Archaeologists have been excavating prehistoric Indian sites in the Turks & Caicos Islands for almost 30 years. Through the efforts of researchers like Shaun Sullivan, William Keegan, Betsy Carlson, Brian Riggs and Sharyn Jones O’Day, we now know a great deal about the lifeways and culture of the native Lucayan people who first welcomed Christopher Columbus to the New World. However, archaeology is not a stagnant science — new discoveries always await. To move forward, new sites must be located and examined, and fresh perspectives and approaches developed and applied.

In Spring, 2004, a new generation of archaeologists descended upon the Turks & Caicos to initiate the next phase of research. This is the story of what we found, and where we believe it will take our appreciation of the Islands’ first residents.

For six weeks in May and June 2004, a team of archaeologists from the University of Florida in Gainesville conducted a series of surveys and excavations throughout the Turks & Caicos. The group of nine undergraduate anthropology students was led by University of Florida graduate students Pete Sinelli (M.A. Anthropology, University of Florida) and Geoff DuChemin (B.A. Anthropology, University of North Florida).

It has long been thought that pre-Columbian Lucayan peoples preferred to settle on the larger islands — those with people on them today — rather than live on the numerous small cays and islets that lie out on the banks. Archaeologists have traditionally focused their attention on the larger land masses, assuming that the smaller, more resource-deficient cays could not have supported a sizeable, long-term human occupation. As a result, most of the sites known in the Turks & Caicos Islands are located on larger islands. However, this was due mostly to the fact that until recently, few researchers had ever systematically looked for Indian sites anywhere else.

On my first Turks & Caicos expedition in 1999, I took a chance and ventured out to tiny Pelican Cay off Bambarra Landing on the north shore of Middle Caicos. Pelican Cay lies a little more than half a mile from the coast and is connected by a sandbar so that the water is never more than waist deep. After a long wade, what I found was impressive: a substantial pre-Columbian site loaded with big fish bones and sherds of fancy decorated pottery that was imported all the way from Hispaniola. Clearly, this little cay could not have been self-sufficient — it’s far too small to provide room for crops and has no fresh water — yet there were the artifacts that indicated it was used heavily for as long as 500 years.

Upon further research I learned that Pelican Cay is not unique. Local researchers had recently identified a number of sites on smaller, remote cays throughout the Turks & Caicos. As an avid naturalist and bushman, Brian Riggs of the Department of Environment and Coastal Resources has occasionally visited these places to enhance his database of the nation’s biological and cultural resources. Over the years, Brian has identified a number of archaeological sites on Ambergris Cay and Plandon Cay on the Caicos Bank and Cotton Cay on the Turks Bank.

Similarly, Captain Bob Gascoine and Jane Minty documented a large site on Middleton Cay off South Caicos. Various reports of these and other resources were also made to the Turks & Caicos National Museum by visiting tourists, many of whom stumbled across prehistoric artifacts while boating around the banks. However, none of these sites had ever been excavated or studied in any detail. Archaeologists had largely ignored them.

Clearly, these small, outlying cays played an important role in the lives of prehistoric people. But how, exactly, and what can small-cay sites tell us about prehistoric Lucayan culture? The only way to answer such questions is to put archaeologists on the ground and let them get dirty, which is precisely why the University of Florida expedition was organized.

Our objective this Spring was to visit as many small cays as possible to determine the extent to which pre-Columbian peoples occupied these islands. When we found sites, we conducted test excavations to learn more about who had lived there, when they had lived there, and what factors may have attracted them to these places. Ultimately, this research will help us ascertain the relationship between small-cay villages and large-island settlements in order to understand the role small cay sites may have played in Indian society.

Archaeologists call the process of exploring an area for new sites a “survey.” Surveys are coordinated affairs that require a great deal of advance planning before one ever sets foot in the target area. The most important tool an archaeologist has is an understanding of the kinds of local environments in which prehistoric peoples regularly chose to live. Another important factor is an appreciation for what sites look like after being abandoned and exposed to the tropical elements for more than five centuries. Throw in a few good maps (Government-produced topographic maps, upon which sites are never marked with an X), a GPS unit, a machete and a thirst for adventure, and you’re ready to start looking!

