Hello everyone, and happy Monday! I apologize for being somewhat absent over the past week or so. I have been busy BUYING A HOUSE on St. John! How amazing is that??! I was convinced that I would be a lifelong renter, so to say I’m excited is an understatement. I’ll have more on this later this week. 🙂
I was perusing TripAdvisor yesterday when I saw a question regarding National Park passport stamps. In case you are unaware, the National Park Service sells a passport book for all of its National Parks. It’s similar to a regular passport, but rather than getting it stamped when you visit a new country, you get it stamped when you visit a new National Park. It’s pretty cool.
You can purchase a National Park passport book on Amazon. Just click the link below.
The stamp for the Virgin Islands National Park is located at the Visitor Center in Cruz Bay. The Visitor Center is currently getting a little makeover and its hours are limited to 8:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The good news is that the stamp is located outside of the main entrance, so it is available 24/7.
The stamp is located at the top of this ramp.The stamp is located outside, so it is available 24/7.
There are actually two stamps for the US Virgin Islands. One is for the Virgin Islands National Park and the second is for the Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument. So do not forget to stamp both.
Clearly I took this pic awhile ago 🙂
So there you have it. Some news you can actually use today!
Image credit: Soggy Dollar Bar, home of the original Painkiller
I think it’s pretty safe to say that the Painkiller is one of the most popular, if not the most popular, drinks on the island. It’s a sweet concoction of orange juice, pineapple juice, a coconut mixer, and, of course, a lot of rum. Fresh nutmeg is typically grated on top, and voila! You have yourself the perfect island drink.
I get asked quite often how to make a Painkiller. I am by no means a bartender, so I typically defer to my other half, The Mike Hedy, who bartends over at The Beach Bar in Cruz Bay. (Feel free to click this link to check out The Beach Bar’s bar webcam. You can watch him work tonight if you’re bored! haha) The Beach Bar keeps their recipe under wraps, but the bar that invented this famous island drink has just released the original recipe.
Soggy Dollar Bar, a great little spot located over in Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands, shared its recipe with Forbes magazine in an article published last week. This is a pretty big deal in my opinion, considering that Soggy Dollar invented the Painkiller drink back in the 1970s. So here it is, folks. The moment you’ve all been waiting for… Drum roll, please!
How to Make a Painkiller, according to Soggy Dollar Bar
Ingredients:
2 oz dark rum
1 oz Coco Lopez
1 oz pineapple juice
2 oz orange juice
Freshly grated Grenadian nutmeg
Optional: Pineapple wedge or orange wheel for garnish
Directions:
Directions:
Fill a 12-ounce glass with ice
Combine rum, Coco Lopez, pineapple, and orange juice.
Pour over ice
Garnish with freshly grated Grenadian nutmeg
Optional Direction #5:
If it’s winter, crank the heat. If it’s summer, sit out in the sun. Perhaps put Soggy Dollar’s webcam on your TV, and enjoy.
Always drink responsibly. Cheers!
Want to check out The Beach Bar and Soggy Dollar’s webcams? Visit www.explorestj.com/webcams to view these and more than 20 other live-streaming webcams from the Virgin Islands.
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Get to know St. John. Visit beautiful beaches & centuries-old plantations. Perhaps stop at a tiki bar or two. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor. 2023 & 2022 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Winner. Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour
Let’s help these students get much-needed school supplies! (Image from the 2022-2023 school year)
For those of you on social media, you may have seen the recent Clear the List movement. Clear the List is an initiative created to help teachers receive much-needed school supplies throughout the country. Today I’d like to help the teachers at Julius E. Sprauve School (JESS) clear their lists.
JESS is the only public elementary school in St. John. (Children attending public high school take the ferry over to St. Thomas each day.) JESS educates children from pre-k through 8th grade, and there are currently 218 children attending. Most teachers purchase their own classroom supplies, which can be quite pricey, so I am hoping some of you can pitch in and help. The school is planting a garden again this year, so Ms. Munnelly is looking for assistance purchasing items for that.
Julie King, a former JESS parent and community organizer, is spearheading the Clear the List movement once again. You can help for as little as $3.99 if you’d like to purchase a mouse pad. The priciest items on the list are much-needed ink cartridges, which cost $449 for a four-pack. Items also needed are pencils, bulletin board paper, a carpet for the kindergarteners, and more.
When you check out after adding something from the Amazon Wish List to your cart, you will see an option for Julie King’s Gift Registry under your addresses. Click that option, please. You can also send it directly to Julie King at PO Box 1469, St. John, VI 00831.
Thank you everyone for helping our community with this. It is so appreciated. The teachers received a ton of support last year. Let’s do it again!
Some of the supplies donated for the 2022-2023 school year.
Looking to take a St. John island tour?
