Welcome to the Chronicles of
~ the St John Adventures ~
Wednesday 6/9/2010
Okay, today was a first. But first, let's do the daily morning view.
Is it me, or are these pictures looking remarkably similar? Of course, in some ways, that is the nice part about the Caribbean - at this time of year, high of 87F, humid, with a 50% chance of showers. See? I can be a St John weather forecaster! About our firsts. Well, today was the earliest we got to the beach - 8:20am. We snorkeled for almost 2 hours, went into town, bought some anti-fog for the masks, booked a boat trip for next week, bought a hat (for Carol - took 2 stores to find the right one), had an ice cream cone, and boogied on back to the villa - all by noon! Before I get into all that, let me tell you a little about last night's adventure. All I can say is that dinners on this rock are nothing to write home about. We went for a mexican dinner, but it turned out it was a seafood place. It was just okay. I think fine dining is not something anyone has really managed to accomplish here yet. And really, why would you? We are definitely going to go for the more casual places when we go out. It is the tropics, and I find that I like vendor food better than most restaurants. They try to be cosmopolitan - but fail miserably at it. Oh well, can't have everything! Incidentally, I just got chased inside by a passing shower. You'd think being 10 feet inside of a 20 foot covered diningroom would be far enough out to stay dry, but the winds are strong enough to get the sliding doors wet! I would stay out there, because it feels good, but the computer won't like it! So anyway, about today. We really did get to the beach early today. It wasn't that we were trying, it just worked out that way. We were tired, and managed to crash early. So we got up, got ready, and went. Today's destination was Trunk Bay. Trunk Bay is the single most popular north shore beach. It is the widest white sand beach on the island, and runs most of a mile long. Cruise ships send excursions out here, the parks system has installed a marked underwater "trail," and the facilities are the best of all the beaches. They also charge $4 a head to get in (the only beach that they do that with). The rub about the fee is that they don't man the booth until 9am. And its not that I can't afford the $4, or that I really don't want to pay it, but it is neat to get there early and know you don't have to pay something that everyone else will have to later on. Of course, we were not the only people on the beach when we got there. But this is what it looked like.
And, here is what our beach chairs looked like, waiting for us to be done swimming.
We decided to check out the "swiming trail." Actually, it is an area that has plaques mounted down there, giving explanation of underwater stuff. Like this sign for Parrotfish:
And then you see the Parrotfish (which I have to say, they grow big there!)
Then you see another sign
And amazingly....
Okay, I am kidding - the fish don't hang out by their pictures, but it is a neat concept for people who are beginner snorkelers. The reef is a bit beat up by the sign area, but as you go around the little island where it is at, you do see some gorgeous coral beds.
And of course, there are the attendant fishies!
That last guy was trying to hide in the fan coral, and poking his nose out to check out the swimmers, but I saw him! It wasn't a bad place to go snorkeling - just not quite as nice as yesterday (you start to get a little fussy about your snorkeling as you do this day after day!). Probably should have been the first place we went, but it didn't work out that way! Then it was time to float around and relax - literally!
And then enjoy the view from those lonely beachchairs!
Closer shot of that cat tied on a mooringball
I think I almost have Carol convinced to one day give that a shot - going from bay to bay on a catamaran - basically bring your house snorkeling. Cool concept, huh? Carol's hat was a fun adventure. She tried a whole bunch of them on at one store, and we went back to the spice shop, because they had some other hats, and they were next door. Carol tried on the hat she got, and asked another lady what she thought of it - she held out her own of the same style except in black! I will have to shoot a picture of her in it tomorrow. We booked the boat trip for next Tuesday with a girl I "met" on the forums (virgin-islands-online.com) - the forums are filled with people who have fallen in love with St John, and are a wealth of information. This member is a realtor on the island, and also mans the tourist info booth, right off the ferry dock. I had sent her an email telling her what we were looking for, and she emailed/called me about some options, and told me to swing by the booth when she was there. So we did! The trip is a run to the world famous Baths at Virgin Gorda, a stop at the Indians or the Caves to snorkel (I hope it is the Indians - best snorkeling I have done anywhere on the planet!), lunch at Cooper Island, and a stop at Jost van Dyke (ever hear of the Soggy Dollar Bar?). It will be a good excursion, and our one off island experience, I think. You're going to love the pictures! Then we hit the dive shop for the anti-fog stuff (yeah, spit works, but after a while you get tired of spitting into a mask, and you run out of spit eventually!), and got an ice cream cone from that shop we found yesterday or day before. Time moves in strange ways on St John! There have been a series of rain squalls that have come thru this afternoon, starting at lunchtime. The winds were even strong enough to blow out the grill! Looks like we made it back just in time! Hey, one thing I mentioned the other day was the outdoor shower. Here it is:
No big deal, really. Its nice and private, but here is the view as you lather up!
Not bad, actually - and to tell you the truth, I was not sure how I felt about initially. I have always had mixed feelings as we watched them tour houses with outdoor showers like that on HouseHunters International. And its not like there aren't 4 other showers in the villa....
1835 - Overlooking Rendezvous Bay Well, the squalls seem to have passed for the time being, dinner was a couple of steaks and baked sweet potatoes. The breezes keep flowing, making the air cool, yet warm - if that makes sense. The rest of the afternoon was spent watching some sort of hawk or falcon riding the air currents, keeping perfect station as they (there were a pair of them) watched the land and sea below, and occassionally dozing off as Buffet played on the stereo (damn that iPod is good). Then there was a pelican that buzzed by looking for some fish to scoop up.
And then, of course, the obligatory teasing shot (sorry about the legs - you work with what you've got, right?).
Have a great evening, all. We are thinking about you all, and sending some warmth and sunshine back home!
Keep Smiling!!!
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All Images and Accounts of this Adventure are strictly the doings of the Author, and have Nothing to do with the Official Positions or Opinions of Timethief Photography, its affiliated divisions, or anyone associated with the company. If you have any issues with the accounts, how people or places are portrayed, or with any statements of fact, take it up with him! Of course, he'll probably be off on another adventure!
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