St. Thomas : The liveliest U.S. Virgin Island, though known for its duty-free shopping, is also blessed with beautiful scenery and fine hotels

Stars still shone in the new light of day, but already the old man was up.

He stood alone on a hillside overlooking Charlotte Amalie and a redding horizon. Sailboats nudged by trade winds moved gracefully through the bay to another island in the turquoise sea. In the harbor, inter-island steamers were unloading produce and huge cruise liners stood at anchor.

The old man blinked. His watery old eyes swept the hillside and the town he remembered from other days and other times. Quieter, more contented times. When he was a boy the Virgin Islands slumbered peacefully in the hot Caribbean sun. The tourist was still a stranger and on his island only three hotels welcomed guests: Bluebeard’s, the Grand and Hotel 1829.

The old man swam in the harbor then, exactly where the cruise ships are at anchor this fine morning. Alton Adams, a black man in his 97th year, the descendant of slaves, allowed as to how life was deliciously uncomplicated when he was young. His people had little money but little was needed. No, you could get by on less than a dollar a day, so that there was a sense of well-being on his island.

Indeed, neighbor respected neighbor; there was a gentleness and the mind was free to explore and record the peacefulness that prevailed in the Virgin Islands. In a room over the Sears, Roebuck store on St. Thomas was born the Impressionist painter Camille Pissarro. Yes, it was a fine place to be born and to grow up, the old man recalled.

The town was awakening now and workers streamed toward the shops of Charlotte Amalie, black men walking together and laughing, hurrying off to their jobs.

Unmistakenly, this is a black man’s land, these Virgin Islands. And so if you are white you are, of course, a minority. Still, Alton Adams insists that color creates no problem, that here blacks and whites live together harmoniously. Well, what of the taxi driver yesterday? Wasn’t he surly? Yes, in fact, downright unfriendly? Well certainly, the old man admitted, but then so are cabbies in New York and Paris, right?

“No, there is no racial strife on my island, sir,” the old man insisted.

Like other peaceful plots visited by the jet, the world of Alton Adams is in eclipse. Out of a struggle for the dollar an entire new world has evolved, a world crowded with fashionable resorts, modest guest houses, duty-free booze, smoky caves with steel bands, travel folder romance and expensive restaurants.

The island of Alton Adams is the launching pad to quieter, more sedate islands. St. Thomas is the swinging Virgin, and so those who seek the quiet life must turn to St. John or St. Croix. Or travel beyond Charlotte Amalie to the back country of St. Thomas.

From the airport it is a five-minute cab ride into Charlotte Amalie, the busiest town in the Caribbean, a town where Alton Adams walked barefoot as a boy and life was simple and no one hurried. Indeed, there was little reason to hurry. For Alton Adams there was only time to swim and laze in the warm Caribbean sun.

But all this was a long time ago. The old man shook his head. It is a stampede now. Year-round, St. Thomas is the busiest duty-free port in the entire Caribbean. Air shuttles run daylong between St. Thomas and San Juan, 40 miles away. Frequently shoppers arrive in the morning and are gone by afternoon. Others come by sea. Last year nearly 1,000 cruise ships visited St. Thomas and so the Virgin Islands Information Office calls Charlotte Amalie the cruise ship capital of the world.

With every jet, every ship, the old world of Alton Adams slips further away. Capt. Kidd and Bluebeard were an amusing couple of amateurs beside the modern shopper who bids for booty in the stalls along Main Street and a brand-new mall near Frenchman’s Reef. It’s a carnival of wealthy peddlers and eager buyers, shops stocked with dresses from Hong Kong, watches from Switzerland, perfumes from France, Italian gloves, Japanese cameras, Irish linens.

After ending their forays, the shoppers turn to the hotels and resorts of St. Thomas. On open terraces they sip daiquiris and watch clouds set aflame by a dying Caribbean sun.

A fine place to observe the activity of Charlotte Amalie is from the terrace of Hotel 1829 on Government Hill. Not only for the view but because Hotel 1829 possesses the character Alton Adams spoke of. Built by a French sea captain, it features ceiling fans, ancient guest rooms with four-posters and mosquito netting and louvered blinds to shut out the sunlight. Ballast carried by ships more than a century ago reinforce the thick walls.

Jacques Chiappini of Marseilles stood behind the bar with its 200-year-old Moroccan tiles and stone floor. Backgammon boards were set up at small tables and the recorded melody of a jazz saxophonist filled the room. It was late afternoon and a cat slept in the receptionist’s chair next to the bar.

In the courtyard, guests were swimming but soon the entire hotel would come alive, for Hotel 1829 possesses one of the finest restaurants in the Caribbean. Guests dine outside on the terrace or inside a small, thick-walled room with hurricane lamps. And in one tiny alcove there’s a single table that’s set aside for romantics who wish to be alone.

Piano Tunes Missed

Next door, Galleon House has lost much of its character. First because of a fire. But what guests miss most about Galleon House is Marty Clarke, late of Tin Pan Alley, who has moved on to the island of Tortola where, I’m told, he still plays piano in a tavern. At Galleon House, Marty kept even the night owls awake beyond their bedtime.

High on a hill overlooking Charlotte Amalie vacationers sign in at Blackbeard’s Castle (not to be confused with Bluebeard’s, which has been around forever). With only 11 rooms, Blackbeard’s attracts honeymooners and others in search of solitude. A sign says “Blackbeard’s Castle--since 1679,” which is misleading since this choice little inn opened its doors only last November. Instead it refers to a watch tower that has been standing since 1679.

The restaurant at Blackbeard’s provides a stunning view at sunset. Particularly from the bar with its scattering of sofas and a live piano.

