Caribbean Encounters: Family Fun 2 continued!

Okay, here we go again!!! Now, where did I leave off? Oh, yea...

The fourth day in, my parent decided they had enough of us and went off on their own. Just kidding! We had to work and then I was off to pick up Chris' parents from the airport. My parents figured they would give us the night to catch up with Susan and Bruce and they'd have a little fun on their own. Once we got Susan and Bruce settled in at their hotel, we headed back to our place to watch the sunset and eat nearby at Iggy's. I know we lack creativity, as we did a similar night with my parents the first day, but why reinvent the wheel?

The next day, it was a family affair! After hearing about Bruce and Susan's unsettling account of a break-in at the place across from where they were sleeping, (no people were staying there, but a flat screen TV was taken) all of us headed over for a visit to St. John. We had some delicious lunch, toured the island and showed the parents some highlights. Susan and Bruce knew what to expect, as they have been there before, but it was new to Betty and Dave. All in all, it was a lovely day.

The following morning saw myself and the Padres on a tour of Blackbeard's castle. We learned some interesting tales of piratry (is that a word?) and tasted some new-to-us flavors of rum (pineapple and banana). Yum! The tour ended with a bit of history on amber (I know- a bit of a jump from pirates) and directly in a jewelry store. Bruce and Dave had more patience than I anticipated and gave us almost 7 minutes to look at jewelry before hinting to get the show on the road. It was a parting of the families at this juncture- the Walshes were heading to the airport and the Edwardses were going to canvas the town of Charlotte Amailie and take in a bit of scenary. After sharing one last delectable BBC with my parents, I bid them a fond farewell and promised I'd see them in just a few short weeks.

We had one last full day of Susan and Bruce to ourselves, so we made it action packed! We started the day with an eco-tour that included kayaking, hiking and snorkeling. This kayak trip marked a milestone of the first one Chris and I ever went on where we shared the kayak and didn't question our relationship by the end. The weather was perfect and once we reached the small island that was our destination (after some valuable lessons on mangroves and the surrounding nature), we all participated in a hermit crab race. I am sorry to say that none of our crabs even made it close to winning. Snorkling was fun- Bruce pointed out some jouvenile baracuda, a puffer fish and other wonders of nature. We kayaked back after that and were on to our next adventure.

After quickly showering/rinsing off and some quick snacks, it was on to Coral World, the island's aquarium. In addition to checking out the cool exhibits, we were there for inspiration. Bruce is what you might call a carving wizard and has won 1st place awards and best in show after just one year of carving. He's got the bug and wants to study different species of fish to clean up house at next year's competition. We had a lot of up close encounters, so we hope he's got some ideas to run with.

Finally, we went back to our place for some famous Edwardian BBQ and, once we were all tuckered out, got Susan and Bruce back to their hotel.

Alas, all good things must come to an end and we had a farewell brunch with Susan and Bruce that next morning. After stuffing ourselves full of eggs and all other breakfast related things, we gave B&S a brief tour of the island and stopped at the best of the best scenic vistas. Once we had enough of beautiful views, we headed on over to the airport to send them off with hugs and promises of seeing them soon enough. It was a whirlwind week, but, for the second time that week, it was sad to see our parents go. But more to look forward to for next year!

Thank you, Moms and Dads, for our wonderful and fun-filled week! You were overly generous in not letting us pay for much (and with the only things we got away with paying for having to be done quite sneakily!). We love you very much and look forward to seeing you soon!

Many hugs and kisses!