Day Three Of The 2011 St. Croix Food & Wine Experience

The final full day of the festival was a little less jam-packed compared to the events of yesterday, but this doesn't mean they weren't a lot of fun...

We joined Big Beard's tour of Buck Island National Park and set sail on a large catamaran to the island. First, we stopped at a beautiful beach on the island to do some snorkeling practice before we headed to the main attraction: the gorgeous fish and endangered coral.

I must admit that I have an incredible fear of sharks, but the wonderful guides on the boat put those fears to bay and sent me on a fantastic tour of the coral reef where we saw bright, exotic fish like parrotfish and a school of blue tang (the type of fish that was Dory in Finding Nemo). If you're a little more adventurous, you can go to a part of the reef where you are almost guaranteed to see lemon or nurse sharks (harmless ones) and barracuda's.

2 PM: Relaxation and a little work time before the night's festivities where we took advantage of the beautiful, clean water and strong sun (and got a little burned – oops!).

There were a few options for the evening, private dinners cooked by chef Ana Sortun and then another one by chef Anita Lo; a beach barbecue where chefs like Michael Ferraro from MacBar and Delicatessen in New York City prepared a duck confit mac n' cheese along with a passion fruit cheesecake; or, there was my choice which was a restaurant crawl of three spots in Christiansted: Dashi, Tavern 1844, and Bacchus. The highlights of the meal? A fantastic sake tasting at Dashi, beautiful outdoor scenery and beer at Tavern, and the cherry cola cheesecake at Bacchus (check back soon for the recipe!).

For me, the festival has come to an end, but it was a wonderful and fantastic time on this beautiful and friendly island. Make sure to come next year and attend (I know I'll try!).