You are visitor number Welcome... to our Grenadine island network™ Visit Canouan's new Carenage Bay Resort & Golf Club Visit the S/Y Falcon, Comfort for 10 Passengers Grenadines.net Internet Cafe Urgent Message: for DEC 1999 - APR 2000 travel Water Situation on CarriacouNormal Banking Procedures in The Grenadines 24 November 1999 - Wednesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds. The sea in Hillsborough Bay seems to have returned to normal again. Nice to see the speeboats zipping back and forth and the yachts at anchor. Today the S/V Sea Cloud paid us a visit. 23 November 1999 - Tuesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds. Roger & Alicia of S/Y Flying Eagle have compiled a listing of boats with reports on damages inflicted by Hurricane Lenny. Visit the information. 21 November 1999 - Sunday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds. Good News! Today, Grenadines.net ranks behind only The Bahamas and St. Maarten as the Caribbean's Most Visited Travel Destination Website. Today, we are ranked 91st of 2,067 travel websites worldwide! View Ranking. Make Reservation Request Views out the window... During my years as webmaster@grenadines.net many, many, many of you have requested "beachfront", "on the beach", "seaside", "ocean view".... well, you get my idea... beach accomodations. As I sit behind the computer today looking out into Hillsborough Bay I hear the sound of crashing waves against the beach. The winds blow from the Bay thru my office window. They are warm and dry. Today the waves are flatter and the rolling surge seems to have ended its relentless attack against every man made structure, leaving just a few trees that had managed to somehow hold on. For all of you with December 1999 reservations, you'll be fine. What the sea takes is usually replaces... our wide sandy beaches. Tourists will find some beachfront roads caved into the sea, just an inconvenience for you really as you wander, exploring our tiny islands. You'll find an alternative route and there will be buses rolling islandwide, offering cheap island tours to sights normally left for private taxis and rental jeeps. Where I am heading with this discussion is this: The Grenadines are fine, come but.... most of those tiny jetties on those tiny islands are gone and must be rebuilt. Until they are rebuilt, actually setting foot onto Grenadine Islands without airports might be more adventurous than previously planned. Again, just an inconvenience, and, afterall, you are on vacation, right?! Unless you have made your reservations with me and Grenadines.net, Re-check all your inter-island connections. Afterall, it's kind of difficult for a boat to drop you off on an island, if no jetty currently exists! some of those funky beach hangouts you enjoyed so much were washed away. Either they will be rebuilt, or, other just as funky hangouts will open somewhere else. some beachfront roads are now left for walkers and hikers cracked and fallen into the sea, they are now impassable and the buses and other motorized transports use alternative routes. our fishermen and boatboys are busy repairing and replacing boats and engines damaged in the sea surge Sure, you'll see splintered wood along the beaches; you'll see fallen trees and roots from up-turned coconut palms; you'll see owners repairing, replanting and restoring our lovely Grenadine Islands. Come Visit Us 19 November 1999 - Friday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds. Things are getting back in order here. I looked out the window and saw sailing yachts of theYacht Services Association of Trinidad & Tobago racing in Hillsborough Bay - making a turn at Jack a'Dan island - with their colorful sails. Jack a'Dan has none of those old conch shells that used to be piled high on it as they were all washed away in our sea surge over the past few days. 18 November 1999 - Thursday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds See photos from Hillsborough & Harvey Vale I took a walk from the Grenadines.net Office to Silver Beach this morning. The sea surged over the Silver Beach jetty (it's gone now), over the beach patio, thru the hotel, and out the front entrance leaving the cottages floating in what looks like a lake. When I was there, people were working with wheelbarrows and shovels to remove the feet of sand that was piled high onto the beach patio. The fishermen's huts located beside Silver Beach are gone and I was told that perhaps 5-6 boats were destroyed. The Esplanade road collapsed in front of The Hillsborough Bar and Carriacou Silver Diving cracked and half fell into the sea as did two of those beautiful trees that many of us used often to take some breeze and enjoy the view of Hillsborough Bay. Ade's Dream Restaurant building has cracked on the beachside. Sandisland Cafe seems to have survived. Shaun's Port of Call Bar weathered the storm but his seawall was lost. Bill Paterson's Beach Bar floor is cracked and sand is piled high in front of his back door. The two buildings left and right of Bill Paterson's Shop were destroyed. The Regatta Jupa bar rear wall was breached and the sea surged thru it and out the front door depositing feet of sand into Market Square. Mrs. Mendes saw the sea rush thru her building and out again into Main Street. Patty's Villa's sea wall was breached and Kervin and Hilda's