Friday, December 23, 2011

Christmas on St John

This will be our first Christmas away from family.  We are missing all of our family and
friends very much this Christmas season.   Especially our children!  But Jesus is the reason
for the season.  We hope that a more simplistic approach will but Jesus' birthday as the center
piece of our day. 

Some of our friends have asked if Christmas is celebrated here and all there Christians on St. John.
Yes and Yes.   There are many different Christian faiths represented i.e. Lutheran, Episcopal,
Moravian, Roman Catholic, Methodist, Baptist.   Christmas is celebrated here in many ways
Pan Band Concerts,  Strings & Sax Band Concert in the park,  Govenor visits with gifts for the
kids,  Santa arrives by boat on Christmas Eve with gifts for the children, and church services.

Decorations are everywhere, but on a smaller scale than stateside.  And some are rather quirky
as is St John style.  

We wish all of you a Blessed Christmas!



Red garland appeared overnight on the bridge near the turn to go up the moutain to our villa



out door cafe tables at JJ's Texax Coast cafe

Right in front of the cafe is THE town park.  Here is the community Christmas tree and the Gazebo/Bank stand in the park

Two Santa displays - one above the Castaways Tavern and another at The Market Place



Ony on St John is there a literal fork in the road at the fork in the road
Here it has received little santa hats on each tong.  It has since gotten a wreath and lights!

Nativity at Lutheran church in the center of Cruz Bay

Lutheran Church at night.  This church is in the center of Cruz Bay only 15 steps from THE park shown above                
               All decked out for Christmas - La Tappa Resturant below and Quiet Mom Pub above                                       


Saturday, October 22, 2011

Loving Island Life

We are loving life on St. John!  The weather the past 2 weeks has been perfect.  Upper 80's with clouds and sun and low 70's at night.   Most of the rain showers have been overnight, with  only a few showers during the day.  At our villa apartment it gets very brezzy which helps to keep it cool along with ceiling fans in every room.

We saw our first rainbow from our villa.  It was springing out of Reef Bay up over the White Cliffs and into the clouds!




Sunday, October 9, 2011



Moving On Monday

Tomorrow we will be moving into our new rental apartment.  We will need to become mountain goats as it is a climb up the mountain to get to the villa! 



Main Entrance



Interior courtyard connecting living area to bedrooms



View from interior courtyard



Stairs down to the main entrance


Walk way across the front of the villa

Saturday, October 8, 2011

We Have A House !!!!


We Have A House!!!!!

                                                                                                                                            
Well it is really an apartment.  We share a villa with an upstairs neighbor.  It feels more like a house than an apartment. 

Over the last year Mike and I would wonder what kind of a place we would be able to find on our budget.  I always hoped for at least a “sliver” of a view, but thought it probably wouldn’t be feasible.  Well GOD IS GOOD – ALL THE TIME!

The views from our villa --------  answered prayer!



The south side of the island is more arid and cacti abound


The Caribbean !


                               Luckily on top of the distant mountain is an ATT&T tower.  We have
                                                        great reception

We Have A House !!!!


We Have A House!!!!!

                                                                                                                                            
Well it is really an apartment.  We share a villa with an upstairs neighbor.  It feels more like a house than an apartment. 

Over the last year Mike and I would wonder what kind of a place we would be able to find on our budget.  I always hoped for at least a “sliver” of a view, but thought it probably wouldn’t be feasible.  Well GOD IS GOOD – ALL THE TIME!

The views from our villa --------  answered prayer!


 


The Caribbean !


                               Luckily on top of the distant mountain is an ATT&T tower.  We havegreat reception.  We are staying at our vacation rental until Monday morning.  Then make the move into our long term rental.  We will be without internet for a week or more.  I'll update the blog when we are back online

So far loving St. John.
Mike & Cindy

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

WE HAVE OUR WHEELS

Our truck arrived at Crown Bay St Thomas on Monday after a car carrier ride from our home in Mertztown - to Jacksonville FL - ship to St Thomas - then car ferry to St. John.  Only thing wrong was our gas cap is missing.  Luckily earlier in the day while in a taxi we saw a Chrysler/Jeep dealership.  We stopped on the way home and they had a gas cap even though our truck is an older model.  Even the parts manager was surprised he had it.

Claiming your vehicle and getting it plated and registered in the VI requires going hither and yon to different offices.  It requires LOTS of patience.  We thought we would be up for the task but woke up this morning with less than enough patience.  So at the last minute called a recommended courrier to do it for us.  Best money we spent so far! 

VI process
1.  Go to shipping office to get  bill of lading
2.  Bill of lading to Internal Revenue Bureau where a road tax is determined by the weight of your vehicle
3. Motor Vehicle bureau to obtain a permit to move vehicle
4.  US Customs office
5.  Motor Vehicle bureau for inspection and registration

Once again God put someone in our path to guide us - Kenneth.  We met him at the Internal Revenue office and he took it from there.  He was a pro at working the system and the people running the system.  What would have taken us ALL day took him 3 hours because he knew everyone!    After we weren't needed to sign anything we left to explore . We saw the cruise ship Allure Of The Sea docked. It is huge - 17 decks! 

We then had time to load up the cab and truck bed with items we will need in our new home.  K Mart, Cost U Less and Home Depot had what we needed. 

This was the first time we ever needed to use a car ferry to get home from shopping.    It was dusk as we headed across the open water of Pilsbury Sound.   Looking at the beauty in front of us we couldn't believe that this is our home now. 




Monday, October 3, 2011

We arrived safely and love it!!!  The weather is 85 sunny and the water is very warm!!! 
We have leads on long term rentals.  Everyone here is very welcoming and helpful.
Our internet connection at our house is not working.   I'll post later when our internet is
working better. 

We are safe and happy!
Mike & Cindy

Thursday, September 29, 2011

JAKE

Today we said goodbye to our beloved Golden Retriever Jake.  He came into our lives as a 6 week old puppy and captured the hearts of our family immediately.  He is now 12 1/2 years old and has always been a faithful companion.   His retirement journey has taken him to Hershey Pa to our daughter Melissa and her husband Ty's home.  In a few weeks Jake's "boy" our son Chris will drive him to Carrboro North Carolina to our daughters Steph & Linda.  They have graciously offered to love and care for Jake in his golden years.  Jake will be extremly happy find ZERO steps at his new home!  At his age the steps in our bi-level home were becoming difficult.  

 Our sons and daughters will be visiting us, but Jake will have to wait for us to visit him next spring.  Life without our Jake will be strange.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Welcome to our adventure! 

We've sold our house, packed our bags and are moving to the island of St. John. 

We do have - plane tickets for Oct 1st - a rental jeep for a week- sunscreen - and 10 days housing.

 We don't have - jobs - longterm housing  - or sane minds ,which would make us a wackadoo on St John, so we should fit right in!