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What Life Was Like Post Two Hurricanes
I honestly have struggled putting words to paper. I've attempted multiple times and it's just been so difficult. Finding the right words, finding the initiative to write, finding the motivation. Every ounce of energy and focus it takes me to write a blog post had been depleted since Irma and Maria.
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Life After Hurricane Irma
It took 3 hours of hard labor and some neighborly support to finally clear our drive. However, it didn’t really matter. The island was still under a 24 hour curfew, for good reason, of course. We were just annihilated by Hurricane Irma about 15 hours prior, so the day afterwards wasn’t much fun. We were safe, little damage to our apartment itself, and thankfully we still have phone service (which was a rarity and quite frankly didn’t really matter since only about 1/8th of the island had it- if that). It took about 36 hours before we risked leaving the comfort of our apartment. Though none of us wanted to…
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What It’s Like Experiencing Hurricane Irma
September 6th, 2017 will be a day I’ll never forget. Something I never could have prepared myself for or every something I ever thought I’d experience happened, Hurricane Irma. I mean, I have heard of major storms and I have seen the aftermath of things like Sandy and Katrina and most recently, Harvey. But experiencing Hurricane Irma was something I was NOT prepared for nor was I ready. I’m a desert girl raised in Arizona. The worst storms I experienced growing up was a haboob or a bad monsoon. Sometimes the occasional thunderstorms when visiting family in Minnesota/Iowa or the occasional snow storms during college and graduate school, but those…
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Friends Trip to the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico
This mapless adventure details the start of my summer break and vacation with my best friend;showing her the island I called home for 10 months, taking her to a new country (passport stamp included), and exploring the beautiful city/some of the island of Puerto Rico... 2 Friends, 12 Days, 3 Countries, and many Mapless Adventures!
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My Family Visits the USVIs
I have waited for this week to come since my family booked their flights nearly 3 months prior. It's hard to live so far away from family at times but one of the best part is being able to show them a new part of me and a new country. This wasn't just a normal family trip however. This was my younger brother's FIRST EVER time off the continental United States, and it would be his FIRST time receiving a PASSPORT STAMP.
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Living the Island Life: St. Thomas, USVI
I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone. I’ve traveled. I’ve lived away from family. I’ve lived in another country. I’ve experienced many firsts. OR so I thought. My life in St. Thomas, USVI has been more of a life experience than I EVER EXPECTED. I knew it would be different and truth be told, it didn’t take long for me to fall in love with this beautiful, cultural-filled, island-life, country in the Caribbean. But, boy, was I in a complete culture shock when my “work-social” life began to emerge. If you know me outside of this blog, then you know that for the last 4 years, I haven’t really EVER worked…
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The Beginning of My Island Life
It’s hard to start this post because since landing on St. Thomas last Friday, it’s been completely overwhelming. People always say “it’s island time” and until you are immersed into the culture and lifestyle that doesn’t mean anything. “Island Time” has a whole new meaning to me, and I’ve only been here for a week. I’m positive that is going to change again and again as I continue to become immersed in the daily living of St. Thomas. For those who don’t know, St. Thomas is 1 of 4 islands which form the U.S. Virgin Islands (along with St. Croix, St. John, and Water Island), an unincorporated territory of the…