A Week in the British Virgin Islands

I’ll never forget the first time I approached the islands. We traveled by ferry between St. Thomas and our final destination of Tortola, the main isle of the British Virgin Islands. As we took off from the ferry dock in St. Thomas, I glanced around and absorbed the scenery which I had only ever seen in adventure movies and calendars. The breathtaking vistas of luscious green mountains, so tall they touched the sky, had me repeating only one word over and over in my mind: paradise. The boat was packed full of locals who came across to the US Virgin Islands to shop at the chain stores of which the British islands were deprived. The abundance of Target bags and smell of Mc Donald’s, though distracting, could not compete with views my eyes were exposed to for the very first time.

A year or two before my Mum and I’s week long holiday in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), I had only ever heard of the place once before. I was joking around with my good friend Michael, enjoying the fantasy of our escape to a tropical island where we could live forever in a surreal, sunny utopia. One day during my final year in university, I decided to Google jobs in my field, event planning, in this place called the BVI. Long story short, I met a lady, Diana, online who owned a small destination management business, and communicated with her back and forth for several months. After doing some volunteer work for her, I was now travelling to this mysterious place for an interview for what I thought could be the job of a lifetime.

When we got off the ferry, Mum and I were in awe as we watched the sun set behind the mountains, like a fresh peach falling into a cloud of pink candy floss. The calm noise of the light waves brushed the rocks on shore, and the feeling of a cool breeze kissed our cheeks, soothing us from the sticky heat of the afternoon sun. After checking in at our palatial hotel, Maria’s By the Sea, Mum and I decided to dine at a cozy little restaurant and bar across the street, Le Grand Café. This would be the first night of a week of excitement, meeting people from all over the world and creating memories that would satisfy our appetite for a tropical escape we so desperately deserved. Looking back, my favourite moments included giant pelicans swooping past our balcony, indulging in the BVI's signature frozen cocktail, a "Bushwacker", and of course the alluring panorama of this tropical haven.