Mooney Bay is 22 acres of freehold property in the desirable North Sound of Virgin Gorda – commonly known as the Billionaire’s Playground. There are mega yacht marinas, Necker and Mosquito islands owned by Branson and Eustacia owned by Google’s Larry Page. Mooney Bay has its own private docks and is the largest private estate in Virgin Gorda.

Have you ever ended a vacation and said, “That was the most unforgettable experience of my life!” Charter yacht vacations in the Caribbean will have you saying that every time.  I have written about sailing in the Caribbean many times in the past five years.  And, again, if you want the best vacation adventure of your life it will be a chartered yacht vacation!  I have sailed in the Caribbean since 1975.  My ear ring is from sailing off the equator in 1997.  I know the Caribbean, and sailing is the way to experience it – promise!  The expected activities during any voyage includes; SCUBA, snorkeling, water skiing, wake boarding, kayaking, daily gourmet moments, great beverages because thirst is a dangerous thing, reading, napping, sunning with various degrees of clothing, and even the occasional squals.  Because of those years of sailing I have met some of the most remarkable people I know – Dougy the head of cabbies at Beef Island Airport; Foxy the owner of Foxy’s on Jost Van Dyke;  Mick the bartender at Soggy Dollar Bar; Liz the owner of Duffy’s Love Shack; a Danish couple who had been sailing for over five years with two of their three kids being born on their boat;  Baby Bull Rhymer who ripped me off at Cane Garden Bay; Captain Whitey of the catamaran True North who saved my dingy from thieves;  Ustis from Dominica who now owns a SCUBA diving center in Dominica after working in the BVI for 15 years.  Quito Rhymers, the famous Caribbean “Jimmy Buffet”; Erik Ackerson at Virgin Island Charter League; and hundreds more!!! And…whenever and wherever I am sailing in the Caribbean it is always unforgettable! Read the rest of this entry »

The Kwanzaa began today in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the U.S. and several other Caribbean Islands.  It is a seven day celebration that began in 1966.  Each day focuses on a principle that reaffirms the African commitment to themselves, their families, their community, and their black struggle for equality.  The daily principles are;

• December 26^th – Umoja – Unity
• December 27^th – Kujichagulia – Self-Determination
• December 28^th – Ujima – Collective Work & Responsibility
• December 29^th – Ujamaa – Cooperative Economics
• December 30^th – Nia – Purpose
• December 31 – Kuumba – Creativity
• January 1^st – Imani – Faith

The seven Kwanzaa principles are referred to as the Nguzo Saba, and are intended to serve as guideposts for meditation and daily living.  The greeting each day of Kwaanzaa is Habari Gani, and the reply is Habari Gani followed by the principle of the day. Kwanzaa is celebrated by people of African descent in North America, the Caribbean and other part of the world connected to African heritage.  It was created by M. Ron Karenga in 1966.

The St. Croix Source has the schedule for this week’s Kwanza events.  The events vary from a 7K run honoring the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa, plays and songs, and much more. There will be family gatherings all over the Virgin Islands for the next seven days.  Also check out the local celebrations held in all of the Windward and Leeward islands.  Enjoy each of your Kwanzaa days. Habari Gani!

If you recall my last article about the “Rum Wars” in the Caribbean, you will then remember that the “Rum War” started over two years ago when Puerto Rico failed to negotiate a renewal of the Captain Morgan Rum production facilities with Diageo Spirits on their island Territory.  What transpired was a search by Diageo to find a new production location and started their search with Jamaica and Guatemala. When the United States Virgin Islands learned of Diageo changing production locations they jumped into the competition by having the USVI Governor John deJongh contact Diageo and propose they consider the USVI’s as their location on the island of St. Croix. The short story is Gov. deJongh and the USVI prevailed and signed an agreement two years ago to begin producing Captain Morgan Rum for the next 30 years. Read the rest of this entry »

Ten days ago Sen. George LeMieus (R), from Florida proposed a bill that would have ruined the Virgin Island economy!  This week, through the behind the scenes efforts of Gov. deJongh from the USVI and several of the Territory’s influential friends were successful in having it voted down by the U.S. Senate!!!

