school's out.

There are a couple of events that signal the beginning of summer; changes in weather and the end of a school year.

Living in Vancouver - it's common place to discuss the weather. We follow the (mainly inaccurate) weather forecasts and then plan the weekend accordingly. Wasn't it a nice sunny weekend? Isn't all this rain and flooding horrible? Lovely day, isn't it? Storms, rain, sunny, hot, snow - there is always something weather-related to discuss in the elevator or in the coffee room. No lack of weather excitement.

And while there may not be distinct seasonal changes in St. Thomas - there's a similar preoccupation with discussing the weather. Winter months tend to be cooler with a lot more breeze and less humidity. Summer temperatures are similar but with greater humidity and a lot less breeze. And despite these very subtle changes in seasons - we talk about the weather. There is no escaping it. In fact, I caught myself yesterday launching into my introductory comments to our dinner guests, "isn't it humid today - I think this is the hottest day I 've felt yet." Riveting conversation. I need to read more.

But truthfully, some of the weather information is important, especially during the hurricane season. And weather reporting happens quite frequently here and during the summer months, internet and other reporting is monitored closely. And I never thought I would say this but I now welcome rain with great enthusiasm and a certain relief knowing that we are getting a little more water for the cistern. And while rain doesn't usually last too long - especially this time of year, it can come down with a vengeance.

Hurricane season officially runs from June until the end of November while most named tropical storms or hurricanes occur August through mid-October. Long time residents often refer to Hurricanes Hugo and Marilyn which hit St. Thomas severely and resulted in rebuilding much of the infrastructure that exists today. Before these hurricanes hit St. Thomas, there was a period of over 50 years before such a natural disaster had hit the area. Residents went from being a little apathetic to much more wary of tracking storms. So it will be interesting to watch. Hopefully from a good distance. Already from a marketing perspective - we have run some "hurricane preparedness" ads in the local paper and in the special "Hurricane Preparedness" supplement. A sophisticated advertising campaign, I'll tell you!

The school year ends early in the Caribbean - with Julian finishing kindergarten on May 30. Three months summer vacation! It was a very successful first term at Antilles School. In the absence of a school routine, we have Julian enrolled in sailing camp all day Monday to Friday at the St. Thomas Yacht Club. Already he is the quintessential mini-beach bum in surf shorts, rash guard, sunglasses and long-ish blond curls. At the age of six, he is already acquiring some basic sailing skills and doing really well. And we had to laugh when he reported to us after a day last week, "Guess what? My tiller extension came off when I was sailing - but they helped me put it back on". It was a proud moment for his sailing parents.

With Julian in sailing camp for eight weeks and Max in a camp at his Montessori school - the two boys will have a busy summer. And with the steady pace we are running at work, Mark and I won't exactly be spending the entire summer drinking rum cocktails by the pool (just part of it). This is very much our busy season with "hurricane tune-ups" , new sales and a lot of services - there's a steady pace of work. So it's a busy start to the summer.

vancouver visitors

Last Saturday, a Princess ship sailed in with our friends Pam and John. Pam and John were on a 10-day caribbean cruise celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary and looking so tanned - it made us look like we just arrived.

We met them at Crown Bay where the cruise ship was docked and set off for a mini tour of the island. First stop - Casa van den Driessche to see our home and say hello to the boys who were being cared for by a babysitter.

We drove up the north side to get some of the spectacular views down island, driving around the twisty, narrows roads. By the end, Pam and I were starting to feel like two little car-sick kids in the back seat. We stopped at Magen's Bay to wander along the beach and dip toes in water. The beach and park were very quiet and we almost felt like we had the beach to ourselves which was lovely.

From there we went for some lunch in an area called Bolongo Bay - to Iggies - which is a fun place right on the beach. We had some conch fritters and mahi-mahi fillets and washed then down with Presidentes and rum and ginger beer.


A very short visit but so nice to see some "old friends" .

flip flopper down

Last weekend was Memorial Day weekend - and one I won't forget.

After being without our pool for a short period - the repairs were complete and it was finally time to fill it up! Three truck loads of water and 12,000 gallons later - we had a pool. What was really amazing was the temperature of the water from WAPA - it was like a bath.




The weekend included a lot of pool time and we had a very busy and social three days planned.



Our neighbours and the parents of one of Max's classmates had invited us out on their 70-foot motor boat for a day trip and lunch. It would be their first trip out on their new boat and we were the first guests. We met them in the morning - climbed aboard and set off around St. John and the islands off St. Thomas. It was a beautiful Caribbean day. The sea was a sparkling emerald green and there was a nice breeze to keep the edge off the burning sun. An absolutely perfect way to spend a day.

We anchored off St. John looking over a very exclusive area of the island called Peter's Bay. I'm attaching some pictures of the homes in this area as they were beyond belief. Not your typical holiday homes. (Click on them and make them larger.)




Our hosts served a fabulous lunch - warm quiche, salads, cold chicken and fruit - as we sat around a big table on the deck looking out to the beaches of St. John. After lunch - we did a little swimming off the boat and Julian decided to try his luck with some fishing with their first mate.
Where the day takes a turn for the worse is when I stood at the top of stairs leading down to the stern platform - and a large (and quite heavy) platform door came crashing down on my foot.

Unbelievably - I managed to refrain from colourful language but became instantly concerned I had lost my toe. Without too many details - the incident resulted in a good mess on the deck. In fact, if I remember correctly - hosing the deck down happened as quickly as the emergence of a first aid kit. Needless to say, our day was cut a little short and we swiftly returned to St. Thomas with a call and scheduled appointment at the emergency clinic.

What continued in this comedy of errors was our difficulty getting ashore. There was no available slip for the boat at the marina. So we'd go in by tender. When the electric winch attempted to lower the tender from the upper deck to the water - the motor appeared to burn out. The half-lowered zodiac swung from the port side crashing into the side of the boat with Mark and the first mate trying to keep it from slamming into the boat. These were true Kodak moments, I'll tell you. Fortunately - Mark actually figured out what was wrong with the winch and the boat was safely lowered to the water. At this point, I am pretty certain our hosts were ready for a stiff drink except for the minor detail that Carmen is pregnant and due to have her baby in about two weeks. So while the stuck tender problem was being managed by the men- two less than able women - one with belly that is ready pop and another with a toe that is trying to stay together were trying to manage three small children from falling out of the boat.

After we said our good-byes and got into the tender - we slowly motored off about 100 feet before the engine cut out. I know they say things happen in threes - but seriously? At this point - all I could do was laugh. But then I couldn't really do this because my bladder was too full from not being able to get up after the accident.

The boat drifted for a while and then started up again. And then cut out. And started up again. Finally, we were at the dingy dock.

After stitches, x-rays and some minor surgery. I am now sporting a fancy new "sandal" to help the bone and laceration heal.



As a "footnote", I am reflecting on all my years racing and sailing on boats and the many injuries I've witnessed. Cracking heads with booms. Fingers caught between lines and winches. Falling off boats and into cockpits. I often marveled at shoe-less sailors wondering how they were not constantly breaking toes and cutting bits open. The moral of this story? I'd better stay away from power boats.