Our B.V.I. Adventure

For the past 10 days, I've been "off island." I traveled to Florida to visit my parents and spend time with friends there.  What a vacation it was!  No weddings, parties or showers to attend.  The reason for the visit was just that - to visit!

It was hard to be away from Michael and Milly for that long, but at the same time it was nice to enjoy the comforts of home: air conditioning, mom's cooking, shopping at Target,  IKEA, and the like!

But now, I'm back!  Here are a few photos from the plane ride home...


It was a sunset flight.  I just loved looking at the clouds over Tortola.


Here's one of the final descent to Beef Island...notice that is water just before (and beyond) the runway!  It was such a smooth landing!  And all in all, a great day of flying.


Now, let's just hope that Tropical Storm Earl misses the BVI...not exactly the welcome home present I was expecting!  Ha!

I'm back on island and ready to bring you all that is happening in the BVI!

This time of year, a lot of our favorite restaurants and bars close down for hurricane season.  But before the proprietors and staff flee the island for a few months, they throw huge parties.  So far we've attended a "Drink the Bar Dry" party at Tamarind Club and then there was the parade party at BarFly/Dove...

Saturday's party at The Last Resort was the biggest by far.  Boat after boat after boat navigated its way from Trellis Bay to the dock at Bellamy Cay.  The "trailer trash" themed bash featured three local bands, plus the house band.  A huge crowd gathered on the lawn which was perfectly appointed with a clothes line, Fisher Price toys, lawn furniture, and a beer fridge.  Some of the partygoers dressed as Britney Spears, while others rocked the classic mullet; there were some pregnant brides too and trashy t-shirts.  You name it, it was there!


It was an extremely hot night, with no breeze to cool us.  Mother Nature must have been sick of the complaining, so she sent a huge rain storm to cool us off.  The rain came just at A Type of Toad was starting, so everyone rushed to the stage seeking cover on the deck.  There were so many people jumping up and down, at one point we heard cracking sounds of wood and could feel the deck giving way underneath us.  Somehow it stabilized...   


What a way to say good-bye to one of our favorite places, at least for a few months...The Last Resort will reopen in October.  But as bvimusic.com reminds us, a party this crazy and this fun may just be 364 days away, when they do it again next year!

We woke up to a very still Sir Francis Drake Channel this morning...this was the view when I woke up around seven o'clock:

Those ripples are from a ferry on its way to Virgin Gorda.

Things on the north side of the island were just as quiet.  We went to Smuggler's Cove and there wasn't a wave in sight!

That's Jost Van Dyke off in the distance.  It was a perfect day to float in the water and drink a Carib!

We have a big night tonight, as it is the closing party for The Last Resort.  There is a "trailer trash" theme, but I don't think Michael and I are going to dress up.  The friends we're going with aren't either.  Promise to take plenty of photos though!  Should be a good time...

Most days, I have lunch at home.  And if Michael is working from Charles' home office, he is able to pop over and join me.  But when he's at the office in town, he is usually left to fend for himself.


Just to give you a little insight into where that can lead him, here is an email exchange between us today:


Me:     Have you had lunch?

Me:     Huh?  Where did you get GOAT?

Me:     Was it really goat? 


I looked it up and apparently curry and goat is a popular Caribbean dish, though I haven't seen it on any menus (other than apparently the one at the chicken truck, which is an actual truck if you were wondering.)
 
There are quite a few goats on the island...


So, there you have it.  Curry and goat from a chicken truck.  This is our life!

We've had our share of problems with the mail service in the BVI.  Because there are no home address (or business addresses for that matter) all is handled with P.O. Boxes.
And when it comes to sending a piece of mail, I've yet to figure out how much postage is required so

I'll usually put two First Class Stamps on letters.  Sometimes it takes months for a teeny tiny thank-you note to reach its final destination in the states.  Are they sending this mail by boat???  I'm starting to get paranoid that not all mail I've sent has been delivered! 

So back to receiving mail, we do not have our own P.O. Box but use Pusser's instead.  So, every couple of days Michael will check the stack of mail in the office and see if we have anything.
On Day 253, he found this in the stack!  Notice the blue stamp at the bottom of the envelope.
MISSENT TO INDIA!?!  I wonder how that happened!  And to Courtney, who so graciously sent us a thank-you note for the items we donated to the Brian Henry Golf Tournament, it finally got here!  A good month and a half after you put it in the mail!  Ha!
So, if you haven't received a thank-you note from me, and you think you are deserving of one, be patient!  It'll get there...after a stop in India or somewhere else lovely.
Maybe we should all start using cocodot - it's a social media site where you can create notes, invitations, birthday cards, and send them electronically to friends and family (for a fee of course!)  They even have a Lilly Pulitzer collection...check out this one with gators!
Sincerely Yours...

SIDE NOTE:  Courtney has rescheduled her trip to the BVI and I couldn't be more excited.  You may remember, she postponed her trip earlier in the year because of her husband Brian's accident.  Cannot wait to have her here for a few days in November!

Today is a special day for our friends Felicity and Gerry.  They were married in their home country of Ireland.  While they are thousands of miles from the BVI, their nuptials made the local paper!


Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Ryan!  We can't wait to see you back in the BVI so we toast the newlyweds!