vacation to bahamas
Bahama Islands News, Articles and Information
Confit de canard - and super size me
For about the eightieth time today I am convinced I cannot eat another mouthful. And for about the eigthieth time today some unutterably discreet waiter in pristine whites has glided up behind me and placed a beautiful selection of artistic morslets in front of me, and somehow, albeit mechanically, I am eating them. There's something to do with foie gras, accented with ginger; there are lobster and daikon rolls on a black plate and piquant dipping sauces and grouper and tuna and quail and herbs from the garden outside. This food is epicurean, gastronautical, gourmet consumption on the grandest scale. I have eaten so many Michelin stars in the last 96 hours I've lost count. There have been food towers, layers, jus, crusts, purees, terrines, infusions, confits and enormous, American-style servings.
Whatever Floats Your Boat BedandBreakfast.com
Austin, TX (PRWEB) June 21, 2006 -- When the sun comes out, Americans flock to the water in search of cool breezes and nautical surroundings. B&B getaway or luxury cruise? Now, B&B-goers can experience the best of both worlds – boats, berths and breakfasts – all in one. Come on board as BedandBreakfast.com, the most comprehensive online B&B directory and reservation network worldwide, offers this list of "boatiful" maritime-themed B&B getaways. Generally, the floating B&Bs are offered as private one-party accommodations docked wharfside. Some make boating excursions available for an additional fee. Listings are offered alphabetically by state. Visit www.BedandBreakfast.com for complete listings and contact information. .Fight Over Ginn Land
Squabbling over a portion of the land that would be used by the Ginn company for its $4.7 billion development in West Grand Bahama is continuing before the courts with a family that claims ownership of the property mounting an appeal before the Court of Appeal. .Key tips for hurricane season cruising
Year-round Caribbean cruising's on an upswing as lines ranging from Princess to Carnival are keeping some of their biggest and splashiest ships sailing in the region throughout summer and fall. And yet, aside from experiencing slightly steamier tropical weather than in winter months, cruising the Caribbean during the summer and fall otherwise comes with one pretty big caveat: Hurricane season can wreak havoc on your vacation. In 1998, Windjammer's Fantome, which deposited passengers safely on land before it sailed out to sea to avoid an off-the-charts violent hurricane, tragically lost its ship and crew. One year later, Carnival's Tropicale lost power as it was sailing out of the way of another storm (though no lives were lost). Disaster stories like these are the exception rather than the rule, but if you're planning a Caribbean cruise from June through November, it pays to be aware of the possibilities.
Hispanic firms growing in S.C.
In Puerto Rico, Stella Colwell and her brother Larry Mercado made extra money while at their aunt's house by making and selling cookies.It was an early lesson in entrepreneurship.
Today, the duo is on the front end of a burgeoning movement in Horry County - indeed, statewide.
They are Hispanic business owners.
"I've always been an entrepreneur," Colwell said.
Back then, their entrepreneurial drive paid off in a cruise and trip to the Bahamas.
Today's payoff is a bit richer. Their Pawleys-Island-based high tech firm, Mercom Corp., earns more than $7 million a year. Colwell is the president and CEO of Mercom and Mercado is the vice president.
They've even made Hispanic Business' directory of the 500 largest Hispanic-owned businesses in the United States.
Hurricanes kick up travel savings
The backdrop picture on my iBook desktop is a Caribbean dreamscape: plush talcum beach, deep azure sky, intense turquoise sea, shady palm arching into the frame just so .... I snapped this shot from my hammock on the beach in Tulum, Mexico, last year. It was midday in mid-October in the middle of the worst hurricane season on record.Between storms -- even in the worst years -- hurricane season in the tropics can be strung with sparkling sun-studded days. Though most travelers will choose to stay out of hurricane season's capricious -- and potentially dangerous -- way, others might want to risk the threat of inclement weather for the benefit of the affordable, crowd-free vacations that are available this time of year.
The North Atlantic hurricane season spans six months, from June 1 to Nov.
Blood Banks Push for Better Safeguards
Blood banks turn away up to 150,000 would-be donors each year on the slight chance they picked up malaria while traveling to any of dozens of countries.At the same time, concern is growing that a second parasitic infection from abroad -- the Chagas disease rampant in parts of Latin America -- increasingly threatens donated blood.
Both infections are rare here, but there's no way to test donated blood for either one. Now blood banks are pushing for better safeguards that also could help stretch the nation's tight supply.
First up, malaria: Next week, the Food and Drug Administration opens debate on how to balance the need for blood with Americans' increasing travel to malaria hot spots, and to urge manufacturers to develop a malaria test to solve the problem.
The vast majority of U.S.
Exotic lizard threatens other species in Florida
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - With a ferocious little predator called the northern curlytail lizard, South Florida may finally have the exotic reptile it deserves.Native to rocky areas of the Bahamas and nearby islands, the lizard has made a home in sections of southeast Florida that mimic its native habitat, such as sidewalks, parking lots and strip malls.
As it spread through coastal areas, it has crowded out native lizards and devoured the prey of native mockingbirds, grackles and shrikes.
"They're the T-Rex of our little ground critters," said Hank Smith, wildlife biologist for the Florida Park Service and affiliate research assistant professor at Florida Atlantic University's Wilkes Honors College in Jupiter.
"They're larger than our native lizards that occur along the coastline, the green anole, the green racerunner.