beautiful sea garden was destroyed. Basically, all beach front properties in Hillsborough suffered damage. Reports are coming in from Harvey Vale. The sea has piled sand high in front of the Alexis Supermarket. The floating jetties are gone. The road from Scraper's to Barba's is gone! Fatman's Lambi Queen Restaurant is severely damaged. Stella's Beach Bar is gone! The After Ours Club is now beachfront... the beach road is gone! 17 November 1999 - Wednesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF Heavily Overcast. See photos from Hillsborough Just before dawn today, the sea began to surge along Carriacou's Caribbean coastline. As the day progressed, report of damage caused by the crashing waves began to come in. Hillsborough: 4:00 p.m. Two Bobcat Machines pushed all the debris from Main Street into piles and now the workmen are dumping it into a dump truck that slowly works its way from the Grenadines.net Office toward the Market Square. You hear the scrape of flat shovels and iron rakes on the pavement as brown mud, sand, splintered boards, sandals, plastic buckets, seat cushions and other debris is cleaned from the street. Outside in Hillsborough Bay the seas continues to surge yet these proud, wonderful Carriacouans are out there trying their best to keep things clean and tidy. White water rolls over and covers Jack a'Dan briefly as it completes its diagonal pipeline angled toward the Main Jetty and Silver Beach. Seems like this end of town has seen the worst for now and our neighbors located from the Main Jetty north are in harm's way.Water has subsided on Main Street and I see out the window that a small path of dry road in the center is now being used by locals walking. Earlier today the school children in their white shirts, skirts and slacks, and neckties had been given free time to come and see the surge and they were carefully walking alongside the buildings to keep their shoes dry. Nontheless there will be many wet school shoes in Carriacou today. A crowd is still gathered at the Market Square watching the waves roll over the jetty but I am told that the jetty's lower landing platform remains submerged but evidently secure. For the time being. The crowd was also earlier due to it being Magistrate's Court Day on Carriacou. This morning after I awoke and saw the surge, I walked across the street to Lucille Akin's Peacehaven Guesthouse to get to the beach and had a nice talk with the Magistrate. Though from Grenada, His Warship told me that he's never, ever seen the seas like today's ... as we both jumped back as a new wave ran up toward us. 10:00 a.m. Main Street flooded from the Barclays bank down to Bullen's Supermarket. The sea washed between the beachside buildings and rushed into the road bringing sand and debris. Fishermen were seen rolling their speedboats onto logs and to safety across Main Street. Waves covered the Main Jetty and the Jupa Bar is under a foot of water. Cuthbert Snagg's bar is taking sand. Water is up to Miss Lila's stone ovens and Mrs. Mendes was seen pushing water through her shop and out again into the road. Mum Billy's Rum shop is being emptied as is Bill Paterson's shop, Sandisland Cafe. Water is lapping at the entrance to Ade's Dream supermarket. Sand is piling up on the street from Ade's Dream northwards. The beach bar in front of the Hillsborough Bar is gone. The sidewalk along the Espanade is under threat of being undermined. Traffic into and out of Hillsborough has stopped. Silver Beach has water up to their bar and it looks like their beach gate and huts will not survive. The row of fishermen huts between Hillsborough and Silver Beach are falling one by one into the sea. A Bobcat machine from Godwin Guadeloupe is now working outside my office cleaning up the accumulated debris on Main Street. Reports are coming in that the waves could reach 16 feet. Tyrrel Bay/Harvey Vale: 2:00 p.m. Sen. Noel just told me that he has returned from inspecting the situation in Harvey Vale. The road in front of Barba's is "gone" as are the floating jettys. The main jetty remains in tact. Sandbags are up in front of Alexis Supermarket and Scraper's Beach bar is damaged. I will up-date this as new reports come in and after I have a chance to go see for myself. 16 November 1999 - Tuesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF Beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few puffy white clouds. For the past few days we've been watching Hurricane Lenny to see if this "wrong way Feldman" storm might decide to come our way. Except for the remote possibility of sea surge along our island coastlines, we should weather this, hopefully, the last hurricane of the 1999 Season. Today was Grenadines.net Sailing Fleet day with Captain Brian of S/Y Blue Monsoon, Captain Paul of S/Y Nidri, Captain John Smith of Mermaid of Carriacou all stopping for a visit. Captain Thomas of S/Y Leona is also scheduled to return to Carriacou today after completion of two charters so far this month. November has been perfect sailing weather with brilliant sunny days and nice winds. Visit our Grenadines.net Sailing Homepage and let's put together a trip for you. 11 November 1999 - Thursday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF Heavily overcast and warm. The S/V Mandalay stopped today signaling the end to her Hurricane escape each year to South