“The Rum Cover-Over War” was one worth fighting.  A war starts generally because one territory is angry with another, and they want to punish the people they are angry with.  Well, the offending party in this war is Puerto Rico.  Puerto Rico is angry that the giant liquor conglomerate, Diageo, did not renew an agreement with a rum distillery in their territory. It happens to be the distillery that produces Captain Morgan’s label representing significant jobs and BIG revenue to any territory that has the contract. Read the rest of this entry »

You know that I am a fan of fractional ownership as a way to own your piece of Paradise in the Caribbean.  The large majority of property purchased in the Caribbean is accomplished with fractional ownership.  Bargains abound from Aruba to the Dominican Republic in the world of fractional condos and villas.  For the past two years I have personally witnessed the newest Caribbean resort’s development and construction, and it is now having it’s coming out party this month – Scrub Island Resort, the first resort to open in the BVI in 15 years!  This tropical paradise is on 230 acres on an unspoiled paradise. Read the rest of this entry »

Hopefully,  you already know that I am a raving fan of the U.S. Virgin Islands Governer – Gov. John deJongh, Jr.   He is the brightest hope that the Territory has had in recent memory.  I paid close attention to his State of the Union address last month to make sure my respect and esteem for him was correctly placed.  It is!  The initiatives that he began three years ago are creating a new and vibrant economy and future for the Virgin Islands.  His address was before a packed at house of the Legislature with all of his government officials in attendance.  His opening comments of, “Tonight, although we may not be out of the woods yet, I believe that we are on the right path,” deJongh said.  “If we persevere together, we will overcome these challenges and we will see a better tomorrow in the days, months and years to come.” His words have been put into action before all of our eyes.  He has created one of the most open governments I have seen since I arrived in the Caribbean in 1975. Read the rest of this entry »

The Port-au-Prince area of Haiti, is located about 500 miles to the west of Red Hook, St. Thomas where Caribbean Islands Realty is headquartered.  Tuesday it was hit with a devastating 7.3-magnitude earthquake that has caused much of this city of millions to collapse.  The tide of human suffering is beyond any thing we can imagine.  Gov. John deJongh Jr. said in a news release Tuesday that the prayers of the people of the Virgin Islands are with the residents of Haiti,  and that help is on the way from every Caribbean nation, plus the world.  “Eyewitness accounts of the quake indicate a catastrophic situation,” deJongh said, adding that many Virgin Islanders have both family and friends in Haiti who are tonight anxiously awaiting word about the fate of their loved ones. Read the rest of this entry »

Diageo’s Captain Morgan Rum’s distillery in the U.S. Virgin Islands is finally scheduled to produce rum by the end of the year.  Diageo, the parent company of Captain Morgan Rum, and a United Kingdom-based company that is the largest distilled spirits maker in the world, expects the construction of their new St. Croix location to be completed by October and have rum in the aging barrels by December.   This week’s simple announcement is packed with controversy that has been boiling for over a year.  The rest of the complicated “story” is worth the read.

For many years, a third party distiller in Puerto Rico has been producing Captain Morgan Rum and selling it to Seagram’s.  Diageo bought the Captain Morgan Rum label in 2001 inheriting this third party manufacturing agreement.  They have looking for years how to arrange a way for them to produce their own rum under the Captain Morgan Rum label.  With the manufacturing plant now being built for Diageo to produce the rum themselves, Puerto Rico will be losing millions of dollars that were coming to their territory from the rum excise tax.  Since they will not be getting any of these taxes, they are protesting to the Congress that the U.S. Virgin Islands should not get any of them either, because the USVI is going to use these taxes in order to finance the construction of the new distillery on St. Croix. Read the rest of this entry »

Kwanzaa means “first fruits of the harvest” in the very traditional Africa and is now celebrated around the world.  There are seven days of celebrating family, community and equality.  Each December 26^th the Kwanzaa celebration begins and it ends on January 1^st.  Each day of the Kwanzaa celebration focuses on specific principle.

The seven principles are collectively referred to as the Nguzo Saba, and serve as guideposts for meditation and daily living.  The greeting each day of Kwaanza is Habari Gani, and the reply is Habari Gani followed by the principle of the day. Kwanzaa is celebrated by people of African descent in North America, the Caribbean and other part of the world connected to African heritage.  It was created by M. Ron Karenga in 1966. Read the rest of this entry »