Aaah, St. John: A Show and Tell

Not much more than a photo commentary on the five (count 'em, almost 5) days we spent in St. John a week ago. For your viewing pleasure. Think the smell of the balmy, perfumed air, the sound of birdsong and waves lapping, the feel of bare feet on sand and on the endless wooden walkways. Lots of reading, a little drawing, the occasional strenuous adventure (kayaking, scuba diving -- by one person; hiking for two), evening relaxation with gorgeous views, clear adult beverages, and lovely dining. Aaah.

And now for the pix.

Arrival at the dock at Cruz Bay

 The "welcome lady" at her little kiosk, offering free maps of the island and teeny samples of delicious Caribbean rum. (yum!)

 

View of some of the more elaborate villas encircling the Cruz Bay bay.

The Governor's Mansion (I think) -- now a museum-type place (I think).

 And now -- the spectacular view from our tent cottage, taken the night we arrived.

 Our "street"

Our "address"

 

Our "tent cottage" (featuring David reading on the outside deck)

View of another cottage to show one in its entirety, more or less

 

Inside views of the cottage -- kinda messy and/or spare-looking as these taken as we were packing to leave -- but you get the idea. Not really rustic at all -- just charmingly simple. Sofa, kitchen area, separate "room" for twin beds and shelves. All open to the gorgeous sweet-smelling, breezy air. At night I could look up through the screen and watch the clouds passing in front of the moon and stars. Aaaah.

We did find it amusing that there was rusty barbed wire snaking around the rocks that separated our cottage's "back yard" from the "Goat Trail" that leads from the Maho campground to the Big Maho beach. You gotta think it's a holdover from some previous administration. Barbed wire sure isn't very "Maho."

Some of the many board walkways and stairs -- Maho is tucked into the side of a very steep hillside, but the walks aren't too long and the stairs make you feel strong and athletic, tra la.

The top picture is the walk UP from our cottage to the store and dining pavilion; the bottom one is the walk DOWN to the beach.

The pavilion -- the place for dining, happy hour, and the evening entertainment (movies, lectures, music -- all fun!)

 My table at the pavilion to do a little drawing for the current book. I sat at this very table (or the same location anyway) eight springs ago, with Alice, age 11, at my side, to work on "Frosty the Snowman."

Sunset at Happy Hour -- we were in place for a great view every night. (Free popcorn and discounted beverages -- we brought our own spirits, tra la!)

 View from the pavilion of the kitchen and bar, one level above.

A darkish picture taken at dinner one night.

One of the charming little "jellyfish" creations hanging in various places around Maho. Made by two young girls who live at Maho -- they use plastic soda can rings and ribbon. Great way to recycle into art. They taught me how they make 'em.

And now, our hiking adventure: we went from Maho Bay to Coral Bay, the smaller of the 2 towns on the island. It was 2 1/2 hours through the jungle, sometimes in the blazing sun, with the path often going up and down nearly vertically. It was exciting!

 

 The dadliest of hikers.

 

Home, sweet home for some kinda ant-y creatures -- there were lots of these. High about the ground on a tree trunk, and about three or four feet long and, I dunno, three feet in diameter. Impressively creepy.

 

Water views as we hiked.

Dadly hiker in front of sugar plantation ruins.

Cool trees with enthusiastically entangled exposed roots.

 

That Columbus-- one smart guy. 

(And he was thoughtful enough to create his warning in a very modern way, both language and lettering.)

The coral we crunched over as we walked.

More cool tree roots -- these looking practically liquid.

The looong and very scary hill -- a celebration of loose stones and rocks -- that we had to clamber down. David zipped down; I (fearful of falling onto my damaged wrist) took a veeeeery long time serpentining downward and clutching a walking stick for balance.

Payoff -- we arrived safely in Coral Bay, and had a great lunch at an open air bar/cafe called 'Skinnylegs.' Only in St. John would you see such a cheerfully festive sign for the Police Station.

And now it's time to start home. 

Here's a view from the ferry (on which we enjoyed bright sunshine and cooling breezes without benefit of sunscreen -- with guess what result?). Destination was Charlotte Amalie on St. Thomas, which was just a short taxi ride to the airport. And thence back to wintry Philadelphia.

The bay at Charlotte Amalie was hosting SIX giant cruise ships at the time we arrived. Just ridiculously and obnoxiously huge (from our perspective of the simple Maho experience.)