H O R I Z O N S

Monday, 21 February 2011 09:17

By Chris Hall / Daily Mail UK

This is a real photograph from one of the most mysterious environments in the world:

80ft below the surface, the Cascade room in Dan’s Cave, on Abaco Island in the Bahamas, is one of the most sensational chambers in the cave system

80ft below the surface, the Cascade room in Dan’s Cave, on Abaco Island in the Bahamas, is one of the most sensational chambers in the cave system

No, it’s not a still from Sanctum – although James Cameron’s new diving film was inspired by a near-catastrophic expedition by the man who took these pictures, Wes C Skiles.

This is a real photograph from one of the most mysterious environments in the world. You could visit Abaco Island, in the Bahamas, and have no idea that beneath you lies this vast network of caves, accessible by as many as a thousand ‘blue holes’ – submerged vertical caves peppered with entrances to this forbidding domain.

Exploring these passages is the diving equivalent of climbing K2 – you’ve got to be exceptionally well trained and well prepared. Even then, safety is no guarantee; Wes C Skiles died during a dive last summer. Sanctum is dedicated to him.

Of the 1,000 or so blue holes in the Bahamas, fewer than 20 per cent have been investigated, and almost none fully explored. It’s a perilous mission to undertake; the caves are pitch black, vast and labyrinthine: the deepest blue holes can be 600ft deep, and the connecting caves run on for thousands of feet in all directions.

Divers maintain a taut safety line at all times. Without it, it could be nigh on impossible to find your way out before your air supply runs out. Divers carry three tanks of nitrox mix – one to use on the way in, one on the way out, and one for emergencies – and three lights, which are used to communicate as well as navigate. Standard practice states that if any one light fails for any diver, the whole dive is called off.

In Sawmill Sink, another of Abaco's blue holes, bacteria colour the water a violent red, and signal the presence of hydrogen sulphide clouds

February 21, 2011 10:22 PM

An official groundbreaking was held in the Bahamas on Monday for Baha Mar, a 1,000-acre, $3.4 billion resort, gaming and entertainment complex, slated to open in late 2014. Present at the ceremony were T. Brent Symonette, deputy prime minister; Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, minister of tourism and aviation; Li Ruogu, chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of China; and Hu Dingxian, ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Bahamas.

The upscale resort will feature hotel properties from Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, Morgans Hotel Group and Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, and will also feature a world-class casino hotel, for a total of 2,250 new hotel rooms. Baha Mar will also include the Bahamas’ largest convention center, with 200,000 square feet of space. Other facilities will include a 50,000-square-foot retail village combining an upscale shopping experience with Bahamian arts and crafts, branded restaurants and entertainment venues, and a 20-acre Eco Water Park and pool experience, three spas and an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature golf. Baha Mar will create 12,000 new jobs generate more than $305 million in annual wages, raising the average annual income for a Bahamian family from $29,000 to $33,500, according to the project organizers, who added that the resort will contribute almost $1 billion to the local economy in its first year.
For more information, visit www.bahamar.com

The Bahamas is well known in the world of Sports, especially Track and Field. However, Tennis has been making a major splash, thanks to our very own Mark Knowles (son of Vicky Knowles-Andrews and brother to Samara Albury, HG Christie’s 2010 Top Producers for Nassau and Paradise Island)who has been representing the Bahamas on the International circuit for almost two decades.

Now for the first time in our history, the Bahamas is set to host a major International Women’s Professional Tennis tournament, The Bahamas Open.

The International Tennis Federation has awarded the Bahamas a one-year sanction to host a Pro Women’s tennis tournament, in anticipation that the Bahamas can be a regular tour stop on the International tennis circuit.

This historic event will take place on March 14th, 2011 to March 19th, 2011. The qualifying rounds will start on Friday, March 11th, 2011. The top 100 women pro players in the world are invited to this event, and there will be Singles and Doubles. Almost half of the top 15 in the world are expected to participate in this event as well, even though this is not a mandatory event for them.

The Bahamas Open will feature a classic display of professional tennis for the first time in our history. No other country in the Caribbean have held a tournament of this size either, and the Bahamas is coordinating with our neighbors to host this once-in-a-lifetime event, for the benefit and enjoyment of all. And, even though the prize money is only $100,000.00, the emphasis is on staging a memorable tennis classic, that the world will recognize the Bahamas as a major player in international tennis.

Read more…

http://www.thebahamasopen.com/

Rating Countries for the Happiness Factor
According to a Bloomberg Businessweek article:
A study pulled together from sources and surveys found that good health care and education are as important as wealth to modern happiness and ranked The Bahamas in the Top 5 places to live on the globe!