Not surprisingly, the native peoples of the Turks & Caicos Islands preferred to live very near their primary source of food: the sea. Specifically, they preferred leeward coasts that were sheltered from the prevailing easterly winds. Most often they would locate their villages just behind the first dune, less than 50 meters from a suitable beach upon which they could easily land their dugout canoes. Therefore, it makes more sense to explore areas with these attributes than to ramble around steep, rocky cliffs or the wind-swept, boulder-strewn shores typical of the windward (eastern) shores.

Once a suitable ecology has been identified, all eyes turn toward the ground. Sites in the Turks & Caicos can be readily identified by darker gray or black soil, with conch shells showing small, round “Indian kill holes” lying about, perhaps in a pile or “midden” near the water. If a scatter of prehistoric pottery sherds is also evident on the surface, then voila! A new site has been discovered and is ready to spill its secrets.

The University of Florida team visited 17 small, outlying cays, most of which had never been visited by archaeologists. All of these are currently uninhabited and accessible only by boat. After six weeks of braving thigh-deep muck, large rock iguanas, and the repeated dive-bomb attacks of sky-darkening flocks of nesting sea birds, we were rewarded with the discovery of three previously unknown sites (see list above). Just as important is what we did not find: no sites were located on any of the larger cays east of Grand Turk and Cotton Cay, suggesting that despite their size, prehistoric peoples found Long Cay, East Cay, and Pear Cay too remote, with winds too high or seas too rough to warrant settlement.

We excavated two of these new sites, as well as four other small-cay sites that were known but had never before been sampled or evaluated. Our work at Pelican Cay off Middle Caicos yielded a wealth of exotic pottery and rich food remains that suggest the site was used by elite individuals as a retreat or getaway from the rigors of daily village life on the larger island.

The site on Middleton Cay near South Caicos covers almost the entire island, and is by far the largest small-cay site in the Turks & Caicos. At Middleton, conch was king, as evidenced by the thousands upon thousands of shells encountered throughout the island. Control of this precious resource, which provided not only a staple protein but also the raw material for manufacturing a wide variety of shell tools, very likely made Middleton the area’s commercial center sometime around 1200 AD.

The Spud site on Long Cay is a mere four kilometers row over the open bank from Middleton and appears to have been occupied around the same time. However, Spud is smaller, and the excavated evidence suggests that its residents were not as affluent as those at Middleton.

The Dove Cay site just off the south coast of South Caicos yielded a gorgeous imported ceramic vessel (see photo), suggesting that the island played a similar role as Pelican Cay — that of resort for local elite individuals — or perhaps functioned as a ritual center.

Across the Columbus Passage on the Turks Bank lie Gibbs Cay off Grand Turk and Cotton Cay between Grand Turk and Salt Cay. The sites on Gibbs Cay and Cotton Cay all appear to have been smaller, less intensive occupations, perhaps seasonal fishing villages periodically frequented by residents from Grand Turk or the Caicos.

Results from radiocarbon analysis are pending, but based on ceramic styles and other factors, it appears that the sites on Middleton, Spud, Dove and Gibbs cays were occupied as early as 1100 AD. The Cotton Cay sites were inhabited later, perhaps after 1400 AD. Pelican Cay is the real enigma — it appears to have been used sporadically from around 1100 AD up through modern times: Colonial pipe stems and the remains of European domesticated animals may have been left behind as recently as the 19th century.

While our analysis is far from complete, our work leads me to two general conclusions. First, that small cays played a far more important role in the settlement patterns and economies of the Turks & Caicos’ indigenous peoples than has previously been appreciated. The number of village sites on small cays now exceeds the number of such sites known to exist on either Salt Cay, Grand Turk, South Caicos, East Caicos, North Caicos or West Caicos. Second, it is apparent that substantial numbers of people began living in the Turks & Caicos earlier than is currently thought. The Middleton, Spud, Dove, Pelican and Gibbs sites all show evidence of being occupied as early as 1100 AD, which more than triples the number of sites in the Turks & Caicos thought to be associated with this time period, and suggests that a considerable migration into the Islands began as much as two centuries prior to the timeframe currently entertained by archaeologists.

