Steve and I are on the north end of Virgin Gorda, moored at the Bitter End. It is very windy at sea and this is a stylin’ place to wait for calmer weather. In fact, someone in the “know” rated it in the upper ten of the world’s most gorgeous locations. As we bob up and down on our mooring ball, we look at beautiful big sail boats and darling cabana-like cottages
propped on the green hillside. The Bitter End is a fine resort that also caters to sailors. We give them business in their dining
rooms, bars and shops. They in turn will do our wash, sell us diesel fuel and propane gas and take our
trash. It is always a gold mine to find a place to take our trash. It’s not nice to live on a little boat with stinky
garbage.
A few days ago we had drinks with our friends, Kathy and Doug. They have a 60’ schooner moored in Leinster Bay at
St. John. You may remember from an entry I wrote last year that they are from
Texas but have lived down here for seven
years. After a dinghy ride to shore, Doug gets in his car and drives to a small private school where he teaches middle school math. Kathy is the volunteer bay host in the area and works to keep the water, reefs and fish in perfect order. I could never tire of listening to Doug describe his work with the kids. Until three years ago, he taught in the public school here in Virgin Gorda. He was the only white person in the building as the students; teachers and principal were all West Indian. During his tenure at that school, he thrived on the academic response
he got from the kids. Lavish with his praise and generous with his time, the kids were able to soak up math like a sponge … hey, maybe like a sea sponge! Most West Indians don’t know how to swim. It’s a strange fact since many of them spend their life near water or actually working on it. Doug’s theory is that when they are little, they see sharks, barracudas and lobsters taken out of the water. Their long, large forms and sharp teeth could discourage any child from venturing into the ocean. It may mark them as landlubbers forever. Ready to move on and resume living in the States, Kathy and Doug have their beautiful 60’ schooner for sale. The Virgin Islands are certainly going to miss them!
Steve is doing boat chores this morning. He’s in the dinghy, moving around Gustie washing hatches along the way. Everything gets salty. One of these fine days I will wet-dust the interior with vinegar water. The current windiness really brings a lot of salty air into the interior. I won’t wash every bit of teak at this point but just the areas that collect dust. I thought of doing it this morning but decided I could procrastinate by writing!
If you want to get a hold of us (that is if we can access you!) please e-mail us sjkluz at yahoo dot com. We love to get mail! I may be in paradise but I still get homesick. How do people live away from their families full time?! See you!
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