America. After her trip back up to Antigua, she'll return to her normal, 2-week scheduled run between Antigua and Grenada. Her sister ship S/V Yankee Clipper remained here year round and now both boats will often been seen tied together here on Carriacou's Hillsborough Bay one passing northward, the other southward. Mandalay Crew David and Dimas told me the story.... About two weeks ago while the Mandalay was sailing between Dominica and St. Lucia, it was around 3:00 a.m., and David was on watch. He heard a voice yelling "Help me." He roused Dimas and in the darkness they found two fishermen swimming in the open sea. They fished them out only to learn that at first there were four. Two had stayed with their up-turned fishing boat 'cause they couldn't swim. They never made it. For those interested in visiting Palm Island.... The private villas on Palm Island are going fast: Palm Villa BOOKED: 1/16DEC99 5/14JAN00 28/31JAN00 01/03FEB2000 07/29FEB00 01/25MAR00 1/15APR2000 Villa Rondelei BOOKED: 24NOV99 thru 30MAR2000 Tradewinds Apartments UPSTAIRS BOOKED: 17/31DEC99 01/07MAR2000 DOWNSTAIRS BOOKED: 13/31DEC99 1/31JAN2000 1/29FEB2000 01/15MAR2000 01/31JUL2000 Villa Wildflower BOOKED: 26/31DEC99 01/08JAN2000 01/29FEB2000 01/14MAR2000 Construction continues on Palm Island. I will visit the island and report back here in my diary what I see and learn. 06 November 1999 - Saturday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF On again - Off again brief rain showers throughout the day - heavily overcast but warm. It's just a little past Noon on Saturday. Weekends are reserved as personal days, especially since for the past few months I have worked 12-hour days, 9am-9pm, Monday thru Fridays. During evening hours during the week, locals are playing computer games, and taking computer lessons, and talking on the internet phone island business owners drop by to chat over cold drinks in the peace & quiet of non-office hours 8am-4pm. Today, I slept in late, around 8:30. The new, concrete road being constructed on Back Street, Hillsborough is making progress as drains have been poured and sections laid between Levi's Bar and the Grenadines.net Office. Job Russell's team comprising Bones, Whiskey, Kervin, Terry and... makes a little more progress each day at work that makes me appreciate how the Egyptian pyramids were built. Gravel, sand and bags of cement are dopped off flat-bed trucks Water is delivered into large, black, rubber tanks Rubber buckets and wheel barrows are used to deliver the mix that flows from a single mixer that strong arms and backs constantly feed. November is shaping-up as a busy one here on Carriacou. The 2nd Annual Thanksgiving Regatta, based at Silver Beach, gets underway next week. If last year was any indication, hundreds of boats from Trinidad will mix with hundreds more with owners going back North Islands after their annual escape to South America and the danger of Hurricanes. I heard on the TV last night that of those people saying that they intend on doing something special during Mellinnium 2000, 64% have nonetheless yet to make arrangements. Avoid disappointment and make your Grenadines.net Reservations now! The good news from the Internet Front is that Grenadines.net now ranks behind only The Bahamas and Jamaica as the 3rd Most Visited Caribbean Destination Travel Website Worldwide. And, Grenadines.net now ranks in the top 10% of the nearly 2,000 Internet Travel Websites Worldwide. Our 125,000+ visitors are finding our connections to The Grenadines best tourism businesses to be reliable, current and without equal. Thanks for your support! Sit back, relax and let me tell you a little story. It's a story about "normal banking procedures" here in The Grenadines. Our story begins on Bequia. The owner of a major hotel decides to pay his Grenadines.net Subscription with a check drawn on their Caribbean Banking Corporation account. The check takes around two weeks to arrive here on Carriacou via regular mail. It's about 30 miles between Bequia and Carriacou. Yours truly takes the check to the Grenadines.net Bank The National Commercial Bank of Grenada. The teller informs me that it will take six weeks to clear and until it does, they will place a "hold" on release of the funds. Now as I see it, the clearance procedure my check will undergo, forget not that this is "normal banking procedure" means that my check will travel the electronic cyber-highway from Carriacou to Bequia - a total of 30 miles at a blistering five miles each week at a thundering 3/4 mile each day at an unbelievable .02 miles per hour! You know, I just don't believe it! An airplane takes 20 minutes; a speedboat, 4 1/2 hours; a sailing yacht about 8 hours. And even it the bank does take six weeks, they've been doing this for years. One would think that by now they would have made efficiencies to speed up the process. But why should they speed up the process... just to allow customers quicker access to their funds? I don't believe it 'cause I remember long ago in the USA when banks used the same procedures until Congress passed legislation limiting the so-called "hold" time to between 1-3 days. Given the speed of the electronic superhighway, even this is a gift of free use of our money by the banks who no doubt turn around and lend our funds back-out to customers with interest! I remember