Latest news with #islandlife
The Sun
20-07-2025
- The Sun
I'm raising my toddler on a desert island… he loves daily swims & crab hunting, but it's not easy when he's sick
WALKING along the island's crystal-clear shoreline, my partner Heinrich and I smiled as our two year old excitedly pointed to a blue starfish. But we weren't on holiday – we were enjoying our morning walk, because we are the only residents of One Tree Island in the Pacific Ocean, where we're raising our son Lukas. 4 In October 2019, Heinrich and I moved here after a friend sent us details of two job vacancies for research station managers to host visiting researchers. I'd grown up near the coast in Australia and had a degree in marine biology, while Heinrich had worked as a free diver on a remote island, so we were excited to learn we'd both been successful in our interviews. When we arrived, I was blown away by the beauty. Surrounded by clear ocean, 100km from the mainland and 20km from the nearest island, it felt like our own paradise. We'd been working in Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga on boats, so it was great to have more space to explore nature and not feel so confined. But when the Covid pandemic struck a few months later, it felt very isolating. We had to go six weeks without a food delivery, and while we were prepared so didn't go hungry, I was craving texture after weeks of eating frozen fruit and veg. Then, in 2021, our island life was left in jeopardy when I became pregnant, as children weren't then allowed to live on One Tree. UK's loneliest school on remote island offers free accommodation & £41k salary - but you have a long way to get there Luckily, The University of Sydney, which manages the station, put a child policy in place. So, we left the island to give birth and returned with our baby three months later. We questioned if we were doing the right thing, but Lukas adores his daily swims and kayaking with Heinrich. Of course, having a baby presented a whole new set of challenges. Our days start earlier, as Lukas loves a 5am wake-up, but the sunrises over the reef are so beautiful that we now adore going for an early morning family walk. New challenges He enjoys looking for crabs and likes the porcupine rays. One night, I even found a mother green sea turtle in our front room! People assume our life is easy, but it's not always. Just before Lukas turned two, he caught scarlet fever from a researcher. Thankfully, we were able to talk to a doctor on the phone and use antibiotics we keep in our locked medical kit. Work-wise, we are constantly on call, and because we both work full-time we have an au pair living with us to help with Lukas. 4 4 Of course, Heinrich and I argue, but we have great communication skills, which is important when you live and work in close proximity. We also respect each other's space – I love to do workouts to blow off steam, while Heinrich has his workshop he can retreat to. We can't always get deliveries, so we plan food, medical supplies, fuel, you name it. Unpredictable weather We order groceries fortnightly, which come by barge to Heron Island, which can be a two-hour boat trip for us, depending on the weather. There's no dash to the store for late-night snacks, which means we eat pretty healthily! The unpredictable weather can be stressful, and while we've not had a major cyclone, there are evacuation plans in place. We have satellite phones and internet, but we can't just pop over to visit family and friends, who we miss. I don't worry about Lukas socialising, because researchers sometimes bring children with them and friends and family do visit. We also try to get off the island three times a year, and go on holidays. For now, we plan to have Lukas home-schooled on the island, but we don't yet know what the future holds. We feel so lucky to be bringing him up in a simple way without television or tablets. Hopefully, this experience stays with Lukas and he always remembers the remote paradise we were lucky enough to call home.'
Washington Post
16-07-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Jerk chicken skewers bring spice, heat and smoke in every bite
One of the most memorable meals I've ever had was jerk chicken served in a foam takeout container. While vacationing in the Cayman Islands, I got a tip about a woman who sold meals that she'd make in her home kitchen and that her son would deliver. Her food was famously good, and her specialty was jerk chicken — I called her right away.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Yahoo
In our 50s, we moved to a remote Pacific island. We know we'll need better healthcare someday, but for now, it's paradise.
