Mitsugirlys FASCINATION with San Juan-review & pictorial

[mitsugirly]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our spot

 

 

It was around 12:30 when everyone else started to arrive and since it had been raining earlier, they said they wasn't setting up the buffet for everyone to eat and instead, they would be bringing us our meals in containers and ask if that was ok. No problem with us. I was getting hungry though.

 

So, I'm trying to remember what all they told us we had on our plates.

 

Jerk chicken, tara root, banana salad, plankton, rice, noodles with cod, some kind of beans, salad with italian dressing but tasted a little different. I can't remember anything else.

 

 

 

For the most part, it was ok. There was a lot of things we didn't like and it was still fun tasting it.

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Another big group arrived and it looked like they were doing some snuba. I have always wanted to try this. I did ask the Spencer guy about it and he said it's really cheap, like probably around $25 cheap. I knew there's no way it's that cheap, but I would still like to do it some time.

 

Sakari has been begging to learn to scuba dive. I'm honestly thinking about seeing how much it cost for her to have lessons. We do have a dive shop here and they give lessons in the pool there. I think it would be pretty cool. I'm not sure if I would do it or not though. I have issues with my ears feeling like they are going to explode when I just dive under more than 8 feet. So, I can't imagine how that would go over. I'm also honestly scared of going under the water into the deep. I don't know what it is about it. When the water starts to get colder, and you know that means it's getting deeper, I just start to freak a little. The hubby would love to scuba dive and he has been talking about it for years. Although I'm not sure how he would do either because of his ears and having a busted ear drum.

 

 

 

Then there was a huge crowd that showed up to snorkel as well.

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

I decided that I wanted to take a walk over to the other side by the resort, even if only to get pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before long I hear the words "MOM!" and I look back and here comes Kendra.

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

 

 

 

 

I just kept thinking, man...is that not the most beautiful backdrop to a beach ever?

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Kendra found her spot...

 

 

 

 

Whoops, that pano didn't match up too well. (I have to admit my 620 does a better job at pano than the 830)

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

It wasn't too much longer that I hear a "Mamaw" and here come B and Sakari. They can't miss out on the fun either.

 

We decided to get in the water just to see if there was any chance of seeing anything interesting. There was some sea grass in the area, so I knew there was a possibility.

 

The water got deep (as in over our heads) fairly quickly and then there was a drop off. See this is what makes me nervous.

 

 

 

 

Of course, Sakari doesn't care.

 

 

 

 

 

She spotted something...of course

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Then I spotted a sea cucumber. Before I could say anything, Sakari was already going down to get it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now I have to admit, I have never seen one like this either.

 

 

 

Most are pretty "solid" I guess for a lack of better words. This thing was mushy and felt like a rubber sponge or something. Super weird...like holding a glob of snot in your hands. I really don't know how else to describe it.

 

[Peace Love and Travel]

Thank you so much for the website to buy the mermaid tails from! :)

 

On a different note, I was browsing cakes for ideas for one I have to make this week and came across this one:

 

http://cakesdecor.com/cakes/59827

 

All I could think of was your daughter! Maybe for her next birthday? :)

[mitsugirly]

You see the white tentacle looking things on the bottom? They were weird and went along the entire underside of it.

 

 

 

 

 

After everyone got a chance to hold it, Sakari returned it to its regular spot.

 

 

 

Kendra found a conch

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Then I hear Kendra yell "Mom, Lobster!"

 

 

 

 

 

I managed to get a picture with his tail out too

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Tons of these guys up at the top of the water (which I believe are a needlenose gar). They are just so hard to get a picture of.

 

 

 

I got out and was walking in the sand. Kendra and the kids stayed in the water. She pops up and says "Oh my gosh, you should see this crab. I have never seen anything like this before. At least I think it's a crab"

 

So obviously in I went to check it out.

 

 

 

When I look this up, it says that it is a flame box crab (shame face crab) and that they are common, BUT yet rarely seen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

We were told that we would be leaving this gorgeous place at 2pm. Well, it was about 5 minutes 'til 2 and I was busy trying to talk all the kids into getting out of the water. We drug ourselves back over to our chairs and starting packing things up quickly and heading to the boat that was waiting on us at the dock. I went over and bought my baby blue St Lucia tee and caught up with the fam.

 

The Spencer guy told us that we would be heading back to the dock by ourselves. I'm not sure why or what happened to the rest of the people that were on our boat with us that didn't arrive to the beach until 12:30pm, but that was ok with us.

 

Once we got on the boat, another couple arrived and said they were coming too. So then we pulled away and just sat there for a moment. I think they were trying to figure out if anyone else was going too and was on the phone talking back and forth with the guy on the deck.

 

 

 

 

 

The roped off area for snorkeling.

