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St Maarten/St Martin |
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Weather and Beach
report: From a recent visitor to Dawn Beach: We
just returned from a delightful trip - an Interval International exchange into
Oyster Bay. The tragedy I have to report is about the Dawn
Beach construction at Scavengers. One day, we enjoyed the shade of a palm
tree surrounded by a couple mangroves just south of the drainage runout that
separates Scavengers' beach from the former hotel's beach. Two days
later we returned to find all the palm trees and mangroves along the beach
uprooted and being hauled away (supposedly this is a protected sea turtle
nesting ground). And hundreds of tons of the heavy black toxic sludge in
the catch basin being rapidly pumped into the bay. The ocean water was
black for a couple hundred yards. Dead fish were washing
ashore. The speed of the pumping (they had switched from a 4 inch to
a 16 inch effluent hose) certainly caused the toxins to enter the water far
faster than the wave action could dilute and disperse it out of the bay.
The real tragedy is that the living coral that makes Dawn beach such an
interesting snorkeling site was probably poisoned by this action. Though
the island's ecologists were called in along with the news helicopters, the
pumping was completed before any protective or legal action could be initiated.
Of course, in the news that day, the developer denied all
knowledge and couldn't understand how a subcontractor could do such a thing.
Sorry to bear bad news, but I thought you might want to
check it out and also warn your readers of the toxicity - either direct or from
by-products of decomposition (red-tide-like effects) resulting from the
disruption in the local ecology. It will be weeks before I would want to
try swimming there and there are no warnings.
Our snorkel highlights were 'the swimming pool'
in the reef at Dawn beach, both ends of Plum Bay, and near the arches
at Baie Rouge. Pinel was good (and easy for inexperienced snorkelers) but
not as good as these other locations.
He adds: Beware the thieves on Happy Bay,
hiding/lurking in seclusion off the entry path from Friars. We were not
aware they were there until our supposedly well hidden bag was searched while we
were snorkeling. (They obviously saw me hide it deep in the foliage, away
from our stuff. They were kind enough to leave $10 for gas and the credit
card, but took $150 and my watch.) When we were finally aware of their
hideaway as they cased another couple that arrived after us, they were not
hesitant to also blatantly display inappropriate sexual behavior. I'm 6' 3
and these guys made me feel small and prepare myself to fend off a
surprise assault in the foliage along the trail back to Friars
and the car. It turns out that we either outwaited them or outnumbered
them by waiting to go back at the same time as the other couple. (The good
news and bed news to having a beach nearly all to
yourself.)
Editor's note: It has often been reported that the
bushes have eyes. You are probably being watched as you hide your valuables in
the trunk of your car, in the bushes near the beach, or bury them in the
sand.
Zuzu at California said that it was very hot in mid-June. Check out the
Sep-Nov 10% off at her apartments on the beach in Grand Case. September may not
be the greatest month, but October and November are
spectacular.
Carter at Turquoise Shell Inn said that they had been having rain, got 3 inches in my gauge from the 6/9
thru 6/10, but keeping things growing and green. A month later it was blustery with off and
on rain and clouds.
Vero
from Antoine Restaurant reported
about a week ago that the weather is
still ok, not too hot and we were lucky that hurricane Dennis spared us. Now we
are looking at "Emily" (this one is supposed to move toward the West , Barbados,
Martinique) (Editor's note: It ended up going seriously south, hitting Grenada
quite hard, skirting past the southern Netherlands Antilles (Curacao
and Bonaire), and is currently passing thought Jamaica, the Caymans, and heading
for Mexico.
The CNN weather site has a five-day
forecast for Philipsburg. Sunset is about 6:47 and
the moon is waxing gibbous. In English, that means approaching full (on 21
July).
This is a repeat from last year, but
many people are new subscribers, so here goes: We use Skyglobe to tell us what is
happening in the night sky. Down in SXM, where you can see so much more sky
because of the lack of tall buildings and absence of light pollution, it's
interesting to know what is up there. It also gives you the time for sunset
and the phase of the moon and moonrise time. It starts with the date and time on
your computer, but you can move the date to your time on the island and change
the location to SXM (18.05 North 63.10 East) to find out what things will
be like when you visit. Obviously, you can use it at home also. You can
download the Skyglobe program free. It was
shareware for a mere $5 that is now available for nothing because the company is
out of business, but the people making it available ask for a
donation.
For you skywatchers Betty Vaughan
of Horny Toad Guesthouse
says The Red Planet is about to be spectacular! This month and next, Earth is
catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest
approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may
come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and
perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this
close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years
before it happens again.
The encounter will culminate on
August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be
(next to the moon) the brightest object in the night sky. It will attain a
magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power
magnification Mars will look as large as the
full moon to the naked eye. Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of
August it will rise in the east at 10 pm and reach its azimuth at about 3
am.
By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars
will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30 am.
