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Anguilla News

Taking a new look at Sonesta Resort. . . .

[Click to enlarge]
 2000/05/28 - Click to enlarge pictures

Sonesta for Year 2000

This vacation spot on Rendezvous Bay had some damage from Hurricane Lenny in November 1999, but they fixed it quickly and took the opportunity to do some upgrades (replace the lobby roof, etc.). Sonesta is known for its distinctive Moorish decorations, plus its two restaurants: Casablanca Restaurant and Restaurant Ici. At a corner of the resort they have some private villas, including the outrageously luxurious Hibiscus Villa.

We went by in Spring 2000 to get our hair cut at Sophie's and snapped some new photos. For more pictures and information about Sonesta, Click Here.

Telephone: 1-264-497-6999.
Fax 1-264-497-6899
Email: [email protected]
Web page: http://www.sonesta.com

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Directions: located in the western end of the island, facing St. Martin. From the airport parking lot, take the only exit and turn left, then go straight past the airport entrance and through the roundabout. You are travelling west, with St Martin on your right. You will go about 10 miles, straight through another roundabout, and past the turn off for Anguilla Great House and CuisinArt. In another 1/2 mile you will pass Cheddie's Carving Studio and turn left after the Shell Gas Station, drive down toward the beach and turn left on the paved road into Sonesta.




Sapphire Restaurant

[Click to enlarge] On the road into Cap Juluca there is a new restaurant. The Tourist Board has information about the new Sapphire Restaurant overlooking Maundays Bay on their News and Events page:
Formerly of Cap Juluca's Pimms restaurant, owner Pedro Marlin and chef Rexford Fleming teamed with Anthony Bryan, formerly of Cap Juluca's George's restaurant, to create this gem of a place. ... The menu is a creative fusion of Caribbean and European culinary styles with a heavy focus on seafood. Mr. Fleming combines capers, fresh lemon and tomatoes to create a delicious Anguilla Crayfish Salad appetizer.

Click Here to read the remainder.

A frequent Anguilla visitor has posted a short review of this new restaurant to the Anguilla Anguilla Tête-à-Tête forum. If you have tried Sapphire and want to add your comments, Click Here.

This new restaurant opened less than a month ago and, although we didn't get to try it for dinner, we were their first guests for lunch and think this place is going to be a comer. Visually, it is quite appealing with it's whitewash throughout and its bold accents of appealing blues picked up in decorations, glassware, etc. hence the name Sapphire. The owner, Pedro, used to be the maitre d' at Cap Juluca and learned his lessons well. Try their vegetable pizza. Quite different in its crust, quite appealing in its taste. The view is charming too with sights of Marigot and St. Martin.

Sapphire Restaurant
Telephone: 1.264.498.8000

Sapphire Menu (Spring 2000)

APPETIZERS

Vegetable Soup 8.00

Crayfish Salad 12.00
with capers, tomato and a fresh lemon juice

Grilled Marinated Chicken Salad 12.00
with vegetables and plantain chips

Mixed Green Salad 8.00
house salad

Seafood Salad 12.00

Shellfish Spring Roll 12.00

Tomato and Mozzarella Salad 10.00
with pesto

Tuna Carpaccio 8.00

Warm Mushroom Salad 12.00
with balsamic vinegar served with shoe string potatoes
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ENTREES

Crayfish or lobster risotto 26.00
in a light lobster sauce

Grilled Crayfish 28.00
served with rice, vegetables and a lemon butter sauce

Grilled Swordfish 24.00
served with house vegetables and a fruit salsa

Parrot Fish 24.00
breaded with almond crust in a light tomato sauce

Sauteed Salmon 26.00
with crushed chive and potato with a champagne sauce

Seafood Panache 28.00
grilled crayfish, pan seared salmon and stewed squid

Tuna Provencal 26.00
grilled tuna with stewed vegetables

Penne Pasta 20.00
with sauteed shrimp in a light white wine sauce

Chicken Sausage 24.00
stuffed with spicy stewed conch in pumpkin curry sauce

Grilled Sirloin 28.00
served with vegetables and sauteed mushrooms

Roasted Rack of Lamb 28.00
served in a ratatouille in garlic and fresh thyme juice

Sauteed Veal Medallions 28.00
with zucchini, carrot and tomato puree in a passion fruit and wild sage sauce

Surf and Turf 30.00
half tenderloin and half lobster with a carrot puree and served with a red wine sauce

(crayfish and lobster dishes are subject to availability)
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DESSERT

Assorted Ice Cream and Sorbets 6.00

Cheese Cake 6.00
with strawberry and rasberry sauce

Stewed Fruit 8.00
topped with vanilla ice cream

Prices are quoted in U.S. dollars and a 10% service charge will be added.

