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  • Cruising St. Kitts and Nevis at Their Own Pace

    Cruising St. Kitts and Nevis at Their Own Pace

    This outline lays out the core sections of a digital platform dedicated to yachting, marine recreation, and related leisure industries. The platform opens with its branded title, “THE PRINCESS PASSPORT”, and invites visitors to subscribe for regular updates via an email newsletter to stay connected with the latest industry insights, destination guides, and product announcements.

    At the core of the platform’s content offerings are multiple dedicated categories centered on yachting. Three nested sections focus specifically on yachts, featuring in-depth walkthrough videos and articles that showcase different vessel models, their layouts, and key features for potential buyers or enthusiasts. Beyond walkthroughs, the platform also covers two key service segments of the yachting industry: brokerage services for those looking to buy or sell pre-owned vessels, and charter options for travelers seeking to rent a yacht for leisure trips.

    Additional content categories expand beyond core yachting services to cover the full cruising experience. The cruising section features detailed breakdowns of top destinations around the world for marine travel, helping cruisers plan their next voyage. For vessel owners and hobbyists, the platform hosts sections dedicated to marine electronics, performance gear, and a fully functional marine shop where visitors can purchase equipment and supplies. It also offers educational content on boating safety to help operators of all experience levels stay safe on the water. For those interested in coastal leisure beyond yachting itself, there is a dedicated section for marine-related real estate, covering waterfront properties and coastal homes. Finally, a dedicated contact page provides visitors with pathways to reach the platform’s team with inquiries, requests, or feedback.

  • Casa Aybar restoration begins in Santo Domingo’s Colonial City with RD$102 million investment

    Casa Aybar restoration begins in Santo Domingo’s Colonial City with RD$102 million investment

    Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic – A major milestone in cultural heritage preservation and tourism development has been reached in the Dominican capital, as Tourism Minister David Collado formally opened the fully restored Casa Aybar, a landmark historic property located in Santo Domingo’s iconic Colonial City. The $102.3 million Dominican peso restoration project was designed not only to rescue the aging building from deterioration but also to reimagine it as a multi-purpose hub for culture, government administration and visitor engagement.

    The comprehensive rehabilitation initiative addressed a wide range of structural and aesthetic needs of the centuries-old property. Restoration teams carried out full structural consolidation of the building, carefully refurbishing original architectural features including its exterior facades, roof systems, original flooring, wooden doors and window frames. The project also resolved longstanding issues of moisture infiltration and roof leaks that had threatened the building’s integrity, reinforced weakened walls and degraded structural components, and fully upgraded outdated electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, and fire safety systems to meet modern building codes.

    According to Minister Collado, the Casa Aybar restoration forms a core part of the national government’s ongoing, large-scale strategy to revitalize the Colonial City – the Dominican Republic’s premier historic and cultural district, and one of the most significant remaining colonial urban centers in the entire Americas. Over the course of the revitalization campaign, Collado explained, the area has grown steadily in popularity among international travelers, with current data showing that roughly 13% of all tourists arriving in the Dominican Republic now include a visit to the Colonial City in their itineraries.

    Following its restoration, Casa Aybar will deliver expanded cultural and tourist services to both local and international guests. The fully renovated historic building will host institutional offices, public cultural and tourism service areas, a centralized ticketing counter, tourist information pavilions, and flexible spaces for rotating temporary art and history exhibitions. A newly constructed auxiliary building on the site will add public amenities including visitor restrooms and a public cafeteria.

    Beyond the boundaries of the Casa Aybar property itself, the project included surrounding neighborhood improvements, most notably the full rehabilitation of nearby La Atarazanas Street. Work there included repaving the roadway, resurfacing sidewalks, updating curbs, restoring historic stone steps, and installing an improved stormwater drainage system to reduce flooding risk in the area. All construction and restoration work is being overseen by the Executive Committee for Infrastructure in Tourist Zones (CEIZTUR), the country’s specialized body for tourism-related infrastructure development.

