SMAC (Sun Moon Alignment Celebration)

A while ago, my very smart husband, Bob, figured out that during the full moon, the sun sets and the moon rises within minutes of each other.  And since St. Croix is the perfect spot to watch such a phenomenon, we turned it into a celebration.

And since Bob is an AGKG (Acronym Generating Kinda Guy), he named it SMAC (Sun Moon Alignment Celebration).

So, every once in a full moon, we head out to a suitable hill with 180-degree views, and we bring cocktails and appetizers in tow (bubbly always preferred).

And celebrate the majesty of the sun setting over the Maroon hills in the west

And a little while later, the full moon rising over Buck Island in the east.

The Real Annaly Bay

I discovered recently that the tide pools I visited back in 2008 (see this post) were not in Annaly Bay but in nearby Wills Bay.  (click on photo to enlarge)

I, and others I’ve spoken with, had been under the impression that the Trumbull Trail which begins behind the Carambola Resort, led to Annaly Bay, because when people mention “the tide pools” there is the automatic assumption that tide pools means Annaly Bay.  In fact, I learned that there are a number of tide pools along the northwest corner of St. Croix, with Annaly Bay being the best known.  Since learning about my misconception, I’ve been eager to go see the real Annaly Bay, and when the St. Croix Hiking Association led a hike last month to Annaly Bay, I jumped on the opportunity to go.

We met Olasee Davis, our guide, in Frederiksted and car pooled in pickup trucks up to the top of the ridge overlooking Annaly Bay. A 4-wheel drive vehicle is a must for those who come by car.

From the top of this ridge at about 700 feet above sea level, we hiked down a steep dirt road into the bay.  This hike is relatively short but the return uphill is strenuous!

Arriving at Annaly Bay we see St. Croix’s north Shore to the East

And the Maroons and Ham’s Bluff to the West.

Hiking around the rocky shoreline is a must to get to the tide pools.

A dip in the natural tide pools makes the effort worthwhile.

Under rough seas, these tide pools have proved treacherous for swimmers.

We had calm waters

And spectacular views.

Hovensa: Beginning to Say Good Bye

Within the next couple of months life on St. Croix will change.  Hovensa, the oil refinery, will close its doors for good.  Hovensa’s presence over the past 40 years has helped shape life on the island in ways large and small.  By employing a couple of thousand people, Hovensa has been a major employer on island.  It has been a generous sponsor of scholarships, charitable and civic organizations, and public events.  Fuel prices on island have been slightly less expensive, and many restaurants, hotels and other commercial enterprises rely on business from Hovensa to stay afloat.

Photo: www.virginislandsnewsonline.com

So when April comes around and the doors close, there is no telling what the overall effect on the island will be.  For now, employees and contractors are forced to look off-island for new jobs. 

Photo: www.designworldonline.com

Our dear friend is one such person.  His industriousness and proactive attitude landed him a great job very quickly.  And so this past weekend we gathered together for a wonderful dinner to say congratulations.  A champagne toast to wish him well.

We found local lobster straight from the fishermen.

And paired it with steaks on the grill.

Lots of red wine and good conversation.

And then a bonfire and the hope that our friend will come back home real soon.

Artful Prayer Flags and Mindful Meditation Gardens

Watching a string of Buddhist prayer flags flutter in the wind gave me the idea of creating my own prayer flags. And then I met JoAnn Jones who makes Mindful Meditation Gardens from bamboo containers, and I thought, wouldn't it be awesome to have a joint exhibit? And so the exhibit Artful Prayer Flags and Mindful Meditation Gardens was born.

If you're on island on Saturday, October 30, stop by the Fort in Frederiksted. We'll be there from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm at the Opening Reception. The exhibit runs until December 1.

Meanwhile, my studio is rocking with creativity as I explore the idea of prayer as form. Here's the scene:

Love in the Time of Cholera with Empanadas

It was my turn to host our Book Club for a discussion of Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to turn this into a full gastronomic celebration, so I made Colombian Empanadas with a little help from Liz, Joyce and Joann.

And while in frying mode, we added some yucca to the mix, with chimichurri sauce for dipping.

Shrimp and avocado salad and Colombian cole slaw rounded out the menu. Passion Mimosas proved to be very, very inspiring.

