This should be a lot of fun for those folks who have never had the opportunity to see Key West in person. Also a lot of fun for those looking to relieve a few memories.
Street View, a Google Maps project photo-documenting the streets of the world, is now available for Key West.
To see the images:
Go to www.google.com/maps and search/zoom to Key West.
Click the grey "Street View" button on the upper right corner of the map.
Next, you'll see blue highlighting on the streets that have images in Street View. Click anywhere on a highlighted street to see the images Google has captured. (Also, you can drag the yellow human icon to a place you are interested in.)
Once you see an image, navigate along the streets using the arrows overlayed on the pictures.
You never know who (or what!) you might see. And this has a few privacy advocates concerned. In response, Google has implemented a face-blur technology that prevents most people from being recognized.
Pretty cool technology
Monday, September 29, 2008
Monday, September 22, 2008
Where have all the Bahamian Flamingos gone?
NASSAU, Bahamas (Reuters): The southern Bahamian island of Great Inagua is known for two things - its old salt plant and a 60,000-strong flamingo flock.
Now some Bahamians wonder if they might end up losing both after Hurricane Ike ripped across the island last week causing millions of dollars in damage.
Most of the flamingos, which attract bird-watchers from all over the world, took off before Ike arrived and have not been seen since, according to officials in charge of the islands' national parks.
Left behind were 30 dead birds, thought to have been entangled in trees as they tried to flee, and a few hundred live ones that might have taken shelter in the mangroves.
Glenn Bannister, president of the Bahamas National Trust, said all of the island's birds -- including Bahama parrots and White Crown pigeons -- vanished before the storm hit.
The parrots returned after the storm, desperately seeking food among the storm-blasted trees and plant life. But for now, most of the flamingos have not come back and Bannister has no idea where they've gone.
"Some of the flamingos are now reappearing, but it could be one or two years before they get back to their regular nesting pattern," said Lynn Gape, also of the National Trust. She said wardens had only reported sightings of "several hundred" compared to the thousands there before.
"There's no doubt many left, but it's possible others sought protection in the mangroves," said Gape, adding that flamingos are sensitive to barometric pressure and they fly off or take cover when a major storm approaches.
With leaves and berries blown away by the wind, life is likely to be hard for Great Inagua's bird population until buds begin to appear, said Bannister.
"In a few months, this place is going to look like spring," he said. "But the birds are in trouble for the time being."
Meanwhile, bird watchers in the southern U.S. states have reported unprecedented flamingo sightings, like the one spotted in the beach town of Destin in the Florida Panhandle.
"His feathers are beat up and he looks like he has been through a hurricane," said Donald Ware, bird count coordinator of the Choctawhatchee Audubon in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
Wild flamingos are occasionally sighted in Florida's southern tip but that was the group's first recorded sighting in Okaloosa County in the northern part of the state.
There have also been flamingo sightings in Mississippi in late August, after Tropical Storm Fay swept through parts of the Caribbean and Florida, and in early September.
"This is the first documented record for flamingos for Mississippi. They are subtropical birds and just don't fly this way," said Mark LaSalle, director of the Pascagoula River Audubon Center in Moss Point, Mississippi. "It has certainly gotten people's attention."
But Bannister did not think those birds were from the Bahamas. "Whenever they seek a safe haven they fly south to Bonaire, Venezuela or Cuba," he said.
Bannister is hoping the flamingos will return when the breeding season begins in January.
Meanwhile, islanders are pondering another possible loss.
Owners of Morton Salt, which employs 60 percent of the workforce on Inagua and is the only industry on the island of 1,000 people, have cast doubt on the salt plant's future.
The company said it "cannot say with 100 percent certainty" that the badly damaged plant will continue operating.
Courtesy of Caribbean Net News
Published on Friday, September 12, 2008
Now some Bahamians wonder if they might end up losing both after Hurricane Ike ripped across the island last week causing millions of dollars in damage.
Most of the flamingos, which attract bird-watchers from all over the world, took off before Ike arrived and have not been seen since, according to officials in charge of the islands' national parks.
