When you visit an island that’s home to fewer than 16,000 people, you might expect connections to form quickly – and they do. In Anguilla, there’s no ‘six degrees of separation’. In fact, you are never more than one, two or, at most, three steps away from recognising, connecting and discovering ‘who’s who’.

You might meet someone at the beach and realise they know your villa host, are related to your taxi driver or married to the chef from yesterday’s restaurant – or they were bartending somewhere you went last night and are now pouring your coffee. Locals and other tourists’ faces soon become familiar, and, before long, those familiar faces turn into friends – and you as a visitor are now a fully fledged, paid-up member of the ‘Anguilla Club’.

This closeness is part of Anguilla’s charm. The island’s small size fosters warmth and intimacy that larger destinations can’t match. That’s why our Connections Issue has embraced this theme – and with so much material to choose from, we may have to revisit it again.

Enjoy our beautiful cover image featuring the twin stars – primary school teachers who are the creative force behind Kwin | Handmade in Anguilla, a local jewellery brand, a charming craft company whose earrings are sold in boutiques across the island. While interviewing them, we discovered another link: they are connected to the Anguilla Initiative featured on pages 40-41. What serendipity for this issue! And we didn’t stop at just one set of twins – we also photographed the tourism community’s beloved Tweety and Soya, who have connected with and enhanced the experience of visiting Anguilla for thousands of people over the years with their smiles and signature brand of Anguillian hospitality.

We hope you truly enjoy our magazine.

Trudy and the TRUE Anguilla team