Petit St. Vincent

We just got back from a vacation in Petit St. Vincent. PSV is one of our favorite spots -- this is the fourth time we've gone back there. It's a small private island down in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, just north of Grenada. You have to =really= want to get away to make the trip -- its 3 flights (DC to Miami to Barbados to Union Island) plus a boat ride (Union to PSV) and it takes 12+ hours door-to-door.

But boy do we think the trip is worth it! Talk about understated elegance and relaxation. There are only 22 cottages on the island and there are no phones or TVs or radios. To get the attention of the staff, you raise a little yellow flag. If you don't want to be disturbed put up the red flag and nobody will bother you.

Our typical day at PSV is nothing but easy. We wake with the sunrise at 6:30 AM to find a coffee jug and cups sitting outside the door to our cottage. After that, an early morning walk clears the cobwebs and is followed by breakfast in the cottage. [Paul tried the kippered fish this time around and wasn't pleased -- too fishy. He stuck with eggs, cereal or French toast for the rest of the trip].

After breakfast comes the tough part -- you need to decide what to do with the rest of the day. Options include: walk down to the beach and lie in the shade watching the waves go by; a little yoga; a massage; or just sitting at your cottage and reading. Along the way someone will bring you lunch and, if you want, afternoon tea. The biggest challenge is rousing yourself to shower, get dressed and go down to the pavilion for pre-dinner drinks and dinner under the stars.

This trip was special for us for a couple of reasons. First, we had the great fortune to overlap for one night with our (step)son and daughter-in-law, Mike and Debbie. It was their 20th anniversary and, having heard about the place from us so many times they had, independently, decided to go and see it for themselves. When we got there, it was their last night on the island and we had a chance to share our enjoyment of it with them.

To make the trip better (if that is possible) we had also planned to share the island with a few of our friends, Rodger and Ann. They, in turn, invited Trudy and Doug, who brought along Larry and Lydia. By the time we were done, there were 4 couples on the island who knew each other. That made for pleasant evenings -- we would gather for drinks to watch the sun go down before transitioning to dinner together. It was the right balance of isolation and privacy during the days, with good friends and conversation in the evening.

Of course, all was not perfect on the trip (how could it ever be). Katy banged up her foot and that made it harder for her to get around some. And, as usual, we just can't seem to ever find a flight on American Airlines that is not problematic. Of the 4 flights we had on AA, the results were (in order): overweight/overbooked; delayed; delayed (3+ hours); and canceled. Can't do much "better" than that.