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St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) – Blackbeard’s Castle and Vistas (Crown Princess Excursion) – Video

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St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) - Blackbeard #39;s Castle and Vistas (Crown Princess Excursion)
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St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) - Blackbeard's Castle and Vistas (Crown Princess Excursion) - Video

18 dead as boat capsizes off Turks and Caicos

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MIAMI At least 17 migrants from Haiti died Wednesday when their overloaded sailboat capsized as it was being towed to shore in the Turks and Caicos Islands, officials in the British territory said.

A marine unit of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force had intercepted the packed sloop about two hours earlier and was escorting it to shore when it abruptly overturned, sparking a frantic search and rescue operation in the pre-dawn darkness.

Karlo Pelissier, the Haitian consul to the Turks and Caicos, said he was told by survivors that several migrants attempted to jump off the 28-foot boat and flee to land as they neared the island of Providenciales and that the surge caused the overloaded sloop to overturn. Officials had not confirmed that as the cause of the capsizing.

Authorities rescued 33 migrants, including one 12-year-old boy, and recovered the bodies of 17 people. Divers and U.S. Coast Guard helicopters assisted in a search for additional survivors or victims in the area where the incident occurred, about 150 yards (meters) from shore. Earlier, officials had said there were 18 confirmed deaths but the toll was revised downward.

A scaled-down search was planned for Thursday but further casualties were not expected, said Neil Smith, a government spokesman. The remains of the 12 men and five women killed would be repatriated after autopsies to establish the cause of death.

Survivors were being detained at a migrant detention center in Providenciales, the most populated island in the chain southeast of the Bahamas, and there were no major injuries. "They are tired, but they are OK," Pelissier said in a phone interview as he met with them.

The migrants, mostly from the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and the northern city of Cap-Haitien, had set off on their voyage Sunday night, Pelissier said. They paid $500-$1,000 each and were trying to reach Miami or the Bahamas as well as Turks and Caicos, which has an established community of migrants from Haiti working in construction, tourism and service jobs.

Haitian officials say they try to discourage migrants from risking these journeys.

"We are saddened by such tragedy and present our condolences and prayers to the families and friends of those affected by this accident," said Salim Succar, an adviser to Haitian Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe.

The rescued migrants are expected to be repatriated to Haiti in the coming days.

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18 dead as boat capsizes off Turks and Caicos

18 migrants die in capsizing off Turks and Caicos

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PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands (AP) -

PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands (AP) - Eighteen people believed to be migrants from Haiti died Wednesday when their overloaded sailboat overturned as their vessel was being escorted to shore in the Turks and Caicos Islands, officials in the British territory said.

The sailboat, which had about 50 people on board, abruptly capsized about 150 yards from the island of Providenciales, said Neil Smith, a spokesman for the government. The cause was not immediately known but overloading was a likely factor, he said.

About two hours earlier, in the pre-dawn hours of Christmas, the marine branch of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force had intercepted the sloop as a suspected migrant vessel and was escorting it to shore, Smith said.

Police recovered 18 bodies and are continuing to search for more with the assistance of divers and a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter.

Authorities rescued 32 people from the water and they are in custody on suspicion of attempting to illegally enter the territory. They were in custody in Providenciales, the territory's most populated island.

Turks and Caicos, southeast of the Bahamas, is a frequent destination for Haitian migrants seeking to escape their impoverished country and find work in the British territory's construction and tourism industries.

In November, an overloaded migrant sloop overturned in the southern Bahamas and an estimated 30 people drowned. The area is dotted with many tiny islands, reefs and patches of shallow water, making it treacherous for boaters and a frequent transit zone for smugglers seeking to evade capture.

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18 migrants die in capsizing off Turks and Caicos

8 US islands that are warm now

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Travel

Mark Sullivan Budget Travel

4 hours ago

Craig Litten / AP

The only way to get around Caladesi Island on Florida's West Coast is on your own two feet.

You don't need to splurge on a trip to the Caribbean to spend time on the beach this winter. These eight U.S. islands have the sandy shores, seafood shacks, and sunny skies that will have you thinking it's summer even when there's snow on the ground back home.