Buz Moffett and his wife, Liz, moved from Hawaii to Pohnpei in Micronesia in 2018. They wanted to slow down, work less, and be away from the tourist crowds. They sometimes go without fresh veggies or dairy as the supply ship comes every two to three weeks. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Buz Moffett, 63, who moved from Hawaii to Pohnpei, an island in the Pacific Ocean that's part of the Federated States of Micronesia, with his wife in 2018. It has been edited for length and clarity. The first time I visited Pohnpei was in 2006. An Australian friend suggested that I check out a surf camp there. He thought I'd love the place — and he was right. The island is stunning, the people are warm, and it offers world-class waves, great fishing, and incredible diving. Over the next 10 years, I went back there almost every other year. Eventually, my wife, Liz, started joining me on my trips. One day in 2017, she approached me and said, "I could live here." By then, I was in my mid-50s and ready to slow down — I didn't want to continue to work myself to death. I was born in California but raised in Hawaii. Being in the real estate industry, I always dreamed of retiring somewhere quieter, more like the Maui I knew from the late '60s and early '70s, with fewer visitors and a slower pace of life. We'd considered moving to Molokai, but Liz felt it was too close to Maui. She knew I'd just hop on my boat back and keep working. We decided Pohnpei, an eight-hour flight from Honolulu, was the right place for us to start our new adventure. We started putting out feelers with a few friends about finding a place to rent. As foreigners, we can't own land in Micronesia. Soon enough, a friend of mine who runs a surfing and diving company in Pohnpei called me and told me he had found the perfect home. He told us that it might be better than his — and he has a nice waterfront home. We didn't even see a picture; we just jumped on it. Turns out, he was right. It's a two-bedroom, one-bathroom home right by the ocean. Rent is $1,500 a month, and we have wonderful landlords who treat us like family. We've been living in Pohnpei ever since, with a two-year gap during the pandemic We have become part of the community and have embraced the lifestyle. When you're not working, finding an activity to fill your time is really important. Somehow, I feel like I'm almost busier now than I was when I was working — it's just a healthier type of busy. Every day, I'll start with coffee and a workout, then return a few calls and emails before heading down to the harbor by 10 a.m. I ice up the boat and refuel before going fishing for four hours. I usually come back home in the mid-afternoon, have a nap, ask what's for dinner, go to bed early, and do it again the next day. When I take a day off from the boat, I usually spend it at home smoking fish — it's my hobby. I seal them up before giving them away as little presents to people I see when I'm cruising around town. Everyone knows me as the old man with the big beard who gives away smoked fish. People on Pohnpei are shy, but we realized that after you break the ice, they are the friendliest people ever. I'm also part of the fishing club, so we have tournaments and parties, too. The supply ship comes in every two to three weeks, and there are times when we run out of fresh vegetables and dairy. But there's never a shortage of canned or frozen goods. But we have learned to adapt and enjoy what we can find at the markets. Liz is a wonderful cook, and we eat at home most nights as we live about 15 minutes from town. We adopted three rescue dogs and have a tabby cat who keeps them all in line. Twice a year, a vet from Guam visits with a team and sets up a clinic at the local college. That's when everyone books appointments for their pets. There are two hospitals and a handful of private clinics on the island, but for anything serious, you have to leave. Many locals travel to Guam or the Philippines for care, and some even go as far as Hawaii for medical treatment. Two to three times a year, we travel back to the US to visit friends and family. But Pohnpei is where we plan to stay for at least the next decade — until we eventually need easier access to advanced medical care. We couldn't be happier — we've found our little slice of paradise in the Western Pacific. Do you have a story to share about retiring abroad? Contact this reporter at agoh@ Read the original article on Business Insider
Forbes
24-06-2025
- Forbes
Inside A Billionaire Banker's Laboratory For Sustainable Luxury Travel