Get to know St. John. Visit beautiful beaches & centuries-old plantations. Perhaps stop at a tiki bar or two. Full & half days available. Rated “Excellent” on TripAdvisor. 2023 & 2022 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Winner. Learn more here –> www.explorestj.com/tour
Hello everyone, and happy Monday. I apologize for posting super late today, but I am in the States recovering from a weekend-long family reunion. There are a few things going on that I wanted to share with all of you, so here we go!
Slow season has officially arrived! The beaches are quiet, and several restaurants have begun to close. The Tap Room, one of my favorite spots over at Mongoose Junction, just announced that its summer hours are officially in effect. They will now open at noon and will serve food until 8:30 p.m. The bar will stay open until 9:30 p.m.
Cool down with my Papa ExploreSTJ’s favorite beer at The Tap Room!
Our friends at North Shore Deli, another one of my favorite spots over in Mongoose Junction, have also decided to close this year, but just for a week. They will be closed between September 23rd and October 1st.
It is H-O-T on island from what I hear! The Virgin Islands National Park has been posting online that the Virgin Islands continues to be under an excessive heat warning. Luckily, we have two new air-conditioned spots on island to help beat the heat.
Cap’s Place, the bar that’s located across from the Post Office and Uncle Joe’s BBQ in Cruz Bay, is now air-conditioned. Another random fact: Cap’s Place has some of the coldest beers on island. So do yourself a favor and swing by to cool down. Don’t forget to grab a lotto ticket while you’re there.
Speaking of cold beer, another great spot is Tony’s Kitchen food truck on Centerline Road. It’s located at the Route 104 (Gifft Hill Road) intersection. Ms. Angie literally keeps her beer in an ice cooler. It doesn’t get much colder than that!
And lastly, our friends over at The Upstairs just opened The Downstairs, which is located downstairs from The Upstairs (appropriately named, right??!). The Downstairs is fully-air conditioned and looks quite cozy from the pics my friends have shared with me. Check out a couple of pics:
There’s your news for today, folks. Is it earth-shattering? Nope. But is it important to know where to cool down and where to grab a cold beer? Absolutely!
Obviously, you can’t buy sand from Cinnamon Bay (pictured here). I simply needed a sand picture for this story. 🙂
It’s slow season in the Virgin Islands, so there isn’t a ton going on right now. And because of that, we’re talking about sand today.
The Virgin Islands Port Authority announced yesterday that it plans to sell up to 520 cubic yards of “beach-quality” sand. Think about it… You can purchase real Virgin Islands sand and create your own beach in your backyard! Or in your basement! The possibilities are endless! 😂 😂
The sand will become available following the Port Authority’s dredging activities that are planned for later this year. The sand will be sold to the highest bidder. The winner will have to pick the sand up from the barge dock in Red Hook on St. Thomas. How many suitcases of sand does it take to create a personal beach???
Here are the official terms: (Scroll down to skip the official stuff and read about our contest.)
The Virgin Islands Port Authority (the “Authority” or “VIPA”) intends to sell up to 520 cubic yards (cy) of beach quality sand, which will be available for pick up from the Urman Victor Fredericks Marine Terminal – Barge Dock (“Red Hook Marine Terminal”) during its maintenance dredging activities scheduled for later this year. The Authority’s interpretation of the soil testing reports, that is included in the sales package, is that the sand is beach-quality in nature, but the Authority does not guarantee the suitability of use for or all of the up to 520 cy of material which may be available. The sand material will be sold ‘as-is’ to the bidder which offers the highest unit price per cy (referred to as ‘preferred bidder’). Prospective buyers may submit their bids for the purchase of the sand by no later than August 25, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. through the Authority’s e-Procurement site at https://viportbids.ionwave.net.
Interested buyers may view and download the full package through the Authority’s e-Procurement site at https://viportbids.ionwave.net.
The Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids; to waive any informality or to accept any bid deemed to be in the best interest of the Authority.
Contest time! I know many of you have St. John-themed bars in your backyards and rooms in your homes, and I want to see them! Please email me your St. John room, yard, bar, etc. The winner will receive a gift certificate to The Beach Bar, which can be used in person or to purchase merchandise online! Please email your submissions to jenn@explorestj.com. Good luck! I can’t wait to see your pics!
Did you know that there are more than 20 live-streaming webcams around St. John? You can watch people come and go at the ferry dock with the St. John Spice Cam. You can see what’s happening on Cruz Bay beach with The Beach Bar’s beach cam, or you can watch the sunset with Coconut Coast Studios and The Windmill Bar’s webcams. Want to check out the beautiful views from several villas including Mare Blu in Rendezvous or Villa Circe out in Coral Bay? You can do that too! Take a few minutes to enjoy the beautiful views from St. John.
