My Memories of St. Maarten

I want to send a BIG thank you out to Leah, Kate, & Clare for guest posting for me while I was enjoying the beautiful island of St. Maarten. I had an idea of what to expect from getting a sneak peek of their posts, but the color of the water there truly is unbelievable.



We stayed at The Westin Dawn Beach and it was everything a 4 star hotel should be. Comfy lounge chairs, a swim-up bar, heavenly bed, and amazing food. This was my view for much of the vacation.



Kristen and Paul did an amazing job planning and hosting this destination wedding. From hand painted bottles of rum in the rooms, to Da Party Bus (more to come), to the most perfect beach wedding.. everything about the experience was thoughtful and lovely.



Not to mention how beautiful Kristen looked in her wedding dress. She was the perfect bride. I feel honored to have been invited to be there on her Paul's big day.

Happy Birthday Kristen!!

Besides getting to see a friend that I've missed dearly, one of best things about having Kristen visit is that it makes me see Dominica with fresh eyes again.  It's easy to forget how beautiful it is here.

Pagua Bay was super accomodating and opened early for us to have some coffee and breakfast before lending us some of their floaties and boogie boards and sending us down to their beautiful beach.

We love this beach because you can get in the ocean and play, and then go over to the freshwater river to clean off.  It's a great combination of the warm ocean water and cold freshwater.  And boy did Kristen need to clean off after her mud bath adventure!

Our favorite driver, Bruno, came with us down to the beach for once!

After tiring out from all the water play, we all went back to Pagua for lunch and then to the airport to see Chris off.  He was on standby, so we hung out at a local bar until we were sure he was on the plane.

Like always, AA overbooked the flights.  Every room at Pagua was filled the night before with students who were told there were no seats left on the plane (even though they had a confirmed ticket).  Somehow, Chris made it on, and we headed back. 

Today is Kristen's birthday, and we are heading to my favorite island spot for drinks and sunbathing.

Scuba Steve

To become scuba certified, you have to do something like 10 hours of book learning, and then 7 different dives/levels where you prove your underwater skills.  I got stuck at numbers 3 and 4.  One of the skills on this dive is that you have to take off your mask underwater and replace it.  After that, you have to take off the mask underwater, swim for one minute, and then replace it.  I could barely let water in my mask before freaking out on the first two days.  After 3 instructors.. and 3 dives.. I did it!!   Or in the words of my scuba instructor, "You owned that skill!" I guess the third time really is the charm!

Emerald Pool and Carib Territory

 Dominica is rich with waterfalls and natural pools.  This week we went to a really nice one called Emerald Pool.  In the picture, it's hard to tell, but the water is a beautiful emerald color.  And it's Freezing!  You can jump off the rocks, go behind the waterfall, and climb back into this little cove.  This was definitely one of the easiest hikes I've done so far!  After that we went on to the Carib Territory where the original island people have lived for thousands  of years. 

 There were women sitting outside the huts hand weaving beautiful baskets.  The really large ones you can see in the background were $50EC or about $18 US.  Apparently basket weaving is their only source of income and they do it for a living. 

 

We ended the day with a stop at Pagua Bay.. the most luxurious restaurant in Dominica.  Nothing more relaxing than a cocktail overlooking the ocean!