Trip Report:  GBI, 18-24 August 2004

General:

   We flew out of Boston on the 18th on USAirways through Charlotte.  The entire trip, both going down and coming home, went without a hitch.  For those wondering USAirways is definitely one of the airlines that includes the $20 GBI departure tax in the price of their tickets.  The new International Terminal at the airport on GBI is a HUGE improvement over the old terminal.  I was expecting the worst for the trip out of GBI and hoping for the best.  It was not bad at all.  The wait was no longer than normal for any line I've stood in at U.S. airports.  The only downside is you still have to handle your luggage twice, once when checking in and again to get through customs, but at least now they place your luggage on a conveyor belt and you pick it up after going through security.  Far better than the old terminal where you had to drag your luggage all over the place by yourself.  There is also food and drink before and after you check in.  For smokers, there is a smoker's area in the bar in the waiting area once you are through customs and security.  Both Brad's and KSR have car rental booths inside the new terminal.  They will check you in and than walk you out to the parking lot where the cars are located.  There is still some work being done so I expect things may improve even more over the next few months.  
    We rented a car this trip for the first time in 20 years of traveling to GBI.  Brad's treated us great!  Got a Nissan Sentra for $39 a day with just over 7,000 miles on it.  I was worried about driving on the left.  In our case anyway, that worry turned out to be unfounded.  It was relatively easy.  The one place I kept screwing up was in parking lots.  For some reason or other I kept backing out of parking spots and heading down the right side of the lot's travel lane.  Other than that there were no major issues.  Gas was over $3.50 a gallon.  We put just about 300 miles on the car and spent $38 on gas.  There were no hidden charges on the bill from Brad's (someone mentioned a 5% credit card charge) but we did NOT pay by credit card, but used traveler's checks.  
    Beware of Bahamian highways.  They tend to just end!  Coming back from the East End one day on the Grand Bahama Highway we suddenly hit a dead end with no warning it was going to happen.  It did appear as though the road was ending but there were no signs indicating which way to go to get around the dead end.  That turned out to be similar to other parts of the island.  The hardest time we had on the roads was figuring out which way to go to get somewhere.  That wasn't too bad though, since the island is small enough that you're going to get where you want to eventually anyway.  One other thought.  When you see a sign indicating something STOP right there.  At both Paradise Cove and Lucayan National Park we breezed right on by because we thought the signs we saw were just indicating they were ahead somewhere.  No way.  STOP right at the signs.  You are THERE and those signs are the ONLY warning you are going to get.  More on both places later in the report.
   The weather was hot and humid, more bothersome than normal because the usual breeze was simply not there.  Still, we managed to do our thing and enjoy ourselves.  I'd say it was in the low 90s every day but on a couple of those days we walked outside and the humidity just hammered you.  When that happens without the gulf breezes that are normally ever-present on GBI it's pretty uncomfortable.  I am NOT a beach or pool type person, but I sure did use both to cool off on this trip.  
   For the month of August the island was fairly busy.  Being low season we expected things to be less busy than they were.  Many of the Bahamians we talked to were very happy with the level of tourism business they've seen this summer.  Most of the resorts had plenty of people even though they weren't booked solid like they are in the high season.  September is expected to be the slowest month of the season.  We talked to some folks who plan their vacation for the entire month.  So, if you go next month some places may be shut down although I doubt the major tourism attractions will be.  There was live entertainment in the Port Lucaya Marketplace at Count Basie Square 5 of the 7 nights during the week and that's the normal schedule.  
    
Pictures:
   There are over 150 pictures, some of almost everything I'm going to discuss below, on my web site at http://www.fortunecity.com/oasis/bahia/443/index.htm.

Coral Beach Condo Complex:  We were in an efficiency unit (thanks Janice and Les).  To be honest about it Coral Beach is an older complex, but the units we saw were very nicely maintained and all were air-conditioned.  The external hallways in the buildings are not air-conditioned.  We were at Blackbeard's Landing, the pool bar, just about every day for either a drink or food and loved it.  Charmaine, the bartender/cook/jack-of-all-trades, worked her behind off to keep up with everything she needed to do.  If you have a rental car be aware you will have to unlock and relock the gates to the parking area if you come in late at night.  You will be given a key that fits all the assorted locks outside your own unit (side doors, the parking gates, etc.).  The place is well maintained and grounds well manicured and landscaped.  The beach is beautiful and the pool is about average.  We also saw THE CAR!!!!  Ask Dianne Patterson about that comment.  We also ran into Tom and Diane a couple of times and had a great time with them.  Nancy has been saying, “Is that you Dan” to me ever since we got home.  Tom approached us while we were eating at the Pub at Port Lucaya and, while I thought he was looking at someone beyond us, suddenly said, “Is that you Dan?”  That's the third time that's happened while we were on the island and a fourth time occurred on a plane flight home when we ran into a brand new husband and wife Janice helped out.  Nancy thinks I'm famous.  :-))