The original lighthouse of Vejrø island Courtesy of Vejrø Resort Maybe it's utopian. Maybe it's dogmatic. Maybe it's ideologically rigorous. That's largely beside the point. A stay on Denmark's Vejrø island is a pure pleasure. Vejrø is not a political project. There's no preaching. But in fact, it's the owner's deep commitment to state-of-the-art sustainability and regeneration that underlies all the island's pleasures: the exuberant flavor of just-picked vegetables. The soft Atlantic quietly lapping at the pebbled beaches. The simple 19th-century houses that were home to generations of islanders. The island, which spans almost 400 acres, is not connected to the mainland and is powered only by what it harnesses and creates. It's the passion project of billionaire Kim Fournais, who co-founded the Nordic fintech powerhouse Saxo Bank in 1992 and still serves as its CEO. But he also spent much of the past two decades developing his vision for Vejrø—which he purchased in 2005—revitalizing its structures and land, and using the island as a nature-forward gathering place for his family, colleagues and friends. Some of the accommodations on the island Courtesy of Vejrø Resort Now that this vision is more complete, he and his team are working to attract more people to Vejrø. While the island is still a popular destination for corporate gatherings and private celebrations, it's also positioning itself as a place for sailors, day trippers, overnight guests, weekenders and anyone who wants a deep immersion in rural tranquility and a glimpse of what's possible when technology and nature work together. 'I think it's kind of obvious to most people that the world is not necessarily in balance now climate-wise, ecologically, geopolitically,' says Fournais. 'So to have a small place like this, if you can build sustainability in 155 hectares where people can have relaxed luxury and calm down a little bit…. And then produce our own energy and produce our own food and make sure we have regenerative farming with a lot of biodiversity…' He trails off, considering what he's building. 'I love the nature. I love being here,' he continues. 'I think it's amazing to be here, but I also think it's a very, very important thing because if you can do it on 155 hectares, you can do it everywhere.' Some of the greenhouses and gardens Courtesy of Vejrø Resort In some ways, Vejrø is not unlike other Nordic islands, like Denmark's Bornholm or Sweden's Gotland, where a windswept rustic simplicity is mixed with a strong gourmet sensibility. That famous Scandinavian hygge is less a branding gambit than an unassuming fiber that's woven through everything. But Vejrø is much smaller and more tightly controlled, fully based on the dreams of one entrepreneur and unique in its thoroughgoing hybrid of the homespun and the high tech. Fournais has invested millions in a wind turbine and solar power system that produces both electric and thermic energy, a reverse-osmosis plant and a biological micro-treatment plant. (The latest addition is a new electric hydrofoil, one of only four in the world and an investment of more than $2 million. It's bringing its first guests to the island from Karrebæksminde, about an hour's drive from Copenhagen, this week.) The machines are all programmed to work together in a microgrid, and relevant staffers monitor its real-time data on an app on their phones. Visitors who want to nerd out with them are more than welcome: Operations director Steen Erik Højgaard happily leads tours around the island on foot or in a little electric vehicle, answering question after question about how it all works. The island from above Courtesy of Vejrø Resort But there's no need to be an environmentalist or a data scientist to enjoy Vejrø. While the island is largely forest; grazing areas for pigs, cattle, sheep and chickens; or plots that are cultivated following the principles of regenerative agriculture, the man-made parts are a handcrafted homage to simpler times. The island was inhabited until the 1980s, with houses, a lighthouse, a school and a store, but it never had a ferry to the mainland or even a marina. Their building style was simple, and they never added a lot of flourishes. Over time, the structures degraded. And because people understandably tend to be more motivated to ship goods into the place where they live than to ship them out when they leave, the last residents left behind cars and appliances and other large trash. 'I had to start by throwing out a hundred tons of garbage. It was all overgrown and so forth,' says Fournais. 