Pusser's Rum, Jagermeister & Kahlua - that'll do it...
Sorry for being a bit late this month folks. We had the 2nd rugby match on Friday night. Then Saturday was a little bit slow for some unfathomable reason, and on Sunday we went to the beach and then got invited to a beach party for one of the surf life saver's birthdays and today is a holiday so we thought we might head to the beach for a change. But despite all that, we are finally in the position to present to you the February edition. We have a couple of updates on various ‘hapnins’ as well as a few other bits and pieces to keep you entertained for a bit.
Don't forget that you can click on the photo's to make them larger and better to view - especially 'Spidey'.
Also, previous updates can be found over in the Archive section up on the right.
Enjoy the read, and we’ll catch you at the end of March, or thereabouts.
SPORT
Surfing
There hasn’t been much in the way of swells around here of late, which is probably a good thing for us ‘grommets’. We usually end up getting smashed by the bigger stuff and it’s good to have a play in the small waves and get some time on the board as opposed to under it. As the winter draws to a close, the swells abate also. We’ll keep at it for as long as we can and hopefully resume where we left off at the end of this summer... unless a few storms come through and stir up the water a bit.
Jake continues to surf quite well. Sometimes he struggles paddling against the rip and gets frustrated as he floats backwards, but once he’s out and then up on the board he seems pretty happy. One ‘real’ surfer was impressed at how easily Jake stands up (and stays there) and even commented that he was a ‘natural’surfer.
Sam prefers to keep on her knees at this stage when on a surfboard. She can ride a wave holding her arms out in a ‘crucifix’or ‘flying’ as she puts it, while on her knees, so the balance can’t be too bad. She’s a little wary of the some of the larger waves, which look even larger when you are lying prone on a board and looking up at them.
Michelle even! Yep, Michelle took Dave’s board out on last Saturday for a play. Initially she was happy just catching the waves and riding them while lying down. She moved on to getting to her knees and then tried standing a few times with mixed results. She got a few good face plants in – much to the delight of Dave and the kids but, to her credit, stuck with it.
Dave has been making the most of his time during the week to get out and get some time up on the board. He has started standing for longer now and is reasonably happy with his progress. Look!!! Some photographic proof!
Multisport (no, that isn’t a misprint)
Michelle was selected (pleaded!) to participate in a triathlon a couple of weeks ago. She was to do the bike leg – 20 km, which was fine, apart from the fact that she didn’t have a bike. A bike was located, repaired and she was off for her one training ride, the week before the race. The training ride went OK so she was reasonably happy about competing. She even did a couple of sessions on the bike at the gym during the week for good measure.
Starting at 7 am on a Saturday morning probably isn’t everyone’s ideas of fun, especially if you happened to attend a Stag night the previous night – but that’s another story that won’t be re-told here. It was a girls team and they did pretty well, coming in at 8th place overall, out of 14 teams. Michelle’s bike was a mountain bike with knobbly tyres so her 45 mins for 20 km was pretty good really. The only people who passed her were real ‘guns’ with the flash road bikes. There is a mini tri coming up in May, so if we can get a bike organized, Michelle might do the whole thing… or not. We’ll see.
Rugby
The boys have been training hard since resuming after Christmas, although the numbers at training have been poor. The girls have had more at their sessions. But those that have been there have benefited from having a ‘real’ coach and we’ll see the results shortly.
Jake still has the Friday afternoon session with ‘Miss Lavender’ and Dave. There are about eight kids who attend this and they are progressing well, when they actually decide to turn their ears on. Well, they are all 5/6 year olds so we can’t expect too much.
23 Feb 2008.
BVI vs University of Michigan – Game One.
A warm winter Saturday afternoon in the BVI. One would normally expect to be lazing at the beach on a day like this. Our Michigan visitors arrived in the area the night before the game – straight out of minus 20 temperatures in their winter. It’s probably the first time that Dave has ever applied sunscreen before a game. He only had two beers the night before as well. Must be getting serious. Well, it is an ‘International’ match. Due to the size of the pitch the game will be 12 a side. No loose forwards. Dave is selected at lock…. Yay….
But wait. There’s another change in plan. The visitor’s baggage gets lost on the way and the game is delayed until 7pm. Some slick negotiations with broadcasters and sponsors mean the game can go ahead and be streamed around the globe on all of the top sports broadcasters as planned.