Sadly, the indigenous people of the Turks & Caicos vanished shortly after the 1492 arrival of Europeans. Within a generation, an entire culture was wiped out by economic and demographic upheaval, Spanish slave raids and foreign diseases to which the Indians had no immunity. Archaeology remains the only means by which modern people can come to understand and appreciate the rich cultural tapestry of our island paradise’s first residents. I believe that our work will help illuminate the lives of those who strolled the beaches and bathed in the warm surf more than five centuries ago.

We have accomplished much, but there is still so much more to do. Stay tuned for updates on our progress.

Bird watching in the Turks & Caicos Islands is as easy as letting your eyes drift along the shore. From the tiny scurrying sandpipers and plovers at the water’s edge to the majestic frigatebirds and osprey gracefully floating far above, TCI’s birds are numerous, varied and plentiful.

The Ramsar Wetland, an International Biodiversity Reserve, will hopefully ensure that birdlife remains healthy by protecting a vast area of marsh and saltwater flats across East, Middle and North Caicos. This huge, uninhabited, unspoilt marine and terrestrial ecosystem hosts both native and migrant bird species, providing 210 square miles of pristine habitat protected under international treaty. Here the birds are free to follow their own lives without hindrance.

The main resources for a serious bird watching experience in TCI are the clear photographs found in Richard Ground’s book, The Birds of the Turks & Caicos Islands, and the National Trust’s “Bird Watching Guide.” Between these two publications, birds can be easily identified and their habits are clearly detailed. You can find these titles at a variety of shops in Providenciales, including the National Trust’s office in Town Centre Mall. (Purchasing either of these titles will benefit the work of the National Trust.)

Ecotourist excursion

Middle Caicos is perfect for a spectacular bird-watching day excursion. It is the largest island in TCI, with only 270 people living in three separate villages. It is quiet and peaceful, with birds of all types in constant view and tours by foot, bike, sea-kayak and boat available to move throughout and around the island. (Even air conditioned taxis are available for the timid or less ecologically minded!)

The western end of the island has cliffs and isolated beaches where tropicbirds nest and falcons prey. It is accessed by the Crossing Place Trail, along which countless souls have trod between Middle and North Caicos for over 100 years. There is a known colony of frigatebirds nesting in the locally named Man-O-War Bush, located just off the south shore of Middle Caicos — a short boat ride through the south Bottle Creek mouth past Hangman’s Rock. The long curve of Bambarra Beach is home to the Brown Pelican, gliding along low above the sea and crashing, splash, onto dinner! The sand spit out to Pelican Cay — so called for the nesting pelicans there — can be walked easily at low tide. Middle Caicos even has its own Flamingo Pond nestled in the center of the island and boasts happy flocks of cattle egrets, although there is not a single cow to be found!

The spectacular frigatebird is one of Middle Caicos’ special sights: the high swooping flight of these magnificent birds as they roll in the wind, searching for food, watching over us far below, is truly awe-inspiring. Their slender black silhouette with expansive wings and elongated tail, dancing gracefully on the air currents, catches the corner of your eye and your head cranes backward as they soar and swirl higher and higher. Viewing the baby birds — white, awkward and screeching for food — it is almost impossible to believe they will mature into a majestic king or queen of the sky.

The flight to Middle Caicos takes 15 minutes each way, at a cost of $100 per person round trip from Providenciales. Three restaurants are open for business; hiking, bicycling, and kayak excursions with guides can be arranged (half or full day), and taxis are available by the hour or day. Most ecotourist excursions to Middle Caicos include a tour of the Conch Bar Caves National Park.