    Minister Collado noted that to date, the Dominican Ministry of Tourism has allocated nearly $10 million U.S. dollars to revitalization projects across the Colonial City. This funding has supported the restoration of multiple historic landmarks and public gathering spaces, including the completed Museum of the Sea, Ozama Fortress, Cathedral Museum, and Gate of Mercy. Additional completed work includes interior and exterior renovations for more than 12 historic churches, and widespread infrastructure upgrades to sidewalks and curbs across the district.

    Looking forward, Collado emphasized that sustained public investment in the Colonial City is guided by two core goals: protecting the district’s irreplaceable cultural heritage for future generations, and making the historic area more accessible, welcoming, and attractive to local residents, Dominican domestic travelers, and international visitors alike.

  • Symmonds warns of economic exposure from volatile oil markets

    Symmonds warns of economic exposure from volatile oil markets

    For a small island nation like Barbados, decades of heavy reliance on foreign-sourced fossil fuels have created a critical economic vulnerability that leaves the country exposed to sudden, devastating shifts in global energy markets, the country’s top energy official has warned. Speaking at a national public forum focused on the state of Barbados’ energy sector held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Minister of Energy, Business Development and Consumer Affairs Kerrie Symmonds outlined how ongoing global geopolitical instability – particularly disruptions threatening key oil transit chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz – can trigger extreme price volatility that directly passes through to household and business costs across the country.

    With more than 90% of Barbados’ total fossil fuel demand met through imports, the country has no buffer to absorb sudden crude price swings, which pose a persistent threat to the island’s overall economic stability. Symmonds clarified that supply chain access has not been the immediate challenge for Barbados; instead, the core risk lies in the country’s full exposure to unpredictable global cost fluctuations. “The potential for geopolitical instability to drive up international oil prices and consequently the cost of energy to Barbadians is at the core of our concerns. We are in a very vulnerable situation with respect to that, and it is a vulnerability that the government of Barbados will not ignore,” he told attendees.

    To underscore the scale of the risk, Symmonds shared official import data showing a dramatic surge in national energy spending over the past five years. Using 2019 as a pre-crisis baseline, the country spent $728 million on imported fossil fuels that year. But global market shocks triggered by international events sent that figure skyrocketing in subsequent years. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, a conflict entirely outside of Barbados’ control, caused import costs to jump 54% year-over-year, pushing the annual fossil fuel import bill to a staggering $1.123 billion.

    Even after global oil prices retreated from their 2022 peaks, costs have remained far above pre-crisis averages. In 2023, total fossil fuel import spending hit $1.1 billion – 40% higher than 2019 levels – and in 2024, expenditures stayed at $951 million, which is still 31% above pre-conflict benchmarks. Symmonds emphasized that these elevated energy costs do not stay isolated to the energy sector; they ripple through every corner of the domestic economy, pushing up overall inflation, straining the country’s limited foreign exchange reserves, and driving up the cost of living for all Barbadians. “So we see the pattern of surging energy prices impacting everything. And quite frankly, there’s a knock-on effect as we all in here know across our economy with respect to the cost of electricity, with respect to the cost of transportation… and most importantly with respect to the question of the cost of living for all of the consumers in Barbados,” he said.

    When global crude prices spiked sharply earlier this year, jumping from roughly $60 per barrel in January to more than $106 per barrel by March, the Barbadian government implemented emergency short-term measures to cushion the blow for consumers. For the first time in the National Energy Company’s history, officials launched an oil hedging program to lock in fixed prices for imports. The initial hedge was set at $92 per barrel, which protected domestic consumers from the worst of the market peak over a three-month period. A follow-up hedge was secured at $78 per barrel, continuing to shield Barbadian consumers even as global benchmark prices stayed around $93 per barrel.

    But while the hedging program delivered temporary relief, Symmonds stressed that short-term financial tools cannot fix the structural vulnerability created by dependence on imported fossil fuels. “The lesson I think is very straightforward. We cannot control geopolitical events. But what we can do is to strengthen our resilience to their consequences,” he said. Looking ahead, the minister argued that the only path to long-term energy price stability and permanent protection from unpredictable external shocks is accelerating the transition to locally generated renewable energy, upgrading the country’s national power grid infrastructure, and rolling out widespread national energy conservation initiatives. “The larger issue facing the energy sector in Barbados still has to be confronted. And that issue turns on the question of stability. It turns on the question of predictability. And frankly, ladies and gentlemen, it turns on the question of us being able to ensure that our consumers get the lowest, most practical rate,” Symmonds added.