The opposition finally arrives and it is soon deduced that they are a young and reasonably fit side. We learned later that the oldest player in their side was 23. Dave being the most ‘experienced’ in the BVI side had at least three or four years on this guy. Despite that, the BVI scores a try from a slick blindside move straight from the kickoff. As there are no goal posts, it’s just tries without conversions or penalties.
Some big hits go in, mainly from the BVI boys. They needed to unsettle their visitors from the start. The game turns into a bit of an arm wrestle for a while with both sides threatening the line but no tries. After some concerted pressure on the opposition line Dave scoops up a loose ball and dives over for a try. Two minutes later, Dave is out on the wing ‘covering’ when the ball is spun wide and he sprints, with blistering pace, not seen before in the BVI, around the opposing winger and scores in the corner. Dave is feeling decidedly jaded at this stage. Halftime is up. Time for a break.
The second half continues in the same vein as the first with the game moving up and down the field. The BVI team is feeling the pinch as the young visitors continue to run, and run… and run. However, old heads prevail and the Michigan side is closed down at every opportunity. More pressure on the opposition results in a couple of quick tries to the BVI much to the delight of the jubilant, and slightly tipsy crowd. In fact the crowd is getting more jubilant by the minute as the temporary bar that the club has set up peddles their wares in quick fashion. Well, it is warm here you know.
The Michigan guys, never giving up, have another crack at the BVI line but fail to penetrate and they resort to chipping over the top. One of these kicks should have resulted in a try but after re-gathering the ball it is lost forward on the way to the line. A missed opportunity to get back into the game. The BVI capitalize on this and score a couple more tries before the game ends. A convincing win to the good guys 45 - 5. The bar is drunk dry before the masses head across to Bomba’s and then into town for a night of celebration. Heads now turn to next Friday for the follow up game. Can the BVI team make it two – zip? In fact, can they get out of bed with their battered and bruised bodies?
Post game photo with the opposition
The second half started with more control imposed by the BVI. Dave was back on but still not happy with some of the decisions. Regardless, he took a quick tap about 10 metres out and scored amongst the opposition forwards. That was followed by another great try from the BVI forwards. UoM struck back with a try against the run of play before the BVI closed the game out with a couple more strong tries to the delight of the crowd. The UoM played their best but in the end were outsmarted and outplayed by the more experienced BVI team although UoM had the last say in the game scoring the final try. Final score Seven tries to Three (or 35 – 15). A fairly solid result and most of the boys are now missing skin from elbows and knees, which is normal here as the ground is never very forgiving, but at least it had grass on it.
After the game the heavens opened and torrential rain came down turning the place into a mud bath. Did someone mention mud bath? You should never mention mud bath when the womens team is in earshot. Everything turned to custard as they all raced out and started mud wrestling and rolling around in the mud. And now the crowd was really buzzing! Eventually the girls grabbed and mobbed as many people as they could and a large number of people were now covered in mud. (We'll endeavour to obtain some footage of this carnage. Bare oops I mean bear, or beer with us).
Celebrations
About four years ago, the BVI Government decided to erect a proper state-of-the-art international standard athletics track. A venue was identified and an eight foot high block wall was promptly erected surrounding the entire area. The next thing they did was knock down parts of the wall so that they could get trucks and things in to actually do some work there.
The ground selected was the national Cricket oval. Except the cricket oval had just been deemed useless as the Government had decided to build an indoor basketball stadium on the edge of the oval – which would have been fine if they had put it four metres to the left, but they didn’t. The cricket ground is now four metres short of the international standard for cricket and is therefore useless. Had they not done this, some of last years world cup would have been played here. There will be no more international cricket in the BVI.
Anyway, building starts on the track and things are looking good. The track surface is nearly complete when it was measured and found to be four metres short. Hmmmmm, let’s try that again.
The track is then rebuilt, only this time, they don’t put any camber on it and it fills up with puddles. OK, maybe we should get some expert help in to do this.
Said international expert help arrives and the track is laid, measured and is looking just dandy. Hmmmm, why don’t the lights go?