 

 

 

I guess there wasn't anyone else that wanted on...so off we went.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pghsteelerfan]

Wow, wow, and wow!!! I am really enjoying you St. Lucia portion, your pictures are awesome, and can't wait until the end to tell you. I know you mentioned you kind of wished you were going on the land tour with the rest of the group, but you made the right decision (or your hubby did) to just go on to the beach. I would just love to have that whole snorkeling section to ourselves as you did. Both times we were there, there were others there so at times it's hard to get into certain areas and get pictures. Later in the day when the rest of the tours start showing up is when the visibility can get low with the sand getting kicked up from everyone snorkeling. And I never even thought to try snorkeling over in the swimming area...next time. I have already begun to do some arm twisting of my DH for another cruise to the southern Caribbean out of San Juan and when we do, we will be doing Spencer's Beach Break again. Really looking forward to more.

Edited September 11, 2016 by pghsteelerfan

[mitsugirly]

They pumped us with more rum punch, beer and carbonated drinks. Then they started a "tour" and showed us around.

 

This is the place they filmed several of the Bachelors episodes. For those of you that watch the Bachelor: Juan Pablo stayed here at Cap Maison (and actually was at Jalousie Beach too) and also Jake Pavela as well. He said that Rihanna has also stayed there (and they don't like her), and Kendra Wilkinson's hubby has stayed there, and also some athlete (can't remember the name since I'm not really into sports) that came there after he lost in the Olympics.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we came to the "Fish on Rock"

 

 

 

Can you still see it?

 

 

 

 

 

Now we stopped here for awhile to talk too. But for the life of me, I can't remember what he said this area was...other than a little village.

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

We were getting to know the other couple that was on the boat with us. They were funny and the guy was drinking ALL of anything he could get his hands on. In the end, they just handed him the entire jug of rum punch to down. LOL

 

We were talking with them about jet skis and my hubby was telling him about his. They were laughing about some of the "water rules" and the hubby told him he can't even get out onto the water without getting pulled over for something.

 

Then...as they continued to laugh about some of the crazy things the hubby gets pulled over for...THIS HAPPENS...

 

 

 

 

The hubby turns around and says...they find me every where I go. Even when I'm not driving.

 

 

 

We sat there for awhile. They ask questions, they ask for paperwork, they ask for insurance. There was a lady on there too that couldn't speak their language and she was asking our driver information and he was answering in another language. She said "In ENGLISH!!" She got highly agitated. She ask his birthday and he said Jan 1989. She ask again...1989? (This would make him younger than Kendra). He kept changing it up and she was getting a little pissed. Finally he changed it to 1966. I have no idea what that was all about.

 

 

 

They finally let us go and we were on our way.

 

The Pirate ship. He said they had filmed Pirates of the Caribbean here and we would get to see where part of the movie was filmed later. I have never seen the movie, so he could tell me anything and I wouldn't know the difference.

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

 

More houses that represented something that I have no idea what they were for. Maybe it was just hotels because he did tell us about staying at a lot of hotels and the prices. For awhile there, it almost felt like he had a contract with some of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

 

 

I just really liked the formation of these rocks. They were so cool. I think he said they were from the lava?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Look along the shore...

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

Then we were taken to Marigot Bay and resort area. We were told this is the area that they take the boats to during a hurricane because it stays pretty protected.

 

 

Like always, there's a lot of famous people with houses here. The person who owns this small 1 story (can't remember the name), but he said he owns all the stores and most of everything there. He said he was offered $1.5 million for that small house and he turned it down saying that it was "chump change" to him.

 

 

 

 

 

Up at the top of the hill you have Mick Jaggers house and his neighbor is Sophia Loren.

 

 

 

The only way you can get to these houses and this area is by boat. No motor traffic.

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

They did offer to stop here and let us off to use the restrooms if we needed. Everyone said they were good, so we didn't stop.

 

 

 

 

This hotel you see in the back...he said while it might have a good view, there is no beach here in this area. So, if you want to go to the beach, you had to do so by boat. He said they call it the check-in, check-out hotel because no one stays long.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

 

 

This guy....LOL. He was in the smallest boat ever. It looked like he was sitting in a small bath tub.

 

 

 

Then we pulled out and back onto the expressway of the ocean.

 

 

[aliciam]

Thank you SO much for taking the time to share all your experiences with us. I love all your reviews, but this one is so timely for us as we will be in many of these ports in about six weeks.

 

I've read mixed reviews of Boatyard - primarily that it can be too crowded. From your pictures it didn't look like that was the case. How many ships were in port that day? We are also considering Lobster Alive, which I understand is next door.

 

We are doing the Land, Sea and Beach tour with Spencer so loving reading that review as well. We are still deciding on St. Kitts so looking forward to your thoughts.

 

Again, thank you so much for sharing your pictures, experience and cruise life with us!