Beyond Charlotte Amalie I discovered another small inn that’s rated No. 1 as a hideaway on the lists of dozens of romantics. Remember the name--the Inn at Mandahl and we’ll get to it later.

First, though, Frenchman’s Reef has created a colony of 96 units at Morningstar Beach that is the classiest act to come along since the pina colada. Besides being planted on one of the island’s finest beaches, Morningstar’s apartments are knockouts. Huge beds. Deep sofas. The surf’s at the door and gardens are lush with all sorts of tropical blooms. Guests dine at a new restaurant, Tavern on the Beach, that features a windowful of stars and the sound of breakers.

It’s breathtaking. What more can I say?

The Other Side

Millionaires’ villas cling to the hillsides of St. Thomas and ribbons of coastal roads circle the island. Nothing is far on St. Thomas, but discouragingly few vacationers desert the action of Charlotte Amalie for the other side of the island.

By the time you read this, visitors will be toasting the new $52-million Wyndham Beach Hotel. Its 333 rooms are scattered across 34 acres several miles west of town. They come in 13 clusters that appear like a swarm of pregnant bees. You get a choice: hillside, gardenside or seaside. Take my advice and request something in the garden or on the water. Unless, of course, you’re into mountain climbing.

This isn’t exactly the little Caribbean hideaway that dreamers dream about. Not with six tennis courts, a couple of swimming pools, four duty-free shops, a 5,700-square-foot ballroom, three restaurants and heaven only knows how many bars. It’s all about as intimate as Caesars Palace during a Shriners convention. On the other hand, you can run off in a sailboat or try snorkeling or windsurfing.

Given a preference, I think I’d slip away for dinner to Eunice’s, which is a shack just up the road with loads of character. Eunice Best was born in Charleston, S.C., and islanders insist that she serves the best native dishes on St. Thomas. A sign over the bar says “No Obscene Language” and the menu picks off kalalou, conch fritters, collard greens and ham hocks, steak with sweet peppers and onions and for dessert a choice of sweet potato or key lime pie. If that sounds OK, you’d best arrive early at Eunice’s. Because with only four tables, the line just gets longer.

For Solitude Seekers

Taking a cue from the folks who operate Las Brisas in Acapulco, Chris Kanzler, 33, of Michigan and his wife Virginia cater to vacationers seeking solitude at a resort called Pavilions & Pools. P&P; features 25 units, each with its own private swimming pool. Only seven miles from downtown Charlotte Amalie, P&P; is described by the Kanzlers as “a get-lost place.”

Besides pools it has Sapphire Beach, which is only a couple of hundred yards down the hill. Dinner is served at the bar and vacationers pour their own drinks. Or one may hire a cook to prepare meals privately.

P&P; filled up with movie types after the filming of “The Deep” on nearby Virgin Gorda, and in the high season it’s almost impossible to get a reservation.

Says Kanzler: “We’re trying to provide the kind of atmosphere there was before St. Thomas became another Miami Beach.”

Dive types make a beeline for the Bolongo Bay Beach & Tennis Club, 3 1/2 miles outside Charlotte Amalie. Besides free tennis and snorkel gear, Bolongo Bay gives free scuba lessons, a welcome drink and complimentary continental breakfasts. Guests remaining seven nights get a free cruise to St. John and Magens Bay.

Bolongo’s 77 rooms face a palm-lined white-sand beach with islets to explore offshore. Barbecues are set up outside and the resort will sell you steaks from its own grocery.

A few miles down the road the Inn at Mandahl catches everyone by surprise. Primarily because of the view. From this aerie 200 feet above the sea, islands come into focus in waters beyond St. Thomas. Once they called the Inn at Mandahl the Bali Hai. Somebody goofed. With this setting, they should have kept the old name. Dawn comes as a Technicolor shock, the sun rising from behind the British Virgins and St. John. During a full moon the islands rise out of a sea of milk.

Only Eight Rooms

The Inn at Mandahl is small, with only eight rooms whose balconies frame this very same scene. Sometimes whales pass through the channel below. Other times, guests sail to a nearby island to picnic on a deserted beach, and below the inn there’s another that’s also uncrowded.

The Inn at Mandahl features a three-stool bar with a piano. Meals, which are first-rate, are served in a circular dining room that looks down on the neighbor islands and little sailboats that are driven by the trades through Drake’s Passage. During Sunday brunch, guests at the Inn at Mandahl are invited to concoct their own omelets. Of an evening, with a background of recorded melodies, young chef Mitchell Altholz does shrimp and chicken in a sesame cream, rack of lamb, lobster ravioli in caviar butter sauce and other dishes that rate raves from guests.

Rob Hay, a 51-year-old ex-oil driller from Shreveport, La., serves as plumber, painter and general fixer-upper technician, which is a complicated definition of “general manager.” What’s more, he’s a nice guy who makes guests glad they came.

The inn is particularly inviting of an evening when rain pounds the roof and whistling frogs serenade diners from the darkness outside. With morning, guests are awakened by roosters crowing, and there’s a Great Dane named Valentine who wins the hearts of everyone. Mine included.

Hotel Rates:

-Hotel 1829, $55/$145.

-Galleon House, $40/$95.

-Blackbeard’s Castle, $75/100.

-Inn at Mandahl, $55/$59.

-Morningstar Beach,$208.

-Wyndham Beach Hotel, $145/$370.

-Pavilions & Pools, $119/$129.

-Bologna Bay Beach Club, $110/$140. (Ask about the special honeymoon, yachting and dive packages).

For other details, write to the U.S. Virgin Islands, Division of Tourism, Box 6400, St. Thomas USVI 00801.