Aha! The contractors building the track have severed some of the cables leading to the lighting towers. But no trucks can come in and cross the track to get to the light towers. Right, lets bash down sections of the block wall again so the trucks can get in from the other side of the ground. The walls are bashed. The trucks come in. The lights are fixed. The walls are re built.
Hurrah! The track is finished…. But what about a grandstand and maybe some facilities for changing, showering and possibly even a toilet? We recently learn that planning will soon start for this. Can you believe that? They hadn’t even ‘planned’ for any of that. It will be interesting to see what develops as there isn’t a lot of room for a grandstand… unless the walls come down…. Now there’s a thought. But at least the track looks good...
Driver’s Licence (Part Two)
Everyone loves a smart arse…
Avid readers may recall the trials and problems that Dave went through to obtain a BVI Driver’s Licence. Yes, four times he sat the test and past on the fourth. Michelle decided it was high time that she got her licence. She has been using a temporary licence (that she renewed every three months) up until now. Michelle arrives at the Department of Transport to sit the test only to learn that there are already enough people waiting to do the test and they close at three, so come back tomorrow.
Tomorrow arrives and so does Michelle. She manages to get the third spot and duly sits the test. Lo and behold, she passes first time! We don’t know any other expats that have done that. So well done smarty pants. Dave’s coaching and advice about the written tests must have been helpful (well, he should know. He sat four tests!).
Full Moon Party at Bomba’s
Full moon just happened to fall on a Wednesday this month. Coincidentally, the women’s rugby team train on a Wednesday. So guess what? Yep, Michelle et al mosied on over to Bomba’s – as they do of a Wednesday evening after training – and checked out the goings on there. As always, there were plenty of tourists in attendance – all sampling the local delicacies like Bomba Mushrooms and the Special Bomba Punch and falling about as drunken tourists do. Michelle refrained from both… or so she says! Although one of the other girls went down pretty quick and had to be assisted home.
Weather Watch
Fairly settled here lately with a few showers (OK, torrential downpours, mainly at night). It might just be starting to get a bit warmer here too as summer nears.
Enjoy the read, and we’ll catch you at the end of March, or thereabouts.
SPORT
Surfing
There hasn’t been much in the way of swells around here of late, which is probably a good thing for us ‘grommets’. We usually end up getting smashed by the bigger stuff and it’s good to have a play in the small waves and get some time on the board as opposed to under it. As the winter draws to a close, the swells abate also. We’ll keep at it for as long as we can and hopefully resume where we left off at the end of this summer... unless a few storms come through and stir up the water a bit.
Jake continues to surf quite well. Sometimes he struggles paddling against the rip and gets frustrated as he floats backwards, but once he’s out and then up on the board he seems pretty happy. One ‘real’ surfer was impressed at how easily Jake stands up (and stays there) and even commented that he was a ‘natural’surfer.
Sam prefers to keep on her knees at this stage when on a surfboard. She can ride a wave holding her arms out in a ‘crucifix’or ‘flying’ as she puts it, while on her knees, so the balance can’t be too bad. She’s a little wary of the some of the larger waves, which look even larger when you are lying prone on a board and looking up at them.
Michelle even! Yep, Michelle took Dave’s board out on last Saturday for a play. Initially she was happy just catching the waves and riding them while lying down. She moved on to getting to her knees and then tried standing a few times with mixed results. She got a few good face plants in – much to the delight of Dave and the kids but, to her credit, stuck with it.
Dave has been making the most of his time during the week to get out and get some time up on the board. He has started standing for longer now and is reasonably happy with his progress. Look!!! Some photographic proof!
After just having come through a massive barrel at Josiah's...
Multisport (no, that isn’t a misprint)
Michelle was selected (pleaded!) to participate in a triathlon a couple of weeks ago. She was to do the bike leg – 20 km, which was fine, apart from the fact that she didn’t have a bike. A bike was located, repaired and she was off for her one training ride, the week before the race. The training ride went OK so she was reasonably happy about competing. She even did a couple of sessions on the bike at the gym during the week for good measure.
Top: "The Team" - Cath, Liz, Michelle
Bottom: After a tough 20km on the bike.
