Location: Savanna Bay, Virgin Gorda
Hi readers, I’m sure you’re all wondering how your kids are doing. I’m here to let you know and walk you through our day-to-day. My name is Sam, and I’m going to be your skipper for today. In the morning, Bella, George, and I got up to work out at around 6:30. Unfortunately, Jacob was not able to join because he wanted to sleep in. We felt the burn with some push-ups, crunches, and dips. For breakfast, we had oatmeal and an apple crumble expertly baked by two of our frat parents: Annika and Siena. We had a laid-back morning, and we enjoyed it heavily. At one point, everyone was either sleeping, braiding hair, or reading a book. After our morning, we all got our PFDs (Personal Flotation Devices) and set out to sail.
We brought up our anchors and raised our mainsail on our next journey to the beach. On the way, we met a seagull that landed on our boat while we were moving. We named him Fred. Fred was a very hungry seagull, and he loved bread. Everyone took turns feeding Fred bread *that rhymes* before he left us for his other seagull activities. Once we anchored in Savannah Bay, we took dinghies to the shore for our boat Olympics. Once we got off, we made a game plan for our first game: tug of war. We came up with a strategy where we all pulled at the same time to try and move our opponents better. We went 1-1, placing second. We won against the dive masters, but we lost to another boat called Hope. After the tug of war, we went to slippery dinghies. Slippery dinghies was a game where you chose two teammates to swim up to a dinghy and attempt to get up with other leaders trying to push you off. We placed third. We then played the Pringle game, a game where we all run to the water from the shore to the water through everyone’s legs to try to absorb water in any way we can and deposit it into a Pringles can.
We chose to store water in our mouths and in our shirts to spit and wring into a Pringles can. We placed third and were on to the final game: flotation showdown. I was chosen to compete because of my background in wrestling. The objective was to stay on top of a fender (kinda like a tiny buoy). Gradually, you would start straddling the fender with two hands, then one hand, then only your feet. After a practice round, we went to the real deal. After a harsh competition, it came down to the final two: me and a guy named Dylan. In the end, he asked for a truce, which was quickly denied, and soon after, he fell. We placed first!!!! We went back to the boat and celebrated, took ocean showers, cleaned Fred’s poop, and finished our day with a dinner of chicken Caesar salad and risotto pasta. If I could tell any parent one thing, it would be that your kids are incredible and unique in each and every way, and they make every part of BVI magical. Thank you for reading. This is Sam. Signing off.
“The sea surrounds us. It surrounds the houses and the two long, occasionally bending trees. It surrounds idle conversation; it surrounds the mind diving down into what it hopes is original thought.”
— Mary Oliver
Hey everyone! It’s Grace Garri as yesterday’s skipper and today’s co-editor of the blog. I would like to thank Sam for letting me write about today along with him. The above quote is a section of a book I brought with me called Upstream. I found it thought-provoking and fitting, so I thought I would share it. Today was the perfect combination of rest and renewed fun after some very busy days. I was able to sleep in a bit more this morning, which was very helpful after the late night before. Jacob, Bella, Ada, Kellen, Chloe, George, and Siena all played cards while Annika made apple crumble. After a delicious breakfast, we set sail, practicing raising the main sail and jibing. Unfortunately, in the middle of jibing, the waves became a bit choppy, and my brand new water bottle fell into the ocean, and we were moving too fast to rescue it. That is the second water bottle I have lost on this trip (my first one broke). Maci came to my rescue and let me use a Fiji water bottle she had bought, so the crisis was averted. That was also the time when our friend Fred the seagull joined us, and we got some amazing pictures with him. Afterwards, everyone but me, Elin/Jane, and Maci fell asleep until lunch. Margot and Maci were our chefs of the day and made some wonderful meals, including chicken Caesar salad (George helped). During the games today, pretty much everyone tore their hands during tug-of-war, but it was especially bad for Jacob and Sam, who were positioned at the very front and back of the rope. The second game was also intense, requiring us to crawl under our team’s legs, sprint to the ocean to retrieve as much water as possible while dodging sabotaging staff. We had to put the water in our mouths and fill a Pringles can. One of the staff members pretty much targeted Molly, but she made it through, and we placed third. The last game belonged solely to Sam, who, despite his torn hands (he’s okay!), braved the ocean and won the third game for us! After we got back on the boat, our deckies of the day, Bella and Kellen, had a rough time cleaning bird poop (Fred is a very ungrateful bird). I rewarded them both with cookies. Finally, after dinner, we watched Pirates of the Caribbean until bedtime. Thanks, everyone, for reading today’s double blog!