East End:

We headed out toward the East End on one of our days and I'll discuss several places below - Tranquility Shores/The Stoned Crab, the Ritz/Taino Beach/Flamingo Bay Resort Complex, Banana Bay, and Gold Rock Beach.  While we did plan on hitting both Margarita Villa and Club Caribe that didn't work out (I'll explain that later) and we missed them on this trip.

Ritz/Taino Beach/Flamingo Bay Resort Complex:
    This was our first stop.  We did a self-guided tour of most of the complex.  Both the Ritz and the Taino Beach Resort looked great although we did not get an opportunity to see the inside of any rooms.  The pool at this resort is beautiful.  Their swim-up bar is outstanding.  You actually swim through a cave-like hole in the wall and a waterfall to get to the bar, which is literally underground.  We've got pictures that show what it looks like.  Besides that the pool is very large and there is plenty of room for a large number of people to use it comfortably.  Flamingo Bay is a motel, period.  It did not look any better or different than the last time we saw it a few years ago.  It still has a bad reputation and I did not see anything that would change my mind about NOT recommending it to folks.  I would recommend both the Ritz and Taino Beach.  Just be aware that there is an entire new building being constructed at the Ritz.  It didn't appear to impact anything for guests there in a negative way but the construction is still on going.  The beach here is beautiful.  One thing I regret is we did not get to see or take pictures of the Pirates of the Caribbean Theme Park that is located here.  Too bad, but maybe we'll include that on our next trip in February.  It still gets rave reviews.  There are plenty of pictures of this complex on my web site, including a sign listing all the water sport activities available.  

Tranquility Shores/The Stoned Crab:
    We stopped here and strolled around for about 45 minutes.  Tranquility Shores is the old Cap'n Kenny's.  It was not very busy as we saw only about 6-8 people besides us and most of them were in the water or on the beach.  We didn't see one person eating lunch there although there was a full complement of employees on duty.  I don't know if that was because of the time of day or if they just are not that busy.  The beach here is really beautiful and you can see that in some of the pictures I posted.  That comment applies to almost every beach we went to on this trip.  The Stoned Crab is immediately next door to Tranquility Shores and was not, as is always the case, open for lunch.  I took a couple of pictures from the entrance in the parking lot and the beach hoping they would help some folks get an idea of what the evening would be like eating almost on the beach.  It's still one of the more romantic places I'd recommend for people looking for a romantic place to eat dinner.

