Hope all of you are enjoying a nice summer in your area. Summer here is flying by and things are slowing down a bit but still lots of people on the island. As many of you know we continue to be in the news regularly so all the extra "press" on the island has made for a good off season. The hotels, guest houses and restaurants are enjoying a profitable summer.
The town festival, formerly known as Patronales was well attended this summer. I went up early in the evenings to avoid the crowds. Played some of the "carnival" type games and even managed to win a small stuffed animal that my Labrador is trying to claim! I understand that the music was very good this year and they even filmed a popular television show live from the Plaza. The festivities go on until the early hours of the morning but for some reason it did not seem as loud as past years. Since I live right in town just a few blocks from the Plaza I was glad that I could not hear the noise much! The event also includes fireworks a few nights so of course all the dogs in town were terrorized by those. Overall the festival seemed to be well attended and successful!
Island Café is enjoying success as the new restaurant on the island. The Tuesday Happy Hour seems to be very popular again with many people staying on for dinner. The night that our old friend Don was guest bartender the place was packed, Mary Alice said that she stopped counting at 140 people! Joanne Hamilton (Casa Cielo) and I prepared many of the hors d'oeuvres for that particular night and since we arrived early we got the best seats at the bar under the ceiling fan, needless to say we did not leave them for a minute! It seemed like everyone on the island made it in to say hello to Don! I have enjoyed dinner there on a few occasions and love the menu. It is a Caribbean type menu with some Puerto Rican and Cuban inspired entrees. The house salad is great as are the appetizers. Owen and staff are doing a terrific job in the kitchen and Amy is making some delicious desserts also. Jason is holding down the fort at the Oasis and the next theme nights there are Asian night on Wed. August 15th and Cajun night on August 29th. I missed the last theme night but hope to get to the next ones as I have enjoyed attending about 90% of them! I keep waiting to hear that they are closing for vacation as I just find it hard to believe that they can stay so enthusiastic and work so much but I guess that is just the restaurant business!
We attended the music night at Café Media Luna last weekend, dinner first which was excellent and then stayed for the first set of the music. The band was great and all very talented. The trumpet player got the highest "billing" however it was a toss up as they were all fabulous and there were many solos by all the band members. It does get a bit loud in there but I always feel like I am somewhere else as it is just hard to believe that I am in sleepy Vieques listening to world class music. Thank you Monica and Ricardo!
Once again the weather people are predicting an active hurricane season. This time of the year through November we all keep a close eye on the weather channel or weather.com to see if anything is headed our direction. If you plan to travel to the island during the next few months make sure you are watching too. Most of the guest houses are self sufficient these days with plenty of water available and generators so that they are operational after a storm. What can be a problem though is getting on and off the island. The airlines fly the small planes to safer locations and then have to wait until the winds calm down to bring them home. If the seas are rough the ferry might also be canceled for a few days. We are all keeping our fingers crossed that we are not in the path of any storms this season but as visitors you want to be aware of any weather situations and how they could affect your travel plans. Hope you will all keep your fingers crossed for us too!
Restaurant schedules have been changing due to the number of people on the island. I suggest that when you get here you phone and make reservations for dinner at the restaurants just so that you won't be disappointed driving someplace to find that they are closed or that they have sold out of menu items feeding the walk-ins! We all want to offer the best service possible and can do that with a little help from all of you. When on vacation definitely plan on eating out. The quality of dining has greatly improved over the years, the chefs are very creative and you will be surprised at the selections. Running a restaurant is never easy but here you have to consider that these folks are shipping food in from the main island and even the states so that they can offer you a great meal. Many of the chefs spend their day off from cooking shopping on the main island. I can tell you from experience that a day of shopping on the big island is very hectic, the drivers are crazy and you have to make it back to the ferry or airport on time or you are stuck on the island overnight! It is exhausting and I applaud all those that do it each week!
Many people are exploring the western end of the island which had been owned by the Navy until recently. The land has been divided up, some still retained by the Navy, some was given to Vieques and some listed as conservation areas. We can now drive along many of the roads and the land is beautiful. There are some great views from hilltops and I have only made it to Playa Grande so far, I need to keep exploring! This could be a great day trip for some of you, seeing hundreds of acres with no buildings and then enjoying a day at the beach. Green beach is best avoided after about 2:00 in the afternoon due to "noseeums", I never understood how something that I could not see could bite so hard! Also be aware that on the weekends many people from the main island come over in their boats so that is not the best time to swim and enjoy the beach unless of course you are a boating enthusiast! I have been warned that the jellyfish have arrived to that end of the island so keep your eyes open when swimming and snorkeling over there. Jellyfish seem to appear in quantity around August each year but they can also be found year round. Distilled white vinegar can help to alleviate some of the pain if you do have a close encounter with a jellyfish, just put a little on the sting!
Many of you reading this are aware that Vieques has it share of petty thefts just like many other tourist destinations. With the increased number of people on the island this summer it is still happening. Most winter travelers are reminded of the "do's and don'ts" and I want to take this opportunity to remind you again of some of these things. Remember that thousands of people come here and have fabulous vacations with nothing more than a rainy day to possibly complain about. A few people have incidents of having something stolen which would definitely put a damper on any vacation. First of all there is nothing fancy here on the island so leave good jewelry at home. Only bring one or two credit cards, you won't need many of the ones you usually have like department store cards. Leave your cellular phones at home, buy a calling card instead, you are on vacation so give people a number where you can be reached in case of emergencies and let them track you down! Leave expensive camera equipment at home too, the disposable cameras work great and take good pictures or invest in a small 35mm camera. When going to the beach only take what you need and keep you car in sight. Don't leave anything in the car that you will miss if somebody happens to get into your car. I always leave my car unlocked at the beach so they can't break a window or lock. Stay with your things, if you take a camera for instance, at the beach, invest in a waterproof container to hold keys and wallet while swimming. Lock your doors whether in a guest house or rental house, don't leave a front door open while you are maybe on a back porch or using the pool. If you are traveling with your own snorkel gear don't leave it outside or on the porch to dry. There is next to no violent crime here and our island is much safer than many other islands and large cities. The majority of the petty theft is non-confrontational, they really do not want to hurt you or get hurt by you. If you use some common sense you can be one of the thousands to experience a great vacation here. Even if you do everything right there is the slight possibility that you could end up a victim of theft, hence the recommendation of traveling light on your island vacation. Please understand that these incidents can happen to anyone on the island, not just tourists and certainly not just to Americans. The past few weeks have been more troublesome than ever before. The community and the police are aware of the situation and are working together to solve the problem. Remember that there are many great reasons to come to Vieques, it is a great place to relax, enjoy the beaches, visit the amazing Biobay, catch up on some reading, and enjoy great meals out! I may upset a few business people on the island by bringing up the current situation however to those of you who read this regularly I hope you understand that I love the island and what it offers and try and share all of that with you. In good conscience I feel that I have to let you know that there have been a few more problems than usual and at the same time tell you that the problem is being addressed here. We all want you to have a great vacation and love our island as much as we do.
Thanks again for reading, sorry this column is late but I was away from my computer for a few days! Mira, my chocolate lab, was hired to stay with his buddy Baron whose owner was traveling. We got to enjoy a few days on the other side of the island, big fenced in yard and a pool that Mira used everyday! I think he is ready to hang up his leash and move to the country! Hopefully one day soon I can begin building and he too will have a nice big fenced in yard, the swimming pool does not look like an option at this time though! Again thanks for all your feedback. Looking forward to seeing you on your trip to Vieques!
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Email: whats_happenin@enchanted-isle.com
