Caribbean Islands Adventure – Wandering Dawgs

2024 Island Hopping in the West Indies – Part 2

April 3, 2024Posted in TravelTagged Antigua, Barbados, Caribbean Cruise, Caribbean Islands Adventure, Cruising, Dominica, St. Thomas USVI, Tortola, Viking Ocean Cruise, Viking Sea, West Indies12 Comments

After going on this same cruise itinerary in 2022 we enjoyed the islands so much we wanted to visit them all again. This time we chose different excursions so that we could experience new things on each island.

February 17, 2024 Day 8: Wandering around the port of Barbados

We had two days to explore Barbados on our 2022 cruise. We spent the first day on a wonderful Photo Tour with Ronnie Carrington. The next day Henry went for a submarine ride in the Atlantis Submarine. You can read about both days at Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 Barbados.

For our 2024 visit we wandered around the port of Barbados on our own. We enjoyed a leisurely morning on the ship and watched the Barbados Coast Guard come and go before riding a shuttle bus from our ship to the cruise terminal. We asked the driver for a good place to eat lunch and he told us to try Millie’s Snack Bar at the port. We love eating where the locals eat so we gave it a try. We knew it must be good when we saw the local police eating there. Our lunch was delicious.

February 18, 2024 Day 9: Panoramic Dominica and Jacko Falls

Our excursion for the day started with a scenic bus ride through the capitol of Roseau. Our driver stopped at an overlook on the side of the mountain for a view of the city before continuing up the mountain into the rain forest. We stopped at beautiful Jacko Falls in the Morne Trois Pitons National Park. Henry and I skipped the steep steps to the bottom of the falls and enjoyed viewing them from an overlook at the top. While waiting for the more adventurous people to return from the bottom of the falls we enjoyed a rum punch before hopping back on the bus for the journey back down the mountain to the ship.

On our first visit to the island in 2022 we went into a different part of the rain forest to see some other waterfalls. You can read about that adventure at Dominica Adventure 2022

February 19, 2024 Day 10: Antigua Catamaran Cruise and Lobster Lunch

On our first visit to Antigua in 2022 we took a scenic bus trip around the island. For our latest visit we wanted to experience the island from the water.

Our six hour Catamaran cruise in Antigua was just perfect. The crew was great, the skies were clear, and the scenery was spectacular with beautiful bays and white sand beaches. The captain and crew took care of us all day. We boarded the catamaran at the dock in St. John’s and cruised along the coast of Antigua with a stop for snorkeling and swimming near where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Caribbean Sea.

We sailed on the red Mystic Cruises catamaran

The crew set up tables around the boat for lunch while lobsters were being grilled. They served us a delicious meal of lobster, beans and rice, potatoes, and a salad along with rum punch, beer, and champagne.

After lunch the captain pulled up to a beach so everyone would have an opportunity for a swim and a walk on the beach before returning to the cruise ship dock.

February 20, 2024 Day 11: Tortola Safari Bus Trip to Cane Garden Bay

In 2022 we had a great day cruising in the waters around Tortola on a catamaran. This time we wanted to see more of the island itself. We boarded the bus at the cruise ship dock in Road Town. It was a slow, bumpy ride on narrow, twisting, steep Ridge Road up a mountain and then back down to the other side of the mountain to a beautiful bay and beach.

This Safari Bus was our ride for the day

As we traveled up the mountain we drove by a wall painted with the Ridge Road Mural. Several different artists created these scenes of life on Tortola. Our driver drove slowly as we went by because the road is too narrow for the bus to stop. There is more information about the mural in this article Behind the Ridge Road Mural.

We had about an hour to relax and enjoy the scenery at the Cane Garden Bay. We sat in the shade at the beach side restaurant enjoying the view before going back up the mountain to return to our ship.

February 21, 2024 Day 12: St. Thomas on our own

In 2022 we went for a catamaran sail to a beach in the U.S.V.I. National Park. This time we enjoyed watching the activity on the water from our ship before going ashore to wander around the Charlotte Amalie cruise terminal. The header photo shows the bay as seen from our veranda.

February 22, 2014 Final Destination: San Juan, Puerto Rico

After a relaxing and adventure filled cruise we arrived at our final destination of San Juan, Puerto Rico early in the morning. We disembarked about 6:30 a.m for our ride to airport. After two flights and a drive from the airport to our home we arrived relaxed, rested, and with many happy memories.

