We all slept late today, then Will spent most of the day flying his kite, making sand castles, and swimming.  It was a relaxed day.  Darl, Pat & I spent most of it on the balcony overlooking beautiful Emerald Beach.  It was the calm-enjoy-the-scenery-of-the-Virgin-Islands-with-nothing-to-do kind of day that you only read about.

This bay and this beach is as pretty as any postcard and uncrowded.  It seems that the hotel is not nearly full.

So we watch people.  The family of three next balcony over.   Parents in their 60s, daughter in her late 30s.  Mom spent two full days sitting on the balcony doing crossword puzzles.

The 30 something yuppie looking guy with lots of hair on his chest and a deep tan already who spent the whole day “laying out.”  He has it down to a science.  He strolled out about 9 a.m. with a beach towel and a plastic bag full of the day’s necessities - a book, sun tan oil, and a walkman.  He carefully unfolded his towel, oriented his chair toward the sun, and opened his book.  Hours later he stretched out listening to his headphones.  In the heat of the day, he walked into the ocean to cool off a bit  Occasionally, he splashed more oil on.  Once I saw him leave the beach, I assume for a trip to the bathroom.  But on the whole, that was about the size of his day - a deeper and darker tan.

Darl and I ogled the girls walking the beach in their bikinis, but as Darl observed, “none of them will be entering any beauty contests.”

Mostly it’s old people.  See.  You have to be old to afford the time and money for such traveling.  Lots of shriveling old people.  All the men have big round stomachs.  All the women have bagging, sagging skin and a pudge or budge in the wrong place.  They walk back and forth a hundred times down our half-mile beach in their plaid shorts and funny hats.

A young thirty-something girl passes them by getting her morning jog.  A grandmother with a three year old and a five year old hand in hand steps gingerly into the foaming edge of the ocean.

Diving lessons are being offered to our left.  Four or five twenty-somethings wade into the water with full scuba gear.  Then they stand waist deep as the instructor explains about regulators and air pressure and such.  Then they wade into deeper water and try their hand.

The young family below has a four year old boy.  The father takes him for a walk on the beach to the rocks on the far left.  The four-year-old throws rocks into the water endlessly.  And I well remembered standing there with my two boys at that age as they try my patience by repeating similar boring actions - thrilling to a preschooler, infinitely boring to an adult.  But hey!  It’s the price you pay for being a father.  There he was paying the price.

Will stashes his Darth Vader kite by piling sand on it so it won’t accidentally fly away and announces to us watching from the balcony, “I’m going to play with him” and points to the four-year-old and his dad now making a sand castle with plastic pail, hoe, and shovel.  Sure enough, Will makes another friend and is found still digging in the sand long after the four-year-old and his dad have left.

When Pat and I walked down to observe his handiwork, I was surprised not to observe more standing walls and such.  Mostly he was digging tunnels.  He just arrived with a bucket full of water which he poured into his hole and complained, “It won’t hold the water.”  To which I wisely replied, “Of course not, son, it’s sand.  Sand doesn’t hold water.”  Then the little smart-aleck pointed to the ocean and said, “Da-ad (making a full-drawn-out two syllables of the three little letters), “Dad, what do you think is at the bottom of that?” pointing to the ocean.

“Ya think?” is his latest phrase of choice.
I say, “Man, that water is beautiful.”
He says, “Ya think?”
I say, “Son, that plane is fast.”
He says, “Ya think?”
I say, “This is a great vacation.”
He says, “Ya think?”

Finally I decide to swim with Will.  The water is just a little cold.  I hate getting into cold water.  I know you are supposed to courageously dive right in and get the pain over with quickly, but I hate doing that. So I slowly wade in with the lower part of my body becoming accustomed to the new temperature, while my upper part is comfortable with the air temperature, and that painful line of shocking cold slowly moves from bottom to top.

My fine new binoculars are a wonder.  I do love my special things.  We pass them around to bring in a wonderfully close view of cruise ships, sailboats, and fishing boats passing in the ocean beyond our bay.  We watch the frigate bird with bent wings and split tail soaring effortlessly high above.  We inspect the surrounding hillsides and even the moon at night with seven-power efficiency.  And Darl and I take a closer look at bikini-clad women lying on their beach chairs.