Starting at 7 am on a Saturday morning probably isn’t everyone’s ideas of fun, especially if you happened to attend a Stag night the previous night – but that’s another story that won’t be re-told here. It was a girls team and they did pretty well, coming in at 8th place overall, out of 14 teams. Michelle’s bike was a mountain bike with knobbly tyres so her 45 mins for 20 km was pretty good really. The only people who passed her were real ‘guns’ with the flash road bikes. There is a mini tri coming up in May, so if we can get a bike organized, Michelle might do the whole thing… or not. We’ll see.
Rugby
The boys have been training hard since resuming after Christmas, although the numbers at training have been poor. The girls have had more at their sessions. But those that have been there have benefited from having a ‘real’ coach and we’ll see the results shortly.
Jake still has the Friday afternoon session with ‘Miss Lavender’ and Dave. There are about eight kids who attend this and they are progressing well, when they actually decide to turn their ears on. Well, they are all 5/6 year olds so we can’t expect too much.
23 Feb 2008.
BVI vs University of Michigan – Game One.
3pm – Sea Cows Bay
Stop Press: OK, the Sea Cows Bay venue became suddenly unusable. Two days before the game, the Government Sports people in their spiteful infinite wisdom decided to dig up the ground and turn it into a softball diamond. Over half of the turf was removed and all that was left is rock, shells, broken glass and hard packed sand. They did the exact same thing two days before the last home game here in June last year. And the real kicker is, they won’t play softball on it anyway. So the game has been moved to Capoon’s Bay (our regular training ground) just around the corner from……. Yep, Bomba’s.
Stop Press: OK, the Sea Cows Bay venue became suddenly unusable. Two days before the game, the Government Sports people in their spiteful infinite wisdom decided to dig up the ground and turn it into a softball diamond. Over half of the turf was removed and all that was left is rock, shells, broken glass and hard packed sand. They did the exact same thing two days before the last home game here in June last year. And the real kicker is, they won’t play softball on it anyway. So the game has been moved to Capoon’s Bay (our regular training ground) just around the corner from……. Yep, Bomba’s.
BVI Team before the game
A warm winter Saturday afternoon in the BVI. One would normally expect to be lazing at the beach on a day like this. Our Michigan visitors arrived in the area the night before the game – straight out of minus 20 temperatures in their winter. It’s probably the first time that Dave has ever applied sunscreen before a game. He only had two beers the night before as well. Must be getting serious. Well, it is an ‘International’ match. Due to the size of the pitch the game will be 12 a side. No loose forwards. Dave is selected at lock…. Yay….
But wait. There’s another change in plan. The visitor’s baggage gets lost on the way and the game is delayed until 7pm. Some slick negotiations with broadcasters and sponsors mean the game can go ahead and be streamed around the globe on all of the top sports broadcasters as planned.
The opposition finally arrives and it is soon deduced that they are a young and reasonably fit side. We learned later that the oldest player in their side was 23. Dave being the most ‘experienced’ in the BVI side had at least three or four years on this guy. Despite that, the BVI scores a try from a slick blindside move straight from the kickoff. As there are no goal posts, it’s just tries without conversions or penalties.
Some big hits go in, mainly from the BVI boys. They needed to unsettle their visitors from the start. The game turns into a bit of an arm wrestle for a while with both sides threatening the line but no tries. After some concerted pressure on the opposition line Dave scoops up a loose ball and dives over for a try. Two minutes later, Dave is out on the wing ‘covering’ when the ball is spun wide and he sprints, with blistering pace, not seen before in the BVI, around the opposing winger and scores in the corner. Dave is feeling decidedly jaded at this stage. Halftime is up. Time for a break.
The second half continues in the same vein as the first with the game moving up and down the field. The BVI team is feeling the pinch as the young visitors continue to run, and run… and run. However, old heads prevail and the Michigan side is closed down at every opportunity. More pressure on the opposition results in a couple of quick tries to the BVI much to the delight of the jubilant, and slightly tipsy crowd. In fact the crowd is getting more jubilant by the minute as the temporary bar that the club has set up peddles their wares in quick fashion. Well, it is warm here you know.
A small section of 'Groupies' in the crowd...