  • LIVE: Virtually Rally for Roseau North Danny Lugay brought to you by ERC

    LIVE: Virtually Rally for Roseau North Danny Lugay brought to you by ERC

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  • Antigua and Barbuda Steps Up Cultural-Sensitivity Training Ahead of CHOGM 2026

    Antigua and Barbuda Steps Up Cultural-Sensitivity Training Ahead of CHOGM 2026

    As the twin-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda gears up to welcome thousands of delegates and international visitors for the 2026 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), a nationwide push is underway to upskill customer-facing workers through specialized cultural sensitivity and customer service training.

    Tourism Minister Charles “Max” Fernandez has publicly urged all frontline hospitality and service employees to take part in the capacity-building program, which is organized under the Antigua and Barbuda Hotels and Tourism Association’s E.A.S.E. Customer Service Excellence Programme. Open not only to traditional hotel staff but to all members of the public whose work brings them into contact with international guests, the initiative is designed to equip participants with the tools to engage confidently with visitors from all 56 Commonwealth member states, each with distinct cultural backgrounds and social norms.

    In comments on the program, Fernandez emphasized that hosting CHOGM represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Antigua and Barbuda to put its best foot forward to the world. Beyond showcasing the stunning natural beauty of its tropical islands, the nation has a chance to demonstrate the warmth, professionalism, and hospitality that set its people apart, he said.

    Unlike many event-specific preparedness efforts that focus only on core hospitality workers, the E.A.S.E. program casts a wide net, acknowledging that every interaction a visitor has with a local shapes their perception of the country. Fernandez stressed that this shared responsibility extends to workers across nearly every sector of the tourism economy: restaurant staff, taxi drivers, tour attraction employees, marina workers, airport personnel, and all other customer-facing roles are all informal ambassadors for Antigua and Barbuda, with every encounter leaving a lasting impression on guests.

    The comprehensive training curriculum covers far more than basic customer service. Alongside core modules on cultural sensitivity to help workers navigate cross-cultural interactions respectfully and effectively, the program includes coursework on customer experience design, clear interpersonal communication, emotional intelligence, de-escalation and conflict resolution, and service recovery protocols to address guest concerns quickly.

    Beyond the immediate goal of delivering seamless, high-quality service during the 2026 CHOGM, the training is a long-term investment in Antigua and Barbuda’s tourism competitiveness, Fernandez explained. The skills gained through the program will prepare the local workforce to deliver exceptional service for all future major international events, and align with the country’s broader strategic goal of positioning itself as a top-tier destination for the global meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) industry.

    “ The skills you gain through EASE … will prepare you to deliver exceptional service at CHOGM and for every international event that follows,” Fernandez told prospective participants.

    To recognize the commitment of workers who complete the full program, all successful participants will receive an official EASE pin, a visible marker of their dedication to service excellence and their pride in representing Antigua and Barbuda on the global stage.

  • Belize Wants Your Dusty Old Records: Here’s Why

    Belize Wants Your Dusty Old Records: Here’s Why

    In a landmark move to safeguard its unique cultural legacy, the Central American nation of Belize has officially unveiled the Belize Music Archive, a groundbreaking national initiative focused on preserving the country’s at-risk recorded musical history for future generations. Spearheaded by the country’s National Institute of Culture and History (NICH), the project combines public infrastructure investment with a nationwide call for community participation to recover audio materials that have long been held in private hands.

    A core component of the new initiative is the opening of the purpose-built Belize Music Archive Lab, a specialized workspace hosted at the Belize Archives and Records Service (BARS) facility. The lab is equipped to handle four key tasks that address the growing threat of degradation to analog audio materials: large-scale digitization, long-term climate-controlled preservation, professional restoration of damaged recordings, and comprehensive academic documentation of each item’s cultural and historical context. To grow the archive’s initial collection, NICH is actively encouraging Belizean households and private collectors who hold rare recordings, personal live performance tapes, or historical family audio materials to share their items for processing. Once digitized, original materials will be returned to owners, with digital copies added to the public national archive for preservation and public access.

