8/6/2011
We made heavy weather of our little 12 mile line of sight sail to Mustique! The gentle Easterly was converted by a localized squall into a NE beat against a bitch of a current once we rounded Pigeon island on the way back up to Britannia Bay. When we skirted Montezuma Shoal , sailing into the anchorage, we did not know that the splendid homestead, with the infinity pool, behind which lay an entertainment /bar area, wedged between two hotel sized accommodation wings, belonged to Celine Dion!
Now we do! It was still a bitch of a beat, but at least we can dream about the day we entertained and enthralled the great diva with our own little show! We learned later she wasn’t even in residence!!
The island is different, with its Kirstenbosch like gardens, and carefully manicured lawns, laid out picnic areas, barbeque facilities, gazebo’s, sign posted nature trails, horse riding centre, cricket field, tennis courts, library etc, all owned and controlled by the 100 “elite” owners, who make up the “whose who” of the entertainment world. We did the “Island tour”, and were shown where some of the celebs have their pads…. Mick Jagger, Bryan Adams, Tommy Hellfiger, Late Princess Margaret etc. We also were shown Corporate Homes where the big execs of organizations such as Merryll Lynch and Lacoste take time out to recover from their daily stresses! 
Hotels such as the Cotton House, and the Firefly, sell their facilities as “An experience, not just a hotel”, an
d attract large numbers of honeymooners wishing to sample the lifestyle of the rich and famous. 
The shops were indeed lovely, but expensive! A
$3 EC beer would cost $15EC (R45) at Basils, but who knows which of the locals might pitch up?
On our last day there, Mary and I did a walk from Basils along the waterfront around to the point. The path took us through mangrove swamp areas, past bird hides, and beautiful picnic spots, through groves of carefully ma
rked and 
signposted poisonous Machineel trees. Boards instruct one never to eat the “apples”, or to seek shelter from the rain under these lovely looking lush trees, as they are highly toxic: a fact we discovered for ourselves later that night.
I had collected a little pile of these apples to ph
otograph, handing the camera to Mary afterwards to wash my hands in the sea. Later that night, Mary had a violent allergic shock reaction to something, with her throat and tongue swelling up alarmingly to the point where she could not talk or swallow. Antihistamines made no difference, and by 2.00am Mary managed to swallow and keep down two Cortizone tablets, without gagging. Slowly but surely the swelling came down to the point where she felt she might survive the night. We spent a very frightening six hours waiting for daylight and the clinic to open with the visiting doctor, where we were forced to join the waiting queue before being seen by Dr Teddy. He was so distracted by Mary’s sky high BP, that he would not listen to our previous experiences, and was convinced that Mary had suffered a mini stroke( TIA). Even when her BP came back to normal without medication, he kept seeing paralysis in one or both side of her face, and was convinced that her swollen tongue( twice normal size at 2,00am) was only normal size but paralysed. He instructed Mary to double her BP medication , and to do nothing strenuous!
Having seen Mary’s allergic reactions to the “No Seeums” in Brazil, and the Sand Dollar fibre toxins, we are still totally convinced that the problem was a “cross allergic shock reaction” to the Machineel tree. She had handled the camera after I had handled the apples, and washed my hands. Cortizone was her salvation in Brazil, and was again the answer in Mustique. Lesson learnt….If you are susceptible to allergic reactions ----- don’t go near a Machineel tree!
This little drama delayed our departure to Salt Whistle Bay, some 20 miles south in Mayreau where we met up once again with “Jervon” a day later.
We made heavy weather of our little 12 mile line of sight sail to Mustique! The gentle Easterly was converted by a localized squall into a NE beat against a bitch of a current once we rounded Pigeon island on the way back up to Britannia Bay. When we skirted Montezuma Shoal , sailing into the anchorage, we did not know that the splendid homestead, with the infinity pool, behind which lay an entertainment /bar area, wedged between two hotel sized accommodation wings, belonged to Celine Dion!
Now we do! It was still a bitch of a beat, but at least we can dream about the day we entertained and enthralled the great diva with our own little show! We learned later she wasn’t even in residence!!
The island is different, with its Kirstenbosch like gardens, and carefully manicured lawns, laid out picnic areas, barbeque facilities, gazebo’s, sign posted nature trails, horse riding centre, cricket field, tennis courts, library etc, all owned and controlled by the 100 “elite” owners, who make up the “whose who” of the entertainment world. We did the “Island tour”, and were shown where some of the celebs have their pads…. Mick Jagger, Bryan Adams, Tommy Hellfiger, Late Princess Margaret etc. We also were shown Corporate Homes where the big execs of organizations such as Merryll Lynch and Lacoste take time out to recover from their daily stresses! 
Hotels such as the Cotton House, and the Firefly, sell their facilities as “An experience, not just a hotel”, an
d attract large numbers of honeymooners wishing to sample the lifestyle of the rich and famous. 
The shops were indeed lovely, but expensive! A
$3 EC beer would cost $15EC (R45) at Basils, but who knows which of the locals might pitch up?On our last day there, Mary and I did a walk from Basils along the waterfront around to the point. The path took us through mangrove swamp areas, past bird hides, and beautiful picnic spots, through groves of carefully ma
rked and 
signposted poisonous Machineel trees. Boards instruct one never to eat the “apples”, or to seek shelter from the rain under these lovely looking lush trees, as they are highly toxic: a fact we discovered for ourselves later that night.I had collected a little pile of these apples to ph
otograph, handing the camera to Mary afterwards to wash my hands in the sea. Later that night, Mary had a violent allergic shock reaction to something, with her throat and tongue swelling up alarmingly to the point where she could not talk or swallow. Antihistamines made no difference, and by 2.00am Mary managed to swallow and keep down two Cortizone tablets, without gagging. Slowly but surely the swelling came down to the point where she felt she might survive the night. We spent a very frightening six hours waiting for daylight and the clinic to open with the visiting doctor, where we were forced to join the waiting queue before being seen by Dr Teddy. He was so distracted by Mary’s sky high BP, that he would not listen to our previous experiences, and was convinced that Mary had suffered a mini stroke( TIA). Even when her BP came back to normal without medication, he kept seeing paralysis in one or both side of her face, and was convinced that her swollen tongue( twice normal size at 2,00am) was only normal size but paralysed. He instructed Mary to double her BP medication , and to do nothing strenuous!Having seen Mary’s allergic reactions to the “No Seeums” in Brazil, and the Sand Dollar fibre toxins, we are still totally convinced that the problem was a “cross allergic shock reaction” to the Machineel tree. She had handled the camera after I had handled the apples, and washed my hands. Cortizone was her salvation in Brazil, and was again the answer in Mustique. Lesson learnt….If you are susceptible to allergic reactions ----- don’t go near a Machineel tree!
This little drama delayed our departure to Salt Whistle Bay, some 20 miles south in Mayreau where we met up once again with “Jervon” a day later.
No comments:
Post a Comment