Left behind were 30 dead birds, thought to have been entangled in trees as they tried to flee, and a few hundred live ones that might have taken shelter in the mangroves.
Glenn Bannister, president of the Bahamas National Trust, said all of the island's birds -- including Bahama parrots and White Crown pigeons -- vanished before the storm hit.
The parrots returned after the storm, desperately seeking food among the storm-blasted trees and plant life. But for now, most of the flamingos have not come back and Bannister has no idea where they've gone.
"Some of the flamingos are now reappearing, but it could be one or two years before they get back to their regular nesting pattern," said Lynn Gape, also of the National Trust. She said wardens had only reported sightings of "several hundred" compared to the thousands there before.
"There's no doubt many left, but it's possible others sought protection in the mangroves," said Gape, adding that flamingos are sensitive to barometric pressure and they fly off or take cover when a major storm approaches.
With leaves and berries blown away by the wind, life is likely to be hard for Great Inagua's bird population until buds begin to appear, said Bannister.
"In a few months, this place is going to look like spring," he said. "But the birds are in trouble for the time being."
Meanwhile, bird watchers in the southern U.S. states have reported unprecedented flamingo sightings, like the one spotted in the beach town of Destin in the Florida Panhandle.
"His feathers are beat up and he looks like he has been through a hurricane," said Donald Ware, bird count coordinator of the Choctawhatchee Audubon in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
Wild flamingos are occasionally sighted in Florida's southern tip but that was the group's first recorded sighting in Okaloosa County in the northern part of the state.
There have also been flamingo sightings in Mississippi in late August, after Tropical Storm Fay swept through parts of the Caribbean and Florida, and in early September.
"This is the first documented record for flamingos for Mississippi. They are subtropical birds and just don't fly this way," said Mark LaSalle, director of the Pascagoula River Audubon Center in Moss Point, Mississippi. "It has certainly gotten people's attention."
But Bannister did not think those birds were from the Bahamas. "Whenever they seek a safe haven they fly south to Bonaire, Venezuela or Cuba," he said.
Bannister is hoping the flamingos will return when the breeding season begins in January.
Meanwhile, islanders are pondering another possible loss.
Owners of Morton Salt, which employs 60 percent of the workforce on Inagua and is the only industry on the island of 1,000 people, have cast doubt on the salt plant's future.
The company said it "cannot say with 100 percent certainty" that the badly damaged plant will continue operating.
Courtesy of Caribbean Net News
Published on Friday, September 12, 2008
Sunday, September 21, 2008
The Little Island That Could
Turks & Caicos Sporting Club at Ambergris Cay Fights IKE
NEW YORK, Sept. 11 /CNW/ -- As the world knows, the Caribbean has been
subjected to a powerful hurricane over the last few days. Hurricane Ike struck
Ambergris Cay with category 4 sustained winds of 140 mph and gusts exceeding
160 mph. The eye of this storm passed directly over Ambergris Cay, and proved
to be the ultimate test of the skill, foresight and planning of DPS Sporting
Club Development Company and its people.
Our little island emerged from that fierce storm with only superficial
damage and not a single injury to our people. The state of the art
infrastructure; the skill in planning; the quality of construction and the
expertise of some of the world's most talented staff had created the Little
Island that could face a storm like Ike and emerge with mere scratches and
chips.
"Nearly 50 years have passed where the Turks & Caicos Islands have
remained untouched from a substantial hurricane", says The Honorable Dr.
Michael Misick, Premier of Turks & Caicos Islands. "The fact that Turks &
Caicos Sporting Club walked out of Hurricane Ike with all infrastructure and
homes in great shape is testimony of the high level of planning, engineering
and construction of the services and structures on Ambergris Cay."
Thorough reports from Ambergris Cay confirm that all infrastructures on
the island are intact and running, including power generators and desalination
facilities. There is no structural damage, only minor accessory loss (signage
and lighting), road erosion, simple sand-blasting, uprooted planted
landscaping and blown debris. In preparation for the storm, utilities were
voluntarily shut off and are now operating at 100% normalcy. With virtually no
damage overall, the repair work has already begun and we expect to be fully
open within a week.
