Halloweeny Pirate Fun

Trick or Treat Team, Lyall and Michelle are ready for some spookiness today (below left).




And here is Lyall and the rest of the Guest Welcome Team (above right) at the Orientation meeting yesterday morning - greeting this week's guests with a ho, ho, ho, a bottle of rum AND for somebody...a couple of free tickets to our Pirates of the Caribbean Buffet on Wednesday evening at Castro's Hideaway.


It's the annual Pirates Week celebration in Cayman, so we're getting into the 'spirit' of things today on Halloween with a themed ghost story to shiver your timbers. We present:

'The Ghost Ship of Captain Sandovate'. (As told by S.E. Schlosser)

When Captain Don Sandovate voyaged from Spain to the New World in search of treasure, he found gold in abundance. But among his crew there were many sailors who did not wish to share the new-found wealth with the monarchs of Spain. On their journey up the Atlantic Coast, the sailors mutinied and imprisoned their captain, tying him to the main mast and refusing to give him food or drink. Day after day, the captain lay exposed to the hot sun of summer, his body drying up as the treacherous sailors worked around him. Finally, his pride broken, Don Sandovate begged: "Water. Please. Give me just one sip of water." The mutineers found this amusing, and started carrying water up to the main mast and holding it just out of reach of their former captain.

In the terrible heat of a dry summer, the captain did not survive long without water. A few days after the mutiny, the captain succumbed to heat and thirst. The new captain, a greedy Spaniard with no compassion in his soul, left Don Sandovate tied to the mast, his body withering away, while the ship turned pirate and plundered its way up the coast. But Providence was watching the ruthless men, and a terrible storm arose and drove the ship deep into the Atlantic, where it sank with all hands, the body of Don Sandovate still tied to the broken mast.

Shortly after the death of the mutineers-turned-pirate, an eerie ghost ship began appearing along the coast, usually in the calm just before a storm. It had the appearance of a Spanish treasure ship, but its mast was broken, its sails torn, and the corpse of a noble-looking Spaniard was tied to the mast. The ship was crewed by skeletons in ragged clothing. As it passed other ships or houses near the shore, the skeletons would stretch out bony hands and cry: "Water. Please. Give us just one sip of water." But none can help them, for they are eternally doomed to roam the Atlantic, suffering from thirst in payment for their terrible deeds against their captain and the good people living along the Atlantic coast.

(Add sound FX of whistling wind and crashing waves)

THE END

Oh, and I nearly forgot to show you the cobweb and pumpkin decked Lobby: Here Leona stops by to admire her own handy-work as she takes her Karaoke show on the road (and upstairs to the restaurant).

Busy week for the kids and Leona!

It’s been a busy week for the activities director. Leona has been bombarded with kids from all ages. So far she has done 2 days of t-shirt painting and today the kids are doing deco-podge with cigar boxes, and there will probably be another arts and crafts day tomorrow!! This photo shows a few of the kids wearing their hand painted t-shirts of yesterday and decorating their cigar boxes, looks like fun!!
Last night (Wednesday) was karaoke night, took a little while for the crowd to warm up, but once they did, boy did we all have fun. Karaoke was also led by our activities director, Leona Baker - the tallest one in the photo :o)

Prime Fishing Conditions for Birds

A large, wide-winged sea bird of the tropical seas (wing span up to 6 feet), the Frigate Bird soars for hours on updrafts and may stay at sea all night or for days.

The picture of 2 squiggles is the best of a bad bunch of photos as I tried to catch a group of 7 or 8 of these birds soaring and fishing around the shore-line in Bodden Town after the storm last week.

Being opportunist in character, these birds sometimes travel great distances for food, though generally are non-migratory and stay within 50 miles of their home islands. As they are incapable of taking off from the surface of the water, they swoop down and pick fish just below the surface or leaping above the water); or they may attack other birds in flight and steal the fish that their victims disgorge or drop. The Frigate Bird nests in remote areas or islands on bushes or vegetation.

Tradionally, Westerners thought of the Frigate Bird as a bad omen; the Tahitians saw it as an embodiment of the war god 'Oro. We see is as a sign that the storm is over and it's time for hungry birds to fill their beaks (and Castro agrees).

Hands up, who wants to ride on a Star?

Calm seas and cool waters held strong temptation for the boys today.

As Captain Joey and Super Dave of Ecoventures tested out the brand new 'Star' inflatables (now available for hire from the Ecoventures beach hut along with inflatable windsurfs and 2-man-kayaks), a group of our guests, not to be outdone in the fun-stakes, gathered in the pool for a hearty game of volleyball.

