Karen's Just Along for the Ride

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Geo: 18.3428, -64.9265

It's another 6am start. That's early for a couple of retired old geezers but our shore excursion starts soon after we dock at 8am so we need to get started. Today we're going on a catamaran ride to St John Island for some snorkeling, followed by snacks and drinks before returning to St Thomas Island. A room service breakfast will get things started.

In 1917, St. Thomas was purchased along with Saint John and Saint Croix by the United States for $25 million in gold as part of a defensive strategy to maintain control over the Caribbean and the Panama Canal during the First World War. The United States Virgin Islands is the only place under United States jurisdiction where the rule of the road is to drive on the left. The population of St Thomas is around 50,000. Tourism is the primary economic activity, although there is a significant rum manufacturing sector.

We need to meet the tour operator at the bottom of the gangway at 8:15 for an 8:30 departure. We exit midship at 8:10am. No one is there to meet us. We head to the forward gangway when we notice a whole crowd of people from that area move past us back toward midship where we had just left. We ask someone in the group if they're from the catamaran excursion and the word is yes. We join the group now moving toward buses in the parking area and attempt to board an open air bus when we find we must exchange our ship excursion receipts for blue cards. We go back to the gate, get the card and finally board the bus, grabbing the last two separate seats. We were 5 minutes early to meet the group and now we're the last to board. The buses pull out at 8:20am, a full 10 minutes before our scheduled departure time. I just hope everyone made it.

Our bus ride is about 25 minutes to the small harbor where the catamaran is located. Exiting the bus, we walk to the dock and board. It's a beautiful day with few clouds and 82°F. The crew raises the sail and off we go on a 45 minute ride to the island of St John. Houses and hotels dot the hillsides of St Thomas as we cruise along its coast and a crew member describes points of interest as we skim across the blue-green water. Soon we break away and head towards the distant island of St John. It's sparsely inhabited, with 3/4 of the island a National Park, that portion purchased years ago from the Rockefeller family for $1. We anchor at the popular Honeymoon Beach where we're instructed on snorkel safety and into the ocean we go. I'm all set and geared up but Mom decides she's not going in the water, using the, "I'm feeling a bit seasick", excuse. I was ready for it so in I go while Karen takes a few pictures of me from the boat and spends time talking to two other ladies that also balked on swimming.

The equipment provided by "The Adventuress" is good. We have our own mask & snorkel sets we purchased for our South Pacific Adventure in 2015 but with just one water excursion booked, we opted not to bring them and use those provided by the tour. This allowed Karen to bring more clothes. Anyway, I snorkel around for about 1 hour of the 1 1/2 hours allotted by the tour. It's OK but sand from the beach suspended in the water reduces visibility somewhat and viewing sea life is limited, unlike our South Pacific experience.

Back on board, the crew sets up snacks and drinks as we prepare to get underway toward St Thomas. Assorted cheeses, bread, fruit and chocolate along with champagne, rum punch and beer were offered. Mom, still a little queasy, passed on all the above. We cruised back for about an hour while everyone partied to eighties music. Fun for all while Karen, just enjoying the ride, continued to visit with her friends. Remember, Mom likes boats!  Arriving at the dock, we walked to the buses and made the return trip back to the port. Karen, apparently now feeling better, decided to check out the shops located conveniently dockside. With just one "St. Thomas" shirt added to her bag, we board the Koningsdam by 3pm.

Now we just hang out in our room, watching the ship depart at 4:30, nap and watch TV until 7 when we decide to skip the dining room venue, opting for the more casual Lido for a light dinner. Getting up at 6 in the morning everyday takes it out of us by the evening. We watch a little BB King downstairs and return to our stateroom where Karen goes to bed and I work on the blog for an hour or so before calling it quits for the day.

Tomorrow is a sea day, a most welcome sea day.

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Comments

[Tot]

Awesome! Love you guys