We've made it to the BVIs! We have also found our new favorite place. The beaches are beautiful and the water is clear, but we also loved the convenience of all the islands being so close. We could make it to a new island within a few hours, and they all have different things to offer. St. John had turtles, Virgin Gorda had amazing snorkeling, and Jost Van Dyke had our favorite beach- White Bay. The reason we were so drawn to this was because of The Soggy Dollar Bar.
We arrived at The Soggy Dollar and were slightly apprehensive about the prices of drinks. At $7 each, we thought to ourselves, "great, another tourist spot". But once we tried the drinks we immediately realized why they were priced that way. Named "Painkillers", they were the perfect mix of orange and pineapple juice, mixed with flavored rum (vanilla, banana, mango, etc), and cream of coconut milk, topped with fresh Grenadian nutmeg. So good! In addition, the atmosphere was exactly what we both dreamt about when we thought about living in the Caribbean. Up until this point, we've been to a couple of local bars, but they've all been very small with about 5-10 people there at once. The Soggy Dollar had a hundred people all chatting, swimming, playing cornhole, giant Jenga, or beach volleyball. There was music playing and umbrellas for shade. It was such a fun vibe.
We went to the bar to order some drinks and I hear a voice from a man beside me, "where are y'all from?" I responded, "well, we currently live on a sailboat, but I'm from Utah and Travis is from Oregon."
"Wait, back up. You LIVE on a SAILBOAT? Right NOW?"
I laughed. "Yes, we live on a sailboat."
"NO WAY. That is THE COOLEST thing I have EVER HEARD!" His face lit up with excitement. "I have to tell my wife. Let me buy you guys some drinks."
We protested, but he insisted. As the drinks were being made, he continue to ask us questions- how long we've been out, where we bought the boat from, what we did for work back in the States, etc. We found out he was chartering a boat for the week with some friends, who he introduced us to. These people were so warm and so kind and we were taken aback by how supportive they were of what we are doing. We love meeting new people, and this was such a cool experience for us. We couldn't believe how kind they were and we were so happy to make new friends.
As the day went on, we then met a couple from The Netherlands who were on their honeymoon with some friends and family. We spent the rest of the evening chatting with them and others until the sun went down. The honemooners had rented a power catamaran and invited Travis to go diving with them in the morning.
We arrived at their boat the following morning and they were so gracious making us coffee and tea. Although Travis was unable to rent a tank to join them diving, we spent the morning getting to know our new friends and talking about our travel adventures. We loved spending time with them as they were all so friendly and kind. We were sad when it was time to go, but we made sure to connect on social media with all of our new friends and promised to call when we make it to Europe.
One of our favorite things about here is being able to meet new people all from different backgrounds. For me, it helps restore a little bit of faith in humanity. If you watch the news, the world is going crazy. There is so much fighting and hatred. But when you're out here on the water, you find something in common with others at your same destination. Everyone is interested in seeing the world, and meeting other people. It doesn't matter age, gender, race, background, or economic status, we're all out here having a great time. These people make our time out here so much more enjoyable and memorable. We are forever grateful to have met such beautiful human beings.
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