তালগাছ এক পায়ে দাঁড়িয়ে
সব গাছ ছাড়িয়ে
উঁকি মারে আকাশে।
মনে সাধ, কালো মেঘ ফুঁড়ে যায়,
একেবারে উড়ে যায়;
কোথা পাবে পাখা সে?

তাই তো সে ঠিক তার মাথাতে
গোল গোল পাতাতে
ইচ্ছাটি মেলে তার, –
মনে মনে ভাবে, বুঝি ডানা এই,
উড়ে যেতে মানা নেই
বাসাখানি ফেলে তার।

সারাদিন ঝরঝর থত্থর
কাঁপে পাতা-পত্তর,
ওড়ে যেন ভাবে ও,
মনে মনে আকাশেতে বেড়িয়ে
তারাদের এড়িয়ে
যেন কোথা যাবে ও।

তার পরে হাওয়া যেই নেমে যায়,
পাতা কাঁপা থেমে যায়,
ফেরে তার মনটি
যেই ভাবে, মা যে হয় মাটি তার
ভালো লাগে আরবার
পৃথিবীর কোণটি।

– রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর

I had first noticed the name in Liberia airport in Costa Rica in 2013. Huge fans. When I strained my eyes to check which company makes them, I saw “Big Ass”. Had a hearty laugh. Found out later that it is a US based company (Louisville, Kentucky in fact). And it has a very funny story how it got its name.

Now, anywhere in the world we go as tourists, we seem to notice them. This was in Landings restaurant in Cane Beach!

And then there was this one peacock strutting by…

One of the questions that trip up most folks is “Where all did Columbus land in the continental US?” The answer is actually “nowhere”. What was named the “Americas” during the four trips he made then is today mostly the island countries of the Antilles, the Lower Antilles, the West Indies and parts of Central America.

Why we celebrate “Columbus Day” in the USA is a bit puzzling.

Technically, after US bought the three islands now called US Virgin Islands from the Danish for $25 million in gold during the First World War, US did acquire a spot that Columbus had landed in. This was during his second voyage, after leaving the island of Nevis, he landed at this spot in St. Croix on Nov 14, 1493.

This is in Cane Beach

As I took the sharp turn and saw the gate in front of me to get out of the hotel property, I noticed this and had a chuckle.

“Why would they close the exit but have a free entry?” I asked Sharmila and Nikita.

Then, I realized that I was on the wrong side of the road !!

In St. Croix, all the vehicles are like in the USA (steering wheel on the left) but you drive on the left side of the road!!

This was not at the same level of experience I had in the Gobi desert or the Jordanian desert, but being on the secluded side of the mountain afforded low light pollution. The cloudless sky was lit with millions of stars.

Niki and I were in the parking lot and this picture was taken with an iPhone 11.