Directions: from the airport parking lot take the only exit and turn left, then left again past the airport entrance, straight through the roundabout, and west down the main road of the island. Go straight at the next roundabout and follow the road for about 10 miles. After passing Lydia Semaria's art studio and La Sirena, turn left on the next paved road. Just before the entrance to Cap Juluca resort you will find Sapphire Restaurant on the right.




Weather in Anguilla


Weather Summary Satellite
Sunny 82F 27C 64% Humidity, May 27
Low temp since last news report 77F 25C
High temp since last news report 86F 30C
Low humidity since last news report 57%
Tropical storm web sites Link Alt
Anguilla weather forecasts Link Alt
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Anguilla Diary: May 15 to May 28, 2000

Here is a day-by-day compendium of news items, as we gathered them - starting with the most recent.

Saturday, May 27, 2000

US Airways Flies to St. Maarten. On November 12, 2000, US Air will increase service to Princess Julianna airport from Philadephia (daily) and Charlotte, NC (Sat/Sun): Click Here.



Beaches.ai:
Over 30 Anguilla beaches.

String Band Music This Weekend. Campbell at the "New Round Rock" bar and grill on Shoal Bay had a string band from Tortola playing last night, Friday. Tonight, May 27, the Anguilla string band Sleepy and the Allstars are playing. And rumour has it that there will be old fashioned Caribbean music on Sunday night as well. Drive down into Shoal Bay and turn left at the dirt road intersection; Round Rock has signs. I don't know what time, but string bands are usually going by 9pm.


A House in the Tropics. Robert and Dalia Fleming have created an extensive web site for their book, "A House on a Tropical Island" about building design, construction and life: Click Here.


Friday, May 26, 2000

New Stamps. The Anguilla Postal Sservice has released two new sets of stamps: To see the stamps and read about them, visit the Gov.ai web site: Click Here. To order stamps, try this page.


Wednesday, May 24, 2000


Anguilla Forums:
Tête-à-Tête

Travel Talk

Carib On-line

Holidays. Due to widespread confusion on the island, Graham Crabtree (email: [email protected]) went to the Chief Minister's Office to confirm the June public holidays. He was told that The Queen's Birthday had been moved to 19 June So the upcoming known holidays are:



Santa Barbara Villa. Located on the grounds of La Sirena hotel, this is a three bedroom villa. Each bedroom is air conditioned and has its own bath. The large living-dining-kitchen area has a view of the ocean and their lower pool, while the spiral staircase leads to its sun-roof deck with wide ranging views: Click Here.


Tuesday, May 23, 2000

Tropical Construction. Mary Ann's "Beachshack" web site has been frequently updated over the last month with progress reports and construction tips: Click Here.



Submit a News Story.

Nostalgia. The Internet is pulling in more people every day, even from the past. Consider this email from Alf Lewin ([email protected])

Dear Bob,

I came across the Anguilla pages when looking for something else and I was immediately drawn to it as I was there in 1970 as part of the Royal Engineers. We were building the tar road to the West End and to Road Bay and also finishing off the jetty. We also built schools in The Valley and started the road from the East End.

That place will always stay with me as one of the best places I ever visited. We were very involved in local life there such as helping the locals at weekends with our earth-moving plant to dig foundations for their houses and putting the engine in the only ferry which was at West End, in fact most of the island cricket team were soldiers.

I wouldn't recognise the place now with all the hotels etc. Is there bigger airport there now? I remember watching a C130 coming in once a month onto the old airport, once you've seen that there is very little left in the world that can scare you! Except flying to St. Maarten with what was then the only local plane piloted by Clayton LLoyd. Watching all the local passengers praying on the way over left me puzzled until the landing. Clayton ignored any planes that were in the landing pattern and just swooped down and quickly pulled out of the way! Very exciting stuff.

I used to have three local guys working for me whom I taught to operate the service trailer, they used to go out with it and service the plant on site. I remember one was called Frank, who's father ran the ferry from the West End and his uncle built a bar, also at the West End, there was another guy called Curtley and the third I can't remember although I do from time to time. Mind you this was in 1970!

I particularly remember my last week there. When they took me to St. Maarten on the ferry and handed to me their whole weekly pay so that I could buy souveniers to take home with me. So I remember mainly the people there and the generosity of those guys was not an isolated incident. Not all of the soldiers mixed with the local people of course but those who did were rewarded in many ways, we were invited to everything that happened there and there was a local custom which I hope was carried on. When somebody was going to slaughter a pig people would come and gather and play cards, each hand was 20c and the winner of each hand was then entitled to a pound of meat. We were regulars at these games. The guys who did not mix really did themselves a diservice, but then there are always people like that who probably miss out on life generally.

