Rock You Like A:

There is definitely a price for paradise, and one of the more prominent trade-offs is known as hurricane season. If you've been watching the weather as closely as we have down here, you'd know that Tropical Storm Ana is fast approaching the Caribbean. You would also know that a tougher storm with some serious potential is following closely behind. His name is Bill.


People have been boarding up windows and preparing for the power to be cut, which will apparently happen Wednesday morning. That's right, the power company turns off the power in anticipation of heavy storms to avoid extensive damage. I suppose we'll be stocking up on the booze, playing cards, and candles in the next couple of days.

And so it begins...

First Roll, Cont:

The rest of my Diana film was taken during my first few days here in the islands. This was the view from my flight heading to my new home...


This was in St. Thomas as I boarded the ferry on my way to St. Croix...


Now for some St. Croix scenery...








So very in love with my Diana! I cannot wait to finish up my next roll!

Housesitting:

My friend's parents are currently out of town, so I am housesitting for them in their beautiful home out east. This is the view that I woke up to at 6 o'clock in the morning from their porch...


Yeah, I know!

It has been slightly scary staying in this big house all alone on a mountain at night, but I am getting progressively better at making myself calm down to just enjoy the solitude. I still don't know that I would like to live all alone though... I prefer a big strong man to cuddle with. (Cough cough, Jake, cough cough.)

Fun Facts:

If you'd like to learn a little more about this little island that I call "home", here are some facts about St. Croix:

-This is the southernmost as well as the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands at 28 miles across.
-St. Croix is home to Point Udall, the easternmost point of the United States.
-People and things from St. Croix are called "Cruzan" (pronounced crew-jan), including Cruzan Rum! Feel free to correct people when they mispronounce it.
-The western part of the island has a rain forest, the eastern part has cacti.
-St. Croix is not nearly as touristy as the other two virgin islands, in part due to the extensive crime that we have here. (Scary, I know...)
-We drive on the left side of the road here, which can be kinda trippy. (Also, the drivers here are horrible!)

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The best thing of all... This place is incredibly beautiful and has totally won my heart! I'll do another post when I come up with more interesting things to share!

Issacs Bay:

On Sunday my (temporary) roommates and I hiked to a beach called Issac's Bay. The 1.5 mile hike up and down mountains wasn't so much fun in the insane Caribbean heat, but the views were definitely nice...


And when we got there I realized that it was so very worth it...


We even packed a yummy picnic of subs and hummus to eat under the makeshift fort...


A completely secluded beach... Absolute perfection.


For all of this island's inconveniences, the beautiful scenery and crystal clear waters more than make up for the faults. This place truly is paradise.

Under The Sea:

On Friday I got to do one of the coolest things of my life, hands down. I sailed to Buck Island!

The island is located just off the shore of St. Croix, and the beaches there are absolutely beautiful...

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My friend Mike works on the boat that sails to Buck daily and took me on his day off so I could have a personal snorkeling lesson! I had never been snorkeling before so I was a little scared, but we were able to practice before we headed out to the reef, which definitely helped my confidence.

Buck Island is a National Park and has been voted one of the best snorkeling reefs by many different sources... It definitely did not disappoint! We saw squid, live sand dollars, needlefish, flounder, barracuda, stingrays, a lemon shark, among other things!

It was such a great experience, and I completely intend on going again during my stay on the island!

Oh, The Irony:

In case nobody has noticed, my relocation to a Caribbean island has happened to coincided with Discovery Channel's annual Shark Week.

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Does anyone find this to be incredibly hilarious? I sure do.

Unfortunately I spent the majority of my time yesterday at the beach mildly on edge since I had just watched a program about shark attacks. You should have seen how fast I leapt out of the water when a school of fish flopped by along the surface entirely too close for comfort... Like the show said: Where there are fish, there are predators!

Turquoise Waters:

Yesterday I went here for the first time since arriving on island...


(Pictures really do not do the color of the water any justice. It is absolutely breathtaking.)

I missed the beautiful shade of turquoise so very much while I was away... Have I mentioned how insanely happy I am that I am living here? No? Well I am. Seriously. I couldn't be happier.

Bootzapalooza:

The very next day after my arrival on island was my friend and temporary roommate's semi-annual party: Bootzapalooza. The name comes from the fact that he is known throughout the island as DJ Bootz.


Over 200 people turned out for the event, and although I refrained from participating in any of the drinking, it was a great time.

Since I had only gotten a few hours of sleep over the previous couple of days, I dipped out at about 4:30 am since the party was still raging rather strongly at that point. I am so very glad that I did because the boys did not get done cleaning up and back to the apartment until some time around 7:00 in the morning. Cruzans sure know how to party!

My Moving Adventure:

When I got out of work Wednesday, I immediately rushed home to pack. As you can see, Lily wanted to help!



I had to be completely out of my apartment Thursday morning and I had a good-bye dinner back in my hometown of Woodstock, Georgia that night. I stayed with Jake Thursday night, he took me to the airport early the next morning, and we said our good-byes before I went through security. My flight went to St. Thomas, where I immediately proceeded to the nearest bar. I waited there for my ferry ride to my new home of St. Croix. As you can see, I was sure to bring Diana along my journey... (I absolutely cannot wait to develop my first roll of film!)


I cannot express to you how wonderful it felt to be out on the open water on the way to my new home. Pulling up to the island all lit up that night was indescribably calming. It is so very beautiful here.

The past few days have been extremely hectic because my friend was hosting his semi-annual blow-out party on Saturday and there was much to help out with. (More on "Bootzapalooza Summer '09" later today.)

I am off to the beach now for a day of relaxation and to work on my tan so that I might start to look like a local... Be back in a bit!