Charlotte Amalie will light up like, well, like a Christmas tree on Friday night, Dec. 14, as the 20th annual Miracle on Main Street turns downtown into a fairyland with music, dance, bands galore and open shops with holiday bargains.
Sponsored by the Destination Downtown Committee of the St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce, whose president, Joseph Aubain, says the committee has gone all out to celebrate its 20th year.
You never know what you will find when you walk down the familiar alleyways. Turn a corner and you may come upon the Joseph Gomez School High Steppers strutting their stuff, a mocko jumbie peering down at you, the traditional Sebastian Majorettes twirling their little hearts out or perhaps the Mungo Niles Cultural Dancers doing a lively quadrille.
It is truly a wonderland for the night.
The Miracle begins at 9 a.m. in Emancipation Garden where this year, Aubain says, more than 60 vendors will participate in the Christmas Fair produced by the Committee to Revive our Culture.
The garden, already dressed for the holidays with the lignum vitae trees brightly decorated, will feature all manner of treats, pates, guavaberry tarts, sweet breads, candies and crafts, jewelry and all sorts of homemade holiday gifts.
At 6:30 p.m. the action turns to the harbor where hundreds line up to ooh and aah at the Lighted Boat Parade, which make its 13th appearance this year, wowing the community with the imaginatively decorated boats, from tiny wooden entries to the large yachts.
And what did we miss? Oh yes, that fellow in red is going to make an appearance, but Aubain didn’t say when and where. It’s a surprise.
Miracle on Main Street was created 19 years ago by a group of Charlotte Amalie restaurateurs and retailers who wanted to draw the community and visitors downtown in the evening. It’s not only an idea that worked; it has blossomed into an all-day affair.
