Anguilla News, 2001/05/06


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The highlight of the Easter weekend's festive events was the Annual East Monday boat race. . . .

2001/05/06 - Click to enlarge pictures

Easter Monday Boat Race

Mead's Bay was full of activity as crowds gathered to "lime" (hang out) and support the race. The race began at Mead's Bay in the west and continued to the outskirts of Sandy Hill Bay in the east and culminated back at Mead's Bay.

The sunny day provided the perfect setting for an exciting race. Locals, visitors and yachters from neighbouring St. Martin joined in the action. De Tree, owned by the Blowing Point Committee, captured first place in the 2001 race (notice the De Tree supporters waving tree branches as they welcome their winner in the picture above), followed closely by N.W.O. Third place was taken by The Viking and The Eagle got the fourth spot. Barbecues and tented bars were kept busy as The Better Band pleased the crowds with live musical entertainment.

Boat racing is an integral part of Anguilla's history and culture. The sea provided an opportunity when the island's climate and economic circumstances were challenging. This background led to the vibrant boat racing passion on the island.

For more about the boat racing culture on the island you may want to read "Nuttin Bafflin" by David Carty and visit this news.ai report on another Easter Monday.

Photos and story by Janine Edwards

Marine Life Education for Anguilla's Children

An exciting, educational marine life extravaganza awaits two hundred (200) Anguillian children in July. Junior Fleming and several volunteers are working hard to put together the first event in a series of Marine Life Education programs. The exercise aims to expose a large cross-section of children to the island's precious marine resources and heritage and to spread awareness about conservation. This program may also inspire a child to pursue a career in marine biology.

Junior is all fired up about the program: "We need to protect our marine resources�this is all we have. We also should be more environmentally conscious. We have to teach our children about our marine environment. It makes me so happy to see the children and their excitement as they experience and learn."

The big all-day event will be based at Crocus Bay where there will be several tents and chairs set up along the beach. Teachers and other volunteers will supervise the children and give them briefings on various aspects of marine life. Junior already has some valuable documentation from the Fisheries Department, and this will be used as teaching materials.

This event blends entertainment with education so the children are in for a big treat. Junior intends to have most of the children do a glass-bottomed boat tour around Crocus and Little Bay. They will see the caves, starfish, stingray, turtles and coral reefs. They will learn about the fascinating way that reefs are formed. A smaller number of children will go to Prickle Pear for a mini tour. A big barbecue will be set up to live steelband music so that the children can have an enjoyable lunch.

Junior has already ordered some equipment and supplies such as life vests, snorkeling gear and underwater cameras. Also on the way are one hundred (100) Fish Watcher's Guides which display the fishes of the Caribbean. These will be put in the various classrooms around the island as follow-through education. T-shirt and pen souvenirs will also be given to the children to commemorate the occasion.

This mammoth voluntary effort would be grateful for support from various business places and individuals. Several persons have already offered to donate technical expertise, time, funds and other items. There was even some interest from a business place in neighbouring St Maarten to provide drinks for the children. This assistance is inspiring and the organizers would be appreciative of any other contribution. If you wish to send a monetary donation you can make checks payable to: Marine Life Education Fund, c/o James Fleming, Jr., P O Box 1008, The Valley, Anguilla, British West Indies. If you want to find out more about the program please feel free to email Junior at kylarh@anguillanet.com

About Junior

Junior has grown up around boats and has always loved the water. He has been doing glass-bottomed boat tours, snorkeling trips and cruises for the past 14 years. This personable young man enjoys educating and entertaining his guests as they experience the underwater treasures of Anguilla. He loves children was also involved in taking sixty (60) kids to Scrub Island as part of the Camp Be Aware program last year.

Weather in Anguilla

Weather Summary	Satellite
Sunny 84F 28C 58% Humidity,	May 6
Low temp since last news report	66F 18C
High temp since last news report	84F 28C
Low humidity since last news report	46%
Tropical storm web sites	Link Alt
Anguilla weather forecasts	Link Alt

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The Palm Garden

The art community on Anguilla recently welcomed a new studio by local artist Michelle Owen-Vasilis called The Palm Garden. The artist displays a refreshing array of her water-colour pieces, many depicting Caribbean scenes. Michelle also expresses her creativity in providing consultation for interior design and decorating. She works hand-in-hand with her clients to meet their needs within flexible pricing packages.

For the remainder of the 2001 season, the studio is open the following hours:
Tuesday - 10:30am to 4 pm.
Thursday - 10:30am to 2 pm
Friday - 1:30pm to 4:30 pm
Saturday 10:30am to 2 pm
Please feel free to contact Michelle for a special appointment.

