Riviera - Caribbean Hideaways, Mar 28-Apr 7, 2013 - Trip Review and Pictorial

[computerworks]

I also took a photo of the French roll from Jacques.

 

Hard not to, isn't it? :p

 

Also our first and one of the finest. Hope to finish the photo stream this week.

 

How was the T/A?

[G&G]

Hard not to, isn't it? :p

 

Also our first and one of the finest. Hope to finish the photo stream this week.

 

How was the T/A?

 

Excellent, only one day of rough seas. Bermuda was beautiful and weather clear for two days, Funchal, Maderia was fabulous and of course the food was unbelievable. I got home just in time to buy a new line of larger pants :eek: !

 

I saw my picture in one of your photos. Did you get a release from me to publish the photo :cool: !

[computerworks]

Excellent, only one day of rough seas. Bermuda was beautiful and weather clear for two days, Funchal, Maderia was fabulous and of course the food was unbelievable. I got home just in time to buy a new line of larger pants :eek: !

 

I saw my picture in one of your photos. Did you get a release from me to publish the photo :cool: !

 

Your likeness was published under Creative Commons license. :p

 

Madeira is amazing...we loved it on our last trip.

[computerworks]

(...time to continue with this thread. Hope we finish it before our next cruise. :cool: )

[computerworks]

Day 6 - Barbados

 

For Barbados, we booked a day tour with the Cool Runnin' folks for a sail and snorkel.

There are several quality cat tour companies and they all have basically the same itinerary.

The Cool Runnin' folks provided a friendly and comfortable day of swimming and hospitality.

 

The Riviera approaching Barbados

 

 

 

Transfers were a breeze... our bus was waiting at the cruise terminal.

 

 

...needed just a few more folks to get rolling.

 

 

Catamaran ready to go...the bar was open.

 

 

The "Captain" made sure we were comfortable and ready...

 

[computerworks]

The plan was: explore a wreck, swim with the turtles... and truly chill out.

 

 

 

This cat had an easy off for swimming.

 

 

Once we arrived at the spot..the snorkelers were released.

 

 

Within minutes, the turtles arrived.

 

[computerworks]

A great home-cooked lunch was provided and the bar was always open.

 

 

Some of the shore sights

 

 

We danced our way back to port...

 

 

Relax... and plan the next day.

 

 

Next up (later) ... St. Lucia and the Pitons.

[cruisingxpert]

Great pictures, Ron. I was afraid you might stop posting with your next trip coming up so soon. Eleanor was asking me just last night if you had posted all your pictures from the trip.

 

Gee I miss all of you from that trip - best trip ever for meeting so many wonderful people.

 

Catherine

[computerworks]

I agree... we had a great time with you all.

 

More to come... work schedule has been horrific since we got back.

 

And, correct, with that inaugural cruise on the Breakaway looming in the not-to-distant-future, the pressure is on. :p

 

Hope to get the rest up presently, between the acts.

[melody hounddog]

Great review.

[computerworks]

It is with much chagrin ( :o ) that I find this pictorial incomplete.

 

Since Caribbean season is coming up on the horizon, it might be a good idea to finish this review for the folks who are planning a voyage there.

 

Let's see if we can wrap it up in one sitting.

[computerworks]

Day 7 - St. Lucia

We love St. Lucia, having done land vacations there. We had always rented a car for our stay, and have done most of the sights before.

This visit, we decided to put ourselves in the hands of a local tour operator for a full day... no work for me, just sit back and be moved around.

 

 

It was another 'lucky' day for sure as we were greeted with a rainbow as we sailed into St. Lucia

 

 

 

Sergia, our Room Stewardess was a delight... always there to see us off in the morning and to make sure we had all we needed for the day.

 

 

All loaded up and ready to roll. We have a full day excursion planned for St. Lucia: a land and sea trip.

 

 

Need water? Never a problem when starting the day.

 

 

The first part of our excursion was a land tour by van to several points of interest.

 

[computerworks]

Stopped for a rest at a banana grove. When we were last on St. Lucia for a land stay...I remember driving thru miles of banana farms

 

 

 

We took the coastal road and stopped for some photo ops of the beaches and towns along the way

 

 

 

Destination: the Pitons! Not so far away.

 

[computerworks]

We stopped at the Sulphur Springs and National Park, for some vapors and a history lesson.

 

 

 

 

We booked this excursion with Spencer Ambrose tours ( http://spencerambrose.com ) and were absolutely delighted with the results.

A family-run business that really makes sure your day in St. Lucia is a full and memorable one.

Spencer has several guides who handle the land portion...here is our trusty guide.

 

 

We bid him goodbye and switched to the boat piloted by Spencer himself, for a sea tour and lunch on the beach between the Pitons.

 

 

When we were here before, we stayed at this beautiful hotel.

 

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Spencer's family put out a spread of a homemade lunch and we spent time relaxing and swimming here.

 

 

Spencer, the skipper hisself.

 

 

Heading back after a relaxing stop, we received a narrated tour of all the coastal sites and stopped at few for pictures and a detailed description of the area.

 

 

Natural formation, known as the "slipper."

 

 

Always a wonderful sight to see the ship is still there.

 

 

Home safe and we bid farewell to our hosts on St. Lucia.

 

[computerworks]

Back onboard, it was late afternoon latte time at Barista's

 

 

We're sailing again, headed for St. Bart's

 

 

This evening was a very nice show, "Rock On." We found all the production shows entertaining and the theater was very a comfortable venue.

 

 

Time to call it a night.

 

 

Next up, St. Bart's ..the one port we had never been to.

[computerworks]

Day 8 - St. Barts

 

We really were looking forward to this port, never having the pleasure to visit St. Bart's before.

I had arranged a rental car to be waiting for me at the dock and, armed with my itinerary of great spots, we planned to cruise the island and take it all in.

 

This was a tender port. The crew managed the tendering perfectly.

 

 

Touring the island by car...I had a list of beaches we wanted to visit. First on the list and closest to the port was Shell Beach.

 

 

They were not kidding about naming this place Shell Beach...

 

 

There were some areas you could walk without crunching...

 

[computerworks]

Many of the beaches we visited were easy to find...others were off the beaten path.

 

 

...but well worth finding.

 

 

 

The best part of exploring is to be able to find lots of look-out spots with great vistas.

 

 

All beaches are well-marked...easy to navigate the island; the roads have great signage.

 

[computerworks]

Now, break time for some Pain Killers at Anse de Lorient

 

 

 

A short drive back to the sweet spot of the island and the best beach, Baie de saint Jean, for some swim time

 

 

 

We had some fun with beach beds, trying to negotiate.

 

At this point it is appropriate to point out a significant attribute about St. Barts......it is laughably expensive. I mean...laughable.

 

I got the 'growlies' while swimming, so I strolled up to a beach cafe to see what I could snack on. Reading the chalkboard, I liked a burger and pomme frites... until I saw it was 39 €.

 

Fallback was a nice salad... for 29 € (you do the conversion...)

 

No sale.

 

Well, anyhow, I asked about getting a beach bed for the hour we were planning to stay. The attendant wanted 30€ for the day... we both silently smiled for a bit...and I offered him 10€ for an hour, pointing out that all the beds were empty. He indicated that they would have many filled in a short while. Being a good business man, I politely asked to speak to the manager.

 

I asked if he would rather have 10€ for an hour or stare at a row of empty beds. I added that it would be good for business to show that someone was there, and not that they all were empty.

 

No sale. He would not drop his standards just for me. Oh, well...worth a shot.

 

We used beach towels. :cool:

 

[computerworks]

Time to move on and continue the swing to the Northwest

 

 

 

Here is the famous airstrip that the shuttle flights from St. Maarten come and go all day.

 

 

Although most of the roads are well marked, some signs are easier to read than others. We almost missed this turn

 

 

Stopped at quiet little village with great vistas.

Looking down at the harbor... we saw that a buddy snuck in to port during the day.

 

 

This was our buggy for the day on St. Barts

 

[computerworks]

This was a tricky road to negotiate, but I had heard there was a great overlook point up top.

 

 

...and there surely was.

 

 

 

 

St. Maarten in the distance...not so far away

 

 

 

St. Barts is truly a thing of beauty.

[computerworks]

Lunch prices remained a running gag... Thought we'd stop at a hotel for a nice lunch... but the 80€ prix fixe made me lose my appetite.

 

I had a small piece of paper folded in my pocket...

 

"In case of hunger emergency, read this...."

 

It was to remind me that this little joint in town was a great secret..good food, fair prices.

 

 

We had an amazing pizza and and a round of wine for 16€.

 

 

Now, back to the other side of the best beach of the bunch for an afternoon swim.

 

 

 

...looking down the barrel of the runway.

 

[computerworks]

After a fun-filled day, it was back to the ship via tender.

 

 

..and a relaxing dinner at Red Ginger.

 

 

Tomorrow, our last day at sea as we head home to Miami.

[computerworks]

Day 9 - Sea Day

 

Nice to wind down a voyage with a relaxing sea day.

 

 

Today, another Culinary Class... this time: Red Ginger recipes.

 

 

Obviously, a seriously complex explanation was in progress....

 

 

Once again, the Culinary Facility is marvelous. What a great activity.

 

 

Angela wants to know why I can't do this kind of prep for her at home.

 

[computerworks]

The net result of all that hard work was delicious. (I ate most of it.)

 

 

 

We then had a get-together at our cruise friend Catherine's PH.

 

 

 

A lazy sea day gave us time to wander around ship... the Internet area.

Never used the facility, since I travel armed with probably too many personal devices. BTW, the internet speed was more than adequate for satellite.

 

Flickr uploads were blocked, but I was able to do quite a bit of networked tasks back to the office. If you are interested... I leave one high speed system dedicated to me at my office, with it set up for remote access. This let's me do anything from the ship, remotely.