An Islander's Vacation

I’m going to let you in on a dirty little secret. That beautiful little island, that gorgeous spot of perfection smack in the middle of the bluest ocean waters you’ve ever seen; the one you spend thousands of dollars just to get to in pursuit of the ultimate vacation? Right now, at this very moment in time, there’s a resident of said beautiful island paradise just itching to “get off the rock.”

For some island residents, the need manifests itself as a kind of claustrophobia, a desire to temporarily escape from the single gas station, three grocery stores and familiar faces at every turn that come with small island living. As for me, the moment those stunning vistas of seas so blue they’re practically neon can no longer quiet my constant inner monologue of grocery lists, day care schedules and deadlines, well, that’s when I know that it’s time for a vacation.

The dirty little secret: islanders need vacations too. But when one lives on the most beautiful speck of granite to grace the Caribbean Sea, where does one turn to truly get away? Other lush tropical islands, of course!

So it’s in this spirit that our little family of three will soon pack our bags and depart (in 12 days, 12 hours and 57 minutes, but who’s counting?) for a weeklong cruise. We’re lucky enough to live just a 20-minute boat ride away from St. Thomas, our ship’s first stop, so we’ll join the itinerary there. Considering we’ve seen enough of St. Thomas to last a lifetime, we are very much looking forward to arriving early and having the entire ship to ourselves that first day.

I can pretty much guarantee that my husband, who views buffet lines as a challenge, will undoubtedly take up residence at whichever spot on the boat will continuously feed him and thoroughly disgust me with the amount of food he’s able to put away, as he did on our honeymoon cruise (love you, dear!). I’ll probably take advantage of the relatively empty ship and tour around with our two-and-a-half-year-old son, who is so excited about the “biiiiiig boat” that’s going to take us to “other islands” that he’s already packed his suitcase half a dozen times.

From St. Thomas, we’ll depart for Dominica, Grenada, Bonaire and Aruba, before concluding our trip in San Juan, where we plan to rendezvous with a friend before hopping on the sea plane back to St. Thomas. The simple fact my husband and I, both relatively seasoned Caribbean travelers, have never been to any of the islands on this itinerary was reason enough to pull the trigger on this cruise. We haven’t decided whether to take advantage of any of the cruise line’s shore excursions or to simply venture out on our own. But to be honest, the fact that I can focus on spending time with my family for an entire week without the distractions of cooking, cleaning, dishes, laundry, etc. (etc., etc.) has me so excited that the ship could aimlessly drift at sea for the entire seven days and I’d be happy as a clam.