Bird-watching around the islands

North Caicos is home to a large section of the Ramsar Wetland and a very special habitat zone where a mind-boggling flock of pink flamingoes awaits. Long, broad Flamingo Pond is home to hundreds of flamingoes of all ages, daintily continuing to walk and eat, seemingly undisturbed by the proximity of the North Caicos Airport. There is a lookout point at the north end of the pond, so be sure to bring your binoculars. Kayaking in the East Bay Nature Reserve or wandering through the Wade’s Green Plantation trails are further suggested activities for bird-watchers.

Grand Turk is the country’s capital, a slow-paced place where Tricolored Herons, flamingoes and Black-Necked Stilts gaze calmly at passersby from the salina at Cockburn Town’s center. It is also home to two major osprey nests and the antics of the fledgling chicks as they learn to dive and survive is fascinating to observe. South Creek National Park is well worth a visit and the Turks & Caicos National Museum is another treasure to explore.

On Salt Cay, there is a platform “bird lookout” on the eastern shore, a 30 minute lazy walk from Balfour Town. Here the most common sightings are Snowy Egrets, Blue Herons and cranes. The salt ponds, relics of the days of salt production, attract osprey to nest in the old windmills, and the harbour fills with gulls and tropicbirds. The Great Sand Cay Bird Sanctuary is home to a wide variety of breeding visitors in the spring. During winter months, whale watching is an exciting added attraction in Salt Cay, the tiniest of the inhabited islands.

South Caicos is noted for the “Boiling Hole,” a land-locked swirling pool of water connected to mysterious warm currents and to the deep ocean. Around this spot, birds gather happily and small egrets and flamingoes are easily spotted. The Brown Pelican has a fondness for South Caicos and just off Cockburn Town Harbour at Moxie Bush, a flock of pelicans often rest and stare balefully at the day! South Caicos is TCI’s fishing capital and “catch and release” bonefishing is a popular outing.

These comments are but a brief introduction to the bird-watching available on each island and the many ecotourist excursions waiting for you. Flights to all islands are available daily, meals easily arranged and your ecotourist excursion can be tailored to your preferences.

Sara Kaufman has lived in TCI for over 10 years, currently residing in Middle Caicos. She is a key figure behind the promotion of many environmental, ecological and cultural projects throughout the country, including the Crossing Place Trail, the Conservation Fund MicroProject Programme, the Middle Caicos Co-op, the Caicos Handcraft Wholesale Co-op, and the Middle Caicos Sailing Association (MCSA).

Sara and partner Daniel Forbes , a native of Bambarra, Middle Caicos, spearheaded the revival of model sailboat carving and racing. The MCSA celebrates each year with the Valentine’s Day Cup model sailboat races at Bambarra Beach in Middle Caicos. In 2005, races will be held on February 12.

The Turks & Caicos Islands owe their current success to the foundation on which they stand. This foundation was not the brainchild of politicians or the economic and social elites. It was the result of necessity and the reaction of citizens rising to meet the challenge of bettering their overall condition by building boats for the purpose of addressing their needs. In the 19th century, the distinctive Turks Island sloops and schooners would carry a major part of the burden of unifying the country through the movement of people and freight.

The early years

In 1492, Christopher Columbus arrived in the Turks & Caicos Islands and found them populated by Taino Indians. By 1520, all of the Indians had disappeared, either enslaved or dead from diseases contracted from the Europeans.

From the 16th until the early 18th centuries, the Turks & Caicos were used as a pirate’s haven. Bermudans began visiting to harvest salt in the 1670s and advanced it to the level of an industry in the early 18th century.

In 1674, it was legally adjudged that the Turks & Caicos were a part of the Bahama Islands. Over the years the population of salt rakers grew as the value of salt rose due to demand. There was increasing social and economic interaction with the Bahamas, particularly the southern islands.

After the secession of the Turks & Caicos Islands from the Bahama Islands on December 25, 1848, there was an increased building of boats as the new colony sought to make its way on its own. In addition to the salt industry, wrecking would become a lucrative industry and pursuit.

Building a boat

Normally, the keel of the boat would be made from the pine tree. Madeira trees supplied the timber for the stern post, stem, and sometimes for the frame. The horse flesh or buttonwood trees were also used to provide frames. The pine tree was used for planking, the mast, dead wood, deck beams and overall structure.

