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| The crowd begins to arrive for Monday Movie Night at Honeymoon Beach, Water Island, USVI. |
Somehow,
it seems fitting that where Benjamin
Button grew younger with time, we enjoyed the beach version of a drive-in
movie, complete with vintage commercials and Ben and Jerry cartoons.
Smallest
of the USVI, at only 2½
miles long and 1 mile wide, Water Island, is a sweetly twisted picture of
nostalgia, the Leave It to
Beaver version, not the Disney-fied version. It’s the quieter side of the
US Virgin Islands (USVI), accessible only by boat, a mere ½ mile from St.
Thomas, where 1.2 million
cruise ship passengers land annually, and the two biggest cruise ships in
the world, Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the
Seas, regularly dock. Water Island does not have taxis,
public transportation, gas stations, hotels, shops or a main town. Outside a simple a beach bar and
outdoor beach BBQ Honeymoon Bay, there are no restaurants.
Hard
to believe it’s the same site mobbed by hordes of young, buff spring breakers
the previous night, but that’s another post.
Water
Island’s Honeymoon Beach is an idyllic spot, clear water, gently sloped
powerdery-soft sand beach, fringed with picture-perfect coconut palms, rumored
to be planted by the Benjamin Button movie crew. Easily 20 sailboats were tucked into this small bay when we
dinghied in. It’s a wonderful place to enjoy the beach, hiking, sunsets over
the water and … Monday Movie Night!
While
Parental Guidance isn’t
something we’d rush to the theaters and open our wallets to see, it was perfect
for free family-friendly Monday Movie Night on the beach. It was fun seeing Bette Midler back on
screen, in this role as a subtle drama queen grammy.
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| Golf Carts! Water Island’s “drive in” vehicle of choice for movie watchers. |
The
screen was a sheet stretched between two palm trees. Chairs were plastic stackables, set up in a semicircle, with
locals lining the front with blankets, beach towels and the rear with… golf
carts! Golf carts are the primary
transportation on Water Island, and they’re everywhere. Just like a drive-in, only better! Of course, no movie “theater” would be
complete without popcorn, and the movie sponsors sold that, burgers and more.
We
watched the sun set, settled into our comfy chairs-in-a-bag, deeted ourselves
up (sigh… there are mosquitos and no-see-ums in paradise, too), dug out feet
into the sand, and enjoyed. Who
needs high fidelity sound and 3-D effects when you’re on a Caribbean beach with
the local friendly community? The
best part isn’t watching what’s on the screen; it’s just being there.
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| Honeymoon Bay… a popular spot for cruisers. |
Water
Island will remain a fond memory long after the grains of sand we brought with
us are swept away.
I just found your blog. I am so glad to see this post about Honeymoon Beach. In December my husband and I chartered with Fury Charters and renewed our vows. What we told the Captain was he could go anywhere he thought would be nice. He anchored off of Honeymoon Beach for the ceremony and told us about the movie nights. We saw a few sea turtles as well.
ReplyDeleteChristina Oesterwind what a lovely and appropriate spot to renew your vows!
ReplyDeleteWhat movie did you see (if you remember)?
Yes, it's nice to see sea turtles; sign of clean water and a healthy ecosystem. Oh, and they're cute in a quirky way, too.
About a week ago we notice dolphins in Gregory Channel. the swift running ocean stream between Water and St. Thomas Islands. I was excited -- it had been a while since I've seen them sailing.
FYI -- wil be doing another post on Water Island soon.