Malabrigo Cruise, Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, 99 Steps

So, where were we?

 Oh yeah, eating lunch at the top of the hill where Blackbeard's Castle overlooks multiple harbors in Charlotte Amalie, St Thomas. We intended to hire another cab to take us back downtown, so we could shop for a bit. But it turns out that those who venture up to Blackbeard's Castle without a vehicle of their own, are expected to walk back down, along a path called the 99 Steps.

Yep. 99 steps. Down to the city. 99 of them. All down. In the heat. 

Luckily, there were lots of landings, and many amazing things to see on the way down. And for the most part, the stairs were easy. Some were old and maybe a little worn and scary, but most were in good repair. but still, 99 steps... and did I mention that it was hot. And thick?

This is a statue of The Three Queens

 A closer view of them.

 Lovely flowers.

 We stopped and toured a couple of colonial houses on the way down. They're very old houses, and the wear and tear shows. The back yards are not quite as pretty as the front yards.

The sea air is very hard on paint.

Also on cast iron.

A verandah, facing the harbor.

 I snapped this shot before the Docent very kindly told me that no photography was allowed.

 About halfway down.

Closer to the bottom.

Another government house. I love the sliding doors.

 Finally down at the bottom, we were tired and sweaty and no longer in the mood to shop in town.

 Charlotte Amalie is a very old city- the streets are very narrow and the vehicles all think they have the right of way. There were several cruise ships docked that day, so the sidewalks were teeming with tourists. We decided to grab a cab and make our way back to the pier.

Which was as beautiful as ever.

Did I buy anything in St. Thomas?

 Um... yeah... Rubies and white gold.

And Larimar, which was far less expensive in St. Thomas than it was in Nassau and St. Maarten. Though there were wonderful and very expensive pieces, we found some real bargains made from this amazingly beautiful stone (and by bargain, I mean the above earrings and bracelet for $18... total...). That almost made up for the rubies... heh...

Tomorrow: St. Maarten

Shhhh....

Don't tell the girls, but I found some extremely cool boots for their American Girl dolls...

 You may remember that one girl collects Ladybugs, and another collects Bees. The third collects frogs, for which there seems to be no doll-sized boots, but I think she'll be enchanted with the Camo Hiking Boots. BTW, I got the bug boots from A Girl's Treasure, and the Camo boots from eBay.

And while I'd rather set my feet on fire than wear Crocs, these dollie shoes are pretty darn adorable. I found them on eBay as well.

 Over the last few months, I've been gathering charms to match the girls's totems. On Saturday, I sat down for a few hours with jump rings and pliers to assemble the goodies. Each one gets an American Girl necklace, plus...

A necklace for herself (Turtle, Ladybug, Bee, Book, Frog) and earrings. The charm bracelet on the right is for Mom, with each of her girls' totems. And in case you're keeping track, Turtle Girl is not a new member of my extended family, but she now lives nearby, which is wonderful.

All of the above are wrapped and waiting under the tree (and no, the girls don't read my blog) (I hope). We're celebrating a delayed Christmas with Voracious Reader in late January, so she'll get her goodies then.

Nothing but this 'n that these days

With the clock ticking for SAFF and my stuff ready and sent on ahead (and safely in place), there's really nothing much for me to do before I leave next Thursday, except twiddle my thumbs...

 ...and read, and observe that Edgar Rice Burroughs surely did not like the Germans.

 ...and knit. I'm making progress on Forest Canopy with the marigold-dyed handspun Romney. It still looks like an amorphous blob, but it's a pretty yellow amorphous blob.

 ... and spin. Another 163 yds (4.6 ozs) of self-striping Romney. I'm amassing quite a bit of yardage.

 ...and play Jewelry Maker. These are amethyst stones, and pink opal.

...and admire my new CafePress goodies, from Curt's Store (link at the top right of this page).

But mostly, I'm twiddling my thumbs, and mentally commanding the leaves in North Carolina to wait until I'm there to turn.

I spy with my little eye

Future jewelry...

Amethyst beads (February Birthstone)

Pink Opal beads (October Birthstone)

Pink and White Fresh Water Pearls (June Birthstone).

Now, I wonder whose birthdays those might include (besides mine)...