another occasion when I deposited one of my personal USA bank checks into the Grenadines.net Bank. Two weeks later I had the cancelled check in my hands. So I returned to the bank with the check to ask about giving freedom to my cleared funds. Nope! Had to serve the time and wait the remaining weeks. Well, to finish this little story.... I'm still at the Grenadines.net Bank and I've been told that normal banking procedures must be followed. So I give the teller my MasterCard and ask her to give me US$. "We require a photo ID, Mr. Ingram," she says. This bank as known me for ten years. "I don't make a practice of walking around Carriacou with my passport, " I reply. "You don't know who I am, " I ask the teller. "But of course I do, Mr. Ingram," she responds. "Then you are sure that I am the same person as on the MasterCard?" I ask. "But of course, I do, Mr. Ingram," she responds. "Then give me US$," I ask. "We require a photo ID, Mr. Ingram," she says. "It's normal banking procedure." Note: I like to give credit where credit is due. The bank released the funds on 15 November 1999, requiring JUST 27 days to clear the check... drawn on a bank JUST 30 miles away. . Views out the window... Water Situation on Carriacou. Let's talk a few minutes about the water situation here on Carriacou and then apply the lessons learned to the remainder of the islands of The Grenadines. First word that comes to mind is scarce. Then next is precious. To me, when I hear that anything is both scarce and precious, I automatically think about saving as much of it as possible. I'd save first of all because it's the prudent thing to do. I'd save because of investment in the future... I'd save because to pass along to the next generation is a good thing... Doesn't really matter to me whether we're talking about diamonds, family heirlooms, money, or... Cool, refreshing, life-giving Water. Though surrounded by perhaps the world's clearest, cleanest and colorful ocean water there is no source of fresh, treated water here except that that falls from the sky, is collected on the roofs house-by-house, business-by-business and stored in underground cisterns and pumped back into the house on demand. Methods for maintaining water quality therefore changes house-by-house and business-by-business. Some introduce small, living fish called "millions" into the cistern and even the government claims that these little fish are quite effective at feasting on whatever attempts growth within the cistern. We're talking here about mosquitos. Others swear that a cup of good old CLOROX bleach does the job. Others attach purifiers to their kitchen taps for use when drawing drinking water and some brands such as PUR make claims about microbiological improvements. I, myself, have chosen to go the route of boiling every drop that makes it toward drinking water or ice cubes. In my nearly ten years living here on Carriacou, I have never suffered the stomach aches and pains that can ruin a trip. So, I guess the 1st Lesson about the Water Situation is: Always boil the water used to drink or make ice cubes, or drink bottled water, and don't ask for ice in mixed drinks unless you know they boil it first. The Grenadines.net Internet Café uses only boiled water for drinks and ice cubes. Now that we understand the water situation, let's continue with the 2nd Lesson: conservation of a precious resource. Residents flush toilets after No. 2 but not No.1 Always fix a leaking toilet or faucet valve and never let it trickle. When taking a shower, wet yourself down and turn off the water. Suds up and then turn on the water for a quick rinse. Remember... most islanders have no running water and the water contained in two, white plastic buckets clean-up after dinner, provides a bath, or launders their always spotless clothing. Water on Carriacou is a scarce and precious item. Please help us to save it as much as possible. Views out the window... The red Flamboyant tree has burst into flower. From the Back Porch the red blends brilliantly with the green of the 50-odd coconut palms, breadfruit, and bushes in view. Evidently in appreciation of last month's daily brief showers, Carriacou's vegetation is now on display. Perhaps the most comfortable and convenient place to enjoy it all is from our own Grenadines.net Internet Café We offer: Desktop Publishing: Crew Lists, business cards, plastic laminating for important papers Communications: Internet, E-Mail, Web Design, Internet Telephone, Internet Fax Convenience: Laptop Plug-Ins, Floppy Disks Okay, Flash Sessions Socializing: Breezy Back Porch, Cable TV, Paperback Exchange Information: Hotels, Restaurants, Yacht Charters, Inter-Island Connections Bar: Cold, refreshing drinks Sea Breeze Orange Juice Pineapple Juice Grapefruit Juice Cold CARIB Beer Coca Cola Coffee Ice Water All our drinks are served in half-litre glass jars, filled with ice! To avoid disappointment for DEC 1999 - APR 2000 visits you should be making your reservations NOW! International Flights to The Grenadines are booking FAST and seats are already limited. For visits to Mustique, Bequia, Canouan, Mayreau & Union - look toward Barbados For visits to Carriacou, Petite Martinique, Petit St. Vincent, Palm Island & Union - look toward Grenada. After these international flights are booked we can handle all your Regional Island connections.