The Michigan guys, never giving up, have another crack at the BVI line but fail to penetrate and they resort to chipping over the top. One of these kicks should have resulted in a try but after re-gathering the ball it is lost forward on the way to the line. A missed opportunity to get back into the game. The BVI capitalize on this and score a couple more tries before the game ends. A convincing win to the good guys 45 - 5. The bar is drunk dry before the masses head across to Bomba’s and then into town for a night of celebration. Heads now turn to next Friday for the follow up game. Can the BVI team make it two – zip? In fact, can they get out of bed with their battered and bruised bodies?
Post game photo with the opposition
29 Feb 2008 – Game Two.
6 pm – Capoon’s Bay
Friday night footy returns to the BVI!
The BVI side to start this week is a little different from the “A” team that started last week. In an effort to develop as many players as possible, this game will include more ‘social’ players. Dave isn’t a big fan of this as it means that those who are out to play it hard will have to work that much harder. Although it is hoped that, given the opposition is a varsity side that has been let loose in the Caribbean, that they will have been on the booze for the entire week and may not possibly be on their best game. We will soon find out.
Well, if they had been on the booze all week, you couldn’t tell. They were fired up and keep to get a win over the BVI. They must have learnt a thing or two last week. Right from the start they were into everything and giving it a really good go. The BVI side however could be guilty of being a little over confident after last week’s result. After defending the line the BVI managed to turn over the ball and score a long range try at the other end. The UoM came back a few minutes later and evened the score after a slick backline move. The first half was a fairly torrid affair with the locals having some issues with the referee who didn’t seem to understand what offside was and also had some aversion to any sort of rucking whatsoever. Dave decided to educate him on this art but ended up getting penalised once or twice for his efforts. Dave then subbed himself for 10 minutes before things got ugly. The BVI halfback did the same. The halftime score was three tries to one.
The half time entertainment was the BVI womens’ team playing touch. Michelle’s side narrowly went down and there was some really good play and the crowd was happy. But, funnily enough, they always are when the bar is open.
Friday night footy returns to the BVI!
The BVI side to start this week is a little different from the “A” team that started last week. In an effort to develop as many players as possible, this game will include more ‘social’ players. Dave isn’t a big fan of this as it means that those who are out to play it hard will have to work that much harder. Although it is hoped that, given the opposition is a varsity side that has been let loose in the Caribbean, that they will have been on the booze for the entire week and may not possibly be on their best game. We will soon find out.
Well, if they had been on the booze all week, you couldn’t tell. They were fired up and keep to get a win over the BVI. They must have learnt a thing or two last week. Right from the start they were into everything and giving it a really good go. The BVI side however could be guilty of being a little over confident after last week’s result. After defending the line the BVI managed to turn over the ball and score a long range try at the other end. The UoM came back a few minutes later and evened the score after a slick backline move. The first half was a fairly torrid affair with the locals having some issues with the referee who didn’t seem to understand what offside was and also had some aversion to any sort of rucking whatsoever. Dave decided to educate him on this art but ended up getting penalised once or twice for his efforts. Dave then subbed himself for 10 minutes before things got ugly. The BVI halfback did the same. The halftime score was three tries to one.
The half time entertainment was the BVI womens’ team playing touch. Michelle’s side narrowly went down and there was some really good play and the crowd was happy. But, funnily enough, they always are when the bar is open.
The second half started with more control imposed by the BVI. Dave was back on but still not happy with some of the decisions. Regardless, he took a quick tap about 10 metres out and scored amongst the opposition forwards. That was followed by another great try from the BVI forwards. UoM struck back with a try against the run of play before the BVI closed the game out with a couple more strong tries to the delight of the crowd. The UoM played their best but in the end were outsmarted and outplayed by the more experienced BVI team although UoM had the last say in the game scoring the final try. Final score Seven tries to Three (or 35 – 15). A fairly solid result and most of the boys are now missing skin from elbows and knees, which is normal here as the ground is never very forgiving, but at least it had grass on it.
After the game the heavens opened and torrential rain came down turning the place into a mud bath. Did someone mention mud bath? You should never mention mud bath when the womens team is in earshot. Everything turned to custard as they all raced out and started mud wrestling and rolling around in the mud. And now the crowd was really buzzing! Eventually the girls grabbed and mobbed as many people as they could and a large number of people were now covered in mud. (We'll endeavour to obtain some footage of this carnage. Bare oops I mean bear, or beer with us).
