The festivities Saturday, July 29 and Sunday, July 30, were held both in Colombier and Flamands. In years past, the entire festival took place on the beach in Flamands. However, for the past two years, A.S.C.C.O. has hosted the majority of the activities on its grounds in Colombier. A belote competition kicked off Saturday’s activities at 9:00 AM, followed by various games for children and adults, food and drink, a petanque competition on the court in Flamands, and traditional theater pieces in patois followed by a dance presentation. The festival closed Saturday night with music and dancing. On Sunday, a regatta of the traditional sailboats of St. Barts arrived at the beach of Flamands around 11:30 am. (Lack of more photos due to a knee injury...)

Posted on July 31, 2006 12:00 PM| Permanent Link: Fête des Quartiers du Nord| Comments (0)

The dog days of summer always bring their own activity to the island. Road repairs are in full swing everywhere and many boutiques and other businesses are closing or opening in preparation for November when the majority of tourists will once again begin to descend. Afrik’Art and  What’s Up in Gustavia and Indigo in St. Jean are holding total liquidation sales before closing their doors. The hotel Le Manoir de Marie in Lorient is also selling everything before closing: furniture, paintings, rugs, dishes, glassware and more. These are excellent opportunities to pick up merchandise at dirt-cheap prices. A new fitness center called atmosphere has opened in the former diggings of FormaForm in Gustavia across from the restaurant La Saladerie. The building houses a Fitness Studio on the first floor with memberships available for 1 month, 3 months, 6 months or 12 months, while the second floor is home to a Pilates Studio. Le Piment in St. Jean has been slightly remodeled and is now open from 8:00 AM until midnight, offering breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as snacks and tapas.

Posted on July 31, 2006 11:24 AM| Permanent Link: Retail Openings and Closings| Comments (0)

On July 11, Air Antilles Express began offering three direct flights a day from St. Barts to Pointe à Pitre, Guadeloupe for 169 € round-trip. The flights will depart in the morning, at noon and in the evening and will accommodate 19 passengers aboard a Twin Otter de Havilland DHC-6 plane. For complete details, visit www.airantilles.com.

Posted on July 31, 2006 11:23 AM| Permanent Link: Air Antilles Offers Direct Flights to Guadeloupe| Comments (0)

St. Barts is home to so many good restaurants that even with the annual closings listed below, you will never need to look far for a good meal:

Posted on July 31, 2006 10:35 AM| Permanent Link: St. Barts Summer Restaurant Closings 2006| Comments (0)

The 5th Edition of Boubou’s Music Festival kicks off on August 9 with C-Will & Reese at 9:00 PM and Rafe Gomez at 11:30 PM. The festival will be held at the Christopher Hotel in Pointe Milou with multiple concerts every day until August 20. The pool will be covered to accommodate the estimated 1500 people who are expected to attend the concerts this year. The restaurant will be open to everyone with reservations only. Transportation to and from the festival will be provided by shuttle buses departing from a central parking lot yet to be announced. Tickets are being sold for 15 € at Do Brazil (Shell Beach) and numerous boutiques on the island. See our earlier post here for more info - or visit the official site at www.boubous-festival.com.

Posted on July 31, 2006 10:28 AM| Permanent Link: Boubou's Music Festival update| Comments (0)