Welcome... to our Grenadine island network™ Visit Canouan's new Carenage Bay Resort & Golf Club Visit the S/Y Falcon, Comfort for 10 Passengers Grenadines.net Internet Cafe Urgent Message: for DEC 1999 - APR 2000 travel Water Situation on CarriacouNormal Banking Procedures in The Grenadines 24 November 1999 - Wednesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds.
The sea in Hillsborough Bay seems to have returned to normal again. Nice to see the speeboats zipping back and forth and the yachts at anchor. Today the S/V Sea Cloud paid us a visit. 23 November 1999 - Tuesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds.
Roger & Alicia of S/Y Flying Eagle have compiled a listing of boats with reports on damages inflicted by Hurricane Lenny. Visit the information. 21 November 1999 - Sunday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds.
Good News! Today, Grenadines.net ranks behind only The Bahamas and St. Maarten as the Caribbean's Most Visited Travel Destination Website. Today, we are ranked 91st of 2,067 travel websites worldwide! View Ranking. Make Reservation Request
Views out the window... During my years as webmaster@grenadines.net many, many, many of you have requested "beachfront", "on the beach", "seaside", "ocean view".... well, you get my idea... beach accomodations. As I sit behind the computer today looking out into Hillsborough Bay I hear the sound of crashing waves against the beach. The winds blow from the Bay thru my office window. They are warm and dry. Today the waves are flatter and the rolling surge seems to have ended its relentless attack against every man made structure, leaving just a few trees that had managed to somehow hold on. For all of you with December 1999 reservations, you'll be fine. What the sea takes is usually replaces... our wide sandy beaches. Tourists will find some beachfront roads caved into the sea, just an inconvenience for you really as you wander, exploring our tiny islands. You'll find an alternative route and there will be buses rolling islandwide, offering cheap island tours to sights normally left for private taxis and rental jeeps.
Where I am heading with this discussion is this: The Grenadines are fine, come but.... most of those tiny jetties on those tiny islands are gone and must be rebuilt. Until they are rebuilt, actually setting foot onto Grenadine Islands without airports might be more adventurous than previously planned. Again, just an inconvenience, and, afterall, you are on vacation, right?! Unless you have made your reservations with me and Grenadines.net, Re-check all your inter-island connections. Afterall, it's kind of difficult for a boat to drop you off on an island, if no jetty currently exists! some of those funky beach hangouts you enjoyed so much were washed away. Either they will be rebuilt, or, other just as funky hangouts will open somewhere else. some beachfront roads are now left for walkers and hikers cracked and fallen into the sea, they are now impassable and the buses and other motorized transports use alternative routes. our fishermen and boatboys are busy repairing and replacing boats and engines damaged in the sea surge Sure, you'll see splintered wood along the beaches; you'll see fallen trees and roots from up-turned coconut palms; you'll see owners repairing, replanting and restoring our lovely Grenadine Islands. Come Visit Us
19 November 1999 - Friday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds.
Things are getting back in order here. I looked out the window and saw sailing yachts of theYacht Services Association of Trinidad & Tobago racing in Hillsborough Bay - making a turn at Jack a'Dan island - with their colorful sails. Jack a'Dan has none of those old conch shells that used to be piled high on it as they were all washed away in our sea surge over the past few days. 18 November 1999 - Thursday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF A beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few, puffy white clouds See photos from Hillsborough & Harvey Vale I took a walk from the Grenadines.net Office to Silver Beach this morning. The sea surged over the Silver Beach jetty (it's gone now), over the beach patio, thru the hotel, and out the front entrance leaving the cottages floating in what looks like a lake. When I was there, people were working with wheelbarrows and shovels to remove the feet of sand that was piled high onto the beach patio. The fishermen's huts located beside Silver Beach are gone and I was told that perhaps 5-6 boats were destroyed. The Esplanade road collapsed in front of The Hillsborough Bar and Carriacou Silver Diving cracked and half fell into the sea as did two of those beautiful trees that many of us used often to take some breeze and enjoy the view of Hillsborough Bay. Ade's Dream Restaurant building has cracked on the beachside. Sandisland Cafe seems to have survived. Shaun's Port of Call Bar weathered the storm but his seawall was lost. Bill Paterson's Beach Bar floor is cracked and sand is piled high in front of his back door. The two buildings left and right of Bill Paterson's Shop were destroyed. The Regatta Jupa bar rear wall was breached and the sea surged thru it and out the front door depositing feet of sand into Market Square. Mrs. Mendes saw the sea rush thru her building and out again into Main Street. Patty's Villa's sea wall was breached and Kervin and Hilda's beautiful sea garden was destroyed. Basically, all beach front properties in Hillsborough suffered damage.
