dreamshark

Previous post with ecstatic description of Creolla

Days 1 & 2
Day3 - into the water
Day3 - afternoon
Day 4 - snorkel cruise
Day 5 - Fourth of July
Day 6 - Miss Lucy's
Day 7 - Perfect beach day
Day 8 - Last Full Day

Tuesday, June 30 - Minneapolis to St. Thomas
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Three hops, three successive failures by American Airlines to provide a working airplane at the scheduled time and place. On the plus side, since every flight was delayed, we didn't miss any connections and eventually arrived on St. Thomas only 25 minutes late. And since our trust level in the airlines was already low, we weren't really disappointed, just tired. We never really expected to make it in one day and had reservations for a night in St. Thomas at the Galleon House, a B&B overlooking the Charlotte Amalie ferry dock. The rooms are small and dismal, but the view from the dining terrace is stunning. My husband had a transcendental experience floating in the pretty little pool and watching the sunset. Unfortunately, I was getting the reading lamp in our room fixed and I missed it. However, dinner made up for it. Incongruously, the ramshackle Galleon is connected by a series of stairs and walkways to Herve's: one of the best restaurants on the island. Drinks and a couple of appetizers made a delectable light supper, and only cost slightly more than we would normally pay for a full dinner. The wilted spinach salad (with bacon flamed in brandy at tableside) was spectacular, but the garlic scallops were to die for - seared almost crispy on the outside, smooth as custard inside.

Day 2: Wednesday, July 1 - Getting into Creolla
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Somehow, getting settled in our wonderful mountaintop villa took the whole day and we never made it to the beach. Other than that it was a pleasant enough day. Started out with breakfast on the Galleon terrace in Charlotte Amalie, and the ferry ride to St. John. There are two ways to get from St. Thomas to St. John: a long taxi ride to Redhook followed by a short boat ride, or a short taxi ride and a 40-minute boat trip. We always opt for the latter. We climb up the narrow little ladder to the top deck, secure our hats with extra strong chin straps, and enjoy the view. After our first trip we learned the importance of heavy-duty sunscreen, and made it to St. John unburnt this time.

Cruz Bay was looking very festive with lots of pennants and streamers and a little village of kiosks selling bright-colored fripperies, but was not any more crowded than we remembered. My ATT cell phone did work, but the connection to Paris Car Rental was not good and I wasn't clear on how we were supposed to hook up with our ride. A very nice taxi driver named Mitch (or possibly Chico) took it upon himself to call his buddy at Paris and tell him to get a move on when we were still waiting 10 minutes after my phone call. I'm not sure it actually speeded anything up, but I appreciated the thought. Eventually we got the jeep and negotiated it back to the middle of town, for reasons that escape me now. I think we were trying to get to Starfish Market and turned the wrong way. However, by sheer luck we drove past a parking lot called "Slim's Limo" just half a block from the ferry dock, and parked there for an hour or so.

Paid a visit to St. John Spice. Ruth was in the other shop helping a customer so we didn't speak to her, but the lady behind the counter in the spice shop used to live in Minneapolis so we had a nice little granfalloon get-together. We bought a tiny vial of Blind Betty's Hot Sauce, a little packet of Cruz Bay Grill Rub and some non-toxic bug repellent that is clearly based on citronella. Tried to rent snorkel gear at Low Key Watersports, but were disappointed. The sulky young salesgirl was only interested in our credit card information, not at all interested in helping us find equipment that fit. The first fins she brought out simply didn't fit either of us. She made no move to try a different model or brand, just stood there staring at us. We finally determined that this shop carries exactly one brand and model of fin, and if they don't fit you the staff doesn't know what to do. We took our credit slip back and slunk away on our lumpy, off-brand feet.

Eventually we made our way to Starship - uh, make that Starfish - Market, where we spent enough to feed a family of 5 for a month. The plan was to rendezvous with the guy from Cimmaron, our villa manager, in the parking lot. Surprisingly, that went off without a hitch. It's just around the corner to Centerline and off to the east side of the island with no more traffic agonies. I was driving because my husband is from Minnesota where the roads run straight as arrows and flat as pancakes and he finds St. John roads to be entirely unnerving. I learned to drive in rural Connecticut, and they seem just fine to me.

Finally we arrived at our villa, which was everything we had hoped for and more. It's clean and cozy and airy, and perched on the very top of Ajax Peak with a matchless view of Coral Bay. If the little forest on the north side were trimmed back the view would be literally 360 degrees. On the other hand, the vegetation provides total privacy from the handful of houses just downslope from us on that side, so it's probably for the best. We had so much fun running around exploring and settling in that by the time we headed for Coral Bay
to rent snorkeling gear it was too late - Crabby's was closed. Oops. But Lily's was open, so we stocked up on rum and ice cream and headed back up the mountain to carouse the evening away in our hot tub watching the waxing moon sail through the clouds.