Was it a dream? It almost seems like it was. We had this amazing vacation on the island of St. John just a few weeks ago. Our apple tv is actually scrolling the pictures of it across the tv screen now and I'm mesmerized by the pictures and the wonderful memories they stir up. Since we got back, it's been a flurry of activity just jumping into "real life" again and also delving into spring cleaning. But now, it's high time I properly reminisce and share some of our trip with you.
So the best way to vacation, in my opinion, is go where you know someone. It's the best multitasking. Spend quality time with the ones you love, get a glimpse into their daily lives and experience a new place with a local. I've known Rachel since I was 7. I have really fond memories of playing baby dolls, barbies and board games with her. We were pretty much inseparable until the high school years took us in different directions a bit. We stayed in touch as much as you could before the age of Facebook and regular email with the many miles that separated us allowed. We've seen more of each other in the last few years as she was living in NYC and was able to visit some family she has in the Boston area a few times and we also crossed paths on
home visits in Dallas.
After living in NYC for a couple of years, Rachel and her family went on vacation on the island of St. John in the USVI and never left. Hearing from her about her love of the island made us want to see it...and getting to spend time with her and her lovely kids was a major bonus! And, after our brutal winter, getting to play in the tropics for a week wasn't a bad deal either. So, it happened that we made the trek down.
Getting there is not as simple as it sounds though. Even though it's a direct flight from Boston to St. Thomas, there's then a 45 minute drive to the ferry that takes you over to St. John. It was a long day getting to the airport, flying down, transport, ferry, jeep rental, etc. But, I have to seriously brag on my kids....they were incredible travelers! Seems like the last 5 years of tortured travel we have experienced with them have finally paid off. They know the drill and are now old enough to be entertained by electronics. Woohoo! A crazy thing happened on the plane. I sat solo with the boys (Mike was across the aisle) and I read a book. Did you read that?!?! I read a book. On a plane. Sitting solo with my kids. Unbelievable. And, sitting solo with Cade on the trek back to Boston I watched a movie! I watched a movie...on a plane...sitting next to my 3 year old who was awake the whole time. The future of travel is bright my friends.
If you've held on reading my ramble this long, you are about to see what you really want to see...pictures! Day 1 was a lot of travel, getting settled in our home for the week (which was really amazing and down the street from Rachel's place) and taking a quick stroll to the beach in the neighborhood.
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| Our Deck With Views of Fish Bay |
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| Amazing Hammock Chairs We All Loved |
The beach at Fish Bay was entirely made up of dried up coral. It was cool....not for the bare of feet, but really cool.
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We were surprised to see cacti all over the island.
Not what you expect to see in a tropical landscape.
I just looked it up and found out they're called Pipe Organ Cactus (FYI, Rachel!). |
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| Sunset Our First Day |
Day 2 started out with more, very local, exploring. First up was just enjoying the scenery from our house. We had several hummingbirds that liked to visit our flowers. Those fast critters are hard to catch on film!
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Hummingbird by Palm Frond Treelike Thing
When the wind blew and the fronds on these trees knocked into each other, it sounded like rain.
Every time I heard it, I would confusedly look around for the dark clouds that didn't exist. |
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| The Boys Were Itching to Try Out Our Pool |
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| It was a lovely spot in the morning. There was no direct sun so they didn't need to be slathered with sunscreen before going in. And with swim vests and their floats, I didn't feel like I needed to get in with them. So I chilled with my book right by them and enjoyed the morning. |
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| Cutie With Major Goggle Lines |
And since we were up super early (because, of course, that's how my kids roll even after a long day of travel and a late night), Cade and I still had plenty of time for another hike down to the beach we'd visited the previous day for some more exploring. We weren't meeting Rachel and her family until brunch time.
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All Hatted Up |
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| Cade had the most fun searching for these little snails. |
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And he had a special talent for pulling them off the rocks
(even though they were seriously suctioned on). |
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I asked him to pose. This is what I got.
(Don't mind the shortless legs....they had to go after getting the tiniest bit wet.) |
After getting cleaned up, we hit the road and met Rachel, Payton and Aynsley in town for brunch and a tour of all the shops Cruz Bay had to offer. I somehow have no pictures of lunch or the town. Just a picture of what the boys were doing when hanging out with Payton and Aynsley while the grown ups were in a store:
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| These guys were serious water babies all week. |
The rest of the day was pretty chill. It was a great way to settle into the laid back mood of the island.
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| While Mike and Cade napped, Dylan and I hung out on the hammock chairs. |
Later, Rachel and her kids walked over to our house because her kids were dying to get in the pool as well. The house we stayed in had all exterior accesses to rooms and even the stairs were outside. The landing to the driveway was about half way down the stairs. Rachel's crew was arriving on said landing when a terrified Dylan was flying up the stairs towards them. While he was heading downstairs, he met another critter that was common on the island (but new to us) right by the bottom step....
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| Mr Iguana |
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We oogled and were amazed at him...my family at least.
Iguanas are old hat to Rachel's family at this point. |
It was apparent that Mr. Iguana, who we later named "Spike," had been in some sort of kerfuffle. He was a bit beaten and bruised. And no matter what we did, we couldn't convince him to move on. We clapped, waved pool noodles at him, and I even pushed him around with the pool strainer:
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| Move along Spike! |
He moved to the corner of the patio and stayed there. He got to watch the kids swim from his vantage point.
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You can see Spike if you look closely.
The cuter ones in this photo are Dylan, Cade, Payton and Aynsley |
My kids really took to Rachel's kids. And they were really sweet\great with my little guys. We closed out the lovely day with dinner and a movie all together. It was a great start to the week!
Oh, and as for Spike. I was a little worried we were going to have to call the management company of our rental about removing a dead iguana. He hung out around the pool for most of the next day too. He did, however, finally disappear. We wish him well and hope he has healed his wounds.
