USVI's
CuriousOyster
Steve & Trish Brown
Fri 20 Mar 2009 16:50
island on the western edge of the BVI's.
We dinghy'd ashore to be met by Strawberry a local girl who runs " Sidney's
Peace & Love" bar/restaurant". She explained that they ran a honesty bar,
showed us how to get our own drinks and make our own cocktails and the live
lobsters that they had for ready for dinner that evening. After we had eaten
lunch we tried to pay but she explained that as we were coming back for
dinner we did not need to pay until we were leaving. Sure enough we returned
for dinner at the fresh lobster, got our own drinks and then had to find
someone to pay!!! Fantastic...we asked if their trust was ever abused and
Strawberry said not, sometimes people left after too many drinks but always
returned the following morning to pay.
As always we were fascinated by the Pelicans diving after the small fish
that were keeping to the edge of the bay. We took the opportunity to snorkel
amongst them and as soon as we dropped over the side of the dinghy they swam
beneath us in tight shoals hoping that we would protect them from the diving
Pelicans. It was amazing to swim in the midst of literally thousands if not
millions of small fish and be unable to touch even one!
One of our regrets was being unable to visit the USVI's as we could not
obtain a US 3 year tourist visa in time. This was solved when a friend told
us we could take the ferry across and obtain a visa waiver that would then
enable us to take the boat across. And so it was... that we met the
friendliest US customs and immigration people that I had ever come
across!!!! Anyone having travelled to the USA will know what I mean.
We spent a few days anchored off Charlotte Amalie on St Thomas a town
devastated by Hurricane Hugo when we were last there 20 years ago and have
now come across to St John, an island that is over 40% national park having
been bought by Laurence Rockefeller and given back to the US government as a
NP. We have spent a few days in Francis Bay on the west side of St John. One
of the most beautiful anchorages we have seen so far. Lots of great
snorkeling, beautiful beaches and unspoilt by poor
development.2009_03200007.JPG
We will leave the Virgin Islands in the next day or so and begin our journey
south through the island chain.
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