    During the official launch ceremony, Belize’s Minister of Culture Francis Fonseca also introduced a new formal designation: National Recording Treasures of Belize. This official recognition will be granted to audio recordings that demonstrate exceptional cultural, historical, artistic, or social value to the nation, shining a spotlight on works that capture the full diversity of Belize’s cultural identity. The first cohort of 100 recordings set to receive this designation will be unveiled before the end of 2026, a collection intentionally curated to represent generations of Belizean artists spanning every major community, language group, musical genre, and cultural tradition across the country. Moving forward, the Belize Music Project will take over annual stewardship of the designation program, with plans to add at least 10 new National Recording Treasures to the roster each year starting in 2027.

    Cultural heritage officials note that many of Belize’s most iconic musical works and grassroots recordings have never been formally preserved, with analog formats like cassette tapes, vinyl records, and reel-to-reel recordings degrading steadily in private storage. The new archive addresses this gap by creating a centralized, professionally managed repository that ensures these irreplaceable pieces of national history will not be lost to time.

  • Sisserou Parrot statue set to become world’s tallest when Dominica cable car is complete

    Sisserou Parrot statue set to become world’s tallest when Dominica cable car is complete

    The Caribbean island nation of Dominica is on track to claim a new world record as it nears completion of its flagship cable car infrastructure project, anchored by a monumental Sisserou Parrot statue set to become the tallest of its kind on the globe.

    Developed by local firm ABL Holdings, the project combines cultural identity, natural heritage, and tourism ambition to create a one-of-a-kind landmark at the cable car route’s summit station. According to an official press release from the developer, the massive brass sculpture of the endemic Sisserou Parrot will measure 23 feet in height, mounted atop a seven-foot marble pedestal to reach a total height of 30 feet. The entire structure tips the scales at approximately 4,700 kilograms, or 10,300 pounds, far outscaling any existing parrot monument built to date.

    Currently, the title of world’s tallest parrot statue belongs to a 13-foot King Parrot sculpture in Eildon, Australia. While multiple countries have erected large-scale bird monuments, ABL Holdings notes that the Dominica statue will be the first parrot sculpture of this unprecedented size. The Sisserou Parrot, scientifically named Amazona imperialis, is found nowhere on Earth outside of Dominica, and holds a central place as the island’s most cherished national symbol. It is prominently featured on Dominica’s national flag, which stands out as one of the only national flags in the world that incorporates the color purple into its design.

    This record-breaking parrot statue is not just a novelty attraction; it is intentionally crafted to serve as a compelling introduction to Dominica’s extraordinary natural biodiversity for visiting tourists, while tying the island’s distinct national identity to its expanding goals for tourism growth and infrastructure development. The monument is sited at the top station of what is planned to be the world’s longest monocable car route, a major infrastructure project scheduled to open to the public in late 2026.

    Alongside the iconic parrot statue, the summit station will also feature a second unique installation: the Golden Love Bird, designed as a romantic destination for couples visiting the island. This special sculpture will incorporate rings donated by thousands of couples who have built long-lasting relationships, turning the artwork into a collective symbol of mutual commitment, enduring love, and lasting partnership. Per the project’s design, couples who walk beneath the Golden Love Bird will receive a symbolic blessing for a long, happy marriage.

    In its press release, ABL Holdings emphasized that the two complementary attractions bring together multiple layers of Dominica’s identity, merging natural heritage, tourism development, innovative engineering, and cultural symbolism at the peak of one of the island nation’s most ambitious infrastructure projects in modern history.

  • Trough to bring rain and storms; Monitored System reaches 50% cyclone potential

    Trough to bring rain and storms; Monitored System reaches 50% cyclone potential

    On Sunday, August 23, 2026, the Dominican Institute of Meteorology (Indomet) released a comprehensive daily weather forecast for the Dominican Republic, outlining shifting conditions across the day alongside long-term monitoring of tropical system development in the Atlantic basin. Forecasters attributed the day’s unsettled precipitation pattern to two key atmospheric drivers: the slow approach of a tropical wave and the persistent influence of an upper-level trough.