Reports are coming in from Harvey Vale. The sea has piled sand high in front of the Alexis Supermarket. The floating jetties are gone. The road from Scraper's to Barba's is gone! Fatman's Lambi Queen Restaurant is severely damaged. Stella's Beach Bar is gone! The After Ours Club is now beachfront... the beach road is gone! 17 November 1999 - Wednesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF Heavily Overcast. See photos from Hillsborough Just before dawn today, the sea began to surge along Carriacou's Caribbean coastline. As the day progressed, report of damage caused by the crashing waves began to come in. Hillsborough: 4:00 p.m. Two Bobcat Machines pushed all the debris from Main Street into piles and now the workmen are dumping it into a dump truck that slowly works its way from the Grenadines.net Office toward the Market Square. You hear the scrape of flat shovels and iron rakes on the pavement as brown mud, sand, splintered boards, sandals, plastic buckets, seat cushions and other debris is cleaned from the street. Outside in Hillsborough Bay the seas continues to surge yet these proud, wonderful Carriacouans are out there trying their best to keep things clean and tidy. White water rolls over and covers Jack a'Dan briefly as it completes its diagonal pipeline angled toward the Main Jetty and Silver Beach. Seems like this end of town has seen the worst for now and our neighbors located from the Main Jetty north are in harm's way.Water has subsided on Main Street and I see out the window that a small path of dry road in the center is now being used by locals walking. Earlier today the school children in their white shirts, skirts and slacks, and neckties had been given free time to come and see the surge and they were carefully walking alongside the buildings to keep their shoes dry. Nontheless there will be many wet school shoes in Carriacou today. A crowd is still gathered at the Market Square watching the waves roll over the jetty but I am told that the jetty's lower landing platform remains submerged but evidently secure. For the time being. The crowd was also earlier due to it being Magistrate's Court Day on Carriacou. This morning after I awoke and saw the surge, I walked across the street to Lucille Akin's Peacehaven Guesthouse to get to the beach and had a nice talk with the Magistrate. Though from Grenada, His Warship told me that he's never, ever seen the seas like today's ... as we both jumped back as a new wave ran up toward us. 10:00 a.m. Main Street flooded from the Barclays bank down to Bullen's Supermarket. The sea washed between the beachside buildings and rushed into the road bringing sand and debris. Fishermen were seen rolling their speedboats onto logs and to safety across Main Street. Waves covered the Main Jetty and the Jupa Bar is under a foot of water. Cuthbert Snagg's bar is taking sand. Water is up to Miss Lila's stone ovens and Mrs. Mendes was seen pushing water through her shop and out again into the road. Mum Billy's Rum shop is being emptied as is Bill Paterson's shop, Sandisland Cafe. Water is lapping at the entrance to Ade's Dream supermarket. Sand is piling up on the street from Ade's Dream northwards. The beach bar in front of the Hillsborough Bar is gone. The sidewalk along the Espanade is under threat of being undermined. Traffic into and out of Hillsborough has stopped. Silver Beach has water up to their bar and it looks like their beach gate and huts will not survive. The row of fishermen huts between Hillsborough and Silver Beach are falling one by one into the sea. A Bobcat machine from Godwin Guadeloupe is now working outside my office cleaning up the accumulated debris on Main Street. Reports are coming in that the waves could reach 16 feet. Tyrrel Bay/Harvey Vale: 2:00 p.m. Sen. Noel just told me that he has returned from inspecting the situation in Harvey Vale. The road in front of Barba's is "gone" as are the floating jettys. The main jetty remains in tact. Sandbags are up in front of Alexis Supermarket and Scraper's Beach bar is damaged. I will up-date this as new reports come in and after I have a chance to go see for myself. 16 November 1999 - Tuesday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF Beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a few puffy white clouds.
For the past few days we've been watching Hurricane Lenny to see if this "wrong way Feldman" storm might decide to come our way. Except for the remote possibility of sea surge along our island coastlines, we should weather this, hopefully, the last hurricane of the 1999 Season.
Today was Grenadines.net Sailing Fleet day with Captain Brian of S/Y Blue Monsoon, Captain Paul of S/Y Nidri, Captain John Smith of Mermaid of Carriacou all stopping for a visit. Captain Thomas of S/Y Leona is also scheduled to return to Carriacou today after completion of two charters so far this month. November has been perfect sailing weather with brilliant sunny days and nice winds. Visit our Grenadines.net Sailing Homepage and let's put together a trip for you.
11 November 1999 - Thursday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF Heavily overcast and warm.
The S/V Mandalay stopped today signaling the end to her Hurricane escape each year to South America. After her trip back up to Antigua, she'll return to her normal, 2-week scheduled run between Antigua and Grenada. Her sister ship S/V Yankee Clipper remained here year round and now both boats will often been seen tied together here on Carriacou's Hillsborough Bay one passing northward, the other southward.
