St Kitts

[hartmans]

Last week, we went to the island of St Kitts for a week's vacation at a beach resort. It's nice to get away from New England in February. We first went there four years ago. I really love the country. The major industry is tourism. A lot of places that focus on tourism don't seem to make me happy: it just feels off. However, there, people are proud of their country, and they are proud of what they (both individually and as a society) are doing to make it a great place to visit. Many of them already seem to think it's a great place to live. That approach really works well for me.

The last four years have seen a lot of growth and I think maturing in the tourism industry there. Things are more efficient than when we started going there. It was a little sad to see things beginning to mature: some of the things I found charming like how the taxi drivers really weren't sure if they were driving a taxi or a small tour bus have started to resolve themselves. However, the essential wonderfulness and relaxation of the place that appeals to me is still present, and the vacation was definitely needed.

Zoe, of course, didn't realize she was supposed to be having a vacation. She thought she'd signed up to playtime overtime. Without any of those silly distractions like jobs and school keeping her family away, she was busy from the time she got up until she started to fall asleep on the way back from dinner. Kevin, as always, was wonderful with Zoe. I think she had a really good time.