Amelia Island, Fla.Average highs of 65/71 in February/March

About as far north as you can go and still be in the Sunshine State, Amelia Island's 13 miles of beaches are mostly deserted until March so it's easy to find a spot where there are no other people in sight. Horseback riding along the sand is one of the most popular off-season activities. Kids have a blast exploring the nooks and crannies of Fort Clinch, one of the country's best-preserved 19th-century fortifications. It was also one of the last of its kind, as new weapons made brick forts obsolete during the Civil War. Boutiques and lovingly restored Victorian mansions make up the historic district.

Sleep: The Seaside Amelia Inn is steps from the beach and has a rooftop terrace perfect for taking in the sunset. Rooms start at just $69 a night.

Refuel: Grab one of the umbrella-shaded tables in the courtyard of Joe's 2nd Street Bistro, where the menu leans, naturally, toward seafood.

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8 US islands that are warm now

Canary Islands – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Canary Islands Islas Canarias (Spanish) Autonomous community Mount Teide on Tenerife, the highest mountain in Spain, is also one of the most visited National Parks in the world.[1][2][3][4] Location of Canary Islands Coordinates: 2806N 1524W / 28.100N 15.400W / 28.100; -15.400Coordinates: 2806N 1524W / 28.100N 15.400W / 28.100; -15.400 Country Spain Capital Santa Cruz and Las Palmas[5] Government President Paulino Rivero (CC) ((CC)) Vice President D. Jos Miguel Prez Garca Area(1.5% of Spain; Ranked 13th) Total 7,493km2 (2,893sqmi) Population (2011)[6] Total 2,117,519 Density 280/km2 (730/sqmi) Pop. rank 8th Ethnic groups 85.7% Spanish, including Canarian people and Peninsulares. 14.3% foreign nationals, mainly German, British, and Moroccan. Demonym Time zone WET (UTC0) Summer (DST) WEST (UTC+1) ISO 3166 code IC (reserved) Anthem Hymn of the Canaries Official language(s) Spanish Statute of Autonomy August 16, 1982 Parliament Cortes Generales Congress seats 15 (of 350) Senate seats 13 (of 264) Website Gobierno de Canarias

Location of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean

The Canary Islands (English / /; Spanish: Islas Canarias [izlas kanajas], locally:[ilah kanajah]), also known as the Canaries (Spanish: Canarias), are a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 kilometres (62 miles) west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are one of Spain's 17 autonomous communities and are among the outermost region of the European Union proper. The islands include (from largest to smallest): Tenerife, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, La Palma, La Gomera, El Hierro, La Graciosa, Alegranza, Isla de Lobos, Montaa Clara, Roque del Este and Roque del Oeste.

The archipelago's beaches, climate and important natural attractions, especially Maspalomas in Gran Canaria and Teide National Park and Mount Teide in Tenerife (the third tallest volcano in the world measured from its base on the ocean floor), make it a major tourist destination with over 12million visitors per year, especially Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote.[7][8] The islands have a subtropical climate, with long warm summers and moderately warm winters.[9] Due to their location above the temperature inversion layer, the high mountains of these islands are ideal for astronomical observation. For this reason, two professional observatories, Teide Observatory on the island of Tenerife and Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on the island of La Palma, have been built on the islands.

The capital of the Autonomous Community is shared by the cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria,[10][11] which in turn are the capitals of the provinces of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Province of Las Palmas. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has been the largest city in the Canaries since 1768, except for a brief period in 1910.[12] Between the 1833 territorial division of Spain and 1927 Santa Cruz de Tenerife was the sole capital of the Canary Islands. In 1927 a decree ordered that the capital of the Canary Islands be shared, as it remains at present.[13][14] The third largest city of the Canary Islands is La Laguna (a World Heritage Site) on Tenerife.[15][16][17]

During the times of the Spanish Empire the Canaries were the main stopover for Spanish galleons on their way to the Americas because of the prevailing winds from the northeast.[citation needed]

The name Islas Canarias is likely derived from the Latin name Canariae Insulae, meaning "Island of the Dogs", a name applied originally only to Gran Canaria. According to the historian Pliny the Elder, the Mauretanian king Juba II named the island Canaria because it contained "vast multitudes of dogs of very large size".[18]

Another speculation is that the so-called dogs were actually a species of Monk Seals (canis marinus or "sea dog" was a Latin term for 'seal'[19]), critically endangered and no longer present in the Canary Islands.[20] The dense population of seals may have been the characteristic that most struck the few ancient Romans who established contact with these islands by sea.

