“Surely, of all the wonders of the world, the horizon is the greatest.” – Freya Starki
If you want to get away from crowds and the hustle and bustle, this is the island for you. Simple life with gorgeous beaches , gentle waves and infinite golden sunsets rolled together for private, quiet bliss sums up the island.
We stayed on the sleepy side of town- the west side – with calm waters, sparse population of humans and large population of chickens!
We arrived late at night and checked into our cottage. We were famished, we drove into town for a quick late bite.
Since we arrived at night we could not get a full sense of the beauty till our eyes opened the next morning. And then what a sight to behold!
It was a whole bunch of cute cottages right on the beach…..
Just outside our doorstep was the ocean with the lapping waves and soft sand calling us in for a morning swim.
That first day was spent lazing on the beach and on the patio stepping in and out of the ocean.
“Go where you feel most alive”
We then ventured out for lunch in Frederiksted at Polly’s at the Pier, a taste of the local establishment run by locals.
After getting some essentials for the week, we decided to barbecue for dinner that night. Watching the sunset behind the waves, we grilled our dinner and took in nature’s beauty around us.
“Let’s go somewhere where the sun kisses the beach”
We were ready for our adventures and exploration for the next week.
Next day was diving and snorkeling at the Frederiksted pier. We were ready bright and early. Island life calls for early mornings and early nights and that suits us just fine.
The wonderful morning was spent finding fish and turtles and manta rays. The calm waters on the west side were perfect for exploring and swimming for hours together.
In the evening we ventured to the north side of the island to the Christensted pier. This was the area with all the hustle and bustle. A relaxed dinner at the pier to top off a beautiful day and then back to our peaceful corner of the island.
We woke up early next day for a driving trip to the East side of the island. The drive was winding and curving and very picturesque. We reached the top of the mountain to Point Udall, the easternmost point of the United States.
It was quiet and for a few minutes we were the only ones there with the wind blowing and the breathtaking scenery around us. The majestic geometrical monument was uniquely beautiful in a different kind of way, standing tall, strong and silent with the whooshing all around it as if to say that times will come and go, seasons will change, yet I will be here forever and forever, standing strong.
“Don’t call it a dream, call it a plan”
As more people started coming in, we decided to hike down to Isaac beach and spend the afternoon there. The contrasting image of dry cacti growing right next to the brilliant blue water was an affirming witness to the contradictions of life, the complete beauty of the whole picture being the essence of it all.
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
There were only a handful of people on this almost private piece of land. The beach stretched for miles all the way upto the hills and on the other side all the way upto a curve beyond which I could see no more. The waters were all shades of deep blue, light blue and green.
“Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow.” – Anita Desai
We napped in a man made rustic stick- house that gave us shade from the hot sun, dipping into the water ever so often.
The next few days of our time on the island seem to fly by. We explored more beaches and did a bunch of different activities.
A day at Cane Bay beach with ferocious waves on the north side, that made snorkeling an interesting challenge. Equipped with my noodle and floatation vest, I was determined to make it happen while the boys rested in the shade of a bush.
Rainbow beach on the west side with it’s gentle waters was perfect for stand-up paddle boarding. As we found our balance and paddled around standing on the paddle board, the stillness of the water made us realize the sharp contrast from the north side.
Two sides of the same island, so similar yet so different. A wildly agitated and turbulent north, and a peaceful, quiet, calm west, both need to coexist for a perfect balance in this wondrous environment .
At night, we did a night boat tour of the bioluminescence bay at Salt River Bay. What a unique experience!
“Adventure is worthwhile.” – Aesop
We gathered at the Kayak tour place and took our kayaks out into the bay. As we entered deeper into the bay, our guide told us to swoosh the waters and splash around to see the bright bluish glow of the water with the bioluminescent organisms. What a surreal experience!
It was pitch black around us and the waters glowed around us as we splashed. Then we used some nets to get some jellyfish out of the water all blue and glowing too! We stared at them glowing, hardly believing our eyes! And then put them right back into the water. As they slithered away, so did the glow….
Parasailing high above the waters was an exhilarating experience. It has been eight years since we last did it and we had forgotten how thrilling it can feel. As the parachute lifted off and our feet dangled in the air hundreds of feet above the ocean, it took our breath away. The boat to which we were tethered, now seemed like a speck in the ocean. The balloon went higher and lower at different times, swaying us back and forth in the gentle breeze.
“If you think adventure is dangerous, try routine. It’s lethal.” – Paulo Coelho
When the parachute came lower down, we could see the turtles and rays in the waters below. When it went higher up, the breeze that swept against our face and body gave an ‘out of this world’ feeling . I found myself thinking ‘I now know how a bird must feel as it flies across the skies’. Our landing had an exciting dip in the ocean and then back to the boat.
As we wandered around the village, some days we picked tamarind off the trees and some days we found mangoes. Getting back to the cottage to eat our harvested fruit with salt was a simple pleasure bringing back childhood memories. Oh for the simple joys of life……
“The goal is to die with memories not dreams.”
The last day was another picture perfect weather day. We went to Sandy Point Wildlife refuge. The refuge was open limited times due to turtle nesting season. Although we saw no turtles, we did see the sites of some nests. And the beautiful soft Sandy beach extended for miles with just a handful of people early in the morning.
It was our last day and we headed back to the cottage. Another swim on our little beach to finish off the vacation.
“Travel not to find yourself but to remember who you have been all along”
A vacation with a lot of R&R (rest and relaxation) is quite rare in our household and we had finally managed to pull off one. This sleepy and quiet island had slowed us down and got us into our ‘zen’ zone, ready to tackle the world until we venture out again next time…..