Banana Bay:
    We stopped here for lunch.  Before I forget let me say one important thing.  There were two men and another couple eating there when we arrived.  Before we ever got our menus the couple asked if we were going to have lunch and we said yes.  They immediately said we should get the grouper, it was outstanding.  That prompted both men to respond and agree, and they emphatically stated the grouper served at Banana Bay was far and away the best on the island.  Later during the week, in conversations with the Famous Cap'n Les, HE mentioned that he had heard the same thing.  If you like grouper, this appears to be THE place to go for it on the island.  We don't like fish so don't ask for a personal opinion.  From eating here previously I can say their burgers are also great.  As usual, the beach here was beautiful.  From the pictures we took you can clearly see that at low tide you can really get OUT there.  This is a place I highly recommend for eating lunch or enjoying a local beach.  It's also conveniently located as a stopover place for lunch if you are ultimately heading to a place further out the East End like Gold Rock Beach where you cannot get anything to eat.  
Gold Rock Beach:
   Now this is a story that needs to be told.  Before I get further into it the bottom line is we got really, REALLY lost.  This story covers not only Gold Rock Beach but also the entire matter of most Bahamian people we encounter every time we go to GBI.  As you read it I think you'll see it also addresses the ridiculous notion some people have put forward in trip reports and on message boards that Bahamians are lazy, good-for-nothing, always-have-their-hands-out, greedy people.  It also happened because of the “sign thing” I pointed out earlier in the report.  We were headed out the Grand Bahama Highway eagerly anticipating Golf Rock Beach, a place we had never visited before.  Well, we saw the sign indicating Lucayan National Park.  I didn't see much of a complex there (because there ISN'T), so assumed the sign was similar to those you see at U.S. National Parks.  You know, those that announce “You Are Now Entering”.  Was I ever wrong.  We kept going, and going, and going.  Soon we were through High Rock and knew we had overshot something.  So, we turned around and started looking.  We took a turn toward the ocean and followed some dirt, or rocky, roads toward the water.  First we ended up in part of the abandoned U.S. Air Force tracking station and stopped to look around.  Because we knew you had to walk through a mangrove swamp for half a mile or so to get to Gold Rock Beach I was pretty sure this wasn't the place we wanted to be, although the beach we saw there WAS beautiful and you could see folks, as I said about the one at Banana Bay, WAY out there.  That was quite a ways down from where we were standing.  SO, off we went further toward the East End figuring what we had seen just HAD to be Gold Rock Beach.  Well, we were on a very isolated road in a very small neighborhood of Bahamians.  Than we hit a dead end.  By now I was becoming a little frustrated to say the least.  I finally listed to Nancy, who had been telling me for the better part of an hour to look for help from local people.  A young man in his mid-teens was walking down the road.  We stopped and asked him for directions.  He told us we were less than half a mile from Gold Rock Beach and gave us directions that were easy to follow.  Off we went, and ended up at EXACTLY the same abandoned Air Force station where we had already been.  Off we went again, and this time ended up in the same neighborhood.  We passed the young man we had talked to previously, now with a friend and headed the other direction on the road from where he was headed the first time.  He waved merrily, and I saw him motion to his buddy as we passed them to look at us.  I know damned well he was telling his friend how dumb we must be!!!  Next we stopped at a home with two Bahamian men and a woman in the front yard.  We asked them the same question.  They said we were less than a quarter mile from Gold Rock Beach and gave us directions happily.  Off we went, and off we went right back to the exact spot at the U.S. Air Force abandoned tracking station.  It was now 6:00 pm.  Low tide, which is when you are supposed to go to Gold Rock Beach, was at 5:40.  Despite the frustration I was now feeling we were enjoying the ride.  We saw many Bahamians that were quite obviously not part of the tourism business.  I never waved back to so many people in my life.  Almost everyone we saw had a smile and a wave just because we were in a car driving through their neighborhood.   I became much like the taxi cab drivers and tooted my horn at just about everyone.  I told Nancy I was going to take one more shot at this search and than we were headed home.  We were going looking for that damned sign, which was a good fifteen minutes back up the Grand Bahama Highway toward Freeport (and that's at 60-65 mph).  That's how we learned about the signs and realized another thing.  The directions we were getting were correct.  Where people were directing us was, in fact, Gold Rock Beach.  It was, however, part of the much larger Gold Rock Beach than we realized existed.  The Gold Rock Beach in the park is just PART of Gold Rock Beach.  Those very friendly local folks were sending us where they thought we wanted to go.  We zipped right by the sign for the National Park, again.  But this time I noticed two cars parked off the road next to the sign and stopped and turned around.  WE HAD FOUND IT.  So we parked the car and headed across the road where we found the entrance to the mangrove swamp walkway.  That walk was an experience in itself.  It took us about 15 minutes to get through it and 10 to come back (there are two different walkways, one shorter than the other).  Make sure of one thing if you are going here, especially during the warmer months.  TAKE BUG SPRAY.  We were bitten by, among other things, horse flies, mosquitoes,  and no-see-ums.  It wasn't like they were going to carry us away, but it was bothersome and we'd have been much happier if we had some bug spray.  No-see-ums, by the way, were at most of the beaches we visited.  We have not encountered them ever during our usual February trips.  We FINALLY got to Gold Rock Beach with high tide now on the way back in.  It was after 7:00 now so we did not get the opportunity to do what we originally planned, which was to spend an hour or two swimming there.  See the pictures, although there are a lot more of the mangrove swamp than the beach itself.  
    This entire day was a delight and out experiences got better as the week went on.  When we got back to the condo we were thrilled that we had rented the car and gone and seen so many of the places we hadn't bothered to go to before.  That applies to the rest of the week's adventures as well as this day's.  I now am seriously considering telling people, depending on what they are really looking for, to rent a car and go see the real island.  A lady sent me an email at home just a day or two ago and said they were considering a tour for 5 people that was going to cost $120 each for a day trip.  She was concerned because she had a limited budget and asked if there were good tours for less.  Of course, there are, and I told her that, but I also explained our experiences last week and that she could rent a car and see almost ALL the good spots on the island by renting a car for the week for less money than one day's trip would cost them if they took a tour.  She responded they were going the rental car route because they wanted to see as much as they could.  Others may have a different idea of what they want to do and how, so if I occasionally advise someone to rent a car it shouldn't put the tourism people out of business.  

