Statia Day!

Yesterday was Statia Day - the biggest event of the year, celebrated annually to commemorate when Statia became the first country to recognize American independence.

Our festivities began at 11, when I woke up. What better way to celebrate Statia Day than by snorkeling?

Snapped a couple of pictures on the way to the beach, of course:

THE clearest, most beautiful day EVER:

The Quill and the Slave Path from the water (the Slave Path is that trail carved into the side of the cliff):

Second scariest moment since we arrived on Statia (after being charged by a bull) -- We saw a MONSTER barracuda. Longer than Jon. It swam up from behind us and passed RIGHT underneath me. Like within three feet from my tender, delicious entrails. Long story short, yes, I totally panicked.

Darcy and Lianna met us at the beach after our snorkel adventure.

Check out the point on those toes!

Statia Day also marks the end of the Golden Rock Regatta, an island-to-island sailing competition. We watched the ships let out their sails and show off a bit. So beautiful.

Then! That night! A street fair like nothing else! Entertainment! Decorations! FOOD vendors! More 13-year-old mothers than you've ever seen in one place in your ENTIRE LIFE!

Drum lines! This was by far the best part of the night. Competing groups began at opposite ends of the street and met in the middle. Awesome.

Live music! These guys called all the children to the front of the crowd, then proceeded to sing sexually explicit songs complete with actions. I, for one, learned some great new moves.

We caught the midnight fireworks show from our kitchen window.

In other news, I leave here for Utah/Idaho TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY. Cannot wait. Jon flies a couple of week after me, then it's off to Canada for Christmas. So excited!