'But I'm the kind of person who sees a lot of opportunities in many things, and I love nature. I just thought this would be a great experiment, but also a good proof of concept that you could take something that was like an outcast, that was really not in balance at all, and try to change that by being committed.' Directions on the island Courtesy of Vejrø Resort He and his team used old photos and worked with architects to re-create a residential structure that feels true to the past. The historic houses were restored and sometimes expanded, creating 35 guest rooms spread across buildings around the island. These range from cozy doubles to a romantic suite with a wood-burning stove beside the freestanding bathtub. (There are an additional five glamping tents, with the possibility to set up more for larger events.) The accommodations are soothing and perfectly comfortable, but you don't come to Verjø for a luxury hotel experience. You come to reconnect with nature and its rhythms. A big piece of that is the food that's grown, raised or hunted on the island. (Species such as pheasants and deer have been reintroduced, and humanely culling the herds is part of sustainable wildlife management.) 'I think we got a little bit out of sync with how to live an active, sustainable life,' says Fournais, pointing out that his country's biggest company (by far) is one that sells a pharmaceutical solution to some of the problems caused by that asynchrony. A stay at Vejrø won't reverse that, of course, but it offers a chance to eat wholesome food and feel good about it. The suite Courtesy of Vejrø Resort It's also delicious. At lunchtime, the Skipperly restaurant serves smørrebrød (open-face rye bread sandwiches) with toppings like batter-fried fish and tiny shrimps in mayo, or green asparagus with boiled eggs and lighthouse cheese—'we're very Danish and very proud of that,' says the island's administrative director, Charlotte Winter Cederbye—but they've recently changed the concept to be gastronomic at night. Now they're calling it Restaurant Gaia and aiming for a Michelin green star and inclusion in the White Guide (the Nordics' answer to Michelin). The dinner offer, for overnight guests, is a series of ever-changing tasting plates composed of meat raised on the island, vegetables grown in its fully organic garden plots and greenhouses, and fish caught in the waters nearby: turbot with wild asparagus and caviar, for example, or grilled langoustine with miso-fermented tomato and rosemary flowers. There's a great deal of technique, and the presentations are beautiful, along the lines of what you'd find in many fine dining restaurants in Europe. But they're not abandoning any principles to play the gastronomy game. They bring in olive oil and wine, but that's about it. In late May, a request for fresh fruit at breakfast went politely unmet; that simply wasn't something the island was giving then. A chef gathering herbs from the garden plots Anthon Unger Of course, there were delicious alternatives on offer, and the equilibrium was kept. Luxury here is not abundance. It's something deeper. 'I think it's really the combination of showing how we as people can find a balance but without giving away [nice things],' says Fournais, who admits that Vejrø is not yet profitable or break-even as a business. He's aiming for it to become viable now that all of its elements are complete. 'I think that there's a lot in the debate where environmental fighters want us to more or less dig a hole and change our lifestyle completely and not travel anymore and not do the things that people like. I don't think that's very likely, and I don't think it's common sense because there are a lot of [developing] countries that are, I think, equally keen to get a better life like the rest. I think the right way forward is to find out how you can apply technology.' He continues, 'My job here is not to change the world, but it's just to give an indication that there can be spots where you can build self-sustainability in a different way, but still where it's a great experience.' MORE FROM FORBES Forbes This Wildly Creative Restaurant Turns Campfire Cooking Into Fine Dining By Ann Abel Forbes At Copenhagen's New Epicurus, Fine Dining Meets Subterranean Jazz By Ann Abel Forbes This Maverick British Chef Is Rewriting The Rules Of Fine Dining By Ann Abel
Telegraph
20-06-2025
- Telegraph
Enjoy laid-back luxury on the Caribbean's most elegant island
When you think of the perfect luxury holiday, you might dream of sinking your toes into pleasingly soft sands while enjoying an exquisite al fresco lunch under a golden afternoon sun, with the promise of the evening not far behind. Or perhaps you dream of wading through sapphire-blue shallows before diving into a deeper kind of blue, then wading back to shore to sip a frosted craft cocktail made with local rum, before retiring to an opulent room with a sea view. But an indulgent, unforgettable escape isn't only about finding an idyllic beach with a bar attached and palatial accommodation. It's also about having authentic experiences that get you up close to the local culture and people – so that you can understand and experience a little of the island life while creating lasting memories. In Jamaica – which arguably has the most distinct culture of all the Caribbean islands – you can achieve all of the above, and more. The lively Caribbean