We have been in the yacht-chartering capital of the world for 5 weeks and have already applied for an extension on our stay - it is the place to be!

The British Virgin Islands is an archipelago of some 40 islands and cays and a yachting paradise. Most of the islands and cays are not inhabited and most of the islands hold such awe-inspiring beauty that we have been drawn back time and again. Provisioning is excellent (although expensive for this SA family) and the island itself is not commercialised. The marine industry (especially chartering ) is BIG and there is a wide variety of craft - dive boats, windsurfers, live-aboards, cruisers, fully crewed charter yachts, bare-boats and more.

Claude's involvement with a fast growing charter company brought us to Nanny Cay where we made our base in the beautiful marina. The girls are loving it here! There is a swimming pool and play park, lots of roads to use their scooters and safe enough to cycle. I bought them foldable bicycles in Trinidad and have found these bicycles to be a blessing. Taxis are not light on our SA purses and although the roads are not very bicycle friendly, it is an alternative means of transport. The marina is enclosed by the green hills, palm fringed shoreline and has an abundance of marine and bird life. I am watching the pelicans feasting round the boat whilst typing this update.

Riaan is also back on the boat after his adventures on charter boats and back-backing in Venezuela with friends. He came back with lots of stories to tell and has really been around in the short time that we have been in the Caribbean. After Deon's death in Mayotte I made a pledge with him, asking him to come with us to the Caribbean and should he decide to go back to SA , I would send him back home. He has now made the final decision (which has changed about a dozen times in the year) and today I am going to enquire about airfares back to SA..

It is difficult for visitors to stay in the BVI - one is granted only a stay for 30 days and schooling here is too expensive for me. He has made friends here and they are all trying their best to convince him to stay, but alas...I have watched him change over the last few months and am proud of him. He is so much like his dad and I know I am going to miss him a lot. Yachting and also the untimely death of Deon, has matured Riaan and he has been very fortunate to meet people who gave him lots of opportunities and his horizons have widened way beyond those of someone else his age. Education however is his priority now and although he did home schooling this year , his final two years is important and he chose to do that at his alma mater. We have been making the most of our precious time left and have been spending quality time together as a family.

We will be spending Christmas with friends on one of the many islands, doing the island thing - snorkeling, swimming, thinking about friends and family back home , eating!....

Hope all of you will have a lovely Christmas.