Wife

hello peter,

I live in hawaii, i used to live in the virgin islands and i would much rather be there then in hawaii but i guess i'll just deal with it for now, but if you have any questions about hawaii i would be glad to answer them , im from the big island. Where is your wife from?

Peter: I don't have any statistics, but I feel like "husband and wife with different ideas ablout living here" is probably the number one cause of divorce and/or moving back to the mainland. Hawaii is lovely, but has a totally different cultural heritage, also is a state rather that a territory. It also is far from any other land masses. You asked for help, not for advice...but the three of you should go back to the drawing board....IM very HO.

Peter,

If your wife is originally from Hawaii, then understandably that is a huge draw - in terms of returning home. I agree with East Ender that perhaps talking about it more. Has your family visited St. Thomas before? Perhaps the trip you are making will be the deciding factor - help her decide that she wants to move here or seal her opposition to it.

--Islander

dear peter, ive lived in st. john and i now live in hawaii ( the big island puna area )they are two completely different worlds the only thing they have in common is the weather i would need more specifics to answer your ?'s like what part of the hawaii islands does your wife want to live each one is very different and what is drawing you to island life . it can be very limiting, think of a small town and never being able to leave it unless you buy a thousand dollar plane ticket and feel comfortable leaving your possessions knowing you may never see them again. the carribbean is very expensive for housing (at least any place youd want to live) and it lacks alot of mainland conviences .ie walmart, malls, places to go ,stuff to do (except water sports) Hawaii is very "americanized " and many parts are affortable (ie i bought a 1 acre lot and built a 2700 sq ft house for 75,000 . ) to get a decent education on either side of the planet your son will have to go to private school. and unless your in the tourism business youd better byob ( bring your own business) as job opportunities are very limited . the most important thing is family so if your wife has good family in hawaii theres not much question , many,many, people try island life and cant hack it so try not to romanticise it. personally i prefer the carribbean theres no question its just sooooo darn expensive i got tired of living in a shack even if it had a 20 million dollar view ,now i have no view but a 20 million dollar mansion (HAHAHA).id be glad to answer any specific questions you may have. best of luck