    Through the early morning hours, the agency projected weak to moderate scattered rainfall across multiple northeastern and southeastern regions, including the heavily populated Greater Santo Domingo area as well as Samaná, María Trinidad Sánchez, Duarte, Sánchez Ramírez, La Romana, San Pedro de Macorís, and La Altagracia. Conditions are expected to shift by the afternoon, when isolated heavy downpours will develop across northwestern and southwestern provinces, including Monte Plata, Santiago Rodríguez, Dajabón, Elías Piña, and the northern half of San Juan. Forecasters warn these intense afternoon storms will likely bring thunder and lightning, with possible sudden gusty wind that could create localized hazards.

    In addition to precipitation, Indomet noted that a thin veil of Saharan dust will continue to linger over the entire country, creating a hazy, gray, opaque sky through much of the day. Compounding this atmospheric condition is a persistent heat warning: the institute emphasized that high temperatures will remain in place, with elevated thermal sensation that poses health risks to vulnerable populations. To mitigate heat-related illness, officials have urged all residents to drink water regularly, wear loose-fitting, light-colored lightweight clothing, and avoid unprotected extended exposure to direct sunlight. They specifically reminded the public that children, pregnant people, and older adults face heightened vulnerability to heat complications.

    Beyond daily forecasts, Indomet is actively monitoring tropical cyclone development across the Atlantic. Forecasters project that a new tropical wave will exit the west coast of Africa early next week, with the system expected to organize into a low-pressure area shortly after emerging over open water. Over the next seven days, the system has a 50% chance of strengthening to tropical cyclone status. Due to its potential long-term trajectory, Indomet has stressed the importance of continuous monitoring to track any changes in the system’s path and intensity.

    Forecasters are also tracking two other disorganized areas of storm activity in the Atlantic, though both pose no immediate threat to the Dominican Republic. The first system is positioned northeast of the Azores Islands, holding just a 10% chance of cyclonic development over the next 48 hours. The second, located east of Bermuda, has a slightly higher 20% chance of organization over the same period. Neither is projected to track toward Caribbean waters in the coming days.

    Indomet has urged the Dominican public to stay updated on changing weather conditions by accessing official forecasts through its official web portal, www.indomet.gob.do, and its social media channels @indometrd.

  • American Canadian School of Medicine press conference

    American Canadian School of Medicine press conference

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  • Indomet forecasts showers and thunderstorms in several Dominican provinces

    Indomet forecasts showers and thunderstorms in several Dominican provinces

    Weather officials in the Dominican Republic have released a detailed daily forecast outlining mixed atmospheric conditions driven by multiple climate systems across the island nation. The Dominican Institute of Meteorology, known locally as Indomet, attributes the expected precipitation to a moving upper-level trough that will trigger uneven rainfall across different regions through the day.

    Through the early morning hours, the system will bring isolated, scattered showers to communities stretching along the country’s Caribbean coastline. The most affected provinces during this period will be San Cristóbal, the wider Santo Domingo metropolitan area, San Pedro de Macorís, La Romana, and La Altagracia, all of which can expect brief, scattered downpours that will not likely cause widespread disruption.

    As the day progresses into the afternoon, the trough’s influence will shift northward to the Cibao region, where concentrated local downpours will be paired with isolated thunderstorms. The areas at highest risk of afternoon storm activity include Monseñor Nouel, La Vega, Santiago Rodríguez, Valverde, and Dajabón, with adjacent provinces also expected to see stormy conditions. Forecasters add that strong, sudden wind gusts may accompany the afternoon thunderstorms, prompting residents to keep an eye on changing conditions through the end of the day.

    For most other parts of the country not impacted by the precipitation, conditions will remain mostly clear, ranging from full sun to light haze. Indomet notes that only a low concentration of Saharan dust is currently present over the nation, keeping haze levels minimal compared to previous dust events this season.

    Despite the scattered storms, the institute also issued a reminder that high heat will persist across every region of the Dominican Republic, with the heat index reaching levels that can pose risks for people spending extended time outdoors.