August 30, 2011

ST THOMAS

Got off ship today. Walked from the port to the city of Charlotte Amalie. It took about 30 minutes. The weather was humid and sunny, and it was all the same plants that I am used to in Key West. Even down to the iguanas…they are everywhere. The area is surrounded in hills that descend nearly to the water. Lush vegetation is everywhere and I suppose it would be beautiful if it weren’t so dirty. All the buildings look like they need a good cleaning…inside and out.

I was proud of myself today though. I left ship by myself and decided to go exploring. I haven’t done that in a very long time. I went off on my own in Delos in 2007…and I think that that was the last time. THAT was an amazing experience. I have never been that interested in the Caribbean as a place to visit. I love living in Key West, but unless you have tons of money to splurge with and can afford an exquisite vacation on a private island or in an exclusive enclave, one Caribbean island is very like another. Different building styles reflecting the western countries that settled the individual islands, but the same feel to everything.

Once you get into C.A. the buildings are very old and reflect the Dutch influence, but every store, literally, is a jewelry store of some kind. I have never seen so many Diamonds International and Tanzanite and Little Switzerlands. I kept wondering how any of them make any money. Store after store of nothing but jewelry for the tourists. I tried to find a museum to wander through or something reflecting the culture of the area and came up with nothing. I kept reflecting on the difference between the Mediterranean towns we went to, when Ralph and I took the cruise on the Navigator, and the ports of call in the Caribbean. Even the smallest, oldest towns were still clean and reflected the culture of the area. Over all, I was disappointed in St Thomas, but glad to have walked off the ship on my own.

I seem to be making an impact on our guests already…I saw several in town that yelled out my name. I also had two mentions in the last week’s ratings and comments. One of them said that I should be a Cruise Director. Very flattering. One of the comments was from Margaret, whom I mentioned in one of the last entries. You figure that with 2,100 crew members the odds of being mentioned once, let alone twice, are pretty low, so I was doubly flattered.

Referring back to the past entry about goals; more and more I see myself as an impresario of some kind. It is obvious I am here on this ship for a reason, maybe that is where this is all headed.