More of St. Kitts & Nevis

Basseterre, St. Kitts (June 25-August 28, 2013)

What we were doing when I hit the fish pot at Sandy Point, St. Kitts.  Well, here it is, only seconds before...

Other than the obvious boat repairs, what did we do for 9 weeks while in St. Kitts?  A LOT!!!

When Jim wasn't honing his splicing skills...

Close up of Jim's handmade snubber with chafing guard

A not so close up view of the snubber

or finding something to varnish...

Cockpit table (before)...

(during)...

(after)...Nice work, Jim!!!

The nicely finished companionway hatch cover (a/k/a our front door)

we might be found...

enjoying a Carib beer or drinks at De Green Valley Pub

while waiting on our order of "Goat Water,"...

hanging out at The Black Rock Pub...

or maybe at The Cool Corner Bar,...

but most likely, at Shipwreck with friends enjoying tacos and a Carib while...

watching the SUP yoga class...

the local monkeys having lunch...

or the clean-up crew, the Small Indian Mongoose...

Remember this little guy from our El Yunque Rainforest blog entry...we did!

or just relaxing at home on the boat, enjoying dinner...
(Top sirloin steak, corn, and grilled zucchini with sundried tomatoes)

or sitting on the beach...

watching the world go by...

a good place for our afternoon nap...

and then some fun romance...

while watching yet another beautiful sunset on the shore.

Other times, we were meeting a lot of really cool, fun, people and exploring every mile of the island!!!

Amongst those really cool, fun, people were Jeff & Marie Inshaw with their adorable sidekick, Abby, who we met on our last stop in St. Martin.  Jeff & Marie are both on the staff of Cruising Outpost Magazine where they are fondly known as "Ken & Barbie."  They run a charter SailDelphineCharters on the s/v Delphine, a beautiful 60' cruising catamaran, which makes for great happy hours with larger groups of cruisers. We know, we were there.

Marie & Jeff

We hit most of the hot spots while on a day trip around the island with Marie, which included shopping (of course) at the Caribelle Batik and a stroll through the Botanical Garden at Romney Manor. Romney Manor was once a sugar cane plantation, owned by Sam Jefferson II, the great-great-great grandfather of the 3rd President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson.  With acres of picturesque landscape, be sure to put this on your list of places to see when visiting St. Kitts.

Caribelle Batik is known internationally for it's fine products, including the exclusive Sea Island Cotton, which will not only last a lifetime, but gets softer with every wash.  The distinctive designs, made using the ancient Indonesian methods of resisting dye with wax, are unmistakable when seen by anyone familiar with the Batik.  Be sure to ask for a demonstration of the techniques from one of the artists.  They are most cordial and take great pride in showing their talent.

Caribelle Batik

Batik Clothing

Batik fabrics are in high demand and are almost always seen drying on the lines outside of the shop.

A work in progress

Our favorite, just too big for the boat

A look outside

The grounds are well manicured

Having maxed out our space for clothing (and then some), we opted for a couple of useful gems to nicely accent the settees in the salon...

Next stop, Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park.

At the base of the road leading up to the Brimstone Hill Fortress National Park, is the limekiln from which the limestone bricks used in constructing many areas of the Fortress, such as the dressing stones in the windows and arches, were baked.  It is one of the very few limekilns remaining from the era.

Limekiln

The 38 acre fortress, dubbed "the Gibraltar of the West Indies," is positioned atop an 800 foot high mountain with incredible views of several of the surrounding islands.

The Bastion, completed in the mid 1790's, allowed for strong fire position against it's attackers.  It was capable of defending the rear of the nearby Fort Charles.  With the guns having a range that reached as far as the sea, it was also capable of defending the important Sandy Point anchorage.

Prince of Wales Bastion

The flank breached in the Battle of St. Kitts, in 1782

Overlooking St. Kitts Marine Works
(where we lost our transmission...hard to tell white caps from fish pots)

Overlooking the Magazine Bastion

Maybe they should have given us name tags...