Guests at the Palm Garden Art Studio enjoyed a delightful opening on April 21st, 2001. The artist has several exciting projects for the year ahead. One of her plans is to create a specific series of paintings in the coming months which will be displayed at a special showing.

Michelle can bring fun and colour into children's rooms with lively wall murals, as in the one picture below:

The Palm Garden is housed in a quaint traditional Caribbean cottage which was originally the Owen family homestead on North Hill. McArthur (Mac) Owen completed the house in 1930 and today the traditional craftsmanship is still visible. The house is elevated on a stone foundation and the decorative finishes are all hand-tooled. The Palm Garden is a typical example of Anguillian architecture.

Michelle would be delighted to hear from you. Feel free to contact her at owenvas@anguillanet.com or by telephone 264-497-5705 and 264-235-1254.

Directions: From the airport parking lot, take the only exit and turn left, then left again and drive past the airport entrance. Continue straight through the roundabout and just before the next roundabout turn right on a paved road into North Hill (just beyond Boo's Cycle). Past the Methodist Church in North Hill, Palm Garden is on the right hand side, just next to the Art Studio of Michelle Lavalette.

Story and pictures by Janine Edwards

Elsa's Restaurant

We have a real restaurant find for you in Island Harbour. Last night we tried a new restaurant, based on a recommendation from Kathie Butterfield (harborlights@anguillanet.com)

You should try Elsa's on the hill. Are you familiar with it? It is a neat and inexpensive local restaurant that is open 6 days/nights a week. She has fresh snapper, stewed lobster, as well as the ever popular chix and chips for as low as US$3.00 Her chips are homemade, and the best on the Island. Her johnnie cakes, superb. My guests come back very happy with the food and prices.

We tried the Grilled Snapper, the Old Wife Stew (aka Trigger Fish), and sautéed Shrimp. All three were delicious. Just to keep the cook busy the three of us ordered three different side dishes: rice, pasta and sautéed potatoes. All were excellent. The plates were garnished with plantains and vegetables, and the price was a bargain.

Elsa's Menu

All prices are in EC $ (remember, US$ 1 = EC 2.70).

Stewed Shell Fish, $16

Snapped, Grilled or Steamed, $20

King Fish, Grilled, $20

Shrimp - sautéed, $40

Stewed Lobster, $40

Conch Creole, $40

Salt Fish, $22

Old Wife Stew, $16

Pork Chops, $16

Oxtail, $10

Soup of the Day, $12

All served with choice of rice, vegetables, sautéed potatoes or pasta.

They also make sandwiches and standard Anguillian TakeOut food. For example:

Ribs, $16

Chicken and Chips, $8

Hamburgers, $5

Telephone: 264.497.4706. Closed Sunday. Hours: 12pm - 9pm (except Wed, 12-6).

Directions: Elsa's is located at the east end of Island Harbour village. Starting from the airport parking lot, take the only exit and turn left, go straight past Island Car Rentals and the National Bank. Go straight through the intersection with Albert's Supermarket. Follow this paved road for about 5 miles, resisting the left turn for Shoal Bay. Eventually you will go over a hill, down in Welches, and then reach the waterfront in Island Harbour.

From Island Harbour, continue east out of the village. You go past the road for Hibernia and take the next left, just after the little house with the yellow roof, and across from Davis Lloyd's store. You can't miss it. It is the first on the left. Green with pink trim.

An Artist

There is an artist in each of us. Some just follow their instinct and passion and sometimes even without a specific education, an art piece might result. Arthur Ward, from Saint Kitts (but resident in Anguilla for 20 years) is a contractor and construction worker who devotes his free time to literally creating from mechanical spare parts pieces of furniture like chandeliers, drawers, cabinets and wall decorations of a very unusual style.

As you can see, he is presently inspired in creating tables with the stem made out of pistons, carburetor, and other automobile engines' parts and gears covered by a crystal top. He patiently gathers the parts and with the help of his wife Lilian makes them usable for his creations.

Arthur Ward works in his lab just behind his house in North Side, and anybody who wants to go and visit him is very welcomed. Phone 264-497-3657.

Story and photos by Professor Gaetano Di Palo

Anguilla Diary: April 2 to May 5, 2001

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

Wednesday, May 02, 2001

Anguilla Hotel and Tourism Assoc.
News items: Fred Thompson re-elected to second term as President, February's total of 5,552 stayover guests was 25% more than last year and the largest ever recorded for the month, and the second highest monthly total in Anguilla's history. Frangipani Beach Club is producing a newsletter called "Encore!Encore!". The association web site is up at www.ahta.ai and growing.