Alternatively, it is said that the original inhabitants of the island, Guanches, used to worship dogs, mummified them and treated dogs generally as holy animals.[21] The ancient Greeks also knew about a people, living far to the west, who are the "dog-headed ones", who worshipped dogs on an island.[21] Some hypothesize that the Canary Islands dog-worship and the ancient Egyptian cult of the dog-headed god, Anubis are closely connected[22] but there is no explanation given as to which one was first.

Other theories speculate that the name comes from a reported Berber tribe living in the Moroccan Atlas, named in Roman sources as Canarii, though Pliny again mentions the relation of this term with dogs.

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Canary Islands - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Villa del Palmar at the Islands of Loreto Partners with Alaska Airlines to Offer Special Gift of Bonus Mile for Guests …

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Islands of Loreto, Baja, Mexico (PRWEB) December 24, 2013

Villa del Palmar at the Islands of Loreto, the newest member of Villa Group Resorts, today announced a gift for travelers just in time for the holidays. Guests who book their stay at the resort by December 31, 2013 for travel between January 1 and April 10, 2014 will receive 500 Alaska Airlines miles per night as a bonus when travelers reference the promotion code AS500M upon check-in at the resort.

This special Holiday Offer also includes:

In addition to the special Holiday Offer, Villa del Palmar at the Islands of Loreto will be celebrating the holiday season and the start of a new year with special dining experiences and menus for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Years Eve. These menus will include traditional American fare, but with a Mexican flavor that is sure to add some spice to the holiday season.

A Festive Fine Dining Christmas Eve in the Islands of Loreto The resort will offer a traditional plated seven-course dinner in its fine dining Danzante Restaurant, the resorts newest restaurant, which specializes in Mexican fusion cuisine including seafood, fresh fish and fine cut meats. For the Christmas Eve feast, guests will delight in a culinary journey that includes chicken croquettes, fresh shrimp, seafood soup, lobster tail, rib-eye steak, three-layer chocolate cake and more. A full menu of holiday offerings is available upon request.

The special meal begins at 6 p.m. December 24 and is a formal affair with a set price of $100 USD per person, taxes included. Guests with all-inclusive packages pay a fee of $30 USD per person. Wine pairings are included. Reservations are required.

Christmas Eve Dinner at The Market For guests looking for a more al fresco affair, Villa del Palmar at the Islands of Loreto will offer a special Christmas Eve Best of the Year menu poolside at The Market Restaurant, which specializes in international fare and Mediterranean-meets-American eats. After being welcomed with a special drink, guests will dine on seafood soup, followed by a chicken croquette with chocolate mole and a surf and turf dish. Guests can indulge in a three-layer chocolate fudge cake with berries, to top it off.

This formal meal is available to adults and kids of any age and is for the set price of $35 USD per person, though children under 12 years old can dine for $17.50 USD. Beverages are not included, though taxes and gratuities are included. The dinner will be available starting at 6:30 p.m. and reservations are required.

Casual Christmas Morning Brunch at The Market For guests who would like to celebrate the season on Christmas morning, Villa del Palmar at the Islands of Loreto is offering a buffet-style Christmas Brunch (Brunch Navidad in Spanish) on December 25, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

This causal meal is available to adults and kids of any age and is for the set price of $40 USD per person, though children under 12 years old can dine for $20 USD. Guests with all-inclusive packages pay a fee of $10 USD per person. Taxes and gratuities are included and reservations are required.

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Villa del Palmar at the Islands of Loreto Partners with Alaska Airlines to Offer Special Gift of Bonus Mile for Guests ...


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