The West End:

    Later in the week we took part of a day and headed out to the West End.  Here we encountered Paradise Cove and Old Bahama Bay.  This time we only got lost trying to get around the Royal Oasis and find the proper road out to the West End.  We took the wrong road but still ended up where we wanted to go with minimal delay because we saw from the map we had that our “wrong” road was eventually going to put us on the right road.  Thankfully that was true in this case.  We went right on by Paradise Cove but knew the sign we saw was where to turn based on our previous “sign” experience.  This was done on purpose because we wanted to hit Old Bahama Bay first and Paradise Cove on our way back to Freeport.  

   Old Bahama Bay:
         What a beautiful and serene spot!!!   This place is really ALL the way to the West End.  You must pass through a gated guard post to get in but they don't stop you if you are going to the resort section (they have homes and condos).  We walked the area extensively and it's quite large.  Actually we didn't even see something like 75% of it since much is for residents only, but we DID see the beach area.  I was shocked first at how quiet it was.  Even though there were people on the beach it was just as others have described it, very quiet, and beautiful.  They evidently take such great care to insure the solitude and tranquility that we saw a great number of tropical fish not more than 4-5 feet away from the beach.  The most pleasantly surprising thing though, was the seashells.  Large ones, the colorful variety you usually BUY in a store.  They were right next to the beach also and there were at least a dozen/dozen and a half of them.  I couldn't believe someone hadn't confiscated them for themselves.  Found out why too.  They were NOT abandoned shells.  They were living creatures and their home was right there in the water's edge at Old Bahama Bay.  If that doesn't speak to the quiet and peacefulness of the place nothing will.  I would expect that snorkeling in some parts of this beach area might be very good.  We had an extensive conversation with a couple of employees working at the pool bar.  There are plans to add something like 24 new buildings.  Those buildings hold blocks of at least 6 condos each.   Over three dozen of them, starting at $250K U.S., are already bought and paid for even though foundations are not even laid for their buildings.   For interested people the owners have been guaranteeing condo owners a cash income from rentals when they are not in use by the owners of over $2,000 a month.  Nancy thinks they said  $3,000 but I thought I heard $2,000.  If you take a look at the pictures I mentioned at the beginning of the report you'll see some evidence of much of the above.  This isn't a place for us, since we enjoy being around the golf courses, casinos and tourist areas like Port Lucaya Marketplace and Marina, but for anyone wanting a quiet and isolated getaway in a beautiful place this it the place to go.  In all our travels we've not seen much like it.   

    Paradise Cove:
    We hit Paradise Cove on the way back to Freeport.  Let me say up front it is not comparable to places like Turtle Cove on St. Johns or Huanama (sp?) Bay on Oahu, where Elvis filmed Blue Hawaii.    It is what it is, beautiful but not world-renowned.  The first thing we did was check in.  It still galls me somewhat that although we had NO intention of snorkeling (it was getting late in the afternoon), they still charged us 3 bucks apiece to go on the beach.  It was minor nuisance but it bugged me because I always thought ALL beaches in the Bahamas are free and open to the public.  Not being an expert on snorkeling and the costs normally involved to rent equipment I'd say if you are an avid snorkeler you might want to bring your own gear.  The rental prices add up.  You must pay separately for virtually everything, including transportation out to the reefs themselves, which appeared to be a half mile or so offshore.  You can rent small boats of all types.  Some of the things were more like large inner tubes than boats and at low tide (which is when I hear you should go) you probably can walk most of the way out to the reefs.  You can see some of the boats on my web site.  The best snorkeling is on the ocean side of the reefs, not the shore side. At least that's what some folks told us.   Again, you can see some pictures of the reefs on the web site I provided earlier.  There is a very small two-story motel there    No point in discussing it now since it is being replaced as a result of Frances/Jeanne damage.  I understand they have some nice villas but we did not notice them while there, although we saw some building we thought were homes.  Very nice people running the place and I'd recommend it to folks as almost everyone does, but now I can do it from first hand experience instead of relaying info from others.  Be aware of one other thing.  They rent by time and they really watch the limit.  We witnessed them hunting for people on the beach, although they treated them with respect, to get their equipment back, including beach towels, beach lounge chairs, beach umbrellas, etc.  Bring your own beach towels if you don't want to pay and get left stranded on the beach for wanting to stay longer than a rental period without paying extra.     