Sorry to bore you but your newsletter brought back a lot of memories.

Regards Alf

Alf Lewin,
Technical Officer (Drilling)



Monday, May 22, 2000

Click To Enlarge Baby Goat in the Courtyard!

Yesterday we heard a baby goat crying from our balcony. After quite a few hours we discovered that it was trapped in the garden courtyard of the guest house. Behind 6 foot concrete walls. And the property is completely fenced, and patrolled by two big dogs!

After the short humorous chase, three of us were able to catch the little guy and release him outside the fence where his cries soon reunited him with the herd.


Sunday, May 21, 2000

Pre-Anguilla Day Boat Race. Meads Bay, Sunday May 28th, 2000. Action begins at 12 noon. Live music by the Musical Brothers and the Mussingtons.


Saturday, May 20, 2000


Hotels.ai:
All the resorts/hotels/inns.

Cap Juluca Announces Oct 28 Reopening: Click Here.


Friday, May 19, 2000

Sporting News. Zack Kenworthy (email: [email protected]) has updated Sports.ai: Click Here.


CEG Newsletter Issue 15. Graham Crabtree has posted another update on his web site: Click Here.



Anguilla Questions?
Email the Tourist Board at [email protected] or the Hotel Association at [email protected]

Reggae Groovers Set List. Mark Gatti (email: [email protected]) has an interesting request. Anyone with this information please email it to him (and copy to [email protected]):

My wife and I just returned from our first visit to Anguilla. What a wonderful island! We are looking forward to returning some day.

I was wondering if you could please point me in the right direction. We went to the Pump House three times to see Reggae Groovers and loved them - they were great! Although I am familiar with all the Bob Marley tunes they played, I did not recognize the rest of their repetoire. Where can I track down a set list that lists song titles as well as artists so I can try to find these tunes now that I'm back in the US?

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, Mark Gatti



Thursday, May 18, 2000

Beachfront House for Rent. On the Anguillla Mailing List, Jackie Pascher (email: [email protected]) offers a "Long Term Rental on the Beach":
I have a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home located directly on a beach in West End for rent for a minimum of 1 year. The rental is $2000 per month plus security deposit. This home is fully furnished including dishes, linens, TV, stereo. Available starting June 1. Please call 264-497-3743 or 264-235-6555 if interested.



Calendar:
Events, holidays, activities

Carnival Schedule. Plans for this year's Summer Festival of carnival and boat racing are firming up. For a revised event schedule: Click Here.


Wednesday, May 17, 2000


Villas.ai:
Private villas for rent.

Woburn Villa. How about a villa that is only a stone's throw from beautiful and quiet Sandy Hill beach. South facing with views of the St. Barts and St. Martin. Woburn Villa can be rented with one, two or three bedrooms. $165 to $400 until November 14, 2000. It now has a nice web site at woburn.ai (be sure to click the links to the Views): Click Here.


Tuesday, May 16, 2000


Internet Yellow Pages:
All known Anguilla sites.

Body and Soul Web Site. Susi Geyer and Doris Brooks have put up a web site for their Body and Soul Fitness Club and their Bits and Bite's and beachfront apartments on Sandy Ground. Currently the web site is only in German, but it will be translated soon. They are running a summer special: apartment for 4 people, $90 per night. And they have a great domain name, anguilla.de: Click Here.



Translations:
In the archive

French Translation. Maria Lee has completed translating the April 25th issue of the news into French. If you have any French friends who need to know about Anguilla, tell them to Click Here. For other translations into French, Italian and German, consult the archives: Click Here.


Monday, May 15, 2000

2000 Budget Address. The Gov.ai web site has the recent budget address posted: Click Here.


Seabreeze/La Sirena Villa. This is a 3 bedroom/3 bath villa on the grounds of a resort with pools and restaurants. The master suite has a king bed and is air conditioned: Click Here.




Stories from the previous and earlier News.ai issues.
Shoal Bay Upgrade Flower Show
Sherricks Bay Altamer Resort
Daily Diary Blackgarden Bay


About Anguilla

Anguilla is a coral island in the North Eastern Caribbean, six miles from St. Martin. Click Here for a map showing Anguilla's relative location. The web pages about Anguilla have been indexed by topic in an Internet Yellow Pages:


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Searching the News.ai Site

Indirectly, this page links to all known Anguilla web sites, including the many articles in the Bob Green's Anguilla News. To read past issues by date, Click Here. The four year news archive can also be searched by key word:


Recommended Vacation Villas

Our villa on Shoal Bay beach: Bellamare.

And ten minutes away, our villa in St Barth that is totally secluded and private, but close to everything in St Jean, and with unbelievable views.



© 2000 Bob Green  

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