Celebrate St Patrick’s Week March 13-20
Fondly known as “The Other Emerald Isle”, Montserrat is the only place
in the world, besides Ireland, that recognises St. Patricks Day as a
national holiday. In fact, the island has a week of celebrations, which
this year will run from March 13th – 20th, 2010. This event
commemorates a slave uprising that took place on the then predominantly
Irish island on St. Patricks Day in 1768. Declared a national holiday
in 1985, the bulk of the festivities during that time took place in the
village of St. Patricks in the southern part of the island. Volcanic
activity which commenced in 1995 made this area uninhabitable and
celebrations are now held in the north of the island. On St Patrick’s
Day itself, Festival Village in Little Bay will undergo a transformation
which will include individually decorated slave huts and a heritage
feast where indigenous foods, such as goat water, stewed yard fowl, and
bush tea, can be sampled. Other activities include the dancing of the
masqueraders (masked mummers dressed in colorful costumes), a heritage
jamboree, locals dancing in the street dressed in their national attire.
During the weeklong celebration there is also a national exhibit with
local art and crafts, a junior calypso competition, a freedom walk and
run, a freedom hike and an annual church service. In addition to selling
Guinness, local bars celebrate in a more mainstream way by decorating
bars in green and shamrocks. for further information on the activities
for St Patrick’s Week go to www.visitmontserrat.com
<http://www.visitmontserrat.com>
Head to Montserrat for the Volcano Show
With the increased activity by the Soufriere Hills Volcano, now is the
time for thrill-seekers and adventure enthusiasts to travel to the
destination to get a first-hand look at this geological phenomenon.
Leisure travelers have the opportunity to safely view the volcano from
several vantage points including the Montserrat Volcano Observatory
(MVO) and Jack Boy Hill. “We would like the traveling public to know
that Montserrat remains open for visitors and is still a safe
destination,” comments Montserrat Tourist Board’s director of tourism,
Ernestine Cassell. “In fact we are encouraging travelers to visit
Montserrat and marvel at the activity taking place at the Soufriere
Hills Volcano.” The volcanic activity is closely monitored by the
experts at the Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO) and visitors to the
island can now see the glowing dome at nights from safe vantage points
in the north of the island. Current information on volcanic activity,
including images and videos, can be found at the MVOs wbsite at
www.mvo.ms <http://www.mvo.ms/>
Montserrat’s Top Entertainers to Sing for Haiti
More than 20 of Montserrats musical maestros are coming together to
raise funds for Haiti. On Saturday 30th January, the Montserrat Cultural
Centre will be the venue for the family day and evening of entertainment
from 3pm until midnight, with the funds raised going to aid the victims
of the January 19th devastating earthquake in the Caribbean nation of
Haiti. The Cultural Centre was actually built from the generosity of
musicians and other benefactors and it is great that it can now be used
to help others, said Peter Filleul of the organising committee.
Montserrat’s own soca king Arrow, whose Hot Hot Hot, Groove Master and
many other hits have attained international acclaim, will perform at the
concert along with Kulcha Don, Hero, calypsonians, soca artists from
Festival 2009, and several local bands. The afternoon will begin with
games and activities for children, food stalls and live entertainment. A
grand raffle with prizes including flights to Antigua, boat trips to
Plymouth, and dinners at the islands finest restaurants will be held. A
recent Radiothon for Haiti raised over EC$51,000 and this event is a
continuation of the effort to assist Montserrat’s Caribbean neighbour.
Montserrat knows what it is like to go through and recover from a
tragedy but that has never stopped us and will not stop us from lending
a hand to our brothers and sisters in need, said Chief Minister and
Minister of Tourism Reuben T. Meade.
SN Travel Charity Support for Meals on Wheels Montserrat
UK Travel Agency Stoke Newington Travel is supporting the Montserrat
charity Meals on Wheels, through it sales in January 2010. For every
booking made in January they will donate a sum to the Meals on Wheels,
which provide a meal deliverly service to the poor and indigent on
Montserrat. SN Travel was created to support local persons, so they
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“urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” />could have access to
affordable travel experiences around the Caribbean and worldwide. The
agnecy is dedicated to the needs of the community and has been committed
to sponsoring local causes and events around the world. For further
information on SN Travel go to www.sntravel.co.uk
<http://www.sntravel.co.uk>
Caribbean Map <http://www.visitmontserrat.com/index.php?categoryid=30>
Remember to Follow us On Twitter & Facebook
You can follow all the happenings on Montserrat on Facebook by becoming
a fan at www.facebook.com/islandofmontserrat
<http://www.facebook.com/islandofmontserrat> or on Twitter by going to
http://twitter.com/VolcanoIsland <http://twitter.com/VolcanoIsland>
Photo credits: David McGillivray, Ishwar Persad, Dagan Smith
aeroplane <http://www.visitmontserrat.com/index.php?categoryid=15>
Guest House <http://www.visitmontserrat.com/index.php?categoryid=12>
snorkler <http://www.visitmontserrat.com/index.php?categoryid=18>
masqueraders <http://www.visitmontserrat.com/index.php?categoryid=27>
Calendar of Events
March
St. Patrick’s Week of Celebrations
March 13th – 20th
St. Patrick’s Day -Holiday:
March 17th
April
Good Friday – Holiday
April 2nd
St Georges School Reunion
April 3rd -10th
Easter Monday – Holiday
April 5th
CTUs Information & Communications Technologies (ICT)Road Show
April 21-23
May
Labor Day
May 3rd
Local Fishing Tournament
May 3rd
Nurses Week
May 9th – 19th