We are careful to maintain the peace and quiet that our guests are used to but now offer variety for those who feel like a touch of adventure every now and again.

We've now seen the last few remaining grey clouds of Wilma and the start of a week filled with sunshine and relaxation for all.

Lady in Red - Wilma

"Gossip is just news running ahead of itself in a red satin dress." Liz Smith

I've got a sneaky feeling that some of the sensational tendencies of the world media has everyone wondering 'Did Cayman sustain a lot of damage from Hurricane Wilma?'.

The good news is that Wilma missed us by a considerable distance and at worst, it was like a wet, blustery fall day in New England. Of course Hurricane Season has us on alert at the slightest sniff of a storm - but we don't worry - we stay prepared.

We should mention for you news hounds that there has been some flooding in the less protected areas of the island - but this has no impact on The Reef as we're standing high and proud here on the East End.

It's not a great story (I know that never stopped us before) but we're all still here at The Reef getting on with life as usual.

Thanks everyone for your concern and kind thoughts - now please stop worrying - we're here to smooth out furrowed brows, not to create them!

Singing In The Rain

It's a rainy day in the Caymans, but this won't stop us from having fun.
While Hurricane Wilma is moving out of our area, Grand Cayman is experiencing mild to heavy rain fall and winds of around 25-35mph.
To keep our guests and owners entertained, Leona our Activities Coordinator is preparing for a fun filled afternoon in the restaurant. On her schedule is Karaoke 'Singing in the rain', Bingo and of course - free Rum Punch!!!
If that doesn't chase away the rainy day blues - we don't know what will!

Breast Cancer Awareness

Breast Cancer Awareness is being commemorated for the 9th time in Cayman, with a variety of activites scheduled throughout October. On Friday, staff at The Reef wore pins in a show of support for one of our colleagues who is currently undergoing treatment for Breast Cancer and of support for the month-long awareness campaign.

The American Cancer Society says that in the 21 years that Breast Cancer Awareness has been promoted worldwide, it has boosted mammogram use and saved lives. Throughout the island, fund-raising and awareness efforts have been taking place, including the Brenda Tibbetts Lund Memorial walk/run which took place yesterday from the Public Beach on West Bay Road.

Ultimate Combo

Happy Hour at Castro's Hideaway combined with a sublime sunset atmosphere is a winner in my book - just had to share this one. (The photo is slightly blurred to help you get the true happy hour 'vision' - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.)

Bill and Rose Bertone from Cape Cod and their friend Joe from Minnesota are seen in this photo, taking full advantage of Linda's hospitality (and the inviting specials between 5 and 7pm) earlier this week.

Meanwhile there's been yet another birthday at The Reef. We surprised Barbara from housekeeping with this cheesecake but she was so busy working away that it melted while we waited for her.



Didn't spoil the taste though. (All this birthday cake is going to take some swimming off I tell you!)

Birthday Bonanza

No it's not a special offer - but it's a special week. Special to us because there are an unusual amount of staff birthdays this week.

Today is Tom's birthday (TomCayman)and Sally's birthday (Odd Blog) - it is also Linera's birthday (although she left the reef last month after many years of service but I think it still counts).

Tomorrow is Enrique's birthday (he's our own Cuban Compadre of everything computerised).

What brought us here to The Reef? Is there a cosmic birthday thing going on? Who knows!

Let us know if it's your birthday this week - we need to know so we can consult the stars. So far it seems that Tom must be the key to the puzzle - you see, he also has another connection to a triumvirate outside of The Reef....

He has three friends with the same birthday. The youngest is John Michael Foster (eldest son of the late David Foster), at 38 today. The oldest is Dr. Gordon Smith, who is 51 today…

For years they would keep bumping into each other out for dinner with their wives on Oct 4th - they found a solution to this and organised a joint birthday dinner - each inviting three other couples.

Answers to the puzzle on the back of a postcard please....Your clues again...October 4th/5th, the number three, Tom McCallum - is there a message? And if so, who is sending it?

More Accessibility

Today's picture shows you the newly enhanced Condo #101. We've added extra accessibility as a smooth concrete sloped-access now leads from the Ocean-front footpath, onto the large raised patio of the Unit.

Whilst Castro's Hideaway (The Reef Resort's own restaurant) and Castro's Beach Bar were designed with access for wheelchair users, we're always keen to improve the quality of freedom and mobility for all, and know that this will be a welcome addition.

Oh, and if you think it looks a little less bright than usual today - check out the quality of our clouds! They're beautiful, displaying lots of silver linings - and that's what a cloud is best for after all!