Back in the BVI...Good Morning, SIR!
12 January 2012 | North Sound, Virgin Gorda
Eileen - sunny and gusty
Picture of Shoal Bay, Anguilla
Chameleon arrived in Spanishtown, Virgin Gorda, BVI at daybreak on Tuesday, January 10 after an uneventful overnight crossing from St. Martin. Larry and Kathy on Nuvo Jour also crossed with the full moon that night and came in about an hour behind us. After a frustrating time getting the anchor set, Kevin was given a hard time by the Immigration officer at check-in. I can't say we were surprised as the British Virgin Islands has the rudest and meanest officers we have encountered in our travels. Considering their economy is so dependent on tourists, you would think they would be friendlier and less rude but no - I think they are mean because they have the power and are sadists. Every other island we have found the locals to be very friendly and kind with only an occasional nasty person thrown in. It must be a job requirement for the BVI Customs and Immigration - Are you a sadist? Check yes or no. Yes? You get the job!!!!
Luckily, Kevin responded politely and we are checked in for a month. We are trying to avoid back tracking and are now in Gorda Sound off of the Bitter End Yacht club. Larry and Kathy are here also and yesterday, Jim and Amanda and Sean, Janet and Hali arrived. Hali has grown since we last saw her right after Christmas. We will probably stay here through the weekend and then start working our way over to the USVI over the next couple weeks. Eric Stone is playing Happy Hour at Marina Cay so we will be stopping there to see him for at least one show as well as all our other favorites.
During our last week in St Martin we took a ferry over to Anquilla with George, Joanne and another couple, Steve and Jackie, who were vacationing in St Martin. They had struck up a friendship with George and Joanne on the flight from Canada. Steve is an Air Canada pilot so he and George really hit it off. Once we arrived in Anguilla, we rented a van and headed to a beach on the Northeast end of the island in Shoal Bay. Gwen's Reggae Beach Bar and Restaurant had a well shaded area with hammocks strung between the palm trees and recliners. The sand was like baby powder and the water was refreshing and crystal clear. We managed to "hang" there until lunch and then set off to explore the rest of the island. Right before going back to the ferry, we walked up Rendevous Beach to a restaurant owned by a reggae singer, Banky Banks. Steve and Jackie have some of his music and wanted to check the place out. Banky was sitting in the bar with a couple other rasta men and Steve was able to meet him. His music was playing in the background and it sounded pretty good so I you might want to check him out. All in all, it was a very relaxing and fun day on Anguilla and Kevin and I topped the day off with dinner at one of the French restaurants at Port Royal.
The subsequent days were spent getting ready for the passage, last minute shopping and maintenance and Happy Hour farewells. One project we have talked about since we left Deltaville was the installation of a cockpit shower. Kevin got this completed before we left St Martin and it is a hit with the crew! Now that we are in the BVI, we are planning on doing more snorkeling and it is sure nice to be able to rinse off in the cockpit. It is also great to be able to swim off the back of the boat after sitting in the Lagoon for over 3 weeks. We really missed it. Time to go for a swim!