Here we are, in full discussion mode. 

The moon made a guest appearance.

A bite of Dulce de Tres Leches and fortified by a little red wine gave us the strength to forge our discussion long into the night.

Four Little Monsters at Play

The torrid sea of June made us wonder if there'd be hell to pay come September when the sweltering Sahara winds barrel westward feeding on hot ocean currents. Metereologists like to call these "favorable conditions" for hurricanes.

Here's NOAA's satellite imaging of this morning, showing four little monsters at play in the Atlantic:

Earl brought us tropical storm winds and lots of rain. We almost lost a flamboyant tree on the hill. Here's Vincent the Gardener cutting down some branches before righting it.

Happily, we gained 34 mangoes from the Robinson mango tree. These babies are huge and rock hard. I'm glad I wasn't standing beneath that tree when it was throwing mango projectiles all over the yard.

Fiona tiptoed by us, and we barely noticed the splash of her tail. We'll wait for the mangos to ripen as we brace for Gaston's visit sometime next week.

Cleaning Up St. Croix

This weekend the island has undergone a major spring cleaning. Hundreds of volunteers came out to pick up roadside litter as part of an effort sponsored by the St. Croix Environmental Association, St. Croix Foundation and The VI Waste Management Authority.

This is all in preparation for next week's Ironman 70.3 Triathlon, when world-class athletes swim, bike and run around the island in order to qualify for the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. St. Croix is considered one of the most beautiful courses in the sport, and the island takes great pride in this distinction. Click here http://www.stcroixtriathlon.com/half-course-map.html for a map of the entire St. Croix course.

So when the call for volunteers went out, Bob and I signed on to clean the 1.5 mile stretch (or 3 miles round trip) from Route 80 to the entrance to Salt River Marina.

Along the way we found many, many beer bottles, tires and other debris. Other people had already collected a lot of stuff along the section some weeks ago, which definitely made our job easier.

We picked up nothing terribly interesting. Just plain old garbage.  We completely filled up nine 39-gallon green bags, which we left dispersed along the entire section.

We picked up from 6am to 10am. We started at sunrise to avoid some of the heat and traffic. Some people were very supportive of our efforts, giving us high-fives (on the elbows, since our gloves were filthy!) and stopping to chat. Others honked and waved.

We finished hungry and tired, and so treated ourselves to a big breakfast at the new IHOP in Sunny Isle.

Our names went on the waiting list as Barack and Michelle, after we refused the card for Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise (my least favorite actor).

The breakfast sampler didn't disappoint.

Luckily, it rained during the meal and not during the litter pickup.

It was good to see clean roads awaiting the athletes next week.

An Afternoon Hike in Salt River Bay

Sunday afternoon we joined Olasee Davis and the St. Croix Hiking Association on a hike at the Salt River Natural Historical Park and Ecological Preserve.
Salt River Bay has probably seen more action throughout history than all the rest of St. Croix. There's evidence of settlements by the Igneri people during their migration from South America around AD650, and later settlements by the Arawaks, the Taino and the Caribs.

Columbus's men got into a scuffle here with the Kalinago people in 1493. Two men died of their arrow wounds, and so Columbus named the eastern tip, "Cape of the Arrow."

By 1663, Salt River Bay was a European settlement with governmental buildings, parks, and stables. The area later became a sugar plantation, and now it is a park and a preserve.

Join us on this little hike as we take a tour through history:

Piles of stone mark the sites of archeological finds.
This is the view East towards Christiansted
A ship wreck off the Cape of the Arrow.
Grapetree bushes and succulents thrive here.
Including the Aloe, which old-time Crucians used for home remedies.
Lots of coral along the northern shore.

Our guide Olasee demonstrating how his grandmother used this coral as an egg beater.
Facing west Salt River Bay, where the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has an underwater research lab located near the deep submarine canyon known as "The Wall."
Rounding the corner towards Triton Bay
Hiking along Salt Pond
A mini forest of baby mangroves growing up in Salt Pond.
In the 1960s the area around Salt Pond was dredged and filled. Land developers began construction of this hotel, but it was soon abandoned.
Their dreams of making big money went down with the structure as it began to slowly sink because the fill on which it was built turned out to be unstable.

The place lies derelict while the Park Service decides whether to destroy it or restore it.