Lifestyles of the Rich and sometimes Famous

Hedge funds and offshore accounts were only terms I had heard of from movies and rich people before we moved here, hobbies that required lots of money and perhaps some shady morals. However, if there is one thing that I learned within the first few days in Cayman, it was this: there is enough money on this island to blow your mind. Never have I seen so many mansions, yachts and private jets in my life. In fact, Friday afternoons are marked by the constant drone of personal jets and first class helicopters depositing their occupants on the island for a weekend getaway. Cheryl Crow, Orlando Bloom, Dr. Phil and Tiger Woods (when he was still allowed out) are among some of the repeat visitors. Of course, Sunday afternoon consists of much the same, as the wealthy leave their weekend homes and return to mainland. But for some, air travel is too common. They prefer to anchor their 6 storey yachts off Spotts Bay and slowly sail west along the coast, flaunting their magnificent ships to all of us land dwellers. On occasion you will even see the yachts side up along a cruise ship, in an effort to prove how "big" their boat really is. As another taunting blow to our economical self-esteem, there are weekly advertisements in the paper for luxury homes. The newest development on Seven Mile Beach features 4 bedroom condos with a living space on the downstairs floor for you butler and pilot. The road that we live on is renowned for the mansions (how we ended up living here is a mystery). There is the Thompson mansion (if only my maiden name had a "p" in it, I could have shmoozed my way in) owned by the hardware store family. It sits opposite the most beautiful cove on the island and is done up in Victorian fashion, with little T's designed into the wrought iron fence. Further up there is the yellow mansion. That is the one pictured above. It is so large it creates its own light halo you can see from further along the road. There is also the "Cave" mansion. This guy has actually built underneath his seaside house and 40ft into the ocean, where he has a grotto that is sealed off with glass. Apparently when you are scuba diving you can go right up to his underwater window and look into the grotto if thats the kind of thing you're into. Some millionaires don't want to get caught up in the maintenance of property. They would rather pay $7 million for a top floor penthouse suite at the Ritz. It has been said that Oprah actually owns one of these as well. If you can't afford the 7 mill, then perhaps co-ownership for $2 million a year would be advisable. That way, when you aren't on island, it can be rented out to affluent commoners for the average Ritz price of $30,000/month. Accommodations aside, there are still the cars to deal with. Every day when I drop Blake off at work, our dented '94 sun-burnt Accord is typically sandwiched between a brand new Mercedes or Land Rover and a Lexus or shiny BMW convertible. As embarrassing as our car is, I am thankful that should a hurricane hit the island and the Accord float to sea, we won't have lost much money. As you can see, appearances and money are pretty important on this little island. Sometimes I stare wistfully at the jets as they leave, but then I remember that I am lucky to live here in my own right, and I want to learn how to shuck my own coconuts and catch my own conch (that is not supposed to sound as dirty as it does) instead of spend my life being catered to. Life is about the journey and experiences, not how much money you can flaunt... and as broke as Blake and I are, we are happier than ever... although I can still dream about building my own underwater grotto...