St. Barths

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Photo by: Kim Kavin

Our weeklong charter was more like a quick-hit cleanse, one filled with foods that were at once old and new. The macrobiotic food pyramid, which is really more of a starburst, centers around whole grains like brown rice and pearl barley. You’re allowed a good bit of green, leafy vegetables such as broccoli, kale and celery stalks, as well as beans, peas and lentils. Vegetables that are considered round, ground or root are also approved. They include radishes, yams and cauliflower.

On the “avoid or limit” list are all forms of meat and poultry, fatty fishes such as tuna and salmon, shellfish like seafood and lobster, all forms of dairy including butter and cheese, sweets such as sugar, molasses and honey, “nightshade” vegetables including tomatoes, potatoes and peppers, tropical fruits like bananas, mangoes and avocados, and anything with processed soy, as well as coffee, black tea and alcohol.

That’s not to say we didn’t have any of those things — Zorgman’s tomato-laced bruschetta and salads with avocado were delicious, and Che’s owner has an impressive wine collection that is available to charter guests — but most of the food on our plates came from whole cereals, leafy green stuff and root vegetables. Every morning began with miso soup eaten by tipping the bowls to our lips with our hands, to cleanse the intestines for the day ahead. Then each day unfolded with offerings like freshly made celery and beet-root juices, mushroom-filled wontons served with a salad of hijiki (a type of seaweed), red-snapper sashimi, gnocchi-style butternut squash and Vietnamese pancakes in rice paper. When our group asked for bloody mary cocktails, Zorgman prepared them with freshly squeezed tomato juice, making them taste like health food too.



“I will cook whatever people want, but I also like to introduce people to this new way of cooking and eating,” Zorgman says. “I love fish, and I love vegetarian dishes. I come from a traditional French and Italian approach, but now I am much more interested in Asian cuisine. It’s the healthiest food in the world.”

I’ll admit to sneaking a mozzarella panini, a small chocolate bar and a cold beer one afternoon on St. Barths, but I otherwise stuck with Zorgman’s regimen, and as I said, I felt absolutely light. Everyone on the boat felt the same after about 48 hours, almost childlike and free, as evidenced by our playtime at Shell Beach during our last afternoon on board. Three of us women, all easily described as middle-age if we’re being honest, climbed out onto the forward tips of Che’s pontoons and trampolines. We balanced ourselves a good 15 feet above the water, which sparkled with the clean blues and greens of an outgoing tide. The breeze blew our hair back, and the sunbeams shone on our cheeks. We counted calmly, and in unison, to three.

And then we leapt, with great joy, into the refreshing embrace of nature.

Che is part of the charter fleet at Sunreef Yachts. She can accommodate eight guests with five crew at a lowest weekly base rate of around $96,000. Contact 954-232-6852; www.sunreef-charter.com.