the Palm Trees get a Trim

Here's the befores (durings actually)

And here's the after...  I think they took a little too much off the top, but it'll grow out

Rains of Biblical Proportions

Here it is at 9 AM

And here it is at Noon

And it kept raining all day and night!

I am getting very tired of this

Rain... everyday for a week now.  This was taken at noon.

And it's supposed to rain for a few MORE days.

Sigh

Happy 4th of July - Fireworks from our Balcony

We had a very full day.  But were very pleasantly surprised we could see the fireworks being shot off from St John.

Hope everyone had a great 4th!

Where I walk - Part 1 - "Puttin' on the Ritz"!

I have been meaning to do this for awhile...

I have been walking quite a bit since becoming an islander.  When I first started, traveled different routes, did a lot of exploring.  But in the last couple of months, I do about the same route every day.  Getting nostalgic, but pretty soon, I am going to miss this... here's why.

Above, that's home.  My condo is on the left side... On the right side is the Yacht Club.  I walk along my beach...

Then I walk along the rocks that separates our beach from the Elysian condos and hotel.

I always walk as early as possible.  MUCH cooler and less humid.  More often than not, I am awake before most tourists.  But I get to watch the real work of the island as everything gets tidy for the visitors.

What would an island walk be without a hill.  But at the Elysian, I climb stairs.  It is about 5 stories tall to get to the top...

Unlike climbing stairs at work though, there is a nice batch of flowers (many more varieties than just this one). So if I am wheezing, I just stop and smell the roses (or whatever these are).

But at the top of the hill is the Ritz Carlton Hotel...

Voted one of the top ten resorts in the Caribbean...

Wasn't sure which photo made the beach look better, since it's in the top ten, I am showing it twice...

Nice walk along this beach especially...

This beach wraps around to the next landmark, which is a time share condo complex.  $80,000 will get you three weeks in Caribbean a year for the rest of your life (plus maintenance fees).

And from this beach, you get a nice view of Cabrita Point (the tall hill you see in this photo).  It's been all pretty and fun this first fourth of my walk, but the point is more of a challenge... And for that story, you have to come back tomorrow!

Finally, the rain moves on

6 straight days of rain, set a record, over 7 inches.

We made the best of it, reading and enjoying crackers and salsa on the deck...

While the wind was whipping up whitecaps in our normally calm cove.

I did feel very sorry for the tourists who come for just a week.  It was possible they didn't see the sun at all.

But yesterday, the tropical weather finally turned...

We went to the beach.

The World Cup

It's been almost chilly lately, and cloud cover much of the time (chilly is about 78 degrees).  Too cold to swim, so the kids in the area are playing world cup...

This is the view from my deck as I ate my lunch....

And this little guy in the orange shirt can runcircles around the tall kid!

USA USA USA USA

We had a new visitor on our deck

For some reason, my wife is afraid of frogs...

He was politely asked to leave, and then kicked off the deck.

The Minimal Regatta

Lots of fun at the Yacht Club (our neighbors), as they put on the Minimal Regatta...

T-shirts with logos and everything...

Young future engineers get a sheet of plywood, couple 2X4's and some duct tape to create their own design for a boat...

They had a BBQ on the beach, cold beer was $2 and fun... Another pretty good day!

Lizards on the Deck

Little Lizards (2 or 3 inches long) on the deck most of the time.  We like em, they eat bugs.

We don't bother them, they don't bother us, but they will give you "the look".

A Pretty Good Place to Read a Book

But, I have to sit with my back to the ocean in order to get a good tan...

Sacrifices must be made.

It's official... We Count as Virgin Islanders for the next 10 Years

Full Moon Rising

These are hard to photograph.  Just doesn't do it justice...

Much prettier

A Lazy Sunday Afternoon

A little tanning, while watching the sailing lessons.  Quite a learning opportunity to navigate those little sail boats around all the boats in our bay.  Not everyone is successful.  Fun to watch.

Got a little snorkeling in to see the pretty fishes...

Just a lazy Sunday around the condo!

Dinner and a sporting event

We are starting to schedule our dinners around...

The VERY COMPETITIVE doubles play of these 4 seniors.  they play every other night, and we have a great view of 3/4ers of the court.

They take several breaks to replenish fluids...

My theory, there's Mai Tai's in the water bottles.

Easter Egg Roll

Complete with easter dresses, candy, parents with video cameras and giggles...

All the little darlings all lined up along the wall that separates beach from lawn...

Notice the angle... we had a great view from our deck, as we ate homemade cinnamon rolls and a rum based Orange Juice drink... Island Life!

This girl was Jackie's favorite.

Had a HOPPY Easter...

Then went Snorkeling!

If you read yesterday's post, this is a reef squid, sadly, nothing from the Simpsons...