in st. croix not too terribly far from the airport is a chicken shack. heard it was a local dive (i like those type of places and ain't skeered to go to 'em ). it's open air so you gotta battle the flies but they ain't bad...just eat fast .

ordering counter:


around and around we go:


these motors get a work out:




if we only had smell-a-vision:


pete and sydney had the chicken:


i had roast pork:


added a sody pop for the little one and a diet coke and caribe beer for the big people and it was mighty tasty.

the cruzan rum factory. 7 bones per adult. little one was free. the admission included the tour and 2 cocktails and 4 sample tastings. if you don't drink al-key-hall much, that is more than a plenty . it's still owned by the same family that started it and the different flags that have flown over the island are flown out by the old windmill. they were in a shut-down for maintenance while we were visiting but it was still interesting.



fermenting vat:


eventhough these tank are under a covered building, it is not sealed and these tanks don't have lids:


i think the guide said this was a 100,000 gallon tank:


the ships bring molasses in every day. in the old days, sugar cane plantations covered the island and the other local islands. these days, the molasses is imported. the smell in here made you want a hot biscuit:


the rum is aged in barrels that held jim beam whiskey. they are used for many, many years and the dates are placed on the end of the barrels. to get the best, old rum(aged), they have to blend the 8 year old rums because they loose so much to evaporation. i don't know how many thousands of barrels were in this particular warehouse but it was mind boggling:


when it's time for bottling, the rum is moved to this warehouse and staged. they have a trough in the floor and over it, they place the barrels and the rum empties from the barrel and goes into a drain. it is filtered about a gazillion times and is pumped into the holding tanks:


these tankers are loaded onto ships and transported to the bottling company here on the mainland. they don't bottle there anymore since they partnered with jim beam:


but they do have to have stock to sell and give away for tasting in the ticket/gift shop building:

when you finish the tour, you return to the ticket/gift shop area for your souvenirs and samples. this was some type of punch with pineapple and banana and fruity rum flavors. it was refreshing:


this was a "painkiller". rum, pineapple, cream of coconut, orange juice and then grated nutmeg on the top. good stuff too and the men were drinking as many as the women so it's not a fru-fru drink:


in frederiksted, they have a dock for the cruise ships that make their way there. the water is beautiful everywhere and there were about 8 divers jumping in right off the ship dock:


it's long and makes for a nice stroll to the end:


when there aren't any ships docked, the city allows people to use it for recreation (diving/fishing/exercise). we talked to this gentleman and watched him reel in a fish or two. they were beautiful blue striped fish and he chummed them with bread and caught them free lined with bread balls:


found out many restaurants were closed on Thanksgiving Eve to allow the staff to prepare for the next day, when most of those same restaurants were closed for the general public but would be open for the employees and their family and friends. we had to make a few phone calls but found one that was open. wasn't that great but it ate:


pete had chicken and pasta with a kinda light cream sauce:


my meal was pretty much chicken with a slice of prosciutto on top, covered in cheese. had undercooked asparagus. i'll spare you the picture. wasn't worth it. sydney had a $12 grilled cheese with fried okra. slays me to pay for $70+ meal that's not worth $25

these are the hotel rooms. there are four to a building and they are more like apartments or townhomes. very, very spacious and less expensive than the one in st. thomas that was more money and less roomy:


Turkey day:


the guest of honor was surprisingly moist and tasty. not everyone can cook a turkey properly. the best was the ham. good gosh it was good. they had smothered goat, boiled shrimp, baked salmon, a paella station where you could have it cooked to your request. i had the cook make me a very small order. i've had better but it wasn't too bad. they offered several prepared salads and the makings for you to plate your own. they had a nice assortment of vegetables and pies too. they had a bananas foster station where the cook made your dessert to order. cruzan 151. dang skippy!