island is known for its swathe of seriously luxurious hotels. Standouts include Sandals Royal Caribbean in Montego Bay – the luxury travel brand's first ever Sandals resort that, thanks to its over-the-water villas, beautiful cove beaches and private offshore island, remains a flagship resort today. Close by, the historic Half Moon oozes colonial charm, and counts Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Rainier of Monaco and John F Kennedy among its high-profile past guests. Or, in the pretty little banana port of Oracabessa, check in to the secluded GoldenEye. This laid-back yet luxurious resort with its own beach, coves, and lagoon is centred around the Fleming Villa, where Ian Fleming famously wrote all 14 James Bond novels. While at GoldenEye, why not pay a visit to Firefly? Once the home of English actor, playwright, and composer Noël Coward – and so called because of the glowing creatures he shared the property with at night – it's a mere 15-minute drive away. Don't miss the statue of the theatrical titan sitting in his chair, looking out to one of the best coastal views in Jamaica. From your sumptuous base, you can explore an island rich in history and culture. You might find yourself caught up in a carnival – Jamaica knows how to celebrate and it does so with verve during Rebel Salute (which takes place every January) and July's Reggae Sumfest. Picture colourful costumes and exuberant dancing to top-tier reggae – you won't be able to resist joining in. If you're not visiting during January or July, then worry not, because all over the island, on any given afternoon (just hire a surprisingly affordable private car and driver to whisk you wherever you want to go) you'll find the streets filled with friendly locals grooving to infectious, life-affirming reggae beats that blast out from boom boxes stacked high. Yet while Jamaica may be the birthplace of reggae – Bob Marley, the genre's biggest star, is the island's most famous son – it's also the home of rum. On a private tour of Appleton Estate, the oldest rum producer in the country, you'll discover how the distillery's location – amid a landscape of limestone peaks, verdant forests and gushing rivers – influences the final product. There are also guided (and generous) tastings of Appleton's 17 honey-hued signature rums – including the lethal overproof – so keep an eye on the measures if you wish to accomplish anything else on this day trip. Rum is also king at Floyd's Pelican Bar, off Jamaica's south coast. Made from driftwood and palms, the bar was built by fisherman Floyd Forbes in 2001 after he envisaged it in a dream. Pay a local fisherman to row you to the wonderfully rickety drinking den – dubbed the 'coolest in the Caribbean' – at sunset for a sweet rum punch with Floyd and friends, keeping your eyes peeled for pelicans and dolphins en route. Liquid gold aside, Jamaica is famed for its Blue Mountain coffee: smooth, dark and handsome, it's rated among the best and rarest in the world. Just ask James Bond: in Live and Let Die, Ian Fleming's special agent proclaims Blue Mountain Coffee 'the most delicious in the world'. For a dramatic mini-adventure, you could take a helicopter flight over those rugged mountains enveloped in misty blue air, or more active types could hike or bike through their cool, fragrant woodlands before rewarding themselves with a deliciously reviving cup of Blue Mountain coffee. More of Jamaica's authentic, natural side can be enjoyed by floating along the Rio Grande River (or if you're staying in Negril or Montego Bay, the Martha Brae River), on your own bamboo raft. You'll be piloted by an experienced and knowledgeable captain who will point out former banana plantations, trees groaning with mouth-watering mangoes, and tiny, delicate hummingbirds flitting through the lush greenery. There are stops along the way to swim, too. But this is the island life, and you may prefer to do absolutely nothing, and that's fine too. Be pampered in a tranquil, ocean-front spa like the one at Jamaica Inn – where treatments utilise local ingredients like Blue Mountain coffee and organic coconuts – while listening to waves lap the shore. Or simply relax in a hammock by your infinity pool, or on a beach such as Frenchman's Cove – a small strip of postcard-perfect white sand ringed by miniature forested headlands and flanked by a perfectly turquoise lagoon. Whatever you choose to focus on – wellness, watersports, wildlife, or a little of everything – it's worth knowing that arrivals and departures come with a typically tropical Jamaican twist, with VIP airport lounges Club Mobay and Club Kingston at Sangster in Montego Bay and Norman Manley in Kingston turning what is usually an endurance test into an indulgence – ensuring that your Jamaican sojourn remains irresistible and effortless from end to end.