    Our Lucaya Resort and Isle of Capri Casino:
    This is where we usually stay on our trips down.  We were in the Isle of Capri Casino just about every night and walked around the resort a little bit.  The grounds are still maintained immaculately and despite hurricane damage I suspect it will still be spotless once the entire resort is reopened.   Not much seemed to have changed since our last trip in February.  We looked up a few of our old friends that work for the resort and said hello.  Other than that we didn't do much on the property other than lose our money in the casino.  If you want to see more on this resort check the several other trip reports I have on my web site where there are detailed discussions.  The Isle of Capri Casino has not changed much either.  I am amazed at the friendliness of the employees.  Treating guests properly has simply got to be one of the highest priorities in their training.  Some 60 of the casino employees were hired away from the Royal Oasis casino, and as you'll see in my report on that casino below their employees are still major grouches.  These 60 people were just as friendly as anyone else in the Isle of Capri.  Doesn't say much for management at Royal Oasis.   This casino is very small but tastefully decorated.  There is just about every type of table game, although there aren't a great number of tables available.  There are several hundred slot machines but relatively few Video Poker machines (a major disappointment for me).  A surprisingly high number of the slots are nickel machines, and they have shown a tendency to pay out fairly well.  Not for us though, at least not on this trip.  We both suffered some of the worst luck we've ever had in casinos on GBI in over 20 years.  That's not to knock the casino though.  We still think it's great and far more of a desirable place than the one at Royal Oasis.  They also have a very nice restaurant near the “back” entrance with a large bar and live entertainment starting around 10:00 each evening, although I don't know if it's there very night.  They were in the middle of building a sport book in the VP room and once the Westin reopens in December, if not before, I suspect it will be in operation, if it isn't already.  The downside to that is it will result in even fewer VP machines.  That's a bummer for me.  

    Our Lucaya Golf Courses:
    The Lucaya Golf and Country Club was in the best shape we've ever seen it.  I played lousy golf and as I stated earlier in the report it was unusually hot, humid and STILL while we were there.  Even though we played early in the morning we gave it up after three and a half rounds because it was simply too hot, and we wanted to get to both the West and East Ends of the island, which were full day trips.  Still, no golf course on the island can match LGCC.  I highly recommend it.  The Reef Course was also in great shape.  We checked it out but did not play there.  This is a true links course and there is little shade available on the course.  In the heat we experienced this trip we decided it was not a course we were going to play.  They charged us $50 to play but most that weren't guests of Our Lucaya were paying $65.   We know the pro and just about every employee so that may be why they only charged us $50.  We didn't ask why, just paid it.  Be aware during high season the cost to play will probably be $100-125.  That includes all day greens fees and a cart, although you may get charged for the cart again if you play 27 or 36 holes.  You cannot get all day greens fees using both courses.  If you play them both in the same day you must pay at both.  The all day deal applies only to the course you are playing that day.  

