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I wanted to do something different and was at a time when I could. So, when I saw a “help wanted” ad for a registered dietitian at the hospital in St. Thomas, I started daydreaming on my hour-long commute between Philadelphia and South Jersey about living in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
That dream became reality in April 1986 when a February interview became a job offer while in port on a cruise ship. I gave notice on my apartment and sold or packed everything, except for my mini dachshund and 13 boxes sent USPS.
My stepmother’s cousins met me at the airport. They had sailed down from Baltimore in the 1960s and stayed to work as high school teachers. Not wanting to burden them, I announced that I’d be apartment hunting the next day. Their response was, “No, you won’t. Everything is closed. It’s Carnival.” “What’s Carnival?” I asked. I soon found out.
There was a food fair, booths selling local foods alongside amusement rides, and Pan-O-Rama steel pan concerts. Add in two parades — one for children and the next for adults — with marching bands, stilt walking Mocko Jumbies, and troupes strutting in colorful sequin and feather-festooned costumes.
The U.S.V.I. may fly the American flag, tend the U.S. dollar, and not require a passport for Americans. Purchased from Denmark in 1917, these islands and their people have delightful- ly distinct personalities. That’s why, after meeting my husband here, raising our two kids here, and working here for nearly four decades, I’m still here.
The U.S.V.I. encompasses three major islands — St. Thomas, where I live; St. John; and St. Croix. St. Thomas is the busy cosmopolitan port and seat of the U.S. territory’s government. St. John’s vibe is about nature owing to 2/3 of its land and sea designated as the Virgin Islands National Park; and St. Croix, the biggest of the three by size, offers step-back-in-time tourism and natural wonders.
The U.S.V.I.’s leading visitor attractions: Mountain Top on St. Thomas offers a birds-eye view of St. Thomas, St. John, and the British Virgin Islands beyond. St. John’s Northshore beaches are the stuff of postcards, except between 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. when cruise ship passengers make it standing room only on the sands. St. Croix’s two towns of Christian and Frederiksted boast 17th and 18th century forts to explore, complete with dungeons. But some things to see and do aren’t covered by popular tourist guides.
Trying local foods is one of the best ways to get to know a place. Food trucks parked near Fort Christian in Charlotte Amalie, as well as local restaurants such as Gladys’ Café and the Petite Pump Room, serve johnny cakes, pates (fried turnovers filled with savory beef, conch or saltfish), and the U.S.V.I. national dish of fish and fungi. Firm, white-fleshed fish, called “pot fish” because it’s caught daily in pots, is steamed or fried, covered with an onion butter sauce and served with a side of okra-flecked cornmeal polenta-like “fungi.” It’s a history lesson in a meal — the ocean’s bounty combined with 18th century slave provisions of six quarts of cornmeal a week.
Main Street is called the “Shopping Capital of the Caribbean,” but I steer friends instead to history. The U.S.V.I. are the only Caribbean islands formerly owned by Denmark, and it’s still apparent from the architecture to street names. St. Thomas Historical Trust Museum is an excellent place to learn about this. Grab a brochure for a self-guided walking tour of this historic district or arrange a guided tour. The Fort Christian Museum is another deep dive into three-plus centuries of history.
Beyond town, Magens Bay is famous for its mile-long white sand beach. I like to take friends to the quiet, less populated west end of this 23-square-mile island. A hike to Mermaid’s Chair in Botany Bay Estates, feels like a Robinson Crusoe experience on this spit of land and its uninhabited island to the west.
If it’s the second or last Sunday of the month, stop on the way back at the Bordeaux Farmer’s Market, where Rastafarian farmers have just-picked fruits and vegetables, local drinks, and vegetarian and vegan foods for sale. Red Hook, to the east on the far opposite side of St. Thomas, is one of my favorite places for dinner among nearly a dozen restaurants. Select one overlooking IGY’s American Yacht Harbor marina.
If you go early for happy hour, you may see the island fishermen carrying fresh mahi, tuna or wahoo down the dock to a restaurant chef. Red Hook is also where ferries depart to St. John and the B.V.I. of Tortola, Jost Van Dyke and sometimes Virgin Gorda. Island-hopping is one of my best tips for a visit.
The only way to reach this 28-square-mile island is via a 20-minute ferry trip from Red Hook, St. Thomas. Our favorite way to spend the day is taking the car ferry, loading up on snacks at Starfish Market in Cruz Bay, driving out to Coral Bay, then returning past the north shore beaches like Hawksnest, Trunk, Cinnamon and Maho for a picnic and swim. Another must-do is the five-hour, ranger-guided Reef Bay Hike. The trip concludes with a boat ride back to Cruz Bay. If you do it on your own, you’ll walk 2.1 miles back uphill.
If you don’t have a car or want to hire a taxi, there’s a simple way to spend the day that checks several boxes. Stop at the VINP Visitor’s Center first to enjoy its information, exhibits and ranger’s knowledge. Get sandwiches-to-go from across the street at the North Shore Deli in Mongoose Junction. Then, walk the mile-long Lind Point Trail to Salomon or Honeymoon Beach. It’s an easy walk back to Cruz Bay, where you can spend the afternoon wandering in the artsy shops. The last car ferry to St. Thomas departs at 5:30 p.m., while the last passenger ferry leaves at 11:00 p.m., making dinner on St. John possible.
Sometimes called the “Big Island” at 82 square miles, St. Croix lies 40 miles south of St. Thomas. The 20-minute commuter flights are the fastest way to visit between St. Thomas and St. Croix, or a two-hour ferry trip one-way. Soaking up history by taking a self-guided walking tour of Christiansted or Frederiksted is fascinating.
Nature entices me most about St. Croix. Take a day sail, or we sail with friends, to Buck Island. There’s an underwater snorkel trail and lots of sugar-sand beaches. Mid-island, the St. George Village Botanical Gardens put a face to the name of many local flora and fauna. It was the first place I saw a cashew fruit grow with its nut at the bottom.
To the west near Frederiksted, Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge is the site of scientists and citizen science groups who watch and document evening sea turtle nesting here from April 1 to September 1. Scuba divers love the Cane Bay coral-crusted wall. If you’re a strong swimmer, the north- west coast’s Butler Bay has reefs and wrecks shallow enough to snorkel.
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