Celebrations
Time for Bomba’s – after a swim in the sea that is, to wash the mud off. There are no showering facilities at the ground. A good night was had by all and Michelle and Dave were a little quiet the next day.
Due to a technical hitch (the camera sucked the big fat one) we can’t show photos from this match just yet, but hopefully in the next few days we will be having talks with some of the other international media organizations that were in attendance and we’ll burgle some pics from them.
The Continuing Saga of the AO Shirley Sports Ground
The Continuing Saga of the AO Shirley Sports Ground
(a typical example of how things are done in the BV)
About four years ago, the BVI Government decided to erect a proper state-of-the-art international standard athletics track. A venue was identified and an eight foot high block wall was promptly erected surrounding the entire area. The next thing they did was knock down parts of the wall so that they could get trucks and things in to actually do some work there.
The ground selected was the national Cricket oval. Except the cricket oval had just been deemed useless as the Government had decided to build an indoor basketball stadium on the edge of the oval – which would have been fine if they had put it four metres to the left, but they didn’t. The cricket ground is now four metres short of the international standard for cricket and is therefore useless. Had they not done this, some of last years world cup would have been played here. There will be no more international cricket in the BVI.
Anyway, building starts on the track and things are looking good. The track surface is nearly complete when it was measured and found to be four metres short. Hmmmmm, let’s try that again.
The track is then rebuilt, only this time, they don’t put any camber on it and it fills up with puddles. OK, maybe we should get some expert help in to do this.
Said international expert help arrives and the track is laid, measured and is looking just dandy. Hmmmm, why don’t the lights go?
Aha! The contractors building the track have severed some of the cables leading to the lighting towers. But no trucks can come in and cross the track to get to the light towers. Right, lets bash down sections of the block wall again so the trucks can get in from the other side of the ground. The walls are bashed. The trucks come in. The lights are fixed. The walls are re built.
Hurrah! The track is finished…. But what about a grandstand and maybe some facilities for changing, showering and possibly even a toilet? We recently learn that planning will soon start for this. Can you believe that? They hadn’t even ‘planned’ for any of that. It will be interesting to see what develops as there isn’t a lot of room for a grandstand… unless the walls come down…. Now there’s a thought. But at least the track looks good...
Further, it was planned that Soccer/Football matches be played on this ground. The Rugby club is also ever-hopeful. Upon closer inspection of the ground by FIFA - soccer won't be played there unless a lot of work goes in. The rugby club aren't quite so picky, but we'll see how we go. We should mention that when they laid the turf, it was laid in approx half metre squares and left. The resulting effect was that due to the heat and the sun, all of the sods of turf shrunk leaving large gaps between them all. The turf will need to be relaid. They will also need to remove the underground irrigation system that isn't actually underground. The sprinkler heads that are laid throughout the field all poke through the ground and are about 2 or 3 inches above ground level making it treacherous for anyone to run around on it. Ho hum...
If you look close enough you can see a hole in the wall in the right foreground. Also, note the basketball stadium to the left.
A Clown surfing at Josiah's (not Dave...)
If you look close enough you can see a hole in the wall in the right foreground. Also, note the basketball stadium to the left.
A Clown surfing at Josiah's (not Dave...)
Visitor’s Report
We regret to inform readers that sadly, due to a sudden bereavement our visitor’s were unable to travel. We offer our sincere condolences and hope that they might make it another time to sample some of the delights of the BVI.
We regret to inform readers that sadly, due to a sudden bereavement our visitor’s were unable to travel. We offer our sincere condolences and hope that they might make it another time to sample some of the delights of the BVI.
A recent rugby club party that we attended... including an eight foot beer bong.
Rat Count.
We haven’t been hunting rats this month, but the neighbor did borrow one of our mouse traps and was successful. So I guess when can take half a point for that. That makes it 3 Rats, One Bird and half a Mouse to the Good guys. Oh yeah, and the neighbor found a dead snake on the driveway, but we can’t claim responsibility for that.
We haven’t been hunting rats this month, but the neighbor did borrow one of our mouse traps and was successful. So I guess when can take half a point for that. That makes it 3 Rats, One Bird and half a Mouse to the Good guys. Oh yeah, and the neighbor found a dead snake on the driveway, but we can’t claim responsibility for that.
