Anguilla: Rendezvous Bay & Other Adventures

Meads Bay, seen from Ocean Echo

I've compressed two days' worth of adventures here--largely because I forgot to write up our visit to Ocean Echo in my last post.  Not because it was a forgettable time, but because I forgot to take notes and I've been blogging in a hurry to make much of time.

Interior of Ocean Echo, looking back from our table at sand's edge.

The main reason that we stopped in here for lunch was because we heard that Andrea from Mango's worked there for lunch and we think she's great.  The place was pretty quiet--there was only one other table during our visit--but I cannot understand why. The menu was extensive and reasonably priced for lunch, the view was lovely, and the surroundings were serene.  It's a really nice place, but those folks walking the beach seemed to pass it right by on their way to Blanchards Beach Shack (a place I also like, but they're too different to really compare).

At Ocean Echo

We eventually settled on the club sandwich with egg (DH) and the fish burger (me) and tucked in, along with our iced teas. Both were excellent and of ample proportion:

After we finished eating, we asked Andrea if she had time to chat for a bit, so she regaled us with stories: about herself, her family, the island, and back in the days when she'd go to Bermuda for the summers to work during their high season.  She reads a lot, too, so we talked about books, which naturally makes my heart glad.

On Sunday we decided to have breakfast at Geraud's.  Since they open later on Sundays, we figured that getting there an hour after opening could still net us the choicest pastries.  We were wrong!  That's okay, though, as we decided to order off of their chalkboard menu.   I was feeling quite peckish, so I ordered the breakfast BLT with guacamole and DH ordered some poached eggs and English muffins, and we both ordered an iced decaf latte. His was about what we expected, but my order was huge!  At half its size, it would have been a good value at $6.50 (US), but now I had some leftovers to take home with me. It was really excellent, too. We sat and lingered there over our books and food for about an hour before packing up for the beach.

The shady oasis at Geraud's

Our iced lattes, complete with cup of extra ice for the heat--a very nice touch!

My breakfast BLT.  Look at those tomatoes!

We'd decided to spend the afternoon at Rendezvous Bay, a beach which didn't enthrall me on our first visit, but which has decidedly grown on me.  I'd love to stay there one day, but the kind of accommodations we like in a price bracket we're prepared to pay simply do not exist there at this time. We took our beach chairs, courtesy of Caribella, and set up under the palms in front of Anguilla Great House.  It was very breezy and comfortable there and I got a good chunk read in my book before a large catamaran from St. Martin motored in and brought everybody ashore. DH and I exchanged groans and contemplated moving our chairs, but they weren't the loud, boorish group that we'd been gritting our teeth against, so we stayed put for another couple of hours.

Looking east on Rendezvouz

Looking west on Rendezvous

Around 3:00 we packed up and drove to The Place, farther up the beach. Yes, we could have walked, but we couldn't tell from our spot in front of Anguilla Great House whether they were open or not, and we didn't want to waste time walk in the heat if were just going to have to turn around and head back to our chairs. We could see the yellow umbrellas and chairs set out on the beach, but since none of the umbrellas were open and we didn't see any people walking down to the water from there, we couldn't tell.

DH posing with the menu

Well, let me just say that after only one visit, I can safely make the claim that The Place might turn out to be my favorite spot on the island for spending an afternoon. Ample shade, good breeze, a simply gorgeous stretch of beach with beautiful views to St. Martin, comfortable chairs, and even a daybed or two. I was smitten.  I'm sure it had nothing at all to do with the charming and handsome Dave, who took great care of us that day.

My splendid banana drink

 We weren't at all hungry after our hearty breakfast at Geraud's, but boy, oh boy, were we ever thirsty. When I told him that I'd like something cold, rummy, and not too sweet, Dave created a rather refreshing frozen banana daiquiri with nothing but real banana, rum, Cointreau, and lime juice. One clearly wasn't enough, but the third one might have been a mistake, and it required DH to drive home.

Plenty o' shade

A group of five friends vacationing on St. Maarten arrived not long after we got our first drinks, so we chatted with them for a while.  They thought Anguilla was beautiful and were having a grand time on their day trip, but they concluded that Anguilla might not be the best fit for them for a longer vacation.

Next time we go to The Place, we're sitting right here!

I wandered around and made a few photographs, then went for a brief swim before heading out. I was disappointed to learn that during the slow season that The Place is closed Mon, Tues, and Wed, so now I will have to wait a few more days to go back.  

Coming up next: book reviews, trip to Picante, Shoal Bay East, and possibly a visit to AARF.

Beach in front of The Place, looking east