Building a boat involved going into the bush and searching for the right length, thickness and shape of tree. Afterwards came the labour of cutting down the tree and carrying it to the boat building site. Then the wood had to be ripped by hand.

The mast and other wood would be placed in the sea to be cured before being used. A sloop big enough to travel internationally could take from nine months to build. (The time could be longer or shorter depending on the number of assisting carpenters.)

There was no set price for a boat. Pricing could differ from settlement to settlement on the same island. What influenced the price was the relationship between boat builder and client. Family members were generally given special consideration; friends were given “a good deal,” and others were charged whatever the market could bear.

The launching of a vessel was a day of celebration and pride for the boat builder’s community. It meant that members were less dependent on another community for transporting freight and passengers, and had some control over the procuring of sustenance and development.

A key role in advancement

The social and cultural level of the Islands was, in a general way, advanced in a uniform manner because of the communication and interaction made possible by means of the locally built boats. The concepts and practices which provided the basis for the development of the nation were spread and re-enforced by and through the locally built boats. Interestingly though, these boats were both the savior of the colony and a contributor to economic decline.

The movement of passengers and freight between the Turks & Caicos Islands, the Bahama Islands, Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), Cuba and Florida assisted greatly with the overall development of the colony. Fish and conch were traded to the Dominican Republic and Haiti; sisal and sponges were traded to the Bahama Islands; and Noel Gardiner’s 68 foot Caicos Joy provided freight services (including vehicles) between Florida and the colony during the early 1970s. These were important developments undertaken by locally built boats in order for the colony to advance.

On the other hand, reliance on the locally built salt lighters cost the Islands their main industry. Salt lighters were sailing sloops without decks to facilitate the loading and transport of salt to freighters which were offshore due to shallow waters. These crafts could sometimes be over 50 feet in length.

Until 1873, salt was the main source of income for the Turks & Caicos Islands. After that, the salt industry started to decline because of mined salt in the USA, which was protected by high tariff rates on imported salt. There would be a revival of this industry in the early 20th century, but because of the length of time it took to load salt into the tankers by means of the salt lighters compared to the modern and mechanized salt loading system in Inagua, the Turks & Caicos’ salt industry declined, with Inagua eventually becoming the third largest salt producer in the world.

The whaling industry which functioned from the late 19th century to the early 20th century and was based in Salt Cay, was also serviced by locally built boats. This industry provided whale meat for local consumption, with the whale oil and bones exported.

As a result of local Baptist churches in the mid-19th century, rudimentary education was made available to some children who otherwise might have had no such exposure. The teachers in these church-based schools were members of the local church and received some financial remuneration. These Baptist churches were serviced by the London Baptist Missionary Society through its Nassau-based operations. Locally built boats were used to transport the Society’s personnel and materials from the Bahama Islands to the Turks & Caicos.

The potential for tragedy

There were tragedies and near tragedies involving the locally built sloops. During the early 1940s, noted boat builder and captain James Hamilton (1902-1963) was able to save himself from certain death because he was could speak Creole (due to his many trips to Haiti.) Captain Hamilton was engaged to sail a large sloop from New Providence to Haiti. However, the Haitian men on the sloop felt insulted and belittled and plotted to kill Captain Hamilton and dump his body into the sea. During a disagreement among the Haitians as to who would assume captaincy, Hamilton was able to slip off the sloop in the vicinity of Long Island. Captain John R. Turnquest, a fisherman from Upper Deadman’s Cay, Long Island, rescued him after two days in the water near Conch Point.

On September 13, 1945, Gustavous Lightbourne, owner/captain of the sloop G.L. Progress (built by Algernon Dean, Sr. of Blue Hills, Providenciales) went conching and fishing around the French Cays (Plana Cays) along with Eric Parker, Thomas Palmer and Livingston Swann — all from Blue Hills, Providenciales. An unannounced hurricane struck. In order to save themselves, they cut down the sloop’s mast and the vessel was driven by the weather conditions to Crooked Island. Arrangements were made by the commissioner who resided on Acklins Island for the survivors to catch the Bahamian motorized mailboat from Long Cay to Inagua. In Inagua, they were fortunate to meet Theophilus “Tappy” Parker’s vessel Extend, which was captained by Robert Dean. The vessel made a trip to Haiti, stopped at Grand Turk and then went on to Blue Hills. Residents were shocked to see the men some 47 days later because they had been given up as lost to sea. In fact, their memorial service had already been held!

