Standing on one of the highpoints on the island looking down at an exclusive resort. That's the closest
we are allowed to the 'exclusives'. Love their colors, though.
A view of St. Thomas from St. John on a dull day.
All good things come to an end eventually; the idea is to replace or fill the gap with something
equal or better. That's the theory and we'll give it a good try.
Our pace slowed considerably, Mon, when we arrived on the islands. As Jen mentioned, "If shopping and
dining-out isn't a high priority, one should search diligently for other activities, mostly fishing,
water sports and some exploring or the old standby, sleep. In the past, we loved the eastern islands but
somehow, the fascination has dimmed a little. Whereas we have enjoyed being here very much, the challenges
and excitement of our main activities put things in perspective.
The first thing one notices on St Thomas, obviously American owned and controlled, yet one drives on the
left side of the road. We wondered about that and think perhaps the Islanders show their independence in
that way. The cars are all left-hand drives so it makes motoring a little trickier especially on the narrow,
winding, hilly roads. Another thing that is prominent is the pricing. A trip to the supermarket is at least
double but closer to triple mainland costs. Transport too, is very expensive.
The port at St John, quaint from above, a little less quaint from close by.
The weather is interesting. One can bank on having rain every day, sometimes, a few downpours in a day.
However, they are usually short in duration and within minutes of the ending, a person would not have
thought it had rained. We are in the hurricane season, albeit past the peak, but would like to hurry away
in case of a last minute twister. It's not surprising that these acts of nature would be prevalent in this
region—water, water everywhere.
Colors of the islands.
We have noticed the older members of the community are friendly whereas the younger adults tend to show a lot
of 'attitude'. Perhaps we are being too sensitive but it sure feels that way. There are expensive, well-kept
areas on the islands, often where the resorts tend to be. However, after walking in some parts, we notice
quite a few slum districts, too. Not dissimilar from our stay in Cusco, Peru, when one looks down on the island
from height or under cover of darkness, it looks far more attractive. Nevertheless, the untouched parts such
as the ocean and bays, look spectacular from any angle.
We took a walk to Red Hook, a town somewhere below our resort. Unfortunately, the lack of sidewalks makes it
quite an ordeal. While sitting and watching the world go by, we noticed a beer and spirits truck making deliveries.
Walking back home, it crossed our path a few times. By the time we reached our place, the truck turned into the grounds
to make another delivery. We spoke to the driver, mentioning that business seemed brisk. "Mon, this island runs on alcohol,"
came the reply. We don't think he was referring to ethanol in the vehicles.
Jen reaches the end of the hike, oxygen not much of an issue over here.
Should anyone have a special order for jewellery, please let us know as there are at least a million stores over
here seeking your business.
Finally, we have included a few pictures from our hike on the sister island, actually that should be brother,
St. John. Although it was a dull day, the colors were still spectacular. We commenced at the harbor, traipsed
through the rainforest, eventually arriving at one of the highpoints of the island. The views were terrific.
On the way back, we diverted to Honeymoon Beach, a little bit of paradise which included a pristine beach and
clear water.
In Peru, we were at the edge of the Amazon jungle but this is the closest we have been to jungle-like
conditions for a while.
In addition, we have included a slideshow of random photographs from our trip to Peru. Scroll down for a peek.
We look forward to seeing you either in person or on hike-about 16.
Cheers,
Jenni and Jeffrey
Peru slideshow below:
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