Awesome




Sunbeam - a Tortola Sloop (that's Sunny Jim waving) on Sunday

 
This is a quick post, as I'm squeezing it in amongst work and choosing fabric for the new sitting room, as our laptop at home has died (of exhaustion, I think). Bit of a disaster to say the least, but help is hopefully soon on the way in the form of a new one. One good reason to be a hop, skip & jump away from the US.

We had a lovely weekend, even though Tyler worked pretty much all of it. He didn't work either Friday or Saturday night so maybe Bill Marriott had read my rant. Saturday was the usual (sailing) and Sunday was also the usual (sailing) but this time on Tortola Sloops, the traditional boats built here all out of wood. James & Georgie sailed in a classics regatta off Little Thatch and had a great time. All very 'Swallows and Amazon'ish". Just as well the boys really like sailing, although I suppose there's also surfing. It would be a bit dire for all if they didn't like either of these!

On Sunday we loaded up the two cars and went over to the new house. It was a lovely evening so we stayed for sundowners at a little beach bar and watched the fishermen come in. Idyllic, really.

We're about to go off-line as we have a seriously busy 10 days ahead of us - moving and also working on the bakery. We are both on leave next week and the next time I post, we should be in the new house.

Totally awesome (as James would say).

PS: I'm going to be back in London on the 15th March and in SA until the 24th. 

Daytripper

Little Thatch

I've got a new term for our Caribbean Lexicon - "Billionaire Days". Bit like "Queen for the Day" - but with more toys.

Believe me when I say that our lives on a day to day basis, are  fairly normal, humdrum and even maybe a tad 'suburban', though I do struggle a little bit with that one - as there really is nothing faintly suburban about this place. However, our daily routine is much the same as Johannesburg - just with lots of  housework, terrible roads, no shops, trillions of yachts and heartbreaking scenery all around one.

And then sometimes, just to make up for it all, we have these 'killer' days - where you just have to pinch yourself to see if it's real.  This past Sunday was such a day. We were invited to have lunch on 'Little Thatch' - a private island, just down the drag. So off we went, black eyes and all, joining the local party at the 'Jolly Roger' dock to be picked up by the island 'rib' (rubber ducky) loading up with the ubiquitous cooler boxes full of wine and Caprisuns - and then zooming off to paradise.  Half of the excitment is all the logistics and all that boaty-nautical stuff which I'm beginning to love. It's deeply glam.

As much as our Wickedly Good Day a few weeks ago on Joost & the Willie T  represets how the world views Caribbean rackety living, so Little Thatch was kind of how I vaquely imagined our lives would be on Tortola. Ha ha ha. This beautiful little house on a white stretch of palm-lined beach etc etc. Anyway we dont live like that, but we do get to play occasionaly like that and have a perfect day, without all the fuss of having to actually be a billionnaire.

I'm starting to learn a few rules here: Never ask people what they do for a living - many reply with a blank look. Never assume that people are employees - they tend to own the place. I could go on, but I wont -  I'll reserve this for dinner parties in Johannesburg, where I'm back in 10 days time.

I'm so looking forward to some shopping and friends, but rather dreading the 20 hours flight.  I guess it will all seem like Pluto again and places like Little Thatch,  a mirage.  I also wont be hopping into my G5, like some others we know. That will be me in Economy Class with my iPod on max, feverishly wondering how I can make my first million, which should be just enough to buy a little pondok-with -a -view on Tortola.