Thursday, August 21, 2014

Travel :: Sailing St. Maarten


Today marks the last batch of my St. Maarten photos.  On the second to last day of our trip we rented a catamaran and sailed around the island.  From our early morning start to our golden hour finish, the day was absolutely perfect.  The trip started off with pastries, fresh fruit, coffee, and juice on board our boat.  From there we sailed to Île Tintamarre and went snorkeling with sea turtles!  There was one little guy in particular who I just loved and must have swam next to for five to ten minutes.  He would swim peacefully under the water and every so often stick his little head out for air...it was so cute!

Next we visited Creole Rock for some great snorkeling.  At one point we saw what we thought was a miniature {read: under 3 feet long} shark who must have followed us for twenty minutes.  I'd like to say we were brave, but the truth is there was a lot of shrieking and nervous laughing as the little shark would seemingly come out of nowhere and circle us.  Not our proudest moment :)

After our snorkeling adventure we got back on board and set sail to Anguilla.  We listened to music, drank beer, wine, cockails, and the most delicious spiced rum punch, and laid in the sunshine.  Upon arriving to the island of Anguilla we were greeted with some of the most gorgeous white sand and turquoise water I had ever laid eyes on.  We took time exploring different coves and beaches, swimming to shore every time we anchored.  I loved visiting the gorgeous five-star Cap Juluca Hotel and walking along their pristine beaches.

By this point we had worked up quite the appetite, so we got back on board and had a very long and leisurely lunch on the boat.  We started with a delicious crab and tuna salad, and afterwards had curried chicken and vegetables, a scrumptious cheese plate, baguette with the most delicious European butter, and finally we finished up with a fresh raspberry tart.  Our lunch was accompanied by as much French wine and rosé as we could drink.

Our last stop of the day was beautiful Happy Bay on St. Maarten.  The most rustic of the beaches we visited, Happy Bay felt like we were on our own private island.  It was the most incredible day on the most incredible trip, thank you Dad!!!!

16 comments:

  1. Lovely photos! It sounds like you had an amazing time in St. Maarten!

    www.livinginsteil.com

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  2. Oh my gosh. I want to crawl into these beautiful photos and go there!! This trip looks amazing!

    Maggie
    www.PolishedClosets.com

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  3. Molly! This looks like the trip of a lifetime. What a special vacation! Thanks for letting us live vicariously through you! xo

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  4. This sounds like the perfect day! Everything from the food (that raspberry tart looks sublime) to the Rose to the swimming (minus the shark...I would totally freak out too) sounds amazing! Your photos really told a story. Thanks for sharing :)


    www.taffetaandtulips.com

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  5. What gorgeous photos. The water looks so blue. Glad you all had such a wonderful time

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  6. wow, this looks like the trip of a lifetime! thanks for sharing!

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  7. thank you nicole! we stayed in st. maarten and just spent the day in anguilla, but after visiting i'd definitely like to go back for a week. have a wonderful weekend :)

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  8. thank you vanessa! it was a wonderful family vacation, i wish i could go back and do it all over again :) have a great weekend dear!

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  9. thank you maggie!
    i hope you have an absolutely fantastic weekend :)

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  10. thanks haley! as we speak it's hot, grey, and rainy here...so i would kind of rather be back in the caribbean sailing myself :) have a wonderful weekend!

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  11. it was absolutely amazing and the fact that i was able to spend it with both ryan and my family made it just that much more special. have a wonderful weekend dear girl!

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  12. thank you so so much kate! glad to hear i'm not the only one who would have freaked out over a baby shark haha. have a wonderful weekend!

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  13. thanks mom, it was amazing! and next up for the fantastic trips? YOU and your three week trip to italy. i think a guest post on dreams in hd is in order ;-)

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  14. thank you whitney, it was a really fantastic getaway and that much more special that i was able to enjoy it with my boyfriend and my family :) i hope you have a fantastic weekend!

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  15. thank you bobbi, it was definitely an experience i'll remember for the rest of my life. have a wonderful weekend!

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  16. Did you really say you were also on a blog hiatus this summer Molly?? Seems like you're doing a good job with vacationing and keeping your blog up to date with beautiful photos of your trip! I need to get back on track, and follow in your footsteps. ;)

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