Where is everybody?

We awoke this morning to the sounds of birds and a view of a rainbow out our window.

Sipping coffee, a watchful bird was on alert for any food that may fall, but there was none.

The weather looked a little iffy for a day on the beach. The clouds did not deter us – Trunk Bay in the morning and Jumbie in the afternoon was the plan. Arriving at the Trunk parking two donkeys looked at us in disbelief. It was almost as if they were saying, you found a parking spot right next to the ranger station.

The park is still not charging to enter, but the water is back on and the facilities operational. As rain drops fell we headed to a pavilion, albeit the roof was missing a few panels.

The rain stopped and we walked out on the beach. To our amazement, we were the only people on the beach.

Tom there is nobody here!

If you have been to St John you know that is NEVER the case. Trunk is a very popular beach which the cruise ships bring beach excursions by boat and taxi. We settled in to enjoy this special moment.

After enjoying the view of the turquoise waters, the sea was calling Janet. It was time for a swim! She walked down to the island and put on her goggles and began her swim from one end of Trunk to the other end, and repeat.

I assumed my towel boy/lifeguard role. People were starting to arrive on "our" beach while Janet was swimming, but it was just a handful.

After a short rest it was time for a snorkel. The clouds were getting thicker so I knew the visibility would not be great. Camera strapped on we enter the water only to be greeted by a small barracuda.

It was nice to see a few sea fans, but it was obvious the reef was hurting. I took some amazing photos, but it was later on when I realized that the on/off button must be on to take the pictures. Oh well here are a couple.

After drying off, the winds began to really below. Our drying swim gear look liked a storm warning flag, and we took the advice and packed up and headed to town for lunch.

Cruz Bay Landing provided a great lunch and refreshments, but the clouds kept coming. Walking down to Mongoose Junction we decided an afternoon beach day was out. We were glad to see Morgan's Mango had made another come back, and Lauren was playing Sunday night at Sun Dog!  All signs of good things happening on island.

After a little window shopping we were off on another adventure.

We drove up to Gifft Hill and headed to Hummingbird Hill, a villa where we stayed on our last vacation on island.

The villa is just a shell. The beautiful orchids are gone.

This villa holds some very special family memories and honestly it was emotionally tough. Only the master suite was whole.

We left under the observation of a goat to our next destination.

The other villa that held special place in our hearts was Villa Maria on Great Cruz Bay. We passed  by the Westin and work was ongoing.

The damage it had sustained by Villa Maria was devasting. The front door was gone as well as the house.

The pool area was in tack, but the deck was soft and did not provide a feeling of safety.

Once again, the master suite was the only remaining structure on the complex. This was just too much to take and it was time to head back to Sweet Saint John.

We headed downtown for refreshments and dinner. The Quiet Mon is always my favorite place to enjoy a dark and tonic and take in the happenings of Cruz Bay.

Yeah it is a new sign....Like the old one better - Times are a changin'

Following cocktails, it was short walk down the steps from Quiet Mon to La Tapa for dinner. A wonderful meal of Josephine’s greens with fried goat cheese, Pallela for two accompanied by a wonderful Tempranillo followed by a blood orange cheesecake were our choices for the evening.

The nights here have been coming quick and bedtime seems to get earlier each evening. Good Night