Holiday Toast By Lorraine Korman / Winter 2002 Petit St. Vincent: My first morning at the Petit St.Vincent Resort, thirst snuck up on me along with indolence - a certain unwillingness to move from the hammock in my private compound. Rather than picking up the phone to negotiate with the front desk, I simply checked the appropriate box on a menu card and hoisted the yellow flag. Within minutes a waiter arrived with several bottles of Perrier and a bucket of ice. Such is the daily grind on this private 113-acre island in the Grenadines, about 40 miles south of St.Vincent. When I didn’t want to be disturbed, I merely ran up the red flag instead. Petit St. Vincent offers 22 discreetly situated cottages. Those on hilltops are highlighted by patios with tremendous views of the island’s hills, as well as plenty of sand, sea and sky; the beachfront accommodations mean you don’t have to traipse down to the water. And what gorgeous water it is - warm and shimmeringly clear, even for the Caribbean. Once I’d overbaked myself on my preferred stretch of beach (Petit St. Vincent has two miles of sand to choose from), I opted for other, somewhat less UV-exposed amusements. Snorkeling is outstanding and accessible from any point on the island, and the resort will arrange to take guests or their kids out to waterski or scuba dive as well. (Children here, or some reason, seem exceedingly well behaved - perhaps because they are often the offspring of visitors who return every year, and have developed relationships with the affable staff.) Aerobic activity is available on a hiking trail that winds through lush, sweet-scented vegetation. Did I mention the remoteness? No phones, no outdoor lights, no motor-cars - well, okay, golf carts for baggage and room service - not even The New York Times fax service. On the trip in from Union Island, we had to sidle over to another boat and ask to borrow a bag of onions, because the resort had run out. My sole contact with the outside world came in the form of hip-hop gospel music picked up on the radio from Kingston. So relax, mon, and enjoy the peace that comes from living in the faraway moment.