Turks & Caicos Sporting Club prides itself on superior construction as
all structures meet or exceed U.S. Hurricane Building Standards. Since its
inception, Turks & Caicos Sporting Club has honored a Hurricane Preparedness
Plan that is continuously updated with the introduction of each new amenity
and homesite.
"We'd like to specifically pay tribute to the Ambergris Cay staff as the
training, unprecedented teamwork and commendable organization prepared this
island to walk away victorious," says Pat Worsham, Managing Director of DPS
Sporting Club Management. "From staff to club management, the Hurricane
Preparedness Plan was flawlessly executed."
The Sporting Club is also personally supporting Turks & Caicos Island's
relief efforts by transporting supplies to other islands such as South Caicos
and Grand Turk, ensuring Ambergris Cay's role in community outreach for an
efficient country-wide recovery. As clean-up continues and spirits remain
incredibly high, Turks & Caicos Sporting Club is open for business and
welcoming members and their families back to the safety and beauty that is
Ambergris Cay.
Courtesy of Groupe CNW
NEW YORK, Sept. 11 /CNW/ -- As the world knows, the Caribbean has been
subjected to a powerful hurricane over the last few days. Hurricane Ike struck
Ambergris Cay with category 4 sustained winds of 140 mph and gusts exceeding
160 mph. The eye of this storm passed directly over Ambergris Cay, and proved
to be the ultimate test of the skill, foresight and planning of DPS Sporting
Club Development Company and its people.
Our little island emerged from that fierce storm with only superficial
damage and not a single injury to our people. The state of the art
infrastructure; the skill in planning; the quality of construction and the
expertise of some of the world's most talented staff had created the Little
Island that could face a storm like Ike and emerge with mere scratches and
chips.
"Nearly 50 years have passed where the Turks & Caicos Islands have
remained untouched from a substantial hurricane", says The Honorable Dr.
Michael Misick, Premier of Turks & Caicos Islands. "The fact that Turks &
Caicos Sporting Club walked out of Hurricane Ike with all infrastructure and
homes in great shape is testimony of the high level of planning, engineering
and construction of the services and structures on Ambergris Cay."
Thorough reports from Ambergris Cay confirm that all infrastructures on
the island are intact and running, including power generators and desalination
facilities. There is no structural damage, only minor accessory loss (signage
and lighting), road erosion, simple sand-blasting, uprooted planted
landscaping and blown debris. In preparation for the storm, utilities were
voluntarily shut off and are now operating at 100% normalcy. With virtually no
damage overall, the repair work has already begun and we expect to be fully
open within a week.
Turks & Caicos Sporting Club prides itself on superior construction as
all structures meet or exceed U.S. Hurricane Building Standards. Since its
inception, Turks & Caicos Sporting Club has honored a Hurricane Preparedness
Plan that is continuously updated with the introduction of each new amenity
and homesite.
"We'd like to specifically pay tribute to the Ambergris Cay staff as the
training, unprecedented teamwork and commendable organization prepared this
island to walk away victorious," says Pat Worsham, Managing Director of DPS
Sporting Club Management. "From staff to club management, the Hurricane
Preparedness Plan was flawlessly executed."
The Sporting Club is also personally supporting Turks & Caicos Island's
relief efforts by transporting supplies to other islands such as South Caicos
and Grand Turk, ensuring Ambergris Cay's role in community outreach for an
efficient country-wide recovery. As clean-up continues and spirits remain
incredibly high, Turks & Caicos Sporting Club is open for business and
welcoming members and their families back to the safety and beauty that is
Ambergris Cay.
Courtesy of Groupe CNW
Thursday, September 11, 2008
We are up and running
IslandandResort.com went live on Friday, September 5. We at Island and Resort are very excited and while we have much work to do to meet our goal of being the most complete information portal for the Bahamas, Caribbean and Florida Islands, an important fist step has been taken.
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