{"id":4609,"date":"2017-02-09T14:55:16","date_gmt":"2017-02-09T14:55:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/?p=4609"},"modified":"2017-02-09T14:55:16","modified_gmt":"2017-02-09T14:55:16","slug":"more-photos-less-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/?p=4609","title":{"rendered":"More photos, less words…"},"content":{"rendered":"

This year’s trip started with a revisit to a romantic hotel we stayed in\u00a031 years ago<\/em>. \u00a0Where did the time go? \u00a0In some ways it definitely feels like a different lifetime ago, but I am stumped at where all that went…so quickly! It’s still a very romantic spot, and dinner here was quite wonderful. \u00a030 years on, I am even more appreciative of a stunning setting and excellent food.<\/p>\n

The road in front of the Sugar Mill\u00a0runs along the coast and looks north to Jost Van Dyke. \u00a0Last time that didn’t mean much to me, but this time we visited that island shortly after our evening here, so now I know a little about Jost Van Dyke.<\/p>\n

\"2-5-17a<\/a><\/p>\n

We made sure we got here in time to enjoy the sunset, which is beautiful\u00a0from this lovely Victorian porch with cushioned settees\u00a0for relaxing. \u00a0It was very<\/em> relaxing. \u00a0To mark the occasion I had a Pimm’s Cup to remind me of spring evenings in England with my dear friend Lesley.<\/p>\n

\"2-5-17a<\/a><\/p>\n

The dining room is just as I remember….the stone walls of the old mill yet open air to the ocean. \u00a0That’s me at the back of the room on the right, deciding what to have for dinner!<\/p>\n

\"2-5-17a<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sugar Mill does not show up in any of the guide books we’ve got with us, which is rather baffling. \u00a0It is listed in “Romantic Inns of the World,” but that might not be the place you’d look if you were researching where to stay on Tortola. \u00a0Anyway, clearly they are doing something very right. \u00a0We would have loved to see the owners from 30 years ago, Jeff and Jinx Morgan, who wrote for “Gourmet Magazine” for many years. \u00a0We missed them by only a year or two. \u00a0I hope that they are well, wherever they are these days.<\/p>\n

We are now in St. Martin\/St. Maarten which is new territory for me. \u00a0The island is a range of tall volcanic mountains, some so steep that there are no roads and no inhabitants up those slopes. \u00a0Part French and part Dutch, there is lots to see and do, and two rather different cultures to enjoy.<\/p>\n

Here we are at the top of one of the highest points. \u00a0We drove partway up with our rental car, then walked the rest of the way. \u00a0Our friend Bill took this photo which looks idyllic. \u00a0You cannot tell there is a gale blowing up there, and we were afraid to go any closer to the edge for fear we’d be blown right off!<\/p>\n

\"2-8-17a<\/a><\/p>\n

Aren’t these pretty? \u00a0The petals are so like an oncidium orchid that flutter in the breeze, but those long stamens are definitely NOT an orchid. These flowers come in yellow and orange, and my favorite here, a blend of the two! \u00a0They grow on a somewhat shrubby plant that has leaves similar to a maiden hair fern. \u00a0I would love to have a plant onboard, even a red geranium. \u00a0So far, I have not found a nursery where I can buy something green. My friends aboard other boats suggest I get over this. \u00a0If I get a plant it will just be taken away when we enter a different island nation. \u00a0Sad face….<\/p>\n

\"2-7-17a<\/a><\/p>\n

Along that road to the top of the mountain were some very impressive villas, and some houses that looked like they’d been built by hands that did not know much about building a house! \u00a0I think some of these diy houses were hideouts for people who no longer wished to be known.<\/p>\n

Along with wild goats and chickens that roam the roadsides, here there are also wild cows. \u00a0They do not cross the road quite as quickly as goats or chickens. \u00a0\u00a0\"\"<\/p>\n

On our way down we stopped at\u00a0a large park called Loterie Farm<\/a>. \u00a0It is preserve for wild monkeys, iguanas, and had a maze of zip lines for use in getting a wonderful view of the flora and fauna from some thrilling heights. \u00a0That is a bit too much of a thrill for me, but I enjoyed seeing the views from the tree house style tapas bar, where I had a tropical drink with a salad and a crab cake. \u00a0Far more sedate than zip lining!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

I was happy to enjoy the restaurant views, rather than experience them from the tree tops on a zip line!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Next time it would be fun to rent this tree top cabana near the pool.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

We ended the day at the beach right near Princess Juliana Airport, where some of those adventurous zip lining people line up at the end of the runway to be blown off their feet whenever a jumbo jet lands or takes off. \u00a0There is no end to the risk taking you can experience on St. Martin. \u00a0I’m happy to watch from the safety of the nearby bar, thank you.<\/p>\n

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This year’s trip started with a revisit to a romantic hotel we stayed in\u00a031 years ago. \u00a0Where did the time go? \u00a0In some ways it definitely feels like a different lifetime ago, but I am stumped at where all that went…so quickly! It’s still a very romantic spot, and dinner here was quite wonderful. \u00a030 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4609","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sailing","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4609","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4609"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4609\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4617,"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4609\/revisions\/4617"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.argoknot.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}