"Tourist One"

"Tourist Two"

Back on the road, we come across the Middle Island Anglican Church, the first Anglican church in the Eastern Caribbean.  It's cemetery holds the remains of Sir Thomas Warner, the first English Governor of the West Indies, who launched the colonization of the island, and Samuel Jefferson, ancestor of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States.

Middle Island Anglican Church

Cemetery at the Anglican Church

On our drive down from the park, we came upon a troop of vervet monkeys.

Livestock is everywhere...

from sheep roaming the countryside...

to donkeys in residential yards...

even a bull in someone's front yard

A great day with many gorgeous views...
Atlantic Ocean on the left...Caribbean Sea on the right

that just kept getting better...

and better!!!

Our next adventure took us to Ottley's Plantation Inn, a stunning hideaway on 35 acres, located at the foot of Mt. Liamuiga.  When not looking at the Atlantic Ocean, you are viewing the gorgeous terraced lawns, garden landscapes or the rainforest.  What a wonderful retreat to get away from it all!

The Estate was vacant, until 1988, when a family who had vacationed for years in St. Kitts transformed the neglected plantation back to its colonial grandeur and fulfilled their goal of establishing a world class plantation inn and restaurant.

Two-room cottage with a garden view

It's hard to make it all the way to St. Kitts and not make the trip to the island of Nevis.

The ferry ride across

The ferry ride to Nevis Island was not so eventful, but meeting up with a local named Sweetpea was.  What a character she is!!!  We spent the entire day with her at Culturama and she took us on a great tour of the island.

Sherry & Sweetpea in front of the Jewish Synagogue

John Cougar Mellencamp's "Pink Houses" kept playing in my head

Want to complain about doing laundry...lots of people still wash in the creek

Locals bathe here for medicinal purposes...we chose not to join them

This water comes from a volcano and is HOT!

Building murals tell the history of Nevis

Ferry depot

“Neither should a ship rely on one small anchor,

nor should life rest on a single hope” ~Epictetus

Traditional parade attire

Miss Culture Queen (Jomelle Elliott) and her Runnerups

Mr. Kool (Kadeen Tyson) and his Runnerups

The kiddos were such troopers in the heat

Everyone was enjoying the day

Walking Tall!

Shaking their groove thing...

and so was Sweetpea

This boy was so cute and happy to see his momma!

After Culturama, there was no better place to end our extended stay in St. Kitts than at the Amazing Grace experience...and AMAZING it was!

 

It was here at the Amazing Grace Experience's Visitor Center, in St. Kitts, where we learned of the story of John Newton and the history behind the famous and well-loved song, "Amazing Grace."

In March 1796, at the age of 70, John Newton wrote in his journal "Oh it was a mercy indeed to save a wretch like me." In these words, he adapted the lyrics of the hymn "Amazing Grace" to tell his own life story.

 

A foul mouthed slave trader, John Newton, tells of his his spiritual journey that began with his miraculous escape from death.  His encounter with God's Amazing Grace and his visit to Sandy Point St. Kitts changed his life, leading him to stand against the Slave Trade through men such as William Wilberforce.

John Newton's lyrics to Amazing Grace

                    Amazing grace!  (how sweet the sound)
                    That saved a wretch like me!     
                    I once was lost, but now am found,       
                    Was blind, but now I see.
          
                    'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
                    And grace those fears relieved; 
                    How precious did that grace appear,
                    The hour I first believed!

                    Through many dangers, toils and snares,  
                    I have already come;                                                
                    'Tis grace has brought me safe thus far,
                    And grace will lead me home.

                    The Lord has promised good to me,
                    His word my hope secures;
                    He will my shield and portion be, 
                    As long as life endures.

                     Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail
                     And mortal life shall cease;
                     I shall possess, within the veil,
                     A life of joy and peace.
 
                     The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
                     The sun forbear to shine; 
                     But God, who called me here below,
                     Will be forever mine.

With Dulcinea repaired enough for us to safely limp back to St. Kitts, it was now time to return to St. Maarten to replace her bent prop shaft.

Farewell, St. Kitts!