After arriving and going through customs on our tiny island in the British Virgin Island of Gorda....we were directed out the only door to our driver that would take us to our resort. His name was Tito and he had a sum total of maybe 10 teeth. He drove us off the airport, down one road and we were at the resort, which he repeated several times was a "little slice of nature's heaven." And he was right. We had him cancel the rum punch welcome drinks and asked for ice water instead. This would be the first of about 1000 times we declined an adult beverage.
LOBBY- everything is open to the outside....no windows
We checked in and were taken to our room and the far end of the resort. Upon walking in, I realized that Denise's dreams had just come true. Sundance meets the sea is the best way to describe our room and the rest of the resort. Our room is literally two steps away from the sand out our back door. Bluest water we have ever seen awaited in a protected bay that we can walk about 100 feet out before the water goes over your head. Stunning!
Just steps to water.
View from patio.
One catch, this hotel has no room keys so when you leave for the day, your place is open to the public. Took a little getting used to but I have managed.
The particular resort we are staying at has only 90 rooms and 1/2 mile crescent of beautiful beach so there is plenty of room to stretch out without feeling crowded.
For the most part there are older couples who have been coming here for years, a few newlyweds sprinkled in, and an alternative lifestyle family where, when one of the kids says "daddy" two dudes respond, some definite 2nd marriages where the wife is a good 30 years younger, and then there is us. People are shocked when we tell them we are celebrating our 20th "reunion" as Denise has started calling our anniversary. They are even more blown away when we tell them we have 4 children. Then Denise delivers the death punch when she tells them her brother has nine children. Shock and awe baby, shock and awe!
Daily walk to breakfast.
That's how each day should start......walking along the beach to breakfast!
This was our view while eating breakfast.
Breakfast each morning was buffet style: granola, made to order omlette, and an array of fresh fruits, pastries, jams, etc....
Each day we start out with an amazing breakfast, followed by an offsite, often private, beach drop courtesy of the resort. It's like SURVIVOR with the benefit of knowing your boat driver will be back in a few hours. Absolutely amazing. The drivers advice to us was simple in his lilting, island inflected voice, "hang on; it's gonna be a bumpy ride." We both laughed as that is one of the kids favorite sayings from Harry Potter.
THE LITTLE BOAT. NOT THE BIG ONE.
Our favorite drop was at the famous BATH'S of Virgin Gorda, which are huge volcanic boulders that sit right on the beach. There are paths through the boulders where you are often on all fours, crawling through cracks reminiscent of an Indian Jones adventure. We kept commenting on how much the kids would love the experience.
THE BATHS
As we were relaxing after going through the Bath's, I recognized a famous face stepping off a private boat and coming on to our beach. Thanks to my love for Rock n'Roll, I instantly identified Ronnie Wood, rhythm guitarist for the Rolling Stones, and his entourage. His group ended up sitting only feet away from us for a few hours as we relaxed in Devil's Bay. We all laughed as his boat came in to pick him up and everybody but him carried stuff to the boat. That's the benefit of being rock and roll royalty. Once they left several of the groups on the beach all looked at each other and couldn't believe we we sitting with a Rolling Stone. We watched their group go out and board the Necker Belle, the custom luxury yacht owned by Sir Richard Branson and acknowledged as one of the finest sailing vessels in the world. It rents out for about $150K for the week. As we boarded our boat and left our beach, we sailed right past their boat and were greeted by Mr. Rolling Stone out on the deck, giving us a heart wave and sharing a smile. It was pretty cool as I am sure he saw everyone gawking at him.
Everything here has been wonderful and top notch. We have had seafood everyday and every bite of food has been wonderful.
We laugh everyday as the server pronounces "Grouper" as "Grewbah." The people on the island are so happy and exude this through their warm smiles and friendly gestures. They live in Paradise but they also help make it a paradise for visitors.
We took a hike one day from our resort to another beach over the mountain. It was a 40 min. hike that included stopping to see some of the native creatures.
Then we came out of the thicket to see this amazing view!
Well worth the hike.
The water was something I just couldn't get over. So clear.
We hiked alone, we arrived alone, and swam alone!
Every beach was so shallow and clear. I can honestly say I enjoyed the snorkling. There were a few times I thought I saw a shark only to find out it was a large piece of drift wood! Scot won't let me forget that one.
Not only were the big schools of fish, sea turtles, sting rays, and little nemos fun to admire but, the gorgeous sea fans, shells, and such.
I couldn't help myself from collecting them and dragging them back on the boat each time.
My growing collection was looking pretty nice on our porch.
I ended up leaving them in their home. But, I will forever miss them!
Each day after spending a few hours on another beach we would find our way back to this beach we called home.
Our chairs were waiting and we picked up where we left off that morning.
It truly was a week in paradise. Several books read, lots of napping, sleeping in, eating and so many memories made. I love this man more than ever and am so grateful we could spend this time together.
Sandytoes with my best friend.
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