    Royal Oasis Resort and Casino:
    We were in this casino on at least 4 occasions.  Little to say about it that's good.  Employees, for the most part, are still major grouches.  Evidently the major labor troubles they have been experiencing have not gotten any better and the employees seem to love taking it out on guests.  Bad thing to do but that's the truth of the matter in our opinion.  It did NOT help that our luck here was no better than over at the Isle of Capri.  We spent one entire evening over at the million-gallon fresh water beach pool.  That is really gorgeous and we met some US Marine friends of ours who, by pure coincidence, were vacationing on the island while we were there.  We watched a native show performed right at the beach and had a really good time.  This resort still will not accept cash except in the casino.  I think that sucks, and if reports of credit card charges being added to bills paid by card are increasing  (we haven't experienced that) it adds to whatever you are paying for food and drink here.  The Crowne Plaza, and remember this is pre-hurricanes, is still beautifully done.  The lobby and lobby lounge are extremely positive experiences as you enter the hotel.  I certainly hope they rebuild as well as they had built it in the first place during renovations a couple of years ago.  We did not see much of the Crowne Plaza Country Club, or whatever they are calling it now, but did walk through it.  They were not finished with renovating the lobby when we were there in February but that is now done.  Check in is now more toward John B's than it was and the original lobby and check-in area is shops and various desk areas for tour operators, etc.   All in all, even though the no-cash thing really ticks me off, next to Our Lucaya this is the place I'd recommend to people looking for a place to stay.  I must say that million-gallon beach pool goes a long way to negating the fact they are not on a beach.  They do shuttle people to Xanadu Beach but I personally do not think that can compare to the beach at Port Lucaya.  If you must have a beach and are staying here I say take a cab, jitney, or your rental car and go to the beach at Our Lucaya or the continuation of the beach that runs over a mile down past Coral Beach.  

    This n That:
    We bought phone cards from Batelco this trip.  Hands down this is THE cheapest way to call home.  We bought $20 worth of calls and never can close to using it all.  Gave the card to Janice and Les when we left.  We've used my cell phone, and Verizon does work on the island (or at least does for me), public phones, and on one really dumb occasion a hotel room phone.  None come close to the savings using a Batelco phone card.  You can get them at any Batelco office and some other locations.  We got ours at the Batelco office next to the Winn Dixie in the Lucaya area.  I took a trip over to Xanadu when Nancy was in the shower one evening just to check it out.  The resort was still in need of renovations.  You could see just about the entire first floor of the high rise was in a state of disrepair and housed many construction materials.  We did not see evidence these materials were being used.  They were there in nearly an identical manner when we were there in February.  The beach was in good shape, but there is a large area of some type of incomplete construction right next to it that LOOKS like a beach and it's really scummy looking.  No doubt this is at least part of the reason some people describe the beach as dirty and poorly maintained.  It is not, but that crap next to it probably displeases many people.  I saw a fairly large group of men staying at the resort.  Someone described people staying at the Xanadu recently as looking like a bunch of thugs.  I don't know who these folks were but suspect they were Europeans from one or more of the Slovakian Eastern European countries.  They certainly spoke a language that sounded Slovakian.  Don't know if they were just there on vacation or what.  I did not, however, think they looked like thugs.  I still won't recommend this place to anyone that can afford to stay elsewhere.  It is better than I've seen it in the past but still not an ideal place unless you are looking for a real deal and don't mind being away from the action.  The pool was open this time.  It wasn't when I was last there.  The pool bar also had the appearance of much use, and that bar hadn't been opened for some time when I was there in the past.  This place has a ways to go before it gets back to its famous Howard Hughes heyday.  

   Trip Highlight:
    On Monday evening, our last on the island, we had the great fortune of being invited to the home of the Trecos, Janice, Les, Brian, and Adam.  Not to mention Cookie and Toby (who did NOT bark at me very much).  Their house is virtually brand new and in a sub-division not far from the Royal Oasis/International Bazaar complex.  Janice knew in advance that Nancy and I are very basic eaters.  Steak and potatoes is pretty much our forte.  Nancy was scared to death Janice was going to cook up a Bahamian delicacy she wouldn't eat.  :-))  I was just a little concerned that there would be Conch involved.  I know most love it, but I have no use for it.  We had great pork chops and the trimmings.  After a tour of the house we ended up on the patio behind the house.  Les explained how they were still planning quite a bit of landscaping and much work had been done to clear rocks and other debris from what will be their yard.   Thankfully I do not believe they had completed that before being hit by Frances and Jeanne.  They did suffer damages and I am sure they are working hard to get their place back to where they want it to be.  Both, especially Les, were extremely proud to finally have their own home, and we were delighted to have been invited and share an evening with them.   Both Brian and Adam were great hosts as well.  Brian is a great kid and Adam better be careful.  This guy is 4 years old and already hitting on any lady within his range, and successfully.  Keep a close eye on him Janice!  It was easily the most relaxing evening on our trip.  Thanks Janice and Les, we hope to do it again.   

Well, that's all I can think of right now.  If I forgot something I'll come back some other time and add it.  I'll be posting this on my web site and please remember that most of it was written without regard to any damages some of these places may have experienced during Frances/Jeanne.  Hope it helps some that read it.

Regards, Danny