World’s Happiest Countries

No. 5: Bahamas

Population: 303,800
Life Expectancy: 65.6 years
GDP Per Capita: $20,200

“Bahamians know how to enjoy life. “Maybe it’s our ‘Bahama Mamas,’ our sweet sea breeze, our conch salad, and fun loving people,” suggests Kendenique Campbell-Moss, a senior executive at the Bahamas Tourism Ministry. Although the poverty rate, at 9.3%, is relatively high, the beautiful weather and laid-back lifestyle keep Bahamas’ citizens smiling. Campbell-Moss also reckons the fusion of African and European cultures, strong family values, and Christianity contribute to the happy vibe in the Caribbean country.”

Read full article:
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/oct2006/gb20061011_072596.htm

Thinking of getting that someone special the ultimate Christmas Gift, how about a Polo match with Prince William,

Meet Prince William at The Chakravarty Cup Polo Match

Better yet , why not their own Private Island??? In The Bahamas…

The Bahamas is a necklace of over 700 hundred islands and cays (pronounced ‘keys’). One of these gorgeous gems could be yours. Take ‘Bird Cay’ this is an amazing private island that could be all yours!!

http://www.hgchristie.com/details/berry-islands/private-island-bs10570

Bird Cay

A haven of beauty and tranquility, this 250 acre tropical island is located at the south end of the Berry Islands chain, just 30 minutes by air from Nassau.

Should you wish to put this under the tree for your honey, here are a few of the features you would be bestowing on that special someone this Christmas:

Map of Bird Cay

An historic two-story main residence, five colorful waterfront cottages, and a guest house overlooking nearby Whale Cay. Admittedly, all of these are in need of intensive TLC. However, this may be just the project your honey is looking for in 2011. Then add to the project list a boathouse, a small shop, a carpenter’s shop, a rainwater tank, two generators, a three car garage, storage buildings, a machine shop, paint and gas storage. This is enough to get your creative juices pumping and to allow you to create your own private oasis – just as you envision it.

If you wish to take a little trip off of YOUR island, Chub Cay lies just west of Bird Cay and offers an excellent marina , a private resort club, restaurants, and a 5,000 foot airstrip with regular and chartered flights to Nassau.

Bird Cay Shoreline Elevations

Don’t fret. Your island kingdom is well protected on all sides by neighboring islands and sand banks. You will want to bring your boats and rods though, because the proximity to the Great Bahama Bank and the Tongue of the Ocean makes this an excellent fishing, sailing, and scuba-diving paradise.

Ahhhh days in the sun…. with over 4.75 Miles of water frontage Bird Cay offers sandy beaches, crystalline waters, spectacular ocean views, gentle prevailing breezes, numerous landscaped trails, gardens, mature tropical palms, Casuarina trees, as well as citrus and coconut groves.

Bird Cay Staff Cottages

A little golf anyone?? Given the considerable flowing lawn that surrounds the main house, a few golf holes could easily be constructed on the island.

While it may not be easy to wrap this is one Christmas gift that is quite simply a tropical paradise tailor-made for a business retreat, a family compound, or a stunning island resort.

Bird Cay Aerial

Forget the Partridge. This is the kind of ‘bird’ that your true love will REALLY appreciate. I can fully see the ‘Twelve Days of Christmas’ containing the amendment: “On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me – a private island called Bird Cay”

Bird Cay Eastern Beach

So, last night I was reading about NASA’s news conference scheduled for 2 p.m. EST today, Thursday, Dec. 2,

to discuss an astrobiology finding that will impact the search for evidence of extraterrestrial life. Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life in the universe

http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/nov/HQ_M10-167_Astrobiology.html

This got me thinking. As I pondered life in the universe, the synapses triggered associations such as, the lyrics of a great Bahamian Calypso/Rake N Scrape song, that goes,

“We headin’ in ta deep Space an’ we takin’ Rake ‘n Scrape”

The more I thought about it the more I think that the folks at NASA may want to take a look at the Rake N Scrape capital of the world, Cat Island, Bahamas.

Cat Island holds an annual Rake N Scrape Festival showcasing this infectious genre of music comprised of a cast of characters, resourceful musical instruments and clever, often humourous, lyrics.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qneSWfo51sU

AND … Should NASA locate our extraterrestrial neighbors, Cat Island, Bahamas is seeming to be the ideal location to invite them to visit.
Renowned actor and Bahamian Ambassador, Sir Sidney Poitier, who was born in Cat Island, Bahamas

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidney_Poitier

Sir Sidney, once said in an interview, “… My knowledge of the world was gathered in Cat Island and Nassau. I learned from how people lived and what constituted a good person, in Cat Island. ”
Therefore, I am confident that Cat Island would be sure to provide NASA’s new found guests some great insights into our world.