Thanks for sharing VT, which hotel did y'all stay at, it looks like the Buccaneer? A lot of people don't know it but one of the largest refineries in world is on St. Croix. Should have went to the rain forest and visited the beer drinking pigs! Just stay away from mamajauna rum.

sydney had tater tots, chicken tenders, ice cream and fruit punch to the tune of almost thirty bucks . i'll be the happiest mother on earth when her palate changes.


more beauty:


little water rat:


we were riding into town one day and spotted these guys and some others. i rolled down the winder and asked it they minded if'n i snapped a pic of their rides :


went to the sto' and saw the biggest, darndest avocadoes i've ever laid eyes on:


you gotta really crave tater chips here:


you cook it, you better eat it and not let it go to waste:


good gracious:


i'd have to have a garden and some critters roaming around:


your normal, everyday size and peanut butter is around $5 per same size jar:

we were at the renaissance on carambola beach. i used a travel agency 'cause we had never been to these islands. if it had been just me and pete, i would've made reservations and worked it from there. with sydney going, it has to be clean and in a nice area. amazing how things change when you have a child. i used to ride by myself all over the country. loved to travel at night and wouldn't be scared to talk to people whilst getting fuel at two in the morning at some po-dunk gas station or truck stop in the middle of no-wheres-ville. it's a whole different ball game now that she came into being. we saw the refinery. biggest dang thing i've ever seen and have never seen so much chain link fencing in my life.

back to the groceries-

whoo-we, better do like mr. troy and make apple butter:


got a craving, better savor this stuff:


before leaving the island, we had breakfast-lunch here (opened at 10). you can get a room, a drink and a meal all in the same place


as you enter the building, this is also where they have social nights (dances):


sydney's never met a stranger and mr. jt and her got along real well. his wife's family has owned this place for over 60 years. real nice gentleman and we enjoyed our conversation with him:


they even bottle their own pepper sauce in former pepsi cola bottles:


i had stewed chicken. fall off the bone tender with a nice sauce and the vegetables weren't mushy. two thumbs up :


sydney had the fried snapper. it is normally served with a mild creole type sauce but she wouldn't have ate it so no go:


pete had the baked chicken and seasoned rice and i had a taste or two and it was mighty good also:

in christiansted, the shopping is right off the water downtown. lots of folks have litty dory's and skiffs for running the island and to their anchored boats/yachts out in the harbor:


the cock of the walk (as much as food costs, it's weird seeing them everywhere):


another view of the harbor:


flowers are beautiful and most everything is labeled so you know what you are looking at:


they have golf carts with drivers that will take you all around the hotel but we did a lot of walking to enjoy the peace and quiet (speaking of which, the power tripped one night and pete had to call the front desk. the next day, pete asked about the power there. the entire hotel is run off of generator power due to the extreme cost of electricity. it is cheaper to buy fuel than to get power from the island. unreal. at night, they can throttle down the generator and at times, they can cut off parts of the hotel when the rooms are vacant. tis best to keep all the rooms booked together and not have them spread all over).


it's United States property but it's different in st. thomas and st. croix. we didn't make the short ferry run to st. john but i'd imagine it has the same vibe with way less people. if i had to pick one of the islands to live on, it would be st. croix. just about gave me a headache driving in st. thomas. too many people and we weren't there when it's bad (according to the folks we talked to, prime season is jan/feb/mar). much more laid back and more open land in st. croix. land is expensive. i saw 1/2 acre lots for $30,000. if you had the dough and wanted perfect temperatures, this is the place .


but if it's not your home, there is no place like getting back to what is:

Trivia question: Did you know that carambola beach was in a movie?

Hint: "Looking good Billy Ray!"

"Feeling good Lewis" Trading Places

Island life is so much different. I lived in Puerto Rico for four years. I prefer the state, but fun to visit.

Looks like a great time!

A few years ago I island hopped a little bit and had a blast. Went to St. Maarten, Aruba, and Bermuda. Had a blast and want to go back to St. Maarten with the family one day soon for a getaway.

Your picti-posts are great VT.

I always enjoy reading/looking.

cool pics,,, looks like yall had a swell time.