The Tropics

It is my hope that this page will eventually include photos from Central America and various Caribbean islands. Inasmuch as I haven't yet traveled to most of these places, this page remains very much "under construction." It is also my hope that one day the great and powerful United States of America will lift the embargo and travel ban it has maintained for more than forty years against the tiny island nation of Cuba and I will be able to visit that fascinating country without fear of prosecution. It is more than ironic that citizens of the United States, which claims to be the world leader in freedom, do not enjoy the same freedom of travel that citizens of Canada, Mexico, Europe and many other nations already enjoy.

In the meantime, the photos on this page come from a sailing trip I did in June 1982 with a group of friends through the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. Although we were pretty much novice sailors, sailing in this part of the world is about as forgiving as it can be: the winds are reliable, the islands are volcanic (meaning deep water almost right up to the land) and there is much to see. We started in St. Thomas and sailed east to Virgin Gorda, visiting St. John, Norman Island, Tortola, Jost Van Dyke and various smaller islands along the way. A week on a sailboat is a wonderful way to enjoy the Caribbean.

In the pop-up slide show below, there are also a few underwater shots that I took with a rented Nikonos camera while snorkeling. National Geographic will hardly feel the heat of a competitor breathing down its neck, but the photos offer a glimpse of the magical underwater world that anyone can enter for the small price of a mask and snorkel.