Grand South America & Antarctica Voyage, Road Town, Tortola...

No sail-in photos today as we arrived at the pilot station at 5:45am. Night photography is just not happening…  I went out to the top decks early to capture some photos before we departed the ship. We left the ship to explore as soon as the local authorities gave the all clear. Rhode Town is located in a sheltered horseshoe-shaped harbor on Tortola’s south coast. Tortola is the largest of the British Virgin Islands and its name derives from the Spanish word for turtle dove. We took a walk along Waterfront Drive stopping at the Craft Live shops, a collection of brightly colored huts selling all types of island goodies. From here we walked to the Queen Elizabeth II Park passing the Ferry Terminal and Government House. We started back towards town and the heavens opened up, so we took shelter for a half hour at Pussers English Pub. Once the rain eased up, we continued back towards the center of town dodging water puddles…there was street flooding caused by the heavy amount of rain that fell. We decided to return to the cruise port as it was evident the rain was going to continue throughout the day. Being back on the ship, I took the opportunity to pack a bag for shipping home and take care of a lot of logistics items for our future cruises.  I also went for a haircut; I was definitely in need of a major cleanup!  All in all, a very pleasant day topped off with cocktail party this evening.