La Veranda New Menus For Summer.
Stacey Rochat (laveranda@anguillanet.com) writes: La Veranda Restaurant has put out great new summer menus for lunch and dinner with a children's special, a home-made pasta section and lots of new dishes as well and the prices are really reasonable. Don't forget the Happy hours nightly with bar snacks from 5pm to 7pm and the Early Bird specials every Wednesday evening from $10 to $15.
For fresh all-natural Ice-creams and sorbets, check out La Veranda's flavours, so many to choose from including some you've probably never heard of. Sold wholesale and retail from $3 - $34. Need Fabulous Catering for any occasion at any location? Just call 497-2225 and ask for Anastasia or Didier Rochat.

Allamanda Beach Club: Spa Retreat on Shoal Bay
Pamper yourself�.. 7 nights accommodation,
Two 60 minute deep tissue massages: Penetrating� revitalizing�
Two 30 minute nourishing, hydrating facials: Natural botanicals
One 40 minute Sea Spa Body Glow Treatment: Sea salt, olive oil & essential oils. Gently exfoliate dead cells.
Packages range from US$860 - US$1,350 inclusive of service charge and government tax per couple per week. Spa services provided by Taino Wellness Centre Jill Walker, RMT, BT [email protected]
Set on world renowned Shoal Bay �. Air Conditioning�.Cable TV�.PADI Dive and Watersports Facility�Gourmet Restaurant & Bar....Beach Bar�Gym...Maid service and much more. Restrictions: Spa Escape Package is specially designed for couples. Valid: May 1 � Dec. 14, 2001.
For more details contact Ava at [email protected] or Tel. 264-497-5217 Fax 264-497-5216 Or contact Pete in the U.S.A. at one of the following #s: Between 26/6 � 31/8, 2001 Tel. 508-394-8953 Otherwise Tel. 860-529-4388 Fax 860-563-6748 Web site: www.allamanda.ai

Submit a News Story.

www.festival.ai: The Summer Festival
This years summer festival committee has decided to bring Anguilla into the Internet era with the introduction of a new �user friendly� website. Realizing that a static site would be difficult to maintain by festival personnel, the solution is a site that allows �non-technical� people to update the website from any computer connected to the internet. The website will serve as a portal for all of Anguilla's festival and entertainment information. Festival personnel will have daily access to update the site.
Contents: events, articles by festival staff, photos (including uploads by the public), forums to allow people to make comments and ask questions, calendar, links to related web sites, and contact information and reply forms.
Banner ads will be a revenue source for the festival, offered to interested parties as a way advertise their business. The banner ads, which will appear at the top of every page are linked to advertisers website. A new banner is shown every time the page loads.
This project was funded by NetConcepts, built by Chris Mason ([email protected]) and designed by Jo-Anne Mason.

Callaloo Resort Web Site This web site has been completed with lots of pictures and information about the villas.

Monday, April 30, 2001

Island Harbour: Greta's Barbecue.
Looking for juicy ribs for dinner? Are you near Island Harbour village in Shoal Bay or East End?
Try Greta's: casual, roadside barbeque on the waterfront in Island Harbour. We went yesterday at 6pm, ordered ribs, drank a beer while we waited and snapped these photos.
This recommendation comes from Kathy Butterfield at Harbour Lights (email harborlights@anguillanet.com):
Greta's on the water is located by the preschool. Small pink building across from the old Anguilla Post and Beam office. A lot of people think it is private, but she is in business for the public three nights a week. Fri, Sat, and Sun.(aiming for 7) You can get the best ribs on the Island! The chicken is never dry and is 5.00ec per leg and a whole rack of ribs is $10.00ec. You can't beat the price! She often has a local soup and johnnie cakes.

Beachshack Web Site.
Mary Ann's tropical construction page has many updates, including:

Living room construction
Pool gets planters, steps and seats, plus house finishing details
Walls, walls, walls, plus living room doors and windows
Vanishing edge on the pool, shopping in San Juan and wood work

Saturday, April 28, 2001

Beaches.ai:
Over 30 Anguilla beaches.

Anguilla Animal Rescue Web site: www.aarf.ai
The Anguilla Animal Rescue Foundation (AARF) was officially registered under the Friendly Societies Act Cap. 121 of Anguilla on March 19th, 2001. AARF is an all-volunteer organization whose mission is to promote, develop and generally to assist in the humane treatment and care of animals in Anguilla.
AARF currently has a number of cats/kittens dogs/puppies who are in need of loving homes. Click Pet Adoption on our web site to see pictures. If you are interested in any of these animals or require further information on AARF please don't hesitate to call 264-497-4600 or by email to info@aarf.ai
AARF would like to thank Bob Green for posting the pictures of our rescue animals these past few months. Many animals have found great homes thanks to this wonderful service.

