December 15, 1998 - Anguilla Local News


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News Tidbits from Anguilla

Straw Hat Re-Opened. As rumored in the last news, Straw Hat restaurant did reopen last week. They have totally remodeled the place after suffering significant damage from Hurricane Georges. The damage was not a suprise, considering their exposed position on a pier! Reknowned chef Marc Alvarez has joined them and they have been crowded every night with fans of his and of the old Straw Hat. As might be expected, Marc has completely redone the menu. More details soon. Reservations: 1-264-497-8300. Email: [email protected]

French Suspend Ferries. The French government has suspended five of the Anguilla Ferry Fleet from landing in French waters. This has not left enough ferries to maintain the schedule of a crossing every 30 minutes. You should expect a ferry about every 45-60 minutes now. The dispute is over whether the boats should be equipped to standards for International waters (diesel water pump instead of gasoline, etc.) or for Coastal waters.

"The Anguillian", a new paper. The island has a new weekly newspaper. Nat Hodge published the first issue on Friday December 4th, with stories about the Sombrero lease, Franklin Connor announcing candidacy for next election, Bishop Errol Brooks, Anguilla help to St. Kitts/Nevis in the aftermath of Hurricane Georges, and Valley Primary School winning the annual NBA Soccer tournament. The second issue of December 11th was also packed with news: the suspension of ferry service, a community meeting about confrontations between police and youths in Blowing Point, Karen Slater ending her tour on the Governor's staff, a religious march for righteousness, a public forum on Sombrero Island, and sports in Anguilla. For information on special startup subscription rates, telephone The Anguillian at 1-264-497-5190, fax 8706, Box 98, Stoney Ground, Anguilla.

Ron Webster Wins Bartender Contest. Ron was named Bartender of the Year at the "Best of the Caribbean" event at America's Food and Beverage Show in Miami. Ron wowed the judges and crowd with his signature drink, the "Ron Agra". This continues Ron's Gold Medal tradition: double gold in 1997 and 1996 at the "Taste of the Caribbean" competition. In the culinary competition, Anguilla's team of Raoul Rodriguez from Hibernia Restaurant and Vaughn Hughes also did well; they won a silver medal.

Friday is a Holiday. This coming Friday, December 18th, is Separation Day, an official holiday in Anguilla.

Power Outages Scheduled. The power was out from 6:30am to 1:00pm last Sunday, December 13th, while a new generator was installed. There is another outage sceduled for next Sunday, December 20th, from 6:00am to 8pm, for the same reason.

Nine Artists on Art Screen for Wallblake House

Here is an unusual way to raise money for the Wallblake House Restoration. As part of the on-going effort to raise funds for the restoration of the Wallblake Plantation House, a group of nine island artists have been hard at work creating a unique 9-panel screen. It is actually 9 separate paintings, but combined on a folding mahogany screen measuring approximately 6 x 7 feet.

While each artist painted in their individual style and palate, the overall effect is a harmonious blend of tropical hues and motifs. This exquisite collaborative effort of the artists of Anguilla will provide a stunning decorative focal point in any setting.

Beginning on November 15, at the newly opened Loblolly Gallery in South Hill Plaza, the screen will be on display at various island locations until the evening of February 6th, 1999, when it will be auctioned at the annual Wallblake Cocktail Buffet (Inter Island Hotel, 6-9pm).

Participating artists are: Louise Brooks, Melsadis Fleming, Lucia Butler, Weme Castor, Susie Graff, Peg Gregory, Iris Lewis, Margie Morani and Claudia Post. Initial drawings for the screen design were done by artist Lynne Bernbaum. Albert Lake donated the mahogany.

Public Holidays in Anguilla

The Anguilla Public Holidays for 1999 are as follows. (Holiday dates are courtesy of the Objective Observer.) Please note that the Queen's Birthday is Tentative (the real date changes from the tentative date every year):

New Year's Day Friday, January 1, 1999
Good Friday Friday, April 2, 1999
Easter Monday Monday, April 5, 1999
Labour Day Monday, May 3, 1999
Whit Monday Monday, May 24, 1999
Anguilla Day Monday, May 31, 1999
Celebrating the Queen's Birthday Monday, June 14 (tentative)
August Monday Monday, August 2, 1999
August Thursday Thursday, August 5, 1999
Constitution Day Friday, August 6, 1999
Separation Day Friday, December 17, 1999
Christmas Holiday Monday, December 27, 1999
Boxing Day Tuesday, December 28, 1999

There are often boat races on public holidays. Check the calendar of events.

Weather in Anguilla

Weather Summary	Anguilla
Today: 82F 27C 67% Humidity, Sunny	December 16
Low temp since last news report	77F 25C
High temp since last news report	82F 27C
Low humidity since last news report	59%
Tropical storm web site	Link
Five-day weather forecast	Link
Live `weather.ai` station in Anguilla	Link

Although the weather today is sunny and nice, the last two weeks have had unusual amounts of rain, wind and overcast.

Upcoming Events in Anguilla

The Anguilla Local News has an Calendar for the year showing events, holidays, and activities.

On December 29th there is a National Trust Fundraising Dinner. Live entertainment. 8pm at Government House in Old Ta. Tickets are US$25. Telephone: 1-264-497-5297.