Spidey
This critter was found in one of the boys’ runners at rugby the other day. He was just putting his foot in when he saw a hairy leg poking out. Nearly soiled himself! It was a Tarantula which are reasonably common around here, but you hardly ever see them. They pretty much keep to themselves and hang out at different bars and clubs than what we frequent.
He decided that the shoes were too small, and he needed another three pairs anyway.
This critter was found in one of the boys’ runners at rugby the other day. He was just putting his foot in when he saw a hairy leg poking out. Nearly soiled himself! It was a Tarantula which are reasonably common around here, but you hardly ever see them. They pretty much keep to themselves and hang out at different bars and clubs than what we frequent.
He decided that the shoes were too small, and he needed another three pairs anyway.
Dave’s USVI Adventure
Dave headed over to St Thomas last Monday to catch up with his mate Dino, who just so happened to be passing through there on a Caribbean Cruise. Dave had booked a seat on the 6:45 am ferry and duly arrived and did all the usual pre-departure stuff (passports, tax, security etc) and headed through to the Departure Lounge. Presently the room emptied as all the passengers hopped on their respective vessels… except Dave. He was left standing on his lonesome next to a boat that was idling away. Soon a guy who was the Captain came running out apologizing for being late. He had to answer a call apparently. One from someone called ‘Nature’. Anyway, on they hopped and away they went – Dave was the only passenger! After a quick stop at West End to pick up four other passengers, away they went to St Thomas.
Dino was there waiting so away they went for a ….. coffee (true!). After a quick look around a few shops and the odd tourist photo it was time for a beer (well, it was quite hot at that time of the morning!). So they had a couple of beers… and maybe one… or two more then off to catch the boat that was taking them out for a dive trip. Well, not really a dive trip. It was a B.O.S.S. trip – Breathing Observation Submersible Scooter (see website if you want to learn more http://www.bossusvi.com/default.aspx?name=homepage ). It’s like sitting underwater on a small motor scooter with a large fish bowl on your head.
We took the Scooters out for a hoon around Buck Island where there were the usual fish hanging about waiting for the tourists and also a small sea turtle who came over to say gidday. The scooters travel quite slowly so there was plenty of time to look about. After that we did some snorkeling and checked out a few other fish and an old boat wreck.
Then it was time to head back to port. Luckily there was time for a quick ale at the Fat Turtle bar before Dino had to board his Cruise ship and Dave had to get on his little BVI bound ferry.
Dave wandered off and arrived at the ferry dock with 20 minutes to spare before his scheduled 5 pm departure. Upon presenting his ticket at the counter he was informed that the 5pm sailing was cancelled and their last one was at 3:30. However, in true Caribbean fashion, the opposition’s 4:30 ferry was still sitting there and Dave’s ticket was gladly accepted by them. That 4:30 ferry actually left at about 5:10. So, a successful day for Dave over in St Thomas and Dino carries on off into the sunset on his Caribbean cruise.
Dave headed over to St Thomas last Monday to catch up with his mate Dino, who just so happened to be passing through there on a Caribbean Cruise. Dave had booked a seat on the 6:45 am ferry and duly arrived and did all the usual pre-departure stuff (passports, tax, security etc) and headed through to the Departure Lounge. Presently the room emptied as all the passengers hopped on their respective vessels… except Dave. He was left standing on his lonesome next to a boat that was idling away. Soon a guy who was the Captain came running out apologizing for being late. He had to answer a call apparently. One from someone called ‘Nature’. Anyway, on they hopped and away they went – Dave was the only passenger! After a quick stop at West End to pick up four other passengers, away they went to St Thomas.
Dino was there waiting so away they went for a ….. coffee (true!). After a quick look around a few shops and the odd tourist photo it was time for a beer (well, it was quite hot at that time of the morning!). So they had a couple of beers… and maybe one… or two more then off to catch the boat that was taking them out for a dive trip. Well, not really a dive trip. It was a B.O.S.S. trip – Breathing Observation Submersible Scooter (see website if you want to learn more http://www.bossusvi.com/default.aspx?name=homepage ). It’s like sitting underwater on a small motor scooter with a large fish bowl on your head.
We took the Scooters out for a hoon around Buck Island where there were the usual fish hanging about waiting for the tourists and also a small sea turtle who came over to say gidday. The scooters travel quite slowly so there was plenty of time to look about. After that we did some snorkeling and checked out a few other fish and an old boat wreck.
