Good Morning Forum MembersI am new to this forum and to Bequia. Owner of a new restaurant called Maria's French Terrace serving traditional French cuisine and located in the habor of Port Elizabeth.Be

[johnday]

Good Morning Forum Members
I am new to this forum and to Bequia. Owner of a new restaurant called Maria's French Terrace serving traditional French cuisine and located in the habor of Port Elizabeth.
Bequia is largest of the Grenadine islands and certainly the most visited. It almost reminds me of St Barts 20 years ago with quiet streets, quiant little shops and charming guest houses.
It would be nice to have the moderators add the Grenadines to the list of Caribbean islands and I can certainly field questions about Bequia specifically.
Visit our web site at www.marias-french-terrace.com

[Erma]

Mr. Day,

Welcome to the forum!

It's been about 7 years since my last visit to SVG/Bequia but I do have a question. What is the current status of the Adam's Bay development? I only heard about this a short time ago because I have neglected to keep up with the island. Wondering if they cleared or started anything in the area? It was quite a haul from the Old Fort but worth the effort.

You have picked a wonderful place to call home. We talked for years about opening a scooter shop on the island......

Best regards,

Erma

[nnoska]

i love bequia, but its not for everyone, old caribe, i loved it!

[LindaP]

The owners of the Firefly have a place there....where is it exactly? And how is it doing, are they successful? We stayed at the Firefly and loved Mustique....always wondered about Bequia. Linda

[johnday]

Hello Erma
Sorry to take so long to reply. The restaurant has been very busy ( thank goodness). The Adams Bay project has not grown very much since it was announced and some say it will never amount to very much. There are however other projects in the planning and some others already in progress. Bequia Beach Hotel has doubled in size and built a restaurant on the beach. Fire Fly has done compete renovations. At the end of Freindship Bay ( St Hilaire Point ) Blue Investments will be building a yacht dock facility, hotel and restaurant. Several private ( very large ) villas in the Lower Bay area. At the top of Spring several large villas. Hope has a big project underway ( I don't know much about that one ).
There is one scooter rental shop in Cinnamon Garden. But it would be better to set up shop right in the harbor where the new cruise ship tendar dock is.
With all the trouble right now in the French West Indies, the Grenadines is becoming a very popular destination.
Hope to see you soon.
John

[johnday]

Good Morning nnoska
I spent 7 years in St Barts and Bequia is about 20 years behind. Thats the thing that makes it so nice.
John

[MIke R]

are they still allowed to take one humpback whale a year???...kind of cool to watch that whole operation unfold when the whale is taken in port...

[johnday]

Good Morning LindaP
The Fire Fly is on the road to Spring Bay about 1/4 mile before the road that goes up the hill to all the villas. www.fireflybequia.com It is a beautiful place and has a spectacular view overlooking Spring Bay. It might be a little pricey for the clientle of Bequia but I always see cars there when I drive by in the morning.
John

[johnday]

Hello Mike
Whale hunting is not allowed. This must of been long before my arrival. I will have to ask some of the older fisherman the story.
John

[MIke R]

interesting...I was there in 81 ( I loved it! ) and they were dressing a humpback in port....seems they were allowed to take one a year by the International Whaling Commission as it was a cultural thing, so they were exempted...just like some Eskimo tribes in Alaska are exempt


a little research shows its still going on:

http://www.responsibletravel.com/svg...traditions.htm

[MIke R]

not according to this:

Whaling
Bequia is one of the few places in the world where limited whaling is still allowed by the International Whaling Commission. Natives of Bequia are allowed to catch up to 4 Humpback Whales per year using only traditional hunting methods of hand thrown harpoons in small open sailing boats. Though they rarely catch their limit and some years do not catch any.

A feature of the Port Elizabeth waterfront is the Whale Boner Bar & Restaurant. This bar has an entrance onto the beach comprising of an arch of two whale ribs as well as whale vertebrae mounted on the bar seats and a whale rib running the length of the bar.

Bequia has a long tradition of whaling as well as the building of whaling boats. There is a small whaling museum on the island which chronicles this history.

[MIke R]

its still going on for sure

http://www.responsibletravel.com/svg...traditions.htm

[johnday]

Mike
I will ask around in the morning. Thanks for pushing my curiosity because I am new and this would be fun to see.
John

[johnday]

According to the article - it says
The islanders of Bequia are permitted to catch 20 humpback whales between 2008 and 2012. One was caught in 2008. However, the methods they use seem to make a further 19 an unrealistic target.


"We catch them now in exactly the same way as you may have read in Moby Dick or as we did since 1876."
Nollie Simmonds

So it suggests that they can not reverse a prior commitment so they just make it so difficult that it won't take place. But still I will canvas the old timers in the morning.
John

[MIke R]

yeah with the methods they use....it kind of favors the whale...interesting that an island civilization so far south of the fringe area where the humpbacks breed and calve down there ( Silver Banks, Dominican Republic ) would have whaling as such an integral part of their culture