Mandalay Crew David and Dimas told me the story.... About two weeks ago while the Mandalay was sailing between Dominica and St. Lucia, it was around 3:00 a.m., and David was on watch. He heard a voice yelling "Help me." He roused Dimas and in the darkness they found two fishermen swimming in the open sea. They fished them out only to learn that at first there were four. Two had stayed with their up-turned fishing boat 'cause they couldn't swim. They never made it.
For those interested in visiting Palm Island.... The private villas on Palm Island are going fast: Palm Villa BOOKED: 1/16DEC99 5/14JAN00 28/31JAN00 01/03FEB2000 07/29FEB00 01/25MAR00 1/15APR2000 Villa Rondelei BOOKED: 24NOV99 thru 30MAR2000 Tradewinds Apartments UPSTAIRS BOOKED: 17/31DEC99 01/07MAR2000 DOWNSTAIRS BOOKED: 13/31DEC99 1/31JAN2000 1/29FEB2000 01/15MAR2000 01/31JUL2000 Villa Wildflower BOOKED: 26/31DEC99 01/08JAN2000 01/29FEB2000 01/14MAR2000
Construction continues on Palm Island. I will visit the island and report back here in my diary what I see and learn.
06 November 1999 - Saturday High Temperature 86ºF - Low Temperature 78ºF On again - Off again brief rain showers throughout the day - heavily overcast but warm.
It's just a little past Noon on Saturday. Weekends are reserved as personal days, especially since for the past few months I have worked 12-hour days, 9am-9pm, Monday thru Fridays. During evening hours during the week, locals are playing computer games, and taking computer lessons, and talking on the internet phone island business owners drop by to chat over cold drinks in the peace & quiet of non-office hours 8am-4pm.
Today, I slept in late, around 8:30. The new, concrete road being constructed on Back Street, Hillsborough is making progress as drains have been poured and sections laid between Levi's Bar and the Grenadines.net Office. Job Russell's team comprising Bones, Whiskey, Kervin, Terry and... makes a little more progress each day at work that makes me appreciate how the Egyptian pyramids were built. Gravel, sand and bags of cement are dopped off flat-bed trucks Water is delivered into large, black, rubber tanks Rubber buckets and wheel barrows are used to deliver the mix that flows from a single mixer that strong arms and backs constantly feed.
November is shaping-up as a busy one here on Carriacou. The 2nd Annual Thanksgiving Regatta, based at Silver Beach, gets underway next week. If last year was any indication, hundreds of boats from Trinidad will mix with hundreds more with owners going back North Islands after their annual escape to South America and the danger of Hurricanes.
I heard on the TV last night that of those people saying that they intend on doing something special during Mellinnium 2000, 64% have nonetheless yet to make arrangements. Avoid disappointment and make your Grenadines.net Reservations now!
The good news from the Internet Front is that Grenadines.net now ranks behind only The Bahamas and Jamaica as the 3rd Most Visited Caribbean Destination Travel Website Worldwide. And, Grenadines.net now ranks in the top 10% of the nearly 2,000 Internet Travel Websites Worldwide. Our 125,000+ visitors are finding our connections to The Grenadines best tourism businesses to be reliable, current and without equal. Thanks for your support!
Sit back, relax and let me tell you a little story. It's a story about "normal banking procedures" here in The Grenadines.
Our story begins on Bequia. The owner of a major hotel decides to pay his Grenadines.net Subscription with a check drawn on their Caribbean Banking Corporation account. The check takes around two weeks to arrive here on Carriacou via regular mail.
It's about 30 miles between Bequia and Carriacou.
Yours truly takes the check to the Grenadines.net Bank The National Commercial Bank of Grenada. The teller informs me that it will take six weeks to clear and until it does, they will place a "hold" on release of the funds.
Now as I see it, the clearance procedure my check will undergo, forget not that this is "normal banking procedure" means that my check will travel the electronic cyber-highway from Carriacou to Bequia - a total of 30 miles at a blistering five miles each week at a thundering 3/4 mile each day at an unbelievable .02 miles per hour!
You know, I just don't believe it! An airplane takes 20 minutes; a speedboat, 4 1/2 hours; a sailing yacht about 8 hours. And even it the bank does take six weeks, they've been doing this for years. One would think that by now they would have made efficiencies to speed up the process. But why should they speed up the process... just to allow customers quicker access to their funds?
I don't believe it 'cause I remember long ago in the USA when banks used the same procedures until Congress passed legislation limiting the so-called "hold" time to between 1-3 days. Given the speed of the electronic superhighway, even this is a gift of free use of our money by the banks who no doubt turn around and lend our funds back-out to customers with interest!