Then it was time to head back to port. Luckily there was time for a quick ale at the Fat Turtle bar before Dino had to board his Cruise ship and Dave had to get on his little BVI bound ferry.
Dave wandered off and arrived at the ferry dock with 20 minutes to spare before his scheduled 5 pm departure. Upon presenting his ticket at the counter he was informed that the 5pm sailing was cancelled and their last one was at 3:30. However, in true Caribbean fashion, the opposition’s 4:30 ferry was still sitting there and Dave’s ticket was gladly accepted by them. That 4:30 ferry actually left at about 5:10. So, a successful day for Dave over in St Thomas and Dino carries on off into the sunset on his Caribbean cruise.
The BOSS equipment in the background.
Driver’s Licence (Part Two)
Everyone loves a smart arse…
Avid readers may recall the trials and problems that Dave went through to obtain a BVI Driver’s Licence. Yes, four times he sat the test and past on the fourth. Michelle decided it was high time that she got her licence. She has been using a temporary licence (that she renewed every three months) up until now. Michelle arrives at the Department of Transport to sit the test only to learn that there are already enough people waiting to do the test and they close at three, so come back tomorrow.
Tomorrow arrives and so does Michelle. She manages to get the third spot and duly sits the test. Lo and behold, she passes first time! We don’t know any other expats that have done that. So well done smarty pants. Dave’s coaching and advice about the written tests must have been helpful (well, he should know. He sat four tests!).
Full Moon Party at Bomba’s
Full moon just happened to fall on a Wednesday this month. Coincidentally, the women’s rugby team train on a Wednesday. So guess what? Yep, Michelle et al mosied on over to Bomba’s – as they do of a Wednesday evening after training – and checked out the goings on there. As always, there were plenty of tourists in attendance – all sampling the local delicacies like Bomba Mushrooms and the Special Bomba Punch and falling about as drunken tourists do. Michelle refrained from both… or so she says! Although one of the other girls went down pretty quick and had to be assisted home.
Weather Watch
Fairly settled here lately with a few showers (OK, torrential downpours, mainly at night). It might just be starting to get a bit warmer here too as summer nears.
Driveway
Due to popular demand, we have included a couple of video clips of the road down to our house. I've just put the top and the bottom parts in so we can still scare any unsuspecting visitors with the middle bits...
Hopefully it all works OK! Just scroll down a wee bit and you should find them there.
News
Oh yeah, guess what? A Gardener appeared the other day armed with machete and rake. He’s now been once since we moved in. He actually did a pretty good job considering the jungle he was faced with. We no longer need to rope ourselves together when venturing out to find the car and we can now see the sides of the driveway and also the sky as we drive along. Dave has since started work out the back in an attempt to form some sort of garden out in the patio area. It was an overgrown weedy looking waste of space, but hopefully things will improve there over time. Sam has started to grow some squash and Capsicum seeds which will be transplanted if and when they get growing. Dave was given some Papaya seeds the other day and is hoping to do the same. Apparently they are easy to grow here…
Next Month.
We might be able to bring you some news of an Easter holiday somewhere… or not. Our March plans are a little ‘loose’ at this stage. But be assured, there will be plenty in the next issue to keep you entertained for at least 20 to 25 …. Seconds.
Oh yeah, guess what? A Gardener appeared the other day armed with machete and rake. He’s now been once since we moved in. He actually did a pretty good job considering the jungle he was faced with. We no longer need to rope ourselves together when venturing out to find the car and we can now see the sides of the driveway and also the sky as we drive along. Dave has since started work out the back in an attempt to form some sort of garden out in the patio area. It was an overgrown weedy looking waste of space, but hopefully things will improve there over time. Sam has started to grow some squash and Capsicum seeds which will be transplanted if and when they get growing. Dave was given some Papaya seeds the other day and is hoping to do the same. Apparently they are easy to grow here…
Next Month.
We might be able to bring you some news of an Easter holiday somewhere… or not. Our March plans are a little ‘loose’ at this stage. But be assured, there will be plenty in the next issue to keep you entertained for at least 20 to 25 …. Seconds.
Enjoy the vids!!!
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