Friday, April 27, 2001

May 26: Leeward Islands Miss Talented Teen Contest. The competition is in Anguilla and Amber Woodley is representing the island.

Thursday, April 26, 2001

Baby Tent at the Beach: spotted at Shoal Bay this week, the ultimate beach pavillion to protect your baby from the sun!

Monday, April 23, 2001

Villas.ai:
Private villas for rent.

Sports.ai Active Again. Zack Kenworthy has resumed publishing his sports articles from The Anguillian newspaper on the web. Just click the link above.

Arts Festival: January 2002
Get ready for the third Anguilla International Arts Festival. The arrangements are a little different this time, so be sure to visit the web site link above. Dates are January 15-21, 2002. Total prize money is US $15,000.

Wednesday, April 18, 2001

Wallblake Raffle Winner: Jim Thorpe. On Monday April 16th at 5:00pm the drawing was held for the Wallblake House Trust Raffle. Rabin Ortiz, Acting Manager of CuisinArt Resort pulled the winning ticket number 0345 held by Mr. Jim Thorpe of Ontario, Canada. Basket held by Mrs. Marjorie McClean, Trustee Wallblake House.
The Trustees and Directors of The Wallblake House Trust would like to express their appreciation to all who supported this very successful fund raiser. We thank the donors of the prize, ticket sellers, and our purchasers. This year we sold 366 tickets. This is the largest number of tickets sold in the history of the raffle.
Stayed tuned for details of next year's prize.

Tuesday, April 17, 2001

Menus.ai:
Restaurants and menus.

Rodco Exiting Car Rental Business. Rodco is selling out their car rental business, so if you have been using them in the past, you will have to try one of the other companies.

Monday, April 16, 2001

Advertising in Anguilla. You can advertise in the following publications:
Anguilla Life Magazine - targeted at tourists - (quarterly - one will be published soon). Contact Claire Devener at KEDIVAR@aol.com
What We Do in Anguilla - targeted at tourists - There is a monthly publication and an annual one. Contact Mary Steele at 264-497-5641 (Tel) or Fax 264-497-5795.
The Anguillian (weekly) - targeted at locals and visitors - Contact Nat Hodge at theanguillian@anguillanet.com or call 264-497-3823.
The above are the most popular publications.

Sunday, April 15, 2001

Micasa First Year Successful.
The home furnishings store that specializes primarily in Mexican imports is still going strong, even growing. For example:

Friday, April 13, 2001

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

Fossil Clams? The crushed rock that was spread for the last resurfacing of the road between Shoal Bay and Island Harbour is uncovering hundreds of fossil shells as it erodes in the rain. Just park near Serenity Restaurant or Milly's Inn and take a walk.

Thursday, April 12, 2001

State of the Anguilla Hotel Association. As reported in The Daily Herald.

Wednesday, April 11, 2001

Arawak Beach Inn.
The Arawak Beach Inn is recently refurbished, colourful, and clean, with an excellent, inexpensive restaurant and bar. Rates start at $95 in the summer, $175 in the winter.
Arawak also has special rates for Caribbean residents and package deals, such as 7 nights for $599/person with breakfast every day, four dinners, excursion to offshore cay, day trip to St. Martin, 3-day car rental, and more.
Contact innkeeper Maria Hawkins at maria@arawakbeach.com for more details.

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

Ballet and Dance Classes for Children. Body & Soul Beach and Fitness Club in Sandy Ground now offers ballet and dance for children. The age groups are

group I (3 - 5 years): Wednesdays at 4 p.m. and Saturdays at 3 p.m.
group II (6 - 10 years): Wednesdays at 5 p.m. and Saturdays at 4 p.m.
The instructor, Tamsen Williams, was a professional dancer and is experienced in teaching children. There is no special outfit necessary. Boys are welcome too. Fees: Single class US$ 5. Month US$ 35 (twice a week) Located across from the Pumphouse. Call or just come to register your child: 497 8364 or 8363. Susan, Director of Body & Soul.

Ripples Curry Night. Ripples restaurant in Sandy Ground often has Curry Specials on Wednesday nights, such as tonight:
Curry night 5pm to 7pm, as well as happy hour. Beef Madras with all kinds of nan and poppodaoms, $12 US. Chicken Korma with all the trimmings, $12 US.

Sunday, April 08, 2001

Build Your Own:
Beachshack

Island Harbour Web Site. Erich Kranz (kranzco@megatropic.com) has created a web site for the places to stay and eat in Island Harbour village. His IslandHarbour.net site is quite extensive: Click Here

Saturday, April 07, 2001

LA Cafe Presents Denise Jannah.

