Cruz Bay (town) and Little Cruz Bay (harbor)

We took a taxi to Cruz Bay. Liz spent the day shopping at Mongoose Junction and other shops. She had breakfast, a beef pate, from Joe's Diner and lunch at the Deli Grotto.

Beth and I stopped at Captain's Corner, where we priced rum and I bought batteries, then walked to Mongoose Junction and started hitchhiking to Trunk Bay.

A lady walking down the street saw us hitchhiking and said, "The police are right there!"

Beth replied, "It's legal."

The lady snapped, "Well, I live here!"

We crossed the street to the left side and stuck our thumbs out again. Two firetrucks pulled up and snarled traffic at the intersection, so we started hiking up the big hill. There was no good place for a car to pull over on the ascent. We climbed to the top, where there is a scenic overlook of Cruz Bay.

I told Beth I was going to take some pictures there, while she kept walking. I got up on the stone wall and took pictures for about five minutes.

Beth was nowhere in sight, but there was a good place for a car to pull over there, by a restaurant parking lot next to the scenic overlook, so I stuck my thumb out. Soon a car pulled over. I climbed in the back, where a grizzled man with missing teeth sat with a beer in hand and alcohol on his breath. In the front were two nice, quiet, and sober ladies.

They were residents going to the beach. I told them my girlfriend was somewhere up ahead and asked them to stop for her. The man liked to talk about himself and bragged about his travels. He said, "Let her sit in the middle."

We came upon Beth, and the driver pulled over. I rolled down the window and called, "Want a ride?" Without more than a glance my way, Beth said no and kept walking. "Hey, Beth, it's me." She recognized me and got into the car. I slid over and sat in the middle. They dropped us off at Trunk Bay.

We paid our $4 entrance fee and changed in the washrooms. We asked for a locker at the souvenir and rental shop. The lady gave us a padlock and a handwritten slip of paper for our deposit.

Trunk Bay

There were a lot of people there. We walked down the beach to the right, past the lifeguard platform, and found a little shady spot toward the far end.

Beth and I snorkeled around the cay. We went counterclockwise instead of following the underwater trail clockwise. We followed the rocky underwater foundation of the island, looking at the variety of resident fish, coral, and plants, and occasionally passing other snorkelers.

Around the other side were lots more snorkelers. When we finished circling the cay, we swam to the beach and got out. It was satisfying to complete the circuit around the cay, when we were hardly able to begin it last year owing to my leaky mask and Beth's uncomfortable snorkel.

We sat in the sand by the shade of a tree and ate leftover pizza, entertaining ourselves by throwing crumbs of crust to a sea gull who came begging. The gull was afraid to get too close to us. We threw each crumb a little bit closer and closer. The gull came nearer and nearer. Other gulls came over to see what was up.

Eventually, we counted seven gulls in the sand around us. Some just watched, but when one of them bullied in front of the others, we tried to aim the food at our original friend, but with all the birds hopping around, it ended in confusion. Then lunch was over.

The taxi ride back

Beth and I were ready for more snorkeling. I asked the lifeguard how the snorkeling was at Jumbie beach. When he answered he pointed toward the shoreline to the left. I saw a small strip of white sand beyond the rocky shoreline at the end of Trunk. That must be Jumbie, I thought.

We first thought we'd take the road to Jumbie (our ride hosts pointed out the stairs leading down to Jumbie when we drove by earlier). But we wouldn't be able to secure our valuables (cameras) at Jumbie, so we thought, why not keep our locker here at Trunk and snorkel over to Jumbie?

We walked to the rocks at the end of the beach, put our beach bags and flip-flops on the rocky ledge, and got into our snorkeling gear. We snorkeled along the rocks and coral about half of the distance to Jumbie beach. Beth was ready to turn back and I was getting cold, so we came back.

As we got out of the water and transformed ourselves back into land dwellers, two children were play-acting with a patient, encouraging young woman (the babysitter, Beth decided). "Someone stole the dynamite. I'm going to hide it in the cave," the older girl said.

Back in the woods behind the beach, Beth and I sat at a picnic table a while. Children and parents filed by the snack bar, and people came and went.

Beth and I had experimented with talking underwater at Trunk Bay. I spoke through my snorkel, "Haan you un-er-shaan me?" (Can you understand me?) Beth did understand, and I heard her say "yes" through her snorkel.

In the parking lot, we asked for a taxi to the Westin and were directed to one of the taxis parked in a row. We got in and left Trunk Bay. Beth looked relaxed and happy as the green hills flew past.

Our room was at the end of this balcony.

The beach cafe

Liz, Beth, and I went to the cafe between the pool and the beach again for dinner. Liz told us about her day in Cruz Bay. Liz's story (MP3)

Back in our room, we thought we might find a maid in the corridor outside and ask for more coffee packets for the next morning. No one was around, but the supply closet was right outside our room. In the days that followed, we never lacked for coffee, shampoo, conditioner, or soap.