Caribbean cruise I
This is a post-entry for my recent family Caribbean cruise trip: ( - partial entry, rest TBD... )
Time: December 8-18, 2005
Ship: Norwegian Spirit - ex. Super Star Leo
Itinerary: Caribbean map
I have to admit that the flight part of this trip was very tedious. I took a redeye flight to NYC on Wed. (12/07), given the temperature differences between CA and NYC, with a stop at the even colder Chicago, I was not dressed warm enough. Even worse is my return flight from the Caribbeans, my entire flight back was 22+ hrs including a 7 hour stop over at JFK! I was definitely very very tired by the time I got back to SFO.
However, the short flight between B.V.I. and SJU happens to be one of the most memorable on this trip. B.V.I. had some light shower earlier, so the floor of the airport is wet, and it glistened like a mirror. The EIS airport has an outdoor style, we board the small plane via the staircase instead of the usual terminal style. I took these pictures that show the plane between the blue sky in the background and the light reflection on the ground. After we took off, I looked down and saw the tiny island surrounded by light blue water, with strips of beige sand and white foam on its fringes. Then I saw the most beautiful rainbow of my life -- what do you think a rainbow looks like from the sky?
Beauty
My favourite island port call is Sint. Maarten/St. Martin. The ride from Philipsburg on the Dutch side to the Oriental bay on the French side is incredibly scenic. But my best beach experience during this whole trip happened on the little uninhabited island of Ilet Pinel, which is only 1 km away from the Oriental bay. In fact, I think one can just swim/walk across the shallow sand bar! (I attemped about 2/3 the way across just snorkeling around =)
The day started when we arrived on Sint. Maarten by water ferries from our mega-cruise boat. Due to some special circumstances, I was able to get on one of the earliest boat thus saving myself a significant amount of waiting time. =) I shared a taxi with a Mexican couple to the Oriental beach, they requested a guided island tour so I also tagged along and was able to see some vista points and took some scenic island photos.
At the Oriental beach, a freakishly skinny and tan blonde French guy mis-understood my instructions, and I benefited from it by getting an extra round trip on a jetski to the Ilet Pinel =D That's all before I got onto the yacht cruising around the bay, and had my very first parasailing experience. It's surprisingly easy, all this time I thought it's an extreme water sport. But as the wind lifted me up into the air, the surrounding became quiet. The wind takes us high up into the sky, people and houses are tiny from this distance. Looking up, there's the cloudless blue sky, and the azure ocean under my feet. It's very quiet and lonely up there, I feel nothing except a light breeze brushing past. Although I was strapped into the harness, but I feel light and I got a glimpse at the flying sensation. (maybe I will try sky-diving or hang-gliding next time.) I think "serenity" is the most appropriate description for this experience.
After parasailing, I was jet-skied across the crystal clear waters towards the white sandy beach of the tiny uninhabited island of Ilet Pinel again. I lifted up a handful of the finest white sand, and watched on as tiny streams of sand slipped out between my fingers and scattered into the light wind. The weather is warm, but the sun light does not leaving a burning sensation on my skin like in CA. I walked across the fine white sandy beach, picked a nice spot and popped open my convenient cabana.
I proceeded to snorkel towards the shallow reef area closeby. Then the most incredible snorkel experience of my life happened... I met a really nice local tour guide, he gave me a handful of these "fish food" and that resulted in schools and schools of various types of fishes surrounding us constantly! I wish I had my under-water camera with me at the time, it's like being inside the huge water tank at the Monterey Aquarium, only hundred times better because of the colorful tropical fishes and the reef underneath!
Time: December 8-18, 2005
Ship: Norwegian Spirit - ex. Super Star Leo
Itinerary: Caribbean map
- - St. Thomas & St. John, US Virgin Islands (12/11)
- - Antigua (12/12)
- - Barbados (12/13)
- - Sint. Maarten (Dutch) / Saint-Martin (France) (12/14)
- - Tortola & Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands (12/15)
I have to admit that the flight part of this trip was very tedious. I took a redeye flight to NYC on Wed. (12/07), given the temperature differences between CA and NYC, with a stop at the even colder Chicago, I was not dressed warm enough. Even worse is my return flight from the Caribbeans, my entire flight back was 22+ hrs including a 7 hour stop over at JFK! I was definitely very very tired by the time I got back to SFO.
However, the short flight between B.V.I. and SJU happens to be one of the most memorable on this trip. B.V.I. had some light shower earlier, so the floor of the airport is wet, and it glistened like a mirror. The EIS airport has an outdoor style, we board the small plane via the staircase instead of the usual terminal style. I took these pictures that show the plane between the blue sky in the background and the light reflection on the ground. After we took off, I looked down and saw the tiny island surrounded by light blue water, with strips of beige sand and white foam on its fringes. Then I saw the most beautiful rainbow of my life -- what do you think a rainbow looks like from the sky?
Beauty
My favourite island port call is Sint. Maarten/St. Martin. The ride from Philipsburg on the Dutch side to the Oriental bay on the French side is incredibly scenic. But my best beach experience during this whole trip happened on the little uninhabited island of Ilet Pinel, which is only 1 km away from the Oriental bay. In fact, I think one can just swim/walk across the shallow sand bar! (I attemped about 2/3 the way across just snorkeling around =)
The day started when we arrived on Sint. Maarten by water ferries from our mega-cruise boat. Due to some special circumstances, I was able to get on one of the earliest boat thus saving myself a significant amount of waiting time. =) I shared a taxi with a Mexican couple to the Oriental beach, they requested a guided island tour so I also tagged along and was able to see some vista points and took some scenic island photos.
At the Oriental beach, a freakishly skinny and tan blonde French guy mis-understood my instructions, and I benefited from it by getting an extra round trip on a jetski to the Ilet Pinel =D That's all before I got onto the yacht cruising around the bay, and had my very first parasailing experience. It's surprisingly easy, all this time I thought it's an extreme water sport. But as the wind lifted me up into the air, the surrounding became quiet. The wind takes us high up into the sky, people and houses are tiny from this distance. Looking up, there's the cloudless blue sky, and the azure ocean under my feet. It's very quiet and lonely up there, I feel nothing except a light breeze brushing past. Although I was strapped into the harness, but I feel light and I got a glimpse at the flying sensation. (maybe I will try sky-diving or hang-gliding next time.) I think "serenity" is the most appropriate description for this experience.
After parasailing, I was jet-skied across the crystal clear waters towards the white sandy beach of the tiny uninhabited island of Ilet Pinel again. I lifted up a handful of the finest white sand, and watched on as tiny streams of sand slipped out between my fingers and scattered into the light wind. The weather is warm, but the sun light does not leaving a burning sensation on my skin like in CA. I walked across the fine white sandy beach, picked a nice spot and popped open my convenient cabana.
I proceeded to snorkel towards the shallow reef area closeby. Then the most incredible snorkel experience of my life happened... I met a really nice local tour guide, he gave me a handful of these "fish food" and that resulted in schools and schools of various types of fishes surrounding us constantly! I wish I had my under-water camera with me at the time, it's like being inside the huge water tank at the Monterey Aquarium, only hundred times better because of the colorful tropical fishes and the reef underneath!
-- posted by Pooh Bear @
12/28/2005 03:37:00 PM
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