St. Croix photos, part 6

On our last full day of vacation, I took a morning boat trip to Buck Island, which is a (largely underwater) national park off the north shore of St. Croix. People visit Buck Island primarily to snorkel the reef off the east side of the island, but the initial stop at Turtle Beach on the west side was worth the trip in itself. The water is crystal clear and an unbelievable shade of green-blue.












Picture of the east side of Buck Island (no beach on this side). The reef is behind where I took this picture from the boat.


Due to the current that day, we weren't able to snorkel the full length of the "underwater trail" (which is marked by bright blue tiles on the ocean floor), but the coral structures were fascinating, and I saw 2 stingrays and 3 barracudas, along with all the usual tropical fish. I wish I had taken an underwater camera.

St. Croix photos, part 5

The waterfront at Frederiksted, the city on the west shore, was one of the prettiest places we visited.








It was also the first place we were able to find pizza, Ryan's favorite food.





The sidewalks, in both Frederiksted and Christiansted, are covered by arcades, which Ryan called "tunnels."




Just outside of Frederiksted is Armstrong's *awesome* homemade ice cream. They make all kinds of tropical flavors, like mango, passionfruit, guava, soursop, pina colada, and Kola champagne (which is a Jamaican soft drink -- the ice cream version tastes like a watermelon Italian ice). Ryan stuck with his favorite, cookies and cream.



He liked the frog mural on the wall.



But was afraid of the lizard on the outside of the window.



The drive along the west coast was beautiful. The water was calm and clear, and the beaches were nearly empty. The west side of St. Croix is green and lush, in contrast to the arid eastern half.

St. Croix photos, part 4

Pictures from Point Udall, the easternmost point in the United States:





Buck Island can be seen in the distance (more on that in a later post):



Ryan exploring the Milennium Monument, a stone structure built in 2000, representing the intersection of 2 M's.




After Point Udall, we drove along the north shore of the island. The landscape along Cane Bay reminded us of Hawaii:



More pretty sights along the north shore:






Gas on St. Croix was the cheapest I've seen in about a decade. There is an oil refinery on the island, and the gas tax is only 7 cents per gallon. The lowest price we saw was $1.28.



We had local food again that night. The goat stew (my dinner), red snapper (Rob's), and passionfruit punch were awesome, so we were glad we decided to ignore the propaganda plastered all over the doors :-)

St. Croix photos, part 3

Pictures at Christiansted harbor:








We went out for West Indian food that night for dinner. Rob and I both had curry chicken and mofongo, a Puerto Rican dish consisting of mashed plantains seasoned with garlic and bits of pork rind. The mofongo was very tasty, but sat in our stomachs like lead afterward.



Ryan saved his appetite for ice cream:



Chickens/roosters and stray cats are always hanging out on the sidewalks of Christiansted.



Some of the colorful buildings in Christiansted:



The steeple of an 18th century Lutheran church in Christiansted: