I got my first glimpse of the world outside of the United States as the plane flew across the clear, blue sky. The plane ride was an enjoying experience for me and I grew eager with the thought of spending time with my family in St. John. Leaving the United States for the first time added to the excitement my family and I were about to endure. This trip impacted me greatly; traveling so far away from home opened my eyes to the fact that there are many different cultures and I became much closer with my relatives.
The first flight we had taken was from Virginia to Puerto Rico. Once there we had to board a smaller propeller plane to complete the journey to St. John. While I had flown on planes before I never flew across so much water. It was an enlightening experience for me as a kid because I began thinking about how big the world is, and how small each individual is in comparison. After sitting through the short connecting flight, we arrived at St. Thomas. St. Thomas is like St. Johns bigger brother; it is a bigger, more industrialized and contains the airport for people coming to the Virgin Islands. The only way to reach St. John is by boat, so we took a ferry between the islands.
Upon arriving we had to rent cars in order to get around and check in at the house we were staying in. Even as a young kid I could appreciate the house we stayed at. It was truly magnificent. The house sat on the side of one of the mountains in St. John and overlooked a bay below. To this day it still rivals many great overlooks including the ones here in Boone. This view affected the current mindset I have today, where I try see the beauty in the world as it is without industrialization and technology.
After we