St. John gives a great deal to the people who visit it. A little awareness goes a long way toward giving something back.
Life on St. John is wonderful, and it gets better the moment you understand one thing. Almost everything here comes down to respect. For the people who live here, for the land and the water, and for a pace of life that has no interest in speeding up.
Learn these five and you will move through the island like someone who has been before.
Here you greet someone before you ask them anything. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening. It is not small talk, it is the doorway into the conversation, and skipping straight to your question reads as rude even when you do not mean it that way. Try it once and you will keep doing it.
The island is more conservative than the postcards suggest. Swimsuits belong at the beach, and shirts stay on in town, at the market, and anywhere else that is not the water. Save it for the beach and nobody has to think about it.
Cursing in public does not land the same way it might at home. No one is going to say anything to you about it. That is rather the point.
Everything here runs on rainwater collected in cisterns, and some years there simply is not enough. Turn the tap off while you brush and while you soap up, and take the shorter shower. In the dry season it matters more. While you are at it, aluminum cans can go in the bright green recycling bins around the island. Crush and rinse them first.
Things get done on St. John. They just get done at a pace that was set long before any of us arrived. Getting frustrated has never once made anything show up faster.
The handful of details that catch first-time visitors off guard.
We drive on the left, and there is rarely a reason to go faster than 20 mph. If you are taking in the view, use the turnouts along the road and let the cars behind you pass.
People hitch here with an index finger pointed in the direction they are heading. Not a thumb. You will see it everywhere once you know to look.
Visitors have a way of drifting into the road while admiring the view. Use the sidewalk where there is one and stay alert where there is not.
The ants are charming right up until they move in. Do not leave food out, and when in doubt put it in the refrigerator. You would be surprised what they can get into.
Many villas have sophisticated filtration systems, but not all of them do. Ask before you drink from the tap. Plenty of residents stick to bottled water, since cisterns can be unpredictable.
Same water rules apply, so flush only when you need to. Septic systems here are sensitive, so toilet paper only and nothing else. And if the power goes out, do not flush at all. That is a vacation problem you do not want.
Tell us when you would like to come and what you are looking for. We will reply within a day with a few homes that fit.