Without a doubt, Cat Island represents some of the best ‘natural beauty’ our ‘blue planet’ offers. The ‘Family Islands’ or the ‘Out Islands’ of the Bahamas are billed as ‘The Real Bahamas’

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwDBPXEQ1ik
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAvmiPOLEuc
You know, the more I pondered this, the more I realized that Aliens, Rake N Scrape and Cat Island, Bahamas were closer than the ‘6 degrees of separation to Kevin Bacon’.

A new connection arises.

Could Hollywood, an expert on aliens and extraterrestrials, have known of the association to ‘Cat Island’ when it produced the 1953’s movie “Cat Women on the Moon”? http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1729535744/tt0045609

yet, you don’t need a rocket ship to get there.

So, should NASA find success in their new venture, I wish to advise them that Cat Island, Bahamas awaits the newly tapped potential tourism market.
Make sure to check out our some of our current listings in Cat Island, while you play that Rake N Scrape.
http://www.hgchristie.com/details/cat-island/vacant-land-cs10576
http://www.hgchristie.com/details/cat-island/income-property-cs10551
http://www.hgchristie.com/details/cat-island/greenwood-estates/house-cs10620
http://www.hgchristie.com/details/cat-island/hawks-nest/vacant-land-cs10622
http://www.hgchristie.com/rentals/details/cat-island/house-s91
Other Cat Island related videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvu5wmong5ERake N Scrape

You got to check this out! Follow our own Peter Christie (Balamena 11) as he participates in the Nassau Cup 2010. This LIVE GPS tracking is awesome – you will be addicted. With Mr. Christie, is our own Dwayne Wallas. Please feel free to share messages of encouragement for them as they participate in this exciting Miami- Nassau Race.

http://www.trackleaders.com/nassau

Nassau Cup 2010 live tracker by trackleaders.com

Image courtesy Foster + Partners

Could Hong Kong’s new development plans support my traffic musing for developing downtown Nassau?

So often I sit in traffic heading from the Eastern End of the New Providence Island for over an hour.  This slow pace is perpetuated by the business community attempting to get to their place of employment, concomitant with the start of schools, via limited arterial vehicle access to downtown Nassau.  While an argument for public transportation, car pooling, biking, etc… can be made within this subject, as someone engaged in real estate, I ponder what opportunities lay in my field of expertise when this challenge is applied.  Like Hong Kong, we are an island and the land mass ends at some point.

What if some of these folks don’t need to be near the school anymore?  Are there heavy hitters in our vibrant island city that would enjoy waking up and walking to work?  What if after work they were able to play downtown? I suddenly have visions of dining, cinema/theater, grocery stores, banking, a cultural epicenter  and more swimming in my head.  I wax nationalistic and think of the improved experience for our downtown tourist visitors.

I pause and acknowledge my environmental conscious, keeping a watchful eye on the news from Dubai

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/28/business/energy-environment/28dubai.html?_r=3&nl=&emc=aua22

I am ever mindful of over development or development that does not consider the intrinsic needs of the land and its people.  Yet, could this be an opportunity that is good for all?  Much of our current prime Nassau real estate remains downtown in neglected conditions.  Could commercial and residential combine to create a revitalized area whose benefits extend these areas?

Is the Capital City of Nassau a prime opportunity for the right investors to create a mirror project, on a smaller scale, such as the one being under taken in Hong Kong?  Hmmmm….. this musing is making more sense everyday  – honk, honk…

Image by BlogMama via Flickr

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In a recent Toast Master’s District 47 Executive Council meeting held in Ft. Myers, Florida, HG Christie’s Agent and Appraiser, Elbert Thompson , was named the Area Governor of the 2nd Quarter for District 47.

Elbert has captured this esteemed honor after 13 distinguished years with Toastmasters International and has competed and won several contests throughout the years. Rising as a leader during his affiliation with this well-regarded organization that is dedicated to enhancing communication and leadership skills, Elbert also served as a club president. His stellar performance within the Toastmaster’s organization has now yielded wider recognition with this prestigious award for a district that stretches across the Bahamas and South Florida, from Key West to Tampa. This represents approximately 5,000 members and 42 areas.

HG Christie salutes Elbert in this outstanding accomplishment. During his professional career Elbert has maximized his speaking talents, knowledge and exceptional training skills in many venues. One of Mr. Thompson’s most memorable posts in the Bahamas where his exceptional skills could be witnessed was as a news anchor and reporter with the national televisionand radio station, ZNS.

When congratulated he remarked, “I was truly shocked and humbled by the honours when my name was called and I thank all of the Area 83 clubs, their executive officers, members and Area 83 Council members as their work and cooperation has made this all possible. GO AREA 83!!!!”

HG Christie is proud to have Elbert Thompson as a valued member of our team. Elbert shines not only at Toastmasters but professionally as well. A respected appraiser, a Top Producing Agent and recently a proficient company trainer. So “GO ELBERT! Shine on!”

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