The iguanas are very nearly tame here.  Two of them about 18 inches long are lounging in the bar.  A lady drops a piece of lettuce on the ground nearby and the iguanas scramble to fetch the free meal.  Like tiny pre-historic dinosaurs they lumber about.  A close inspection reveals that totally other-worldly look.  Funny eyes and mouth and a ridge of fins down their back.  What an incredible creature!

About 2:15 Pat and I make the half-mile walk to the airport to wait and watch for Sarah and Andy.  The airport is inside out.  The parts that should be inside are outside.  The ticket counters are open-air with no glass, no walls to the outside.  Taxi drivers swarm at the exit gate.

We make our way to the fence where we spot the planes the instant they break through the clouds on their last descent.  After several false alarms by much smaller planes landing, we finally spot Delta Flight 361 with its bright lights coming in.  We wave as the plane taxis by just in case Sarah or Andy happen to be looking our way.  Sure enough, Sarah reports later that she saw us.

Pat and I wait anxiously as the passengers make their way down the long portico.  Finally I spot Andy standing tall above the others.  Dressed in my shirt, tie and coat according to Delta employee regulations, he looks so handsome and casual strolling along by his Mom.  He looks like a young lawyer or maybe one of the characters from Friends.  He looks nothing like the Andy I have known for 19 years.  Not the toddler with light sandy hair.  Not the eleven-year-old riding the wheels off his bike.  Not the teenager lanky and awkward.  But a young man now with poise and a professional look about him, a strong hint of the man he is about to become.

After our greetings and expressions of joy that they made it, and on the first flight, Andy bubbles with confidence explaining how he got to ride in First Class and had steak and a free movie. He carries on as how he loves flying - loves everything about it!  He’s a young Tom Cruise, cocky and sure.

When I tell him that we read about an all-day dive trip he could take on Friday, he replies, “Cool!” and he says it in an oh-so-cool way.  He’s a man.  A man with money to spend and his diver certification in his pocket.  Taking off by himself across the island by taxi and diving with total strangers is no problem for him.  “Cool.”  No fear.  No anxiety.

Just before five, I called to make Andy’s dive reservation for Friday.  They only had one spot left and I had to guarantee the place with my credit card.  Andy MUST arrive at the Renaissance Grand Beach Resort clear across the island by 7:00 a.m.  If he doesn’t show, then I get charged anyway.

I walked away from the pay phone and left my sunglasses on the top of it.  Got all the way back to the room before I realized they were gone.  Luckily, they were still there when I returned to fetch them.  But Pat said she was going to have to tie them on me.  She wants no more lost sunglasses stories.

For supper, we all headed back to The Green House.  The food was so good and the atmosphere was just right for a Caribbean flavor, so I wanted to share it all with Sarah.  Two cruise ships were still docked when we arrived.  It was fun watching them back out and head off into the ocean night.  Will and I were partial to the conch fritters.  We watched as the hillside across the bay darkened and then sparkled with lights high and low.

Sarah writes:
“We went to the Green House for seafood dinner.  I had grilled salmon.  Will and Andy had fried snapper.  Pat - Lobster Alfredo, Darl - Creole Shrimp, Mickey Mahi Mahi, Appetizers - Jalepeno Poppers, Nachos, and Conch Fritters.  All of the food was great.  I had not really eaten since the day before yesterday, but I finally felt relaxed and ready to eat.  The restaurant was right on the waterfront and we watched boats loading, saw two big cruise ships leave port, and saw a ferry leaving, a sea plane take off - lots of activity on the water.  We came back to the room and sat on the balcony listening to the waves and looking at the moon and the cruise ship out on the water.  Everyone was too tired to last long se we tried to call Dot and then went on to bed.”

Will writes:
“Today I spent most of my time in the water and sand, swimming or flying my kite, and I was surprised he didn’t follow me like he usually does.   He followed me when I went to eat dinner at the Green House again.  There isn’t much to write about because I have no need for my super-powers.”

End - Day Two - Motherofallvacations Vacation