TCI Fish Fry + Meals in Paradise

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Every Thursday night, Provo is rocking from 5:30pm-9:30pm with food, music and entertainment in Bright (Children’s) Park. Local restaurants set up booths serving lobster, conch salad, crab ‘n rice, mac ‘n cheese and local island corn.  Many locals attend this event every Thursday as well as tourists.  Each week a new band takes the stage to get the party started.  The week T.W.O. attended there was a DJ that played, mixing up some dance tunes for us to dance to…. “Slide to the Left, Slide to the Right, Criss Cross”  We got down and boogied! (Our mom even got pulled on staged since she was celebrating a birthday!)  Later in the night “Henry the Conch” made his appearance with the Island Band.  It was one heck of a parade! T.W.O. highly recommends going to the Fish Fry – – It is well worth it! Don’t forget to grab your coconut water and rum drink! It’s  delicious!!!

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 As you know, T.W.O. loves to cook and enjoy food.  Needless to say we ate very well this trip…whether if it was homemade and on the beach or out to dinner.  Check out all the fun we had with planning our meals! It wasn’t a complete day without going to the gourmet grocery store!!

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Catamaran Rides + Da Conch Shack

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What better way to see Turks & Caicos then from the water?!  We  hired SAIL PROVO to take us around Grand Turk and to a northern cay – Pine Cay – for full day of snorkeling, sailing and exploring.  Oh and I can’t forget the delicious lunch and rum punch!  We picked the catamaran up at Walkin Marina leeward and sailed out  past Blue Haven Marina towards the open ocean.  Once we were about a 1/2 mile off the coast, we stopped at a reef  to snorkel.  The water was warm and crystal clear so it made for a delightful snorkeling experience.  We saw a ton of tropical fish, colorful coral and cool looking reefs.  After about 45 minutes, we sailed towards Pine Cay to a private beach know as Sand Dollar beach.  No need for an anchor, we literally beached the boat. As we walked on the fluffy white sand we spotted nothing but water, sea shells and a group of rain clouds in the distant.  Since it was Sand Dollar beach, we grabbed our snorkels and started hunting.  We learned that the brown sand dollars are alive – so we left  those alone – the white ones were good to take!  Unfortunately we were not that lucky – only one person snagged a sand dollar – and that one person was one of  T.W.O.!  After our treasure hunt we boarded the catamaran for a bbq lunch – chicken, sandwiches, fresh fruit and of course rum punch and Turks Head! It was the perfect atmosphere!  Lunch ended, but not our day.  We headed back towards the Marina and made a stop along the way to snorkel again.  At this spot we found a 3 foot lobster.  Biggest one we have ever seen! It was hidden in the reef and our Dad spotted it.  That itself was worth the stop for sure!  Once on board, T.W.O. sailed us back to the marina.  Yes…you can call us Caribbean certified skippers that’s for sure!  It was a lovely day and we had a great time with the Sail Provo crew.  Thanks again for the memories and such a great experience.  Can’t wait to come back!!

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Da Conch Shack 

Conch creole, conch salad, curried conch…..bring it on! At Da Conch Shack you will find a picturesque setting on the beach with your typical caribbean architecture.  Pastel pink, Caribbean blues and light turquoise greens  fill this open white shack restaurant.  Conch shells line the walk ways, make walls and even used as light fixtures.  I wonder where they get the name from?!?!?  We enjoyed the food, the atmosphere and of course you can’t go without trying Jan’s Infamous Rum Punch.  Save your server time and just order a pitcher!image

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Taylor Bay + Bugaloos

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Taylor Bay

We took an excursion to Chalk Sound for the day and visited Taylor Bay.  It’s a secluded beach with white powdery sand and beautiful blue waters.  You can walk about a quarter mile out with the water only going up to your knees.  Definetly bring your snorkels, there are fish, coral and maybe even a turtle or two that you will find  further out.  We also, well mostly our brother, decided to make a spa day out of our visit too.  Taylor bay has great “clay sand” to exfoliate your skin.  The Caribbean version of the Dead Sea according to our brother!  This beach is a little tricky to find and don’t expect a parking lot.  After making  a left on Ocean Point Drive, we turned into a residential area.  Not seeing any signs we asked a local and he directed us to a path that looked like it didn’t go anywhere.  Well it did – and once we walked down the path and turned the bend we were all in pure awe.  Taylor Bay is a MUST when visiting Turks & Caicos.

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Bugaloo’s

Located in Five Cays Settlement, this beach side restaurant was the perfect lunch spot! Great views, friendly people, fantastic food and drinks!  It was the first place on our trip where we ordered conch.  Conch Salad, Coconut Conch Fritters, Conch Sandwich –  –  – we were pleasantly surprised at how much we enjoyed it! It wasn’t our last time ordering it, that’s for sure!  The Provo Punch was a great drink for this hot and humid afternoon – it’s a blended drink with tropical fruit.  If you really want to make it a good, good lunch – – ask for a topper!!!  After lunch we headed down to the beach and picked up two conches to take back home.  The conch diver showed us the art in catching conch and removing the mollusk out of the shell.  It was amazing to see these beautiful shells just lying on the beach.  Won’t find these in California, that’s for sure!!!

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And we made a pit stop for ice cream at…..

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Villa del Sol

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Villa del Sol was our home for the week when we visited Turks & Caicos. It was the perfect place to stay with our group of 6. The 3 bedroom and 3 bath villa was located on Grace Beach on Provo Island. The updated kitchen, open living spaces and large bedrooms were great amenities for us. The outdoor space had a lot of outdoor furniture, a hammock, beautiful pool and access to the beach. The beach was amazing – secluded, clean and big enough for our lounge chairs, paddle boards and fruit rum drinks. We can’t wait to go back and stay at Villa del Sol.

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