"Attention. An emergency has occurred. Please evacuate the terminal area immediately."
We had gotten to the airport extra early at the advice of American Express so we could deal with the rental car damage with the local Hertz office. Didn't really need the extra time, it turns out, but we're still here in this sleepy, little airport.
There's us and one other family waiting in the terminal. Most of the airline counters aren't even open yet.
"Did you hear that?" I ask the dad of the other family. We all stay silent and listen again...
"Attention. An emergency has occurred. Please evacuate the terminal area immediately."
Yes, that's exactly what it said but none of the workers are paying it any heed. We decide to move ourselves and our luggage back outside to the sidewalk.
The alert keeps playing but, so far, there's only us and the other family of travelers doing anything about it. Everybody else at the airport ignores it.
Seeing a policewoman, the mom in the other family goes to ask what's going on and what we should do. The cop listens closely, says she'll find out.
A minute later, we're told that the alarm company is working on the system and they're testing it. Ignore it.
It's a little disconcerting but we do. The alarm goes off several times that day and we decide we'll start moving when we see the airport workers and security move.
Now that we're here, we've got time to think back on the week. While I'll always remember the beauty of St. Croix, the food, the drink, and the fun activities; what I'll cherish most is the people. It's always best when the locals treat you like one of their own...
A woman on our first day just relaxing on the waterfront, texting on her iPhone, engaging us in a long conversation ending with "I hope you enjoy my island."
The server at the roadside burger shack who encounters us later in the week, "it's you!" and asks us how our time on the island is going (I confess, I didn't recognize her but she sure knew us). "Enjoy your time on our island," she exclaims after bidding us farewell.
Melrose Maynard, the busser at the hotel's breakfast bar who introduced himself to us at the beginning of the trip. When I'd see him in the morning and ask how we was doing, he'd always say "top of the mountain!" with a big grin on his face.
Nadia, the front desk manager who made sure we had a room suitable for our needs, especially when I was so worried we wouldn't get one.
The bartender at Captain Morgan Distillery who dished on moving here from San Francisco to be with her dad and told us about her housewarming party, ending with...of course..."enjoy your time on our island."
The Hertz manager, when confronted with the car damage I inflicted..."no problem, we'll just fill out this form and you'll be on your way. Did you enjoy your time on my island?"
Yes, I assure him.
"I'm glad...I hope to see you here again."
I hope to see you all again too.
I hope you enjoyed the trip as much as we did.
Darryl
Copyright 2013 - Darryl Musick
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