MAINE SPRING THAW

Following an April Fool's Day snowstorm, we spent the weekend in Ogunguit, Maine as everything thawed out at a steady drip. Here's the wrap-around porch at 2 Village Square, a lovely inn recommended to us by these guys.

And here's our fantastic view from it.

We zoom in on The Front Porch, a restaurant/lounge/piano bar that we visited both nights of our trip, mostly for the cocktails.

The beach was vast as always, but as empty as I've ever seen it.

Dunes, wind and silence.

Not our inn, but the only westie I saw on the whole trip.

One afternoon, we browsed around nearby Kennebunkport.

A cute little town teeming with precocious little shops...

...like this unconventional travel goods store.

The most wishy-washy Store Hours ever.

On route back to Boston, we stopped in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Portsmouth has a charming town center full of local businesses and few chains...

...some of which have lovely decorative touches such as this.

We ate lunch at RiRa, an Irish pub housed inside an ancient bank, its glorious dome still intact. It was our last stop before heading home to our very own breathing, barking westie.

ISLAND LIFE

Vacation photos, part 2! Since St. John does not have an airport, we had to fly into St. Thomas. We didn't spend much time there - it felt a little too busy, full of junky gift shops and cabbies harassing you for a ride at every corner.

Sleepy, remote St. John was more our speed. Most nights, we left the resort to have dinner in funky Cruz Bay, the island's only town of sorts (Coral Bay, on the island's other end, is more of a blink-and-you'll-miss-it village, complete with goats blocking traffic on the highway).

Not the island's most picturesque spot, Cruz Bay nonetheless has its charms...

...such as this colorful residental space, organically tucked into a plaza full of restaurants and little shops.

I took this pic for the "N' Mo" and received an additional, one-of-a-kind sign (on the left) as a bonus.

Even shopping complex Mongoose Junction, the town's most blatant tourist destination, seems unique and constructed to blend in with the surrounding landscape.

One day, we rented a jeep so we could explore the rest of the island. It proved a challenge - not only do people drive on the left side of the road, the roads themselves are among the steepest and curviest I've seen.

Overlooking Maho Bay (yes, the sea appears this gorgeously blue everywhere there).

The Annaberg sugar ruins, which overlook this:

A few shots of lovely Leinster Bay, with views of the British Virgin Islands in the distance:

Another day, we took a ferry to Virgin Gorda, which is part of the British V.I. Our resort, Caneel Bay has a sister property there called Little Dix Bay. The trip took a little over an hour and offered some stunning views along the way, such as this majestic house on a rock...

...and this cool, old vessel.

After wading through customs and immigration, we boarded a taxi - note its awning, reminiscient of a 1970s lawn chair.

Our first stop was The Baths, which first required a ten-minute walk down to the sea...

...followed by another ten minutes wedging one's way through (often ridiculously narrow) caves.

Fortunately, the destination featured some spectacular views.

A high surf prevented us from doing much swimming or snorkling, but it was still worth the trip.

Afterwards, we cabbed over to Little Dix Bay for lunch. It's a beautiful property, as you can see in the pictures below, but Steve and I preferred Caneel Bay's more spacious layout.

My favorite part of the whole vacation? Sitting here at Little Dix Bay for about a half-hour, watching the waves and letting any remaining stress just dissolve away. This is why we went to the Virgin Islands.

ST. JOHN: CANEEL BAY

After another soul-crushing New England winter, Steve and I decided it would be necessary to go someplace warm this year. We picked St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Since more than half the island is a National Park, it's less developed and tourist-heavy than other Caribbean destinations such as St. Thomas - in other words, perfect for us.



We stayed at Caneel Bay resort, which this post will feature. Because St. John does not have an airport, we flew into St. Thomas and then took a ferry directly to the resort - this was our most welcoming first view.



Consisting of 170 acres and 7 beaches, Caneel Bay is a spacious, beautiful property nestled between the coast and St. John's mountainous landscape.



Here's a wide-lens view with the resort's open-air Equator restaurant on the left.



Our accomodations appeared unremarkable from the outside...



Inside, however, was surprisingly lovely - cozy and just the right size.



The property features some sugar mill ruins.





For a hefty price, I believe one can privately dine in them.



Caneel's vegetation often seemed more like something one would find in the desert than in the tropics.



However, there were plenty of trees laden with fruit...



And of course, palms everywhere.



In the background, if you squint hard enough, you can make out some of Caneel's most common animal residents.



Donkeys strolled the property with ease.



A few weren't shy, either. This one took an interest and kept inching towards me.



We also spotted the occasional iguana.



I think I preferred the donkeys.



We saw plenty of teeny tiny birds, plus mightier ones such as this pelican-like beauty.



I mentioned that Caneel has seven beaches - while we did not lounge at every single one, we spent one afternoon here at Scott Beach.



Snorkling in the clear blue Caribbean, we saw a stellar assortment of tropical fish, plus one massive turtle.



This lady had the right idea - although not oppressively hot, the temps reached the mid-80s every single day.

Sunset at the sugar mill ruins, gazing upon the St. Thomas horizon. Check back soon for more pictures from the rest of the island (and beyond).