I remember another occasion when I deposited one of my personal USA bank checks into the Grenadines.net Bank. Two weeks later I had the cancelled check in my hands. So I returned to the bank with the check to ask about giving freedom to my cleared funds. Nope! Had to serve the time and wait the remaining weeks.
Well, to finish this little story.... I'm still at the Grenadines.net Bank and I've been told that normal banking procedures must be followed. So I give the teller my MasterCard and ask her to give me US$. "We require a photo ID, Mr. Ingram," she says. This bank as known me for ten years. "I don't make a practice of walking around Carriacou with my passport, " I reply. "You don't know who I am, " I ask the teller. "But of course I do, Mr. Ingram," she responds. "Then you are sure that I am the same person as on the MasterCard?" I ask. "But of course, I do, Mr. Ingram," she responds. "Then give me US$," I ask. "We require a photo ID, Mr. Ingram," she says. "It's normal banking procedure."
Note: I like to give credit where credit is due. The bank released the funds on 15 November 1999, requiring JUST 27 days to clear the check... drawn on a bank JUST 30 miles away.
. Views out the window... Water Situation on Carriacou. Let's talk a few minutes about the water situation here on Carriacou and then apply the lessons learned to the remainder of the islands of The Grenadines. First word that comes to mind is scarce. Then next is precious. To me, when I hear that anything is both scarce and precious, I automatically think about saving as much of it as possible. I'd save first of all because it's the prudent thing to do. I'd save because of investment in the future... I'd save because to pass along to the next generation is a good thing... Doesn't really matter to me whether we're talking about diamonds, family heirlooms, money, or... Cool, refreshing, life-giving Water. Though surrounded by perhaps the world's clearest, cleanest and colorful ocean water there is no source of fresh, treated water here except that that falls from the sky, is collected on the roofs house-by-house, business-by-business and stored in underground cisterns and pumped back into the house on demand. Methods for maintaining water quality therefore changes house-by-house and business-by-business. Some introduce small, living fish called "millions" into the cistern and even the government claims that these little fish are quite effective at feasting on whatever attempts growth within the cistern. We're talking here about mosquitos. Others swear that a cup of good old CLOROX bleach does the job. Others attach purifiers to their kitchen taps for use when drawing drinking water and some brands such as PUR make claims about microbiological improvements. I, myself, have chosen to go the route of boiling every drop that makes it toward drinking water or ice cubes. In my nearly ten years living here on Carriacou, I have never suffered the stomach aches and pains that can ruin a trip.
So, I guess the 1st Lesson about the Water Situation is: Always boil the water used to drink or make ice cubes, or drink bottled water, and don't ask for ice in mixed drinks unless you know they boil it first. The Grenadines.net Internet Café uses only boiled water for drinks and ice cubes.
Now that we understand the water situation, let's continue with the 2nd Lesson: conservation of a precious resource. Residents flush toilets after No. 2 but not No.1 Always fix a leaking toilet or faucet valve and never let it trickle. When taking a shower, wet yourself down and turn off the water. Suds up and then turn on the water for a quick rinse. Remember... most islanders have no running water and the water contained in two, white plastic buckets clean-up after dinner, provides a bath, or launders their always spotless clothing. Water on Carriacou is a scarce and precious item. Please help us to save it as much as possible. Views out the window... The red Flamboyant tree has burst into flower. From the Back Porch the red blends brilliantly with the green of the 50-odd coconut palms, breadfruit, and bushes in view. Evidently in appreciation of last month's daily brief showers, Carriacou's vegetation is now on display. Perhaps the most comfortable and convenient place to enjoy it all is from our own Grenadines.net Internet Café We offer: Desktop Publishing: Crew Lists, business cards, plastic laminating for important papers Communications: Internet, E-Mail, Web Design, Internet Telephone, Internet Fax Convenience: Laptop Plug-Ins, Floppy Disks Okay, Flash Sessions Socializing: Breezy Back Porch, Cable TV, Paperback Exchange Information: Hotels, Restaurants, Yacht Charters, Inter-Island Connections Bar: Cold, refreshing drinks Sea Breeze Orange Juice Pineapple Juice Grapefruit Juice Cold CARIB Beer Coca Cola Coffee Ice Water All our drinks are served in half-litre glass jars, filled with ice! To avoid disappointment for DEC 1999 - APR 2000 visits you should be making your reservations NOW! International Flights to The Grenadines are booking FAST and seats are already limited. For visits to Mustique, Bequia, Canouan, Mayreau & Union - look toward Barbados For visits to Carriacou, Petite Martinique, Petit St. Vincent, Palm Island & Union - look toward Grenada. After these international flights are booked we can handle all your Regional Island connections.
