About Kristi

I'm Kristi Rhodes, a writer, a snorkeler and love everything tropical.

Tropical Trip Alert – Relax and Explore Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Abaco, Bahamas

My friend went on this fabulous vacation, to Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Bahamas.  She shared her how-to-get-there, what-to-do secrets. Hope it will help with your travel plans or give you a new little tropical adventure to add to your bucket list.

1.  How do you get to Hope Town, Elbow Cay, Abaco, Bahamas?

*Flight and ferry ride.

Taking off…

It’s only a 45-minute flight from Florida.  She, her husband and teenage son hopped on a plane in West Palm Beach, and flew to Marsh Harbor, Abaco Islands, Bahamas.    For some of us, non-Floridians, I looked at the flight prices from Hartford, CT. to Marsh Harbor during July, 2012 and they ran in the $600 range, although, that was my first glance at Travelocity and I didn’t shop around.

Once you arrive in Marsh Harbor, she said it was a short taxi ride to the dock where you wait for the next ferry to Hope Town.  She rode the ferry with a crowd of dressed-up local girls and their mothers going for tea at the Hope Town Harbour Lodge.

 

Ferry at Hope Town Harbor Lodge Photograph courtesy of Wendy Cawley Maus©

The Marsh Harbor ferry leaves every couple of hours and takes about twenty minutes to get to Hope Town. To get the latest information, the website for the ferry is http://www.go-abacos.com/travel/fersch.html#anchor63038.

 

 2.  Where’d they stay? 

 *Hope Town Harbour Lodge.

The ferry took them right to the Hope Town Harbour Lodge. It used to be an old Captain’s House and is a beautiful lodge with lush grounds.  The staff were all very friendly.  There lodge also has a lovely pool area with a bar you can see above in the photo.  A path through the gardens leads to the beach, and fun snorkeling. Check out their website for more information www.hopetownlodgecom.

In case they are booked up, or if you’d like to try something different, there are other hotels, as well as houses to rent.

 

How did she get around? 

 *Walk, golf cart and boat (bicycles rentals were also available)

Their family rented a golf cart for one day and used it to go and visit Tahiti Beach, on the other end of Elbow Cay.  My friend described it as beautiful, with a few people, and boats pulling up, quiet and relaxing.  They snorkeled there also.

Golf cart currently run around $40 for a day or $240 a week during the off-season according to their ads.

They also spent a couple of days renting a boat.  The boats rent for a day or a week and the costs depend on how many days you rent.  NOTE: This family owns their own boat and are accustomed to working with boats and navigation.

My adventurous friend said the best thing about renting the boat was the ability to island hop.  Their family enjoyed Man-O-War Cay where they watched the Albury Brothers Boat Company make boats and enjoyed goodies made from a bakery that was located in the baker’s own home.  She also browsed through the Albury Sail Shop and purchased a beautiful purse that had a tag that read:  Made by Mrs. Norman Albury, Sailmaker, Man-O-War Cay.

 

Man-O-War Sign   Photograph by Wendy Cawley Maus ©

 

She also raved about visiting Great Guana Cay and finding a really great spot for lunch, Nipper’s. They walked down a path past a rusted piece of construction equipment with graffiti all over it, walked a little further and found Nipper’s.  She said you could spend the day there, great food, a bar, gift shop, beach where you can snorkel and a pool. Nipper’s website even includes videos www.nippersbar.com. Note:  Afternoons are great for families, but you may want to avoid Sunday and holiday adult parties if visiting with children.

Nipper’s at Great Guana Cay Photograph courtesy of Wendy Cawley Maus©

 

The other island hop treasure they found was on Little Harbour, Abaco, a place called Pete’s Pub and Gallery.  She said it was the quintessential beach bar, sandy floor great food, and wonderful atmosphere. Their website is www.petespubandgallery.com.

 

Pete’s Pub and Gallery, Little Harbour, Photograph courtesy of Wendy Cawley Maus©

 

What’d you eat?

*Their favorite was:

*Mom…Souse,  soup that was filled with meat and veggies 

*Dad…Fried fresh fish sandwiches and conch fritters. 

*Teenaged son…Mac and cheese pies, baked macaroni and cheese with             peppers to make it spicy, then baked and cut into squares.

That said, she still had many, many foodie stories that she gushed about from her trip, whether it be from the banana bread you could smell from outside Vern’s to breakfasts to Capt’n Jacks for lunch (could walk or take boat) – sit outside right on the water.  For dinner they took the golf cart to Sea Spray Resort and Marina.  She said it had a fun bar and restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, as well as a great band playing for entertainment and dancing. You can see more about them at www.seasprayresort.com

 

What were the other cool, sights you enjoyed?

 *Hope Town Light or Elbow Reef Lighthouse

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Hope T own Light, Photograph courtesy of  Wendy Cawley Maus©

*Snorkeling and seeing the wonderful sea creatures

*The beautiful crystal clear water.

*Architecture – New England style houses

 

Typical Hope Town House and Street, Photograph courtesy of  Wendy Cawley Maus©

What was the vibe of Hope Town? 

 *Relaxing, pretty quiet, friendly, laid back.


Need additional information?

 *For Overall Hope Town information:  www.hopetown.com

 *For a webcam current shot of the beach there, go to: www.rockybay.com/webcam_page.htm

 

I hope this either gave you a relaxing tropical coffee break, a mental mini-vacation to the Bahamas or prepared you for a real trip the Islands.

Be sure to double-check all of the information before your departure in case of changing circumstances.

What tropical trip was your favorite?  What made it so special?  Let us know in the comments so we can add it to our tropical bucket list:)

Thanks for stopping by~
Kristi

Please Respect Copyright

Thanks for visiting my blog. All work is copyright of the author/artist, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to put anything from this site on your website please quote the author and provide a link back to this blog. All rights reserved.
© Kristi Rhodes 2012

 

5 Top Snorkeling Videos

Welcome!  Today, we’re visiting the top 5 snorkeling videos.

