Our journey, Chapter 20: The one that got away
We headed back to St. Kitts in May, determined to find something special, and we did…sort of.
The sargassum was incredibly heavy on the Atlantic side of St. Kitts. An enormous excavator was on the beach by the Marriott scooping massive mounds of the odiferous, bug-infested debris into a waiting dump truck to haul it away. Bet you can’t wait to go to St. Kitts now, can you?
In fairness, the entire Caribbean is dealing with this issue, as is the east coast of Florida. I haven’t found any credible explanations as to why the sargassum is so heavy; however, aside from it being a smelly eyesore, it is apparently good for helping fish populations and because it is high in vitamins, proteins, and minerals, as well as having anti-inflamatory, antioxidant, anti-microbal properties, and more, it has much therapeutic potential. We just didn’t want to look at it or smell it.
Fortunately, the Marriott was way ahead of us. They offered to shuttle us several times each week to Shipwreck or the Carambola Beach Club on the Caribbean side of the island where there is no sargassum. We quickly decided this confluence of events was serendipitous, since this beach is exactly where the planned Ritz is supposed to be, and we intended to go there, anyway.
You may remember reading about Shipwreck from our last trip to St. Kitts. It is an absolutely great dive bar with really good food. We loved sitting there, especially those times when it rained.
Now for the bad news. While Carambola will survive the development of the Ritz, Shipwreck will not. So, if you have any plans to belly up there, you’d better hurry and book a flight. We had mixed signals as to whether it will disappear at the end of this summer or carry on until some time next summer. Natalie and I have another trip scheduled to return once again to St. Kitts in September. I promise to update you on this critical issue.
Speaking of rain, Natalie noticed clouds rolling in from Nevis one afternoon and suggested we head back to our condo. Because the rain was coming from behind us, we sat on the porch and enjoyed the storm until it rained so heavily we had to retreat inside. It is worth noting that the chairs in this photo are not normally sitting in water and the mini-golf holes just outside of the fame of this video floated from their usual spots to rest in entirely new locations. Apparently, the first no-named tropical storm of the season. Amazingly, by the next morning, there was no trace of the water, but the mini-golf was a challenge until the groundskeepers restored the course.
We used the time offered to us by the rain to do a search for homes for rent on St. Kitts. Natalie wisely suggested we look to do a three to six month rental to be certain we’re ready for a more permanent residence. I reached out to the realtor for one that looked promising, only to find out it was no longer available. But she told us there was a wonderful property right next door to the one we had wanted to see.
No. Not a chance. Even if they paid us to live there. The owner clearly hasn’t been to that home in a long time. It was in deplorable condition, despite its pricey rent. On top of that, there was zero view. Not happening.
On the other hand, the neighborhood sported the Pavillion Beach Club on Sand Bank Beach. It was absolutely incredible. So, once again, we discovered something new and magical on St. Kitts.
As we headed back to the Marriott, our realtor, Nesha, mentioned in passing that she had a new listing we might want to consider. When she sent us the link, we realized it was not only incredibly beautiful, it was high on a hill above the water with a gorgeous view, wonderful pool and was only about a three-minute drive to Carambola! Nesha told us the owner has never rented his home previously, so she was working through details with him and promised to get back with us.
Unfortunately, the owner has gone radio silent and seems to have rethought his decision to rent it. Ugh. So, probably isn’t happening. God must have another plan for us.
Until next time…