That's pretty convenient to see something that no human being has seen in
recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars
grow progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month.
Trip report: Mimi
and Joe Dordoni write: We had a fantastic trip made even more special
because of the price break – due to winning a recent sxm-info contest
- on our ‘white corolla’ rental from Michael and Joseph at Unity Car
Rental.
Our meal at
Hideaway
at La Vista Resort was wonderful. The house salad – mmm. I treated
myself to the rack of ‘divine’ lamb; my husband thoroughly enjoyed the
mahi. as if that weren’t enough, we indulged ourselves even more by
splitting the amaretto cheesecake – oh my! tada! we outdid
ourselves. We went on Thursday for the music which everyone enjoyed.
The service was excellent and the atmosphere was so
romantic.
thanks again!
Sunset Beach Bar: In mid-June the bar was auctioned off to the highest bidder after marshals of the Island Receiver morning closed the bar, a popular hangout at the start of the airport runway. Island Receiver Sherry Hazel explained that the marshals had itemized the inventory to prepare for the auction that took place at the bar location. Itemizing the inventory and the auction, according to procedure,usually takes place 10 to 30 days after the Island Receiver has place a lien on a property, said Hazel, who didn't want to say why Sunset Beach Bar was being auctioned. It appears to be back in operation and the website was working last time I looked. Carter at Turquoise Shell Inn said that he went to the Sunset Beach Bar for the picnic over the Fourth. Things seem back to normal: topless women DO drink free, but no takers last night. It was blustery and off and on rain yesterday (and a bit cloudy on 5 July), so the crowd was a bit sparse. They still have another issue to deal with as far as losing the lease for non-payment of "something" which comes up on July the 9th. Recent news has La Samanna canceling a private function that SSBB intended to have there.
Random Wind: Marten says: "Aboard Random Wind we had an active fish season with lots of dolphins and whales. Andre the captain even got to swim with the dolphins......in the wild!! You might say that our people were out with the giants, After our complete deck refit Random Wind looks so clean and spacious that lots of people complimented us for all the good changes. Lately the weather has been nice with some squally intervals but the snorkeling has been real great especially at Creole Rock and our favorite spot is around the corner from Bay Rouge. No other charter boats go there except Random Wind and our motor-launch At Random. At Random has been very active with children's outings and sunset cruises. On the kid's cruises the bottom fishing was great. We're catching lots of small colorful fish. We take their picture and send them back into the water. Check out the photo feature for a close encounter of the dolphin kind.
Boardwalk
Project: Vero from Antoine
Restaurant says there is construction all over the island, it's
booming more then usual!! The sheet piling is in all the way to
Horizon View Hotel. Concrete will be poured after the rest of the piling is
finsihed and the bricks will be placed on that. The schedule
still looks for completion by December. The project calls for several
of the beach access alleyways be upgraded with similar brick walkways.
Vero sent some photos and they have been placed here. Vero also
says the cruise ship industry is asleep with one boat per week but we are still
doing ok as the evenings are good. Our chef is back from vacation,
it's so good to taste his food again. He is going to
participate in the Culinary contest for the Chef of the Caribbean
in Martinique during October 05. Antoine will stay open during all
summer is still offering valet parking service at
night.
Airport
Project: Carter at Turquoise Shell Inn in mid June
said the airport is on schedule. The roof is on and two walls are nearly
enclosed so they will be completely enclosed soon. Looks like they will do
the first road diversion almost any day now ( but that probably means 2 weeks or
more). On 12 July Vero from Antoine
Restaurant reports that the new airport
road just opened.It's a real change ! She sent a photo which has been added to
the construction page of SXM-Info's features.
Rainbow Beach and the Cliff in
Cupecoy: Vero from Antoine
Restaurant sent in new photos that
have been added to the construction page of SXM-Info's features
Marigot Casino: Some people are thinking
about a casino/hotel in Marigot. Check out their plans.
Caribbean Celebrity Chef:
This year Dino Jagtiani of Temptation and Dare to be
Rare (opening in July?) went to New York City for a
cooking demo. He says, "The trip was amazing. The highlight was
preparing the menu at the CTO ball at the Waldorf Astoria. Among many
VIPs, Mayor Bloomberg was in attendance. Got to shake his hand. Other
highlights were a cooking demo at Williams Sonoma, at the Time Warner bldg, and
cooking for a bunch of foodwriters, journalists, etc at the NY Hilton during a
media marketplace cocktail party. St. Maarten, Bahamas, and Jamaica's chefs also
got a spot on CBS's morning show for about 20 seconds. So I got to wave
and say hi to everyone."
Mario from Mario's
Bistro, Cecile from Chanteclair, Scott from
Terra, and Dino went to Miami on 25 June to participate in
the Taste of Caribbean competition. They were proclaimed the best out of 12
teams. That is pretty impressive, but I thought so back in 1995 when I bought my
condo here! The interesting thing is that we have the best food, but the great
thing is that the prices are reasonable.