For all of you snorkel lovers or if you’re just interested in the creatures under-the-sea  these videos will bring you down under (the sea, that is).  These videos are listed in no particular order. Enjoy:)

1. The first video is from ST. ANDREWS STATE PARK, in Panama City, Florida.

My family snorkeled there and we loved it. A sandy beach lined a sheltered cove with rocks that bordered the inlet to snorkel along.

The video just relaxed me. Fun to watch the few fish that led to an amazing school.
**

2. The second video is so cool to me because it stars an OCTOPUS.

How often do we get to see how they move around in their natural environment? I thought it was fascinating.
**

 

3. This third video showcases a SEA TURTLE meeting snorkelers on the Great Barrier Reef.

Oh. My. Gosh.  It is so darned cute. I have only seen turtles a couple of times while snorkeling, so it is fun to me to live vicariously through this video.

**


4. The fourth interesting snorkeling video is from COZUMEL.

It’s fun because it has cool music, takes you from shore to ship to snorkel place and then under the sea. I felt like a passenger on the trip.
**

5. The fifth snorkeling video is from Antigua.

Just looked like a fun adventure I’d love to experience.  Also, at more than 9 minutes long, you can really get lost in the adventure.
**

I hope you enjoyed the snorkeling trips today. Where was your favorite snorkeling adventure?  Let us know in the Comments section.  If you’d like to receive email notice for new posts, there’s a place in the comments box to check.

Thanks so much for visiting Tropical Coffee Break.  Hope to see you next week for a new tropical topic:)

 

Please Respect Copyright

Thanks for visiting my blog. All work is copyright of the author/artist, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to put anything from this site on your website please quote the author and provide a link back to this blog. All rights reserved.
© Kristi Rhodes 2012

Mark Klein’s Famous Fresh Margarita Recipe

Monday, May 21, 2012

WELCOME to Tropical Coffee Break. My name is Kristi Rhodes and I’m writing about all things tropical and sub-tropical.  I hope you will take a break from your day to enjoy tropical views, adventures, recipes, sounds, books, furnishings, creatures or anything else tropical and fun I find.

I thought a TOAST may be in order.  I mean this is my first blog and we need to celebrate such an occasions don’t we?  Well, just in case you don’t have anything to toast with, I’ve included my favorite drink recipe.

My toast to you:

May your day be filled with tropical attitudes, relaxed family-and-friend-filled moments and peaceful minds.

Clink and drink!

Mark Klein’s Famous Fresh Margarita Recipe 

This is my brother’s secret recipe. 

The Finished Recipe
Ahhh….
Non-alcoholic is just as delicious, just omit the hard stuff, maybe increase the sugar

(Just a word from our legal team:  please follow the drinking laws in your state or country and only imbibe if you are of age)

*Makes 3 cups

Ingredients:

1 ½ ounces Tequila (1800 or your favorite)

1 ounce Cointreau or Triple Sec

4 limes, 3 oranges and ½ grapefruit

¼ cup sugar

1 1/2 ounces Tequila (1800 or your favorite)

First, create the…

Fresh Homemade Margarita Mix:

In a small pitcher,

Squeeze 4 limes, 3 oranges and half of a grapefruit

Add ¼ cup sugar

Stir juices and sugar together.

Next,

In a cocktail shaker or pitcher:

Add a handful of ice

Add Tequila and Cointreau

Add Fresh Homemade Margarita Mix

Now…Shake, shake, shake—shake, shake, shake…shake your boo –

Oh sorry.  Lost in a song.

Shake, shake, shake

Next,

Prepare your glasses:

(This step is optional)

Rub a lime wedge all the way around the rim of your glass

Put the lime in the coconut….or something like that

Dip your glass in a plate of salt or sugar

Next,

If serving your Margarita straight up, strain the combined ingredients in the shaker and pour into your salt/sugar rimmed glass.

 If serving on-the-rocks, pour your Margarita over ice in your salt/sugar rimmed glass.

If serving frozen, pour the Margarita into the blender, give it a whirl and then pour into your salt/sugar rimmed glass.

 

Let the party begin…

Clink and slurp.

I’m picturing you right now having fun, drinking your Margaritas with friends. What’s your favorite tropical drink recipe?  Share below in the comments. If you’d like to get updates in your email when new blogs (around once a week) come out, check the box in comments. Come join us for more fun in the tropics.

Until next time, wishing you sunny days and tropical coffee breaks…

 

Please Respect Copyright

Thanks for visiting my blog. All work is copyright of the author/artist, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to put anything from this site on your website please quote the author and provide a link back to this blog. All rights reserved.
© Kristi Rhodes 2012

 

 

Welcome to Tropical Coffee Break where in the time it takes to sip a cup of coffee you can be taken to the tropics and back!

Welcome to Tropical Coffee Break. Thanks for visiting.

Enjoy a minute of tropicality right now.  Watch below and inhale.

Take a peek at our blog, it’s under the tab “Tropical Blog”, next to the “Home” and “About Me” tabs.

Today we’re making a toast to our first blog page and included is…

 Mark Klein’s Famous Fresh Margarita Recipe.

You don’t want to miss it!  Stop by.

If you’d like to receive Tropical Coffee Break new blog posts automatically to your email, be sure to check the box in the comments block that says, “Notify me of new posts by email”.

Thanks so much!

 

Please Respect Copyright

Thanks for visiting my blog. All work is copyright of the author/artist, unless otherwise noted. If you would like to put anything from this site on your website please quote the author and provide a link back to this blog. All rights reserved.
© Kristi Rhodes 2012