Editor's Letter
Let the good times roll.
November marks a month for resurgence in the Virgin Islands. After a long, hot and testing summer, it's time to bring some life back to these islands. I'm ready to see the waters–from Sir Francis Drake Channel to St Thomas Harbour–full of activity. I'm looking forward to people-watching and weekends full of events too good to pass up. For us living here in the islands, unlike our friends in the mainland to the north, the winter months symbolize a defrosting period of sort, when we can shake off the cobwebs and open back up for business.
There has been lots of talk of the looming economic cloud that is predicted to bring more rain to these islands. But talk to the folks hosting the Charter Yacht Society BVI Charter Yacht Show and they'll say, "What recession?" This month marks their 30th anniversary on Tortola, with an event that promises to bring eager brokers together with crews and owners of some of the sexiest boats in the Virgin Islands. The slips are all sold and numbers to date prove that the industry is staying afloat.
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Property Sales
Maybe all of this positive energy is the cause for OBMI architect Steve Fox to have his head in the clouds. This month, Steve put the pencil to paper on some idealistic homes he can't stop dreaming about. A bunker home buried in the rocks? An inside-out house? One that feeds off its own energy? Why not. I'll take one of each.
Sailing scribe David Blacklock also has plans of grandeur. The optimistic sailor set out to take on rusty, old and often derelict sailboats, tossed away around the islands. On Tortola's West End, a boatyard of "broken dreams" houses many boats that still have hopes of one day tearing through the channel like they did when they were young.
I checked out some villas in Anegada that, at first glance, looked like they had no hope for repair. But at a closer look, I found out that the once submerged cottages on their soft beachfront would indeed live to see another day.
Writer Traci O'Dea prefers to view the waves from a safe distance. This month, she toured a property perched high up the hill above Apple Bay–with a perfect surfer's-eye-view of the breaks below. Appropriately named "Waveland," the home may just be a surfer's dream house.
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Do you like art? Interior design? Farming? Food? Good. So do I. That's why the following pages are packed with fun pieces to inspire positive vibes, even if those pessimistic Wall Street analysts and bossy bureaucrats try to do otherwise. A happy high season cometh–just remember to always…
stay irie.
