Day 1: Getting on the boat

Friday was a marathon of a day that began with a 10:45 p.m. red-eye flight the night before. I managed only a few restless moments before landing in D.C. for a short layover and connecting flight to St. Thomas. For those unfamiliar, St. Thomas is part of the U.S. Virgin Islands, which is technically US territory. Despite that, they drive on the left side of the road, even though steering wheels are also on the left.

Once I landed, I met up with Jeremy and Ari, and we grabbed a taxi to the ferry terminal. From there, we boarded a boat bound for Tortola, a neighboring island in the British Virgin Islands where our chartered sailing boat awaited us.

There are 12 of us on the trip in total, but everybody else was arriving on Saturday. I chose to arrive a day early because I was not going to risk missing the trip of a lifetime.

When we docked at Tortola, we encountered a chaotic scene at immigration and customs. Luckily, being near the front of the ferry saved us from what looked like a very long wait. Shortly afterward, we got a taxi to the marina, where I got my first glimpse of our sailboat, a 46-foot catamaran.

While Jeremy and Ari handled the final check-in details, I took a breather and soaked in the tropical atmosphere. After that it was time for dinner, so we went to eat at a restaurant near the marina. The sun had already set, and I was just looking forward to taking a shower and going to sleep after eating.

It was dark by the time I finished showering at the marina facilities, and I ended up taking the scenic route around the various docks getting back to the boat. I was the first to shower so I was the first back at the boat, and I promptly got into my single cabin at the front of the catamaran. The “bed” was comfortable enough, but I didn’t see a pillow so I just waited patiently for Jeremy and Ari to get back.

After what seemed like a really long time, I got out of the cabin to see if I somehow missed them returning to the boat. No, the common area was still empty, but there were towels and other linens strewn out on the table. Then it hit me.

I got on the wrong boat.

Also….where was the right boat?? Thankfully I didn’t have to look very hard, as the right boat was just one boat over. (It also happened to be the same exact model.) Jeremy and Ari were already sleeping in the common area at that point, but my single cabin also had a pillow so I could finally go to bed.

The adventure hadn’t even officially started, but it was already clear this was going to be a trip to remember.