January 7th-30th. African Beadwork Exhibition at the Devonish Gallery,by Joyce Griffiths and Carrolle Fair Perry.

February 6th, 1999. Wallblake House Cocktail Buffet to raise funds and auction the artist's screen. 6-9pm. House of Chandeliers, Inter-Island Hotel.

Updates and Feedback

Update on Pirates Pier Joseph Maiorino ([email protected]) writes:

This is in response to the article titled, "Pirates Pier", Cct 15, 1998. I am the former owner of the Seahorse, and I know about the pier. I don't mean to burst your bubble or quash any romanitc ideas of swashbuckling pirates landing on Anguilla, but that pier was constructed in the 70's in a joint contruction project of local islanders and the original owner of the Seahorse. It was washed away in the mid eightes (84 I think) when a water spout came in off of a major storm in the area. The spout also took out power from the island for over 2 weeks and destroyed the apartments by the beach of the Seahorse and ran a few of my boats up onto the beach.
It was called Pirates Pier because there were no lights on the pier, and if a boat came to dock on it at night, it was joked that they where pirates, because one could not see them. That's the story.

New: Loblolly Art Studio

A new art art gallery has opened in the South Hill Plaza: Loblolly Art Studio.

The gallery is a joint venture of five women artists: Marjorie Morani, Lucia Butler, Susie Graff, Georgia Young and Claudia Post.

Rather than have 5 separate small studios, they have combined their output and resources to create one large and impressive studio.

Stop and give them a look when driving past. They are conveniently located at the western end of the island, near the major hotels, on the main road.

Telephone: 1-264-497-6006.

Web Sites About Anguilla

Fresh Produce. There is a new web page for Mrs Webster's Fruits and Vegetables. It was created by a beginning student in the Computer Club's course on how to Create a Web Page.

On-line Company Registration. The Offshore Finance office of the Government of Anguilla has started doing company registrations on-line. Read about it on their web site: anguillaoffshore.com

Email address for Oliver's Restaurant:

[email protected]

Zara's Restaurant, 1999 Menu

Zara's Restaurant on Shoal Bay is a favorite with visitors and residents alike. With the expert and friendly Chef Shamash in charge of the open kitchen, dinner at Zara's is delicious and enjoyable.

Web page: www.ai/zaras

Telephone: 1-264-497-3299.

Directions: Starting in the airport parking lot, take the only exit and turn left on airport road. Drive straight past NAPA auto parts, National Bank of Anguilla and straight through the intersection with Barclays Bank and Albert Lakes Grocery. You will got through Stoney Ground and Little Dix village. In about 2 miles you will turn left on a paved road to Shoal Bay. Follow this road over a hill and down toward the beach. At the bottom of the hill, turn right on a gravel road that goes to Allamanda, Zara's and Serenity. Zara's is on the grounds of Allamanda Beach Club resort. Keep to the left on the driveway and park at the bottom of the hill.

Here is the menu for the 1998-1998 season:

HOT SOUPS

Anguillian Pumpkin Soup	$ 7.00
Black Bean Soup (served with rice & onions )	$ 7.00
Anguillian Chunky Fish Soup (Grouper or Snapper with chunky vegetables and served with garlic bread )	$ 8.00

CHILLED SOUPS

Gazpacho (Shamash�s recipe including balsamic vinegar, parsley & almonds )	$ 8.50
Roast Red Pepper Soup (Roasted red peppers, garlic, onions, tomatoes, & rosemary pureed then garnished with lemon & basil )	$ 8.00

APPETIZERS

Conch Fritters ( served with Mild or Spicy Dip )	$ 8.50
Shrimp Pernod (tender shrimp sauteed in butter and shallots and served in a creamy pernod sauce)
Golden Calamari ( calamari rings seasoned then deep fried until tender, served with mild or spicy dip & garnished with lemon )	$ 10.00
Marinated Grilled Vegetables (combination of vegetables marinated in an olive oil and herbs & served on a bed of lettuce )	$ 9.00
Mixed Toss Salad	$ 7.50
Ceasar Salad	$ 8.00
Conch Ceviche Salad ( Conch is delicately sliced & marinated in lemon juice & oil )	$ 10.00
Lobster Mango Salad	$ 13.00

ENTREES

PASTA

Lemon Pasta ( Pasta of your choice, served in a white wine sauce flavoured with garlic, shallots, lemon & topped with parmesan cheese )	$ 15.00
Lobster Penne ( Lobster chunks, tomatoes, mushrooms & riccotta cheese in a pink marinara sauce with a hint of vodka & garlic. Served on a bed of penne pasta )	$ 21.50
Garlic Shrimp Linguine ( Shrimp sauteed with broccoli and mushroom in a garlic and wine sauce. Served with linguine pasta al dente )	$ 21.50
Spaghetti Bolognese (Ground beef in a tasty tomato & onion sauce, served on spaghetti with mushrooms, carrots & celery)	$ 16.00
Pasta La Zara�s (Lobster, shrimp & calamari cooked in a tomato sauce with shallots, white wine & olive oil. Topped with fresh basil & served on a pasta of your choice)	$ 23.00
Chef �Shamash� Rasta Pasta (Chef�s daily creation - see menu board)