Recapping My Time on the Valiant Lady with Atlantis Events

It has been a while since I’ve done one of these blog posts. Much of that is due, in large part, to comfort and familiarity. I’ve just gotten used to and more acclimated to sharing things via Facebook and Instagram – but this post isn’t conducive to either.

Anyway, many have asked me about the cruise my “roommate” and I took in mid-March. The experience was an Atlantis Events charter with Virgin Voyages. The purpose of the trip was to celebrate/recognize us both turning 45 this year. And, for the most part, it was amazing.

We ported out of San Juan, Puerto Rico – which was my first time visiting there as well. And we stopped in Aruba, Curaçao, Martinique, and St. Kitts.

There was another reason for the trip, beyond it being our birthdays. I have only ever travelled out of the United States once in my life and that was for our honeymoon to the Bahamas. My desire is to do more international travel and experience other cultures outside of the continental United States. This trip provided that opportunity.

Here are a few highlights. 

Aruba

We arrived in Aruba on March 18 at about 8 a.m. local time. What we did not know was that it was their national day also known as Flag Day. We booked a late afternoon excursion – a beach bar hop – which allowed us the opportunity to mix and mingle with locals celebrating their national holiday. We were able to experience the antique car show that happens during the holiday, as well as a motorcycle ride on the way to our stops.

The visit and the experience made an unexpected impression that set the tone for the rest of the vacation. I did not know, at the time, that this stop would be the one to stick to me more than any of the other stops.

Curaçao

The next day, we stopped in Curaçao. I signed us up for a tour of the island’s capital. Now, let me be clear, I had no idea what we were signing up for. The Taste of Curaçao had me under the impression that the excursion would be something more along the lines of a street festival with food and vendors and such. No, this was a literal historical tour around the capital city. Don’t get me wrong, it was informative and enlightening, and I learned a lot about the island, its history, and its people.

We did get the chance to visit their distillery where we had a chance to taste some Curaçao liqueur and we had lunch at a local restaurant. THE FOOD WAS GOOD YA’LL and authentic.

It was a beautiful day and our guide, whom we were instructed to call Mama, was a joy. She also dropped several pearls of wisdom during the excursion. One that stood out to me (that I was sure to jot down in the moment) was, “Be grateful!” And it was a word I needed to hear in the moment. I was in a mood at the start of the excursion — I won’t get into the reasons why — but those words really spoke to me and pulled me out of the funk. It was clear to me that God was speaking in that moment. #Godknows

Martinique 

We had some of the best food during the weeklong trip during this stop.

For this stop, I booked a Catamaran boat ride. It was my “roommate’s” official birthday. Neither of us had ever had an experience like this. The excursion guides took us to a specific area in South Martinique for snorkeling. We would have lunch on the boat and then move to another area known for sea turtle spotting before returning to the cruise ship. What I did not anticipate was his resistance to getting in the water. But, we had a good time, nonetheless.

While others on the excursion enjoyed snorkeling, we stayed on the boat and enjoyed our guides who are natives to Martinique. One of the crew members prepared the lunch — grilled chicken, steamed fish steaks, rice with bananas and avocado, a cabbage and cantaloupe and tomatoes salad, fresh fruit, and bread cake. The food was amazing. Another crew member made sure our cups stayed full. He also managed the music on the boat. Ya’ll, they played everything from Donna Summers and Whitney Houston, to Luther Vandross, Earth Wiind & Fire, to Anita Ward and other great classics. This experience was a needed reprieve from what we were getting on the cruise ship during the themed parties (which was 90% techno). I even got to see a sea turtle – even though it wasn’t that up close.

We left that experience satisfied!

St Kitts

I was more conscious of my Blackness during this trip than I have been in quite some time. Being in the “minority,” if you will, is not something foreign to me. But it has been quite some time since my “racial” identity was as obvious to me as it was on this trip. St. Kitts is part of the reason why.

When we arrived, we decided to check out the shops and vendors that occupied the port. Almost immediately, we were met with locals offering all sorts of tours around the island. It was slightly overwhelming, at first. We had not experienced such intensity on the other islands and during the other stops.

But it did not take me long to adjust. I realized that many of them make their living via tourism. Their hustle was/is their way of life. The experience left me with so many questions. I wondered about their way of life, their families, and their everyday experiences. I immediately thought about my own privilege, which led me to think about the many times I have heard others talk about how blessed they are as if their privileges made them more blessed than my diasporic sibling of St. Kitts. Am I more blessed because my life isn’t like theirs? Are any of us? And what does it mean to suggest because I live a privileged life that it somehow means, or suggests, I am blessed and they aren’t?

I couldn’t help but see the many stark differences and realities. I couldn’t help but consider how I was there to consume their culture and then leave. This became even more prevalent for me during our excursion – which was a cooking class led by one of the local restaurateurs who is a native of Curaçao.

The cooking class was a great time, however — of course — and the food was amazing. I also learned that “jerk” is not a seasoning, its a technique! But the experience with the locals at the port has stuck to me.

What a gift it was to have this opportunity.

Was it perfect? Not in the least. I have some critiques overall, inspired by some of the things I have already mentioned (music during the many theme parties — which is an Atlantis Events issue), as well as difficulties due to my dietary restrictions at most of the “specialty” restaurants (they placed a lot of emphasis on food allergies, but had never heard of digestive restrictions like diverticulosis, etc. — which was a Virgin Voyages issue).

With that said, I am open to doing another Atlantis Events cruise AND another cruise with Virgin Voyages.