2024 Island Hopping in the West Indies – Part 1

March 21, 2024Posted in TravelTagged Caribbean Cruise, Caribbean Islands Adventure, Cruising, Pitons, San Juan, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Martin, Viking Ocean Cruise, Viking Sea, West Indies15 Comments

After a rough start to 2024 Henry and I were more than ready to take off on an adventure to nine different Caribbean islands. A month before our departure I tripped and fractured my left arm. I did the happy dance when my doctor gave me the ok to go on our long awaited West Indies Explorer cruise on the Viking Sea. We were looking forward to the warm weather, turquoise waters, beautiful islands, and some new adventures.

We did this same cruise in January, 2022. We enjoyed the islands so much we wanted to visit them all again. This time we chose different excursions so that we could experience new things on each island.

February 10 – 13, 2024 Days 1-4: San Juan, Puerto Rico

Our adventure started in San Juan on Saturday, February 10, 2024, the day before the Super Bowl. Our travel day started about 3:30 a.m. in order to get to the Savannah airport in time for our 6:30 departure. I couldn’t carry anything with my left arm so Henry had to manage all of our carry on bags through two airports. We enjoyed two nights at a beautiful resort before boarding our cruise ship the Viking Sea on Monday morning. The header image was taken at the beach at the resort.

I spotted the small iguana on the beach as he wandered next to people lounging on beach chairs. I soon saw a large iguana on the beach. I met a woman from Panama who told me she was the mama iguana in search of the baby. I don’t know if they ever found each other.

I posted about our first San Juan visit at Caribbean Island Adventure 2022 San Juan.

Later in the afternoon we enjoyed a Pina Colada at the pool bar. We were photo bombed by one of the servers.

After two enjoyable days at the hotel we boarded the Viking Sea on Monday. We spent most of the day on Tuesday relaxing on the ship. We took a stroll along the waterfront by the cruise ship docks and enjoyed watching the sunset from the ship as we cruised away from San Juan.

February 14, 2024 Day 5: Valentine’s Day on St. Martin

A bus tour around St. Martin was a fun way spend the day. Our driver Leroy drove us around the island pointing out points of interest including the many salt ponds. We stopped at a beach along the way and at the open air market in Marigot, the capital of the French side of the island. Once back at the cruise ship dock in Phillipsburg we walked around the port on our way back to the ship. We ended the day with a delicious Valentine’s dinner at Manfredi’s onboard the ship.

Henry enjoyed driving a 4×4 Honda Talon around the island on our 2022 visit to St. Martin. We had a great time watching the airplanes landing at the airport. You can read more about that adventure at Caribbean Islands Adventure St. Martin.

February 15, 2024 Day 6: Safari Island Drive around St. Kitts

Our colorful guide Christopher had many fun stories to tell as he drove us around beautiful St. Kitts in his safari vehicle. We passed by ruins from a sugar cane plantation and stopped to see black volcanic rocks. At our last stop we were treated to rum punch, the best we tasted on the entire cruise.

We took a ride on the St. Kitts Scenic Railway on our 2022 visit to St. Kitts. You can read about the fun we had at Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 St. Kitts.

February 16, 2024 Day 7: Coastal Cruise to St. Lucia

A trip to the Caribbean is not complete without at least one boat trip. A coastal cruise to see the Pitons was a perfect way to spend the day in St. Lucia. Our ship was docked in the capitol of Castries in the northern part of the island. After boarding our tour boat we cruised south along the shore while our guide pointed out fishing villages, bays and other places of interest. The weather was perfect with blue skies and calm seas.

Our destination was the Pitons which are the two volcanic peaks named Gros Piton and Petit Piton located near the town of Soufriere. The Pitons are a UNESCO World Heritage site and glorious to see. The captain slowed the boat as we approached the Pitons and moved the boat around so everyone could have a good view and take a photo.

On our return trip to Castries the captain took us into Marigot Bay for a view of the harbor. There was music, dancing and rum all the way back to our ship. What a beautiful day in the Caribbean.

This was our fourth visit to St. Lucia. On our first two visits we stayed in a house near the town of Soufriere. Our main reason for going there was to go scuba diving in the beautiful reefs around St. Lucia. Our third visit to St. Lucia was in January, 2022 on our first West Indies cruise on the Viking Sea. For a look at the northern area of St. Lucia visit Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022.

With my wounded left arm it was difficult to hold my camera. Most of these photos were taken with my cell phone. Getting in and out of the buses and on and off the boat was challenging but the drivers and boat crews were very helpful everywhere we went.

Coming soon is a post about our adventures in five more islands.

Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 – Part 10: Onboard the Viking Sea

April 14, 2022June 2, 2022Posted in TravelTagged Caribbean, Caribbean Cruise, Caribbean Islands Adventure, My Viking Story, Viking Ocean Cruise, Viking Sea, Wandering around the Caribbean16 Comments

January 12 – 23, 2022

For twelve amazing days in January our home was the beautiful Viking Sea.

Our stateroom was spacious and comfortable. The private veranda was my favorite place to sit.

There were many different areas of the ship where we could sit and relax, take a swim, enjoy a cocktail, listen to music, or just stand at the railing and enjoy the view. There is also a Nordic Spa, Fitness area, hair and nail salon, a theater with live shows, two cinemas, and a promenade deck. The attention to detail was evident all around the ship.

We never went hungry or thirsty. The food and cocktails were all delicious and there was a very good selection of wines. There are three fine dining restaurants, several lounges, a buffet restaurant where in the morning we could order an omelet made just the way we like it and at lunch and dinner ask for a chef salad made to order. The gelato bar had a variety of flavors each day which went well with the fresh baked cookies. There are also a couple of restaurants for quick meals at breakfast and lunch.

We were spoiled the entire cruise. If we needed anything in our stateroom all we had to do was ask our room steward and he took care of it. The cruise ship staff were all friendly and attentive.

We are counting the days until our next cruise adventure.

Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 – Part 9: Tortola

April 4, 2022June 2, 2022Posted in TravelTagged British Virgin Islands, Caribbean, Caribbean Cruise, Caribbean Islands Adventure, My Viking Story, Norman Island, Sir Francis Drake Channel, Snorkeling, Tortola, Viking Ocean Cruise, Viking Sea22 Comments

January 23, 2022

Our last port – Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands.

The final excursion of our trip was a Catamaran Cruise on the Soul Rebel through Francis Drake Channel to Norman Island for snorkeling and beach time. The catamaran was docked in the harbor just a short walk from our cruise ship and was the only excursion of the trip that didn’t involve a ride in a bus or 4×4.

We couldn’t have asked for more perfect weather as we sailed through the turquoise waters of the British Virgin Islands. Our destination of Norman Island is one of the islands that is said to be the inspiration for Robert Louis Stephenson’s novel “Treasure Island”. Our guides kept us entertained with stories about the island and pirates.

After dropping anchor near the rocky shore of Norman Island we entered the chilly water for snorkeling. Schools of colorful fish swam around the huge coral covered boulders. Huge sea urchins were scattered around on the boulders.

The bar was open with with drinks and delicious snacks when we returned to the boat. The small hand pies filled with spicy fillings called Patties were my favorite. I was too busy eating and drinking to take a picture.

Our next stop was Pirate’s Bight on Nelson Island where we got our toes in the beautiful white sand.

Back at the dock I did a little shopping before returning to the ship for our last night on board. We celebrated with some bubbly in the Explorer’s Lounge.

Earlier in the week we asked the guitarist Michael if he could play “Georgia on my Mind”. He told us he was in the process of learning it. Before performing it for the first time he said it took him 18 hours to get it right. He did a wonderful job and the highlight of the night was hearing him play it.

After watching the sunset we sailed overnight to San Juan, Puerto Rico where we disembarked early in the morning and said goodbye to the beautiful Caribbean.

Coming up – a wrap up and tour of the gorgeous Viking Sea.

Caribbean Islands Adventure 2022 – Part 8: Philipsburg, St. Maarten

March 29, 2022Posted in TravelTagged 4x4 Adventure, Caribbean, Caribbean Cruise, Caribbean Islands Adventure, My Viking Story, Princess Julianna International Airport, St. Maarten, St. Martin, Viking Sea, Watching the planes land18 Comments

January 21-22, 2022

Our ship was docked in Philipsburg, St. Maarten for two nights. The first day in port we had another fun 4×4 adventure.

This time Henry got to drive a 4×4 Honda Talon from one side of St. Martin to the airport on the other side of the island. There were 6 couples from our ship and each couple had their own Talon. We lined up with a guide in the front and a guide in the back of the line. We had to all stay together as we followed our guide through the city of Philipsburg and around mountain roads with spectacular views of the island.

There were quite a few round-a-bouts and at each one the guide stopped traffic so we wouldn’t get separated. Henry loved driving the Talon!

We stopped at Sunset Beach by the Princess Juliana International Airport to watch the planes land and enjoy some beach time. There were lots of tourists enjoying the beautiful day.