St. Croix, USVI - April 23, 2010

Still trying to catch up on posts... our villa in St. Croix was marvelous... if you are ever inclined to go there... look up Amonoka Villa and see if it's available... 3 bedrooms on the main level (a fourth sleeping area in the downstairs apartment), 4-1/2 baths on the main level, huge common area that doubles as a dining room and sitting area indoors, pool with large deck and more dining area space as well as LOTS of lounging furniture to aid in loafing the day away if you aren't inclined to explore the island. There is also a large kitchen, wireless internet, generator (in case of power outages)... all in a gated community high up on the hillside on the north side of the island. The master bedroom suite has two bathrooms!

Anyone interested in tropical plants, birds, lizards (geckos) and/or insects will find plenty to enjoy in the grounds surrounding the villa... the gardens have fruit trees, many flowering plants and bushes and all manner of visitors if one sits quietly and waits. You might enjoy viewing a short slide show of the grounds and spacious rooms.

One day late in the week, we came back to the villa to discover a power outage had disabled the keypad (electricity required) that we used to enter the combination to access our private driveway. Once we realized that there was no power, a quick phone call to the emergency number led us to the caretaker who talked us through getting in the gate. Once inside, and still with no power, another phone call to the caretaker had him on site within 15 minutes to fire up the generator. We were VERY impressed to find out that the generator would give us full power at the villa until the next morning IF the power didn't come back on... but the power was restored within an hour or so which meant we didn't have to rely any longer on the generator.

Our evening adventure was a mixed failure/success... our dinner at The Waves was not so great (seriously overcooked red snapper which required cutting with a knife) and slow service (island time)... but the Mocko Jumbie show afterwards at Carombola Resort was quite entertaining! (Family and friends might like to view the slide show of pictures taken during dinner at The Waves.) We hurried to RumRunners after the Mocko Jumbie show only to find that the rehearsal dinner party crowd had mostly dispersed which meant we didn't get to party that evening with my nephew and his fiancee.

I'll leave you with another island sunset image (taken from The Waves Restaurant) and a photo and a bit of information (a teaser) about the Mocko Jumbies.

Mocko Jumbies (sometimes spelled Moko) have been in the Virgin Island cultural heritage for over 200 years and trace their history back to Africa as far back as the 13th and 14th centuries. More information is available elsewhere about their history and cultural significance. Mocko Jumbies are popular for their performances at many festivals as well as in shows for the tourists and locals who appreciate seeing these colorful dancers high up on stilts doing steps that some of us cannot even do with both feet firmly on the ground!