Eliot comes to visit

Everyone knows that having visitors makes you do all the touristy things in the place that you live that you never have time to do because you live there. I didn't go to the top of the Empire State Building until about three years ago (with a friend who was new to the city), and I'm pretty sure I've never seen the Statue of Liberty from a distance closer than the BQE. (Although, over the past few years, my list of attractions for friends coming to New York included more about the best places for doughnuts and where to find bars that have both good beer and video games than any sort of cultural or historical landmarks...so I'll probably never get to touch Lady Liberty, even if friends are in town.)  The comparison of New York to St. Kitts doesn't go too far, though, because there isn't much to do here besides go to the beach and pay hugely inflated sums for mediocre food.  Leah usually doesn't have time to go to the beach, and we're both too cheap and yes - too snobby, I guess - to not make all of our own meals, but our friend Eliot came to visit this past week, so we acted a little like we were on vacation, too.

There was a ton of beach-going, mostly just for me and Eliot, because Leah was at school.  We started off the beach trips with a ferry ride to Nevis, and unfortunately, we got stuck with the dumpy, smelly ferry that made me think I was on some sort of hidden camera commercial for Dramamine:

this is a flattering picture of the Mark Twain himself. In person he is  even shabbier.

view out the window - oof, so nauseating

Once we arrived at the beach on Nevis, though, everything was instantly better. I righted my sick stomach with a "killer bee", the signature drink from the much talked-about bar on the beach, an amazingly alcoholic passion-fruity rum punch with a dash of bitters and grated nutmeg. I had to wait before going swimming because I was crunked. Eliot is better than me at drinking (he's English, after all), and he set off to use his newly purchased snorkel and fins:

While I waited to sober up I tried to take arty pictures of the beach:

this was when He carried me

The ferry back was open-air, much more pleasant. We left just in time to see the sunset on the water, and I got to appreciate it with the new friend I made on board, a middle-aged man from Texas with a timeshare at the Marriott who told me all about his three grown sons.  So I was still a little drunk, maybe.

There was a big soccer game on Friday, a World Cup qualifier between St. Kitts and Canada. I've never been to a real soccer game - match? I don't know. Anyway, it was pretty neat! I love a sporting event; everyone is so excited - wearing the colors and standing to shout things! The concession stand was also noteworthy - what seemed like a family brought their deep fryer, portable electric range with skillet, and toaster oven and were frying chicken wings and kingfish fillets and johnny cakes (which are like hush puppies), and for really cheap, too. There was a guy selling boiled peanuts up and down the stands, too, but by the time I saw him, Leah and Eliot knew I had visited the concession family twice already, and I do have some amount of shame. 

this is blurry, but i'm putting it in here anyway because HOLY SHIT. 

And for his final day here, we took Eliot all the way around the island and stopped at a fancy restaurant on what was an old sugar plantation. The food was actually really good, and the grounds are so beautiful, with gorgeous views out onto the Atlantic.  There's a short trail through the rainforest on the property, too.

whoa. 

cheeseburger in paradise.

eliot took this picture - see the reflection of the pool under the arch there?

there were anoles everywhere - Leah was thrilled and kept repeating, "you guys- you guys - there are lizards everywhere! oh my god there are lizards everywhere." seriously, like she was on a loop.

many of these trees are mango trees, so there were thousands of mango pits scattered on the ground.

Thanks, Eliot, for visiting - and for letting us feel like we were on vacation with you!