Chapter 54

As unlikely as it seemed the best time to move on was as soon as we got back to the boat from the casino and changed clothes, even though it was nerve-wracking inching our way past the other yachts on a dark night. The radar was a help thanks to Dad's work but mainly we relied on sharp eyes. Tracy was on the wheel and each of us scattered around the deck had a flashlight to point out what we spotted in an emergency but the sense of smell of a bloodhound would have been useful.

Once sail was set we stilled the engines and set our course toward the Virgin Islands. Michael and I shared the first watch after a warning from Tracy that there were likely to be a lot of other vessels including fishing boats and even huge cruise ships steaming in circles at sea to save overnight dock or anchorage fees. The breeze was moderate and with the speed through the water at about 6 knots I wasn't sure where next evening would find us but Tracy was happy enough as motor-sailing in these conditions we could easily cruise at 10 knots if we needed to reach an anchorage.

Michael's attention on this watch was diverted from the stars above down into the water as it was one of those night when the phosphorescence was spectacular. He had seen it before in waves breaking on the beach but never realised that the wake of WorthIt could be like a rocket trail with occasional added explosions of light as larger jellyfish were disturbed.

I left him to his revelry while I made us hot drinks about an hour into our shared watch so was sipping my tea and looking back toward St Maarten when I spotted that we had company. Not a threatening ship but phosphorescent dolphins! A whole pod, plaiting luminous trails as they homed in on our bows. God they're wonderful… !

Michael went to wake Jacob for the 02:00 to 06:00 watch but by then the dolphins were long gone and I kept Jacob busy taking bearings of the lights we could see although he found it difficult to visualise why if a ship remained on the same bearing it would be on a collision course with us - it would be interesting to see if his identical twin brother Daniel had the same problem. Everyone must wonder what it is like to have an identical twin but what would have happened if at 14 my original doctor had prescribed testosterone or recommended a hysterectomy? Too weird! I just flashed on the idea of a male me making a baby with a female me and had an instant incest revulsion reaction!

There are two questions that the thought of twins prompted: how similar could twins be and still be two individuals; and how different could two individuals be and still think of each other as essentially the same. Soon I would have to answer that question to the media because once I became a public figure there would be some trying to dehumanise me as not only less than human but not even deserving the respect due to any living creature. Night sailing makes me feel both minuscule and as though I'm under a microscroscope!

At 04:00 Bruce took over the watch and I didn't need any warm milky drink to send me to sleep - I crashed not to be awakened until 13:00 for lunch and the sight of Ram Head, the southernmost point of St John in the US Virgin Islands. I felt guilty as I'd been due on watch at noon but Tracy said I'd done my share and in any case we'd soon be anchoring in Cruz Bay.

Only an hour later we dropped the hook, waving as we did to the passengers on the deck of the car ferry. The town was small but had the necessary US customs and immigration and was the first time my I'd needed a visa to enter a country (Michael had stood guarantor for Dad and I to get our visas before we left the UK). Bruce and I had joked about needing passports to travel between England,Wales and Scotland but as British and EU citizens we could travel much of the world with only a passport but I wondered whether that would continue to be true since I'd been watching countries fragment ever since I was old enough to occasionally watch the news. I was a citizen of Britain, the EU and Samoa but what happened to the people when countries like Yugoslavia disintegrated?

My nervousness over paperwork was probably silly but my relief was palpable that I wasn't carted off to some gaol with accusations of being a man travelling on false documents. Sometimes it feels as though I live in a fantasy world, the creation of some storyteller, until the some threat makes life all too real.

"St John isn't an island with nightclubs and the like as most of it is a National Park but it is great for hiking and snorkelling. St Thomas is the other way round so I suggest moving to Charlotte Amelie, St Thomas's main town, on Saturday afternoon. Any objections?" Listening to Michael can be a lot like listening to Litara and in this case it was clear he'd done enough shopping with Sam and seen enough night life with the boys and wanted to kick back on St John - which is what he got!

On the Thursday evening we all had a drink and wandered around town before on Friday morning moving WorthIt a couple of miles up the northwest coast to Trunk Bay where there was good snorkelling and easy access for hiking ashore. Everybody joined in this time which made me more comfortable doing the same. In a world of ‘Upstairs Downstairs’ I find myself at times perched uncomfortably on the stair…