Many 17th Century Buildings to See

There are lots of beautifully restored buildings and places in "town" (Charlotte Amalie).  This beautiful alleyway is all 17th century buildings, restored to a wonderful tourist attraction of shopping...

Some places just look 17th century.  A restoration project in progress.

What do the tourists buy???

There's a store of all Pirate stuff...

Lots of T-Shirt joints...

Booze is cheaper than anywhere else in the world... You can take 5 bottles home.

And of course, duty free shopping with over 200 jewelry stores.

Something for everyone!

There are over 200 jewelry stores alone in Charlotte Amalie.  Counting all the restaurants and T-shirt shops, there are more than 300, all within just 3-4 city blocks.

How do they do it???

The alleys have been restored.  Some are little more than stucco paved walkways.  But the very prettiest is the PALM PASSAGE.

If you make it this far, there is a place called Fish Face in the passage.  Worth a look, a little boutique, but also a gallery of AMAZING ocean creature photography.

Always shaded, the passage has a great bar, perfect for a stop during your diamond frenzy.

Nice contrast to the bustle and un-restored look of Main Street...

Charlotte Amalie for the Afternoon

Only 2 weeks left... Starting to feel nostalgic, had a BEAUTIFUL day, so I thought I would take my last set of "town" pictures...

Even the alleys are beautiful, and convenient rum bars everywhere!

Meeting the needs of pirates for over 500 years.

Here's the bargains, including T-shirts 4 for $10 (just buy them at least a size or two bigger, they will shrink)

All the cool kids get at least one beaded braid in their hair while they are here.

And the tink tink tink of the steel drum band carries for blocks!

Over 200 jewelry stores... And duty free Booze!

Blackbeard's Castle

Not much history, but nicely restored, and there are big bronze statues of pirates everywhere...

And the star is this 20 foot tall Blackbeard himself!

And look at these beautiful blue skies finally... After over a week of rain.

Pirate Statues at Blackbeard's Castle

All Bronze, and several of them...

I do like this one, if you look close, you can see the governor's Mansion in the background just above this pirate's wrist.

Step daddy Harley, a pipe smoker himself, related to this guy...

Me, while I don't know much about art, I was partial to the less than hidden meanings behind this pose of the only female pirate in the gallery.

Rising Stars

Rising Stars is the local Concert Band for the high schools.

But no flute or tuba, everyone plays steel drums.  And maintains an honor role GPA.

Provide a great background sound for island living.

And the Local Economy gets another Shot in the Arm

Mom Visits... Mom Shops... Mom Buys

But she buys earrings so complicated two people have to help her into them.  They promised that if she loses these, she will have lost an ear (screwbacks, something new every day).

Something is wrong, Mom gets new diamonds, and my step-daddy gets a hat.

FREE Rum Tasting

Welcome to the US Virgin islands...

If you are coming for a cruise, this is the first booth you see.

Drink all you like, a 1/2 shot at a time.  Tips encouraged.

ALL SAINTS EPISCOPAL CHURCH St Thomas... It's no Chanute

Shawn, if you double click this picture, the magic of the internet will make the photo bigger, where you will see that they are holding a parking spot for a new priest.

Shopping in Charlotte Amalie

Here for two weeks, and Jackie and I are doing our part to support the local economy...

Main Street in Charlotte Amalie has dozens of tourist friendly stores...

From upscale stores like Cartier and Tiffany (no tax, wholesale prices and duty free makes this a perfect place to diamond shop.. shhhh, don't tell Jackie)

More than enough stores to fill your postcard and T-shirt needs (so far, we have bought 3 key rings).

My camera was dropped and broke yesterday.  So i made a big (for us) purchase and bought a new camera.  Now, my old one was 9 years old.  Heavy, big and bulky.  Only had a max of 4 Mega Pixels and was badly outdated, so I certainly did not cry about dropping it (shhh... It is possible I dropped it on purpose, but please don't tell my wife). I found a very friendly fellow at the ROYAL CARIBBEAN (not connected to the cruise ship company as far as I know) STORE.  He sold me on a snorkeling friendly, shockproof Pentax Optio W80... Let's see if I got a bargain...

On Ebay, I found a camera only "buy it now" price of $174.  Did not include memory card, battery, chargers or software hookups (they would happily sell these as add ons).  The complete package, as I bought is available on ebay for $249.

On Amazon, I found a "package" deal again for $239.

I paid $209.  No tax, no shipping.  I am sure it will be replaced in two weeks, and the price will drop a hundred dollars, but I am happy and will not be looking up the price again.

back to shopping... there are rum sampling stations everywhere... Half a shot at a time, you can certainly leave with a HUGE buzz.  BTW, on main street, price for a bottle is $10.99 a bottle.  I have found it at "locals" stores for $7.50.  Remember, orange juice is $8 a bottle.  But, tough to hunt the bargain store down.  Price at the "tourist" spots is pretty standard.  But, if it is a slow day, go ahead and ask for a discount.  they might be willing to knock a buck off.

There are beautiful passageways between Main Street and the Oceanfront Street.Essentially alleys, there are as many stores in the alleys as there are on the streets.

And these passages have some of the best landscaping in the area...

And fun little open air bars... Go ahead and ask for a rum recipe.  You bought those flavored rums, use them for something better than rum and cokes!

Eateries that do not have that rushed feeling you get on the oceanfront... Try the Mahi Mahi!

Jackie and I both bought a pair of water shoes... OUR FIRST LOCALS DISCOUNT!!!

A beautiful photo art gallery (many are for sale... OK, All are for sale... Is it still a gallery, or just a store???)

This is on the oceanfront side, lots of bars, T-shirt shops and pirate knick knacks.

And a block away is an open air market with T-shirts 4 for $10 and Gucci and Prada purses for $10  Really, says Prada right on em, so it must be a true bargain!

Tourist dollars are the largest employer on the island, so come visit and open your wallet!

The Governor's Offices

A couple days ago, I showed you where the governor of the Island lives... This is where he works.

Located almost exactly half way between Jackie's office and our home away from Kansas (our temp hotel) is the office of the Governor of the Island. I love the little guard shack out front. never have seen a guard there, but just in case the Queen comes, they are ready.

If you are paying attention, a few days ago I made a post about the "99 Steps". These steps go to the same road, are located a block from the 99 steps. So we have a choice of walking the scenic rough historical steps, or the more upkept stairs of the Governor. I have heard them called "Government Steps" and "The Governor's Steps"... not sure which is right, but I like the personal touch of calling them the Governor's steps.

Front door...
And inside the front lobby. Was not allowed past the stairs (a little surprised to get as far as I did).
As capitol offices go, a little sparse, but tasteful. And patriotic.

A bronze list of the former Governor's

Trappings of the office.... The Symbol

the Seal

And the state (national/ territorial... not sure the right term) flower and the state (national/ territorial) bird...

And for those of you paying attention, just above the office (up those white stairs) and a bit to the left is the statue of the Three Queens and Blackbeard's Tower.