World-renowned jazz vocalist Denise Jannah will perform for one night only at the LA Cafe, April 28, 2001. For more information, visit the LA Cafe web site: Click Here.

Friday, April 06, 2001

Charlotte Wharton at Loblolly Gallery. For the month of April Loblolly Gallery is featuring a framed painting by Charlotte Wharton. The galley is open Monday -Saturday 10 AM - 5 PM. Phone 497 6006 Located on Crocus Bay Road next to Savannah Gallery. Massachusetts artist, Charlotte Wharton, is well known for her portraiture, genre paintings, "floralscapes," and landscapes. Charlotte spent a week in January in Anguilla giving a class to some 25 beginning and experienced painters. To see examples of Charlotte's work, Click Here.

Internet Yellow Pages:
All known Anguilla sites.

Sandy Deep Beach Store. Check the new pictures on Thomas Peabody's web site: Click Here.

Thursday, April 05, 2001

A Visit to Shoal Bay.
Joanne Pepper (SparkyPep@mediaone.net) wrote on April 2, 2001:
I recently returned from a visit to St. Maarten and I spent a day on Anguilla. There were 8 of us in our group. We were met at the ferry by a taxi and taken to Shoal Bay. Once we arrived we met a most interesting person,.He calls himself the Pressure King. On the contrary, there was no pressure... only pleasure. He set us up with chairs and umbrellas and snorkeling gear for four of us. The reefs were just beautiful and the beaches and the views were just spectacular. I wish we had more time to explore more of this beautiful Island.
We finished the day up at Uncle Ernies. What a cool place and you couldn't ask for a better location. I would like to return someday and if I do, I will be sure to stop in and say Hi to the Pressure King and Uncle Ernie to thank them again for a wonderful day.

Tuesday, April 03, 2001

Anguilla Forums:
Compuserve
Carib On-line

Easter Weekend at La Sirena Hotel. Rolf Masshardt (lasirena@anguillanet.com) writes:
Special Evening on Good Friday, April 13, 2001, at their Top of the Palms Restaurant. Enjoy our Chef�s Gourmet-Fish Menu, complete, US $ 52.00 (plus 15% Service Charge) . Our a la Carte Menu is also available. Live Background Music is provided by Clement and his saxophone.
Easter Sunday, April 15, 2001, Breakfast Buffet from 8.00 � 11.00 am. US $ 13.50 (plus 15% Service Charge).
Easter Lunch with Egg Hunt and Raffle. Lunch is served from 12.30 � 3.00 pm Enjoy BBQ and Fish Specialties or try our Chef�s Easter Lamb. Individually priced. Live Music with the Steel Vibrations. The Egg Hunt takes place at 2.00 pm. Followed by the raffle at 2.30 pm.
Easter Monday, April 16, 2001. Enjoy our Caribbean Specialties and dance to the music of The Happy Hits String Band. Dinner is served from 7.00 � 9.30 pm. Reservation is highly recommended.

Real Estate

Kayaks For Sale. Kathleen Butterfield (harborlights@anguillanet.com) has official white water sea kayaks for sale for $2000.00 for the pair (barely used) including paddles,vests,and skirts. Value over $5000.00 including shipping and duties.

Monday, April 02, 2001

Savannah Gallery. New works and a new artist. Mixed media pieces by Elisabeth Piquet, St. Martin. Meet the artist at the opening reception, Friday, April 6, 2001. 5-7pm.

Stories from the previous and earlier News.ai issues.
Callaloo Club Resort	April Diary
Art at CuisinArt	Gold Dragon Rest.
Arawak Artifacts	Cocoplums Rest.

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:

Anguilla Internet Yellow Pages
Apartments Air Travel Archaeology Artists Auto Rental Bars Beaches Boats Books Business Carnival Cays and Islets Churches Clubs/Teams/Assoc Conferences Construction Discussion Forums Diving Events Explore	Ferry Service Fishing Foreign Language Galleries Glassbottom Boats Government Guest Houses Hidden Places History Hotels Hurricanes Internet/Computers Language Local Life & Culture Maps Massage Menus Moving Museums Music	Nature News Personal Pages Racing Sailboats Real Estate Restaurants Schools Search Shopping Sports St. Martin/St. Maarten Stamps Taxi Services Telecommunication Tips & Pointers Tourist Information Villas Water Sports Weather Weddings

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 by small plane, our Azu villa in St Barth, that is totally secluded and private, but only a short walk to everything in St Jean, and with unbelievable views.

The highlight of the Easter weekend's festive events was the Annual East Monday boat race. . . .