Our B.V.I. Adventure

We had such a great time!  That's Davide on the left - he and his wife founded Brandywine Bay, a beautiful restaurant here on Tortola.  Michael and I are ashamed to admit that our first time at this gem of a restaurant was just a few weeks ago.  It's delightful!

Charles was in great spirits and friends stopped by through out the night to wish him "Happy Birthday!" and share a rum swizzle, a West Indian cocktail. 
A few rum swizzles later and we were dancing (think Charleston-esque moves) to some jazz music on the iPod!  What fun!  Happy Birthday Charlie T! 

Friday nights at the pub are usually pretty predictable - a whole lot of fun, but expected-fun if that makes sense.  You know, the regular crowd shuffles in, to borrow a line from Billy Joel.

Well on day 124, we went to the pub to see some people we'd never met before.  And not just anybody, these people happen to be from my hometown, Orange Park, Florida!  We quickly found out that is not the only thing we have in common...

If this were a blind date, you could say that my dad set us up.  He and Bob (top right) are golfing buddies.  They're both graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy as well. Bob and his wife Jenise (bottom left) are chartering a boat here in the BVI with some friends over the next week.  {That's Pam and Hershel next to Jenise - they live in Orlando, Florida.}

We had an absolute blast together!  Charles enjoyed having some Navy pilots in the pub with whom to swap stories.  We had some stories of our own to swap...

Not only did we have the Orange Park connection, Bob and Jenise's two sons went to St. Johns Country Day School, just like me and my sister, Whitney.  I can't believe my dad and Bob never put that together!  We were all about four years apart from one another, so I guess I can see how it was overlooked.

Bob and Jenise actually figured it out just a few days before their trip.  They received their edition of the FYI alumni magazine for St. Johns and guess who's on the cover???   


They were kind enough to bring a hard copy to show us.  I had been told by family and friends that we had made the cover, but I had no idea just how much of it we occupied!  ALL of it!  Ha!

Here's the article on the inside - my sister is featured too!


Okay, back to the pub...
It was so great to be with people from home - Pam and Hershel's daughter is actually a student at the University of Florida, my alma mater, so a few "Go Gators!" had to be exchanged!  Not too many though because Auburn and Tennessee were also represented at the table.  At least it's all in the SEC!

What a great night!  And to the "Pilots of the Caribbean" - their group name for the sail through the BVI - thank you for such a fun night!  It was wonderful meeting you and we hope to see you soon.  Fair winds!