Catamaran Physalia

Kaya was born and raised in Puerto Rico. She spent her life fishing, crewing, and living aboard boats traversing the British, US, and Spanish Virgin Islands, particularly Culebra Island where her family vacation home was located. Kaya was introduced into the world of scientific SCUBA diving at Florida International University where she obtained her Bachelor's degree and worked in a seagrass ecology lab. Kaya graduated summa cum laude, with undergraduate research experience, and membership into Phi Beta Kappa honor society. Her marine biology career continued soon after in the Virgin Islands, where she completed her Master's degree and expanded her diving experience, becoming a certified technical diver with TDI advanced nitrox and decompression diving.

More recently, Kaya’s marine science career focuses on tropical coral and fish ecology. Her diving experiences have been incredibly unique with hundreds of scientific dives completing surveys for coral health, coral reef fishes, lobster, and more. Kaya is also a highly skilled captain and holds a USCG 100-ton Master license. Apart from her ocean experiences, Kaya is fully bilingual and grew up in a family of passionate foodies including several professional chefs. Her food passion started with Puerto Rican cuisine, but grew after traveling the world where she learned and became passionate about authentic foods from Vietnam, Thailand, Mexico, Italy, Japan, Greece, Peru, South Korea, Morocco, and many other countries, cooking and learning from locals at homestays throughout her multiple backpacking journeys. Kaya can provide signature dishes from many regions of the world and cater to a broad array of pallets.

Kaya and Chris met on a marine science job in Culebra, PR in 2015 and were soon spending every free moment together. After the job, Chris followed Kaya first around Puerto Rico, and then began visiting her between jobs. Conspiring with her sisters, Chris surprised Kaya during a visit to see family in Ireland when she finally agreed to be his girlfriend. They have since crossed the US via campervan, traveled through dozens of countries, and lived in CA, FL, PR, and the USVI together. They have made a point of taking regional cooking classes as they have traveled the world, and take pride in being adventurous eaters. They are both passionate marine scientists with teaching experience at the university level, and love introducing their guests to the wonders of the ocean world. Their combined skills and experience offer travelers a broad array of options for indulging in all aspects of life at sea. They specialize in the BVI, USVI, and Spanish VI where Kaya grew up cruising and they both know intimately. Chris and Kaya got engaged on a trip to Australia in 2022 and celebrated their wedding in June 2024.

Be sure to follow Physalia on instagram! @sv_physalia