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A World Away: Spotlight on St. John, USVI

Spotlight on St. John
(Photo: Rennett Stowe via flickr/CC Attribution)

I’m a city dweller, an urban wanderer. I grew up in a swath of suburbs, with several metropolises (Philadelphia, New York) just tantalizingly out of my reach. Once I grew up and moved out, I vowed to never leave a city’s limits, even the outer boroughs and commuter towns just a hair too remote for me. Even on vacation, I flee to other cities: Edinburgh, Amsterdam, Reykjavik. I want to feel connected, crowded, even a little bit overwhelmed by crosswalks and steel.

Well, the U.S. Virgin Islands have me eating my words.

On a recent trip to the tiny island of St. John, I discovered the unexpected exhilaration of solitude, of vast, uncrowded beaches and unpacked schedules. A destination where even the Wi-Fi feels lazy—and it’s hard to care at all.

Here’s what to love on St. John.

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