Current Rock of Residence:
St. Thomas, USVI
Island Girl Since:
2003
Originally Hails From:
Georgia
Melissa is a St. Thomas, USVI-based 30-something and a 10 year island veteran who can’t endure even the smell of shrimp. It all stems from a childhood experience where a beloved grandfather told the once shrimp-loving four year old that shrimp was “yucky”. Her husband has requested multiple times that she undergo exposure therapy on the issue, but she refuses out of tribute to her grandfather. Melissa started her island adventures on a sparsely populated outer island in the Bahamas before moving further South to the “big city” of St. Thomas a few years later. The early island experience of dependence on a weekly mail boat to bring supplies (and the lack of Target) cultivated a realization that you can make almost anything you need. That means you can regularly find her feasting on fresh baked bread and homemade peanut butter and jam.
Explore posts by this writer:
Experiencing Culture Shock When Traveling Off Your Island
There is a certain excitement one gets when going on a road trip that you don't get when flying. Yes, you dread sitting in the car all day, but you can listen to music all day and eat snacks that you don’t normally eat and your journey often has several destinations....
Sunkissed Christmas
This year I’ll be celebrating my 11th Christmas on this beautiful island and my main goal for this holiday season is to make the perfect sand-snowman. I can assure you that this is a task far more difficult than Pinterest or Instagram would have you believe. Last...
Christmas on Saba
It’s quiet out. And dark. The colourful street lights are up in each of the four villages of Saba, Chris Rea’s Driving Home for Christmas is playing, the tree is up, half hiding the presents underneath and the house smells of home-made cooking. It’s Christmas time...
My Love Letter to The Sea – How we are harming it and how we can protect it
I like the sea. That might be an under-statement: I really really love the sea. I love to see the different shades of blue, azure, turquoise and green. I love to take a stroll along the shoreline, barefoot, feeling the waves lapping over my toes, with various grades...
In Praise of Real Food
Island food culture is a wonderful riot, to be savoured and enjoyed. When we first came on island I was surprised by the food fusion between American, British and Caribbean fare. You would easily find an overblown pot of peanut butter alongside a similar-sized jar of...
How To Be An Annoying Tourist
The cruise ship horns are blasting. The streets are bustling with wide-eyed people donned in Hawaiian print. The smell of aerosol sunscreen spray fills the hot tropical air and stings your eyes. This can only mean one thing...peak tourist season is upon us. The...