[mitsugirly]

Then we came to the spot where they said the Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed with the skeltons hanging from the cliff. Like I said, I have never watched this movie, so I have no clue what they were talking about. When I try to look it up online, I get this picture:

 

 

 

Now you tell me if that looks anything like this:

 

 

To me, it doesn't look anything alike. Look at the bottom by the ocean water.

 

 

It kind of gradually goes out. There were tons of kids sitting on this area and they were all jumping off into the water when we passed by. In the picture above, it looks like a straight drop off to me. I'm pretty much convinced that these "boat tours" they give you in places like this are just made up to make it a good tour. I don't find anything online that states that Mick Jagger or Sophia Loren owns houses there either. But it does state they own places in the Caribbean, but not St Lucia. Of course there are many other places in the Caribbean that we have been to that they say famous people own places there, and they'll point to a house, but online, you can never find any of this information to confirm.

 

 

 

 

See the kids in the water? They were having a great time. The guy on our boat (from the other couple) was begging to do this. They would not allow him for insurance purposes.

 

 

 

Our boat driver yelled at the kids and started throwing them the remains of the water we still had left in the cooler. They swam out and got it from the area it hit in the water.

 

[mickev99]

Thank you SO much for taking the time to share all your experiences with us. I love all your reviews, but this one is so timely for us as we will be in many of these ports in about six weeks.

 

 

 

I've read mixed reviews of Boatyard - primarily that it can be too crowded. From your pictures it didn't look like that was the case. How many ships were in port that day? We are also considering Lobster Alive, which I understand is next door.

 

 

 

We are doing the Land, Sea and Beach tour with Spencer so loving reading that review as well. We are still deciding on St. Kitts so looking forward to your thoughts.

 

 

 

Again, thank you so much for sharing your pictures, experience and cruise life with us!

 

 

I will chime in here and tell you that we used Royston Tours in St Kitts and I would use him again in a instant. There were 12 of us so we were able to tell him exactly what we wanted to do and he did it (I had done a lot of research so I knew what I wanted to see). He was inexpensive and so knowledgable, and a really cool guy. I was really impressed with the island. I have a review below with details from my Independence cruise.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Edited September 11, 2016 by mickev99

[mitsugirly]

 

 

The driver starting talking about how everyone says Christopher Columbus discovered St Lucia when in fact, someone else had discovered their island long before him. He said "google it". LOL Then we told him we are from Columbus and the Santa Maria ship was located downtown on our riverfront.

 

We seen flying fish everywhere...from the kind we sometimes see while we are on the ship to some really big fish flying up out of the water. He told me what the other kinds were (which I swim with them often and see them often, but for the life of me don't remember what they were, but I had no clue they could jump up out of the water like that).

 

He showed us some places that had black sand beaches.

 

Then before long, we were pulling back up into the port, at 4pm, and our Fascination was waiting on us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As soon as we got off the ship, Sakari took off running. Um, where are you going? She had to potty and potty bad.

 

We found the nearest bathroom and then did some shopping and was back on the ship by 4:25pm. For some reason I have been unable to locate my magnet I bought here. I remember that I wanted something with the pitons on it to signify what we had seen and done. I thought I found something, but I can't seem to locate it. I was thinking that I didn't find what I was looking for with the pitons and settled for something else. But...it is missing.

 

It was super hot and you really couldn't stand to be outside for too long while trying to shop. Everyone was trying to walk where there was some shade and I finally gave up and told Kendra I was heading back to the ship. This meant leaving her all alone, with a child that likes to run off, all within 5 minutes of all aboard time. Let's see how responsible she is. At least there wasn't a long pier to run down. We were right there. So, I left and hoped for the best.

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

After our shower, we headed up to the pool deck to watch the sail away. No signs of Kendra or B running toward the ship, so I guess that's a good thing.

 

At 6pm we met the kids club in the buffet area and dropped Sakari off to eat with her friends.

 

We decided to try the food in the back of the ship this time around.

 

I was looking out the back windows (this area is an awesome place with an awesome view) and I decided to take a picture of it because the clouds were looking like it might storm. My flash went off and scared the crap out of the lady making my sandwich. She thought lightening had struck her. Oops

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hubby ended up with a grilled cheese, which he said was awesome, and I ended up with a turkey wrap, which Kendra had been telling me was awesome.

 

 

 

What was really nice about this area in the back, you had the pizza place there and also the sandwich place...then right beside it was a bar. There was hardly ANYONE ever there. That meant I could get my pop from here instead of drinking the icky watered down drinks they sometimes have.

 

We headed out onto the pool deck and this is now what it looked like:

 

 

 

The wind picked up and things started blowing over. The windows they usually have open on the pool deck needed to be shut and people were struggling to get them to shut.

 

 

 

Although I didn't really feel the ship moving or rocking, I did notice these at the elevators