold when you spent the last 10 days in the 80's !
Sunset 40 miles east of Duck, NC. You can see water towers to the left of the sunset on the zoomed image
Approaching the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel
Our last desserts !