Dare to be Rare: Dino says that
it will be open in late July.
Sapphire Beach Club: For those
of you who wish to sell or rent their week or unit, we have opened up the
Sapphire Beach
Club website for that purpose. The first ten
weekly listings are free. After that, we will charge $25 per year and have only
received two requests. So this offer is still out there.
AIA Massage:
Tricia's big news: My
news is that I am pregnant and looking for an esthetician or other therapist to
permanently share my business as an independent therapist capable of drawing
their own clientele. I will
continue treatments through July and energy treatments (IET) through
September. However that need change
nothing with massage bookings as I have two other excellent therapists to
replace me.
Art at California Restaurant:
Zouzou says that for the summer, and possibly longer, she has a
seashell art exhibition in the restaurant containing mirrors, mobiles, jewelry
boxes, seashell boards, cards, and more. There are a couple examples on the
boutique page of the California website.
Photo features: This week's photo feature is in a secret location not posted here. Subscribe to the newsletter to get the location. It had
some shots from
Cupecoy. Getting a bit away from Cupecoy up into the hills of Columbier, we have
some action shots from the "I love my Ram Contest'. When I first heard about
this, I was a bit suspicious, but it appears to be semi-serious. The reigning
champion (and three-time winner) is Titus who trains at Marci's Mega Gym
2000. Actually that's not strictly true,
but Marci and Francis sent in the photos. There is a shot of Titus and a
young lad in a "I (heart) my Ram" tee-shirt. Just send orders for the shirt to
Marci. There is also a shot of Francis, Titus, and it looks like Bulldog to
me. Finally, there is a shot of the full moon rise on the solstice, taken
in NY. There are also several shots of the Children's Parade from Vero at
Antoine Restaurant on the
restaurant's website.
The winners of the Grand Case Contest
which ended today are:
Escapade Restaurant - $100 gift certificate for two - Warren Sale
GCBC Snorkel Trips - A guided snorkeling trip for two around Creole Rock and an afternoon on our lounge chairs on Petite Plage - Allen Morrow
GCL Car Rental - $100 off a one week car rental - Allen Morrow
L'Esplanade Hotel - $100 gift certificate toward a week's stay - Allen Morrow
AIA Massage - Two massages for the price of one - Allen Morrow
Escapade Restaurant - $100 gift certificate for two - Warren Sale
GCBC Snorkel Trips - A guided snorkeling trip for two around Creole Rock and an afternoon on our lounge chairs on Petite Plage - Allen Morrow
GCL Car Rental - $100 off a one week car rental - Allen Morrow
L'Esplanade Hotel - $100 gift certificate toward a week's stay - Allen Morrow
AIA Massage - Two massages for the price of one - Allen Morrow
Several businesses in Cupecoy are
sponsoring the contest that runs from 18 July until 24 August, offering prizes
worth about $100 each. Just click their name to go to their website, find the
contest code(s) and the link to our new signup form, fill it out, click send,
and you are entered. Put all the contest codes for the contests you want to
enter on ONE entry. Do not send multiple entries.
Obviously everybody that is getting this
email is already signed up for the newsletter, but you are not automatically
signed up for the contest. You really do have to go to their website and click
the email link to show you visited their site. Just tell me you are already on
our mailing list, and I'll leave you signed up for the newsletter and just add
your name to the contest list. We have so many prizes that we will be doubling
and tripling up for several contests and producing feature photo spreads in
conjunction with the contests. Here is the list of future contests and feature
photo spreads:
Cupecoy Feature - 18
July to 24 August 2005:
Cupecoy Villas - stay seven nights, pay for five, only $1750 for a two bedroom, three bath villa on the beach
Villas in Paradise - $100 gift certificate to Temptation for two
Caribbean View Condo - Half price week, only $500
Cupecoy Villas - stay seven nights, pay for five, only $1750 for a two bedroom, three bath villa on the beach
Villas in Paradise - $100 gift certificate to Temptation for two
Caribbean View Condo - Half price week, only $500
Marigot Feature - 25 August to 30
September 2005:
L'Esperance Car
Rental - $100 off a one week car rental
La Vie en
Rose - $100 gift certificate for two
Thai Garden - $100 gift certificate for
two
Saint Germain - $50 gift certificate for
two
Le Marrakech - $50 gift certificate for
two
Orient Beach Feature - 1 October to 15
November 2005:
Chez
Pat - $100 toward a day on Galion Beach
Kakao Beach
Bar - $100 toward a day on Orient Beach
Sol e Luna
Apartments - $100 off on a one week
stay
Nono Car
Rental - $50 off on a one week rental
Philipsburg Feature - 16 November to 15
December:
Vacation Suites - a free low season
week!
Lucky/Hibiscus
Cars - $100 off a one week car rental
Antoine
Restaurant - $100 off a meal for two
DK
Gems - $100 gift certificate