View from the balcony of our new place on Donkey Hill

I’ve now been in the US Virgin Islands on the island of Saint Thomas for a little less than a week after having moved down here for a month with my buddy Dan. Both of us were more than ready to get out of the Seattle rain in favor of a tropical climate — so we are now in Saint Thomas living the island life for the 2nd summer in a row, though certainly not quite as relaxing as Santorini last summer given I’m working full time this time around.

We spent the first three nights at the Best Western Carib Beach Resort overlooking Lindberg Bay (I’ll post a few photos in a separate post), and are now renting two rooms in a place on Donkey Hill. Our first task was to find a short term rental so that we could get out of our $179 per night hotel room. Surprisingly, finding a short term rental for the summer proved fairly easy, even with Dan and me being fairly lazy about the process. I did some initial research on vacation home rentals in various places across the web, but in the end, we ended up finding our place on good ol reliable Craigslist. We’re on the top floor of a duplex with a 3 bedrooms upstairs and 2 bedrooms downstairs – I’ll do a separate post with some photos of the home.

As for some initial impressions of the island now that we’re settled in a bit? For starters, Saint Thomas seemed extremely run down the first few days. I know it’s off season and just entering hurricane season, but shops were closed and the city seemed lifeless. I think part of that was due to where we were staying (right near the airport) and that there were no cruise ships in town the first two days. However, we drove through Charlotte Amalie again yesterday and there were three gigantic ships gracing the harbor, and tourists everywhere. As a result, the city was buzzing with activity and shops that were closed a day previously were lively with bodies. The cruise ships being in town also brought the unfortunate addition of traffic jams. Food is ridiculously expensive – a $14 philly cheese steak, $12 DiGornio pizza, $9 breakfast bagel, $80 at the grocery store in one day. Repeat, food is expensive. Remember, expensive food on Saint Thomas. We hit Morningstar Beach for an hour today (didn’t want to burn the 1st day) and the water was unbelievably warm – probably the warmest ocean water I’ve been in anywhere in the world. It’s certainly helpful having a local resident (our landlord) help guide us in the right direction in terms of activities, food, and people. Getting certified for diving is going to cost about $250.

After a few days under our belt, we’re feeling a lot better about the island’s prospects. All in all, I’m a fan and looking forward to an awesome 5 weeks.

Now, back to island life…

France was one country that I dreamed about traveling to ever since I was little and my parents went and left me with my grandparents because I was too young to go. There are a lot of things that you have to take care before traveling abroad such as passports, international travel medical insurance, and the right luggage. Once you have all those figured out you can let the adventure begin. There were many places to backpack to in France, but when I went my favorite spot was Caen. From here you can take a day trip to Omaha Beach where the Allied forces invaded France on June 6 194 (D-day). Standing on Omaha Beach was so surreal and I could just picture the troops arriving in the boats and having to run up the entire beach while looking up at the German army on top of the hill. There are several tips that I would recommend when visiting this historic site.

1. Time of day: I got to Omaha Beach around 8 am. This is the perfect time to go because the tide is out so you really get the full effect of how far the troops had to run to get to the shore. Plus in the morning it is not so hot.
2. Pointe du Hoc: It is 4 miles west of Omaha Beach and there are cliffs that are 100 feet tall. This is where the German army stood over the American troops and released fire on thousands of young American soldiers.
3. The Spirit of American Youth Rising from the Sea: American Cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer. This is the first American cemetery on European soil in World War II. There are 9,387 white crosses that represent where the soldiers that were killed on D-day were buried. Seeing all the white crosses in line covering 175 acres really puts into perspective how many lives were lost in just one day.

There is a lot to see when visiting France but going to Caen is a must see just for perspective on World War II. The sites and the feeling that I got when I was at Omaha Beach is almost indescribable and is a must see for everyone.