Mrs. Osnow’s Class

        BEEP, BEEP,BEEP” my alarm rang as I rushed out of bed, quickly got dressed and ran downstairs. My parents were already up making themselves coffee for the long plane ride. We were going to St. John! I could not wait. I ran upstairs to wake up my brother. My mom called us downstairs saying we would miss the taxi waiting outside for us. We amassed our belongings so we could leave the house and get to the airport on time. As we loaded the taxi, my dad realized we had forgotten to bring the flashlight. The taxi ride was brief but tiring (it was 6:00 in the morning and still dark out). Through the fogged window I could see the Chrysler building lit up for the whole city to see. It looked as if snow had fallen on it and turned it completely white.When we arrived at LaGuardia airport, we thanked the driver, unloaded the suitcases and walked inside. We checked our bags in at the sign that said “Miami-St. Thomas. After that was over we made our way toward the area of the airport where they have you take of your shoes and walk through a scanner to make sure that you’re not going to do anything harmful on the plane. We had to wait for 30 minutes to board the plane The pilots voice could be heard on the intercom, “Hello everyone, today I will be your pilot. Our flight will take us about 2 hours and 45 minutes.” The plane started ascending and before I knew it we were off the ground. I looked out the window to see the marvelous sight of all the houses and buildings getting smaller and smaller in the distance.

           When we landed in Miami, the pilot said, “People who are going to Miami, get off the plane and people who are going to St. Thomas stay on the plane or get off, walk around and come back in 20 minutes.” My parents decided that we would get off the plane, walk around and get some lunch because they were not serving very tasty food on the plane. For lunch my brother and I had pizza and my parents had a salad. We got back on the plane for another 2-hour ride (very boring).       

          When the plane landed in St. Thomas, I jumped out of my seat, half because I had been sitting down for so long and half because I could not wait to get a glimpse of the clear water. To get to the ferry (which would take us to St. John) we had to take another taxi. The taxis in the U.S. Virgin Islands are different; they look like a pick-up truck; however, they have seats in the back and have an awning on the top. Most of them are spray painted with a sunset or dolphins jumping out of the water, something with a tropical scene. We arrived at the dock as people were just starting to load their belongings on the ferry. When we were all sitting down on the ship the ferry started and we laughed until it started to rain. The rain was not a light drizzle, it was hard and it hit you with a great amount of force making you wish you had an umbrella. After the rain subsided, we could detect a faint rainbow somewhere off in the distant sky. As the boat docked, people disembarked, gathered their belongings and boarded a taxi. We shared the taxi with one other family and drove off onto the long winding road. The ride was tedious but entertaining with all of the tight turns and all the trucks coasting by us. We dropped the other family off at a place called Cinnamon Bay. When we arrived at Maho Bay we thanked the driver and walked over to the front desk and asked where our cabin was located. The lady replied, “Your cabin is down those stairs, make a left at the sign to the beach and keep on walking until you see the cabin labeled A31. We hiked our way over to our cabin and went inside. My dad and I started unpacking the suitcases when my mom said that we should go up to the pavilion for dinner because we were ravenously hungry. Since it was Christmas that day, they were serving roasted turkey with mashed potatoes. For dessert we had a choice of pumpkin, apple, or pecan pie. I chose pumpkin pie because I love how tasty it is in my mouth when I take a bite. When our delectable dinner was over, we walked back to the cabin and got ready for bed. My mom told me that I should try to get some sleep but I knew that would be a challenge.       

          I woke up to the sound of tree frogs and soft rain tapping on the top of the cabin (it was made out of canvas). I looked out of the cabin window and saw rain pouring down it and in the mountains a bright rainbow saying to me “The rain will stop and you will be able to go snorkeling today. I woke up my parents and told them to start making breakfast because I wanted to be the first person on the beach. For breakfast, I ate oatmeal and a piece of toast (I had this everyday). We decided to go to Little Maho because there was a path there from the campsite. At Little Maho we observed millions of Silver Sides, which are tiny fish that are the size of a paper clip. I saw a 4-Eyed Butterfly Fish and a Cow Fish. That evening, we dined to a restaurant called The Fish Trap, where I ate Mahi-Mahi fish sticks.After dinner, we sprinted to the area with glass blowing. The glass they used was recycled glass bottles. Most of the days were exactly the same.       

          The seventh day there we toured Francis Bay; Francis Bay is where we viewed the sea turtles. There were four of them, two of them were Hawksbill and the other two were Greens. When my dad brought me out into the water I did not realize that I was going to see sea turtles, so it was quite a surprise.       

          One of the things I liked most about my trip was The Baths, located in Virgin Gorda. The Baths are huge boulders the size of houses that have somehow appeared in three random places in the world. I think this is important because I was able to experience one of them.

          In addition, I had a phenomenal time at St. John and I would love to go back there next year to continue exploring this magnificent island.