Observations

It is interesting to note that from 1800 to 2000, there were four members of the TCI’s Legislative Assembly who were boat builders. The two who are deceased are Fuller Walkin of Blue Hills, Providenciales and Paul Higgs of Bottle Creek, North Caicos. The two still living are Gustavous O. Lightbourne and Hilly Ewing, both of Blue Hills. Hilly Ewing went on to receive ministerial appointment and bore responsibility for immigration, natural resources and national insurance at various times.

During the mid-1930s, the boat-building men of the Hall family of Lorimers, Middle Caicos built some vessels and sold them in Haiti. With the resulting funds, the Halls bought a large tract of government land in Lorimers. To this day, members of the Hall family occupy this land. The only way for anyone to build or live on this property is either being born or marrying into the family.

One outstanding finding is that over 200 years, there was only one female boat builder found! Cecile Louise Deane-Smith (1932-2001), the daughter of renowned boat builder John Algernon Deane and Susan Hall-Deane, was married to David Smith, a fisherman. Because he needed a boat and could not build one, Cecile built the 28 foot Silver Velly Stream (also known as The Meow) for her husband. Having been trained by her father in building boats and in general construction, Cecile repaired boats and buildings and built her home. She also worked in construction in the early 1970s in Nassau and Grand Bahama.

According to my research, the number of boat builders from 1800 to 2000 is listed as follows. (These figures are subject to change with further research.) Grand Turk: 4; Salt Cay: 9; South Caicos: 18; Providenciales: 30; North Caicos: 80; and Middle Caicos: 47.

The government and private sector organizations should honour these boat builders and take steps to ensure that their legacy does not die, as its cessation would be a great national cultural loss. Present and future generations must never forget that their personal, communal and national status have their origin in the boat builders who are, in fact, among the true national heroes of the country.

Kendal Butler has been documenting the history of boat builders in the Bahamas and Turks & Caicos Islands for the last seven years. His interest was spurred by the stories he heard of his great-great-great grand-father, who was a major boat builder in Exuma, The Bahamas.
Mr. Butler is current working on a final draft of his research, “The History of Boat Builders of The Bahamas and The Turks & Caicos Islands from 1800 to 2000″ and it is expected to be published shortly.

For more information, email thetidawave@hotmail.com.

Green corn on North Caicos

When Agnes comes out to the yard, she laughs and calls out, “Jody, you look TI.” I hold out my arms, displaying myself for her and thinking about what she sees. I am sitting on an overturned bucket by the fire, my knees together to maintain modesty in my shift, my hand wrapped around a half-nibbled, blackened ear of local corn. Yeah, I guess I do look like a Turks Islander, with the exception of my white skin.

It’s green corn time on North Caicos. Susie and Clifford each brought home an armful of ears, so there’s plenty to roast. Susie and Spring “caught a fire,” as they say, with me tagging along and contributing a few small sticks from the yard. Now we’re all gathered around, tossing ears — some shucked, some in husks — into the coals, then flipping them away from the heat with sticks. A few hot jiggles from hand to hand and it’s a feast.

The dry, chewy kernels separate from the ear cleanly; this is the opposite of American hybrids with their high water and sugar content. Our ears are closer to popcorn in texture and flavor. There are, in fact, occasional pops as the corn roasts. Eating is a workout for the jaws, but the reward is a satisfying taste of island life.

Our conversation is light and superficial as we focus primarily on eating. Clifford and Susie mock-argue about whose corn is better, identifying different ears as “soft” — not a prized quality. I volunteer to eat one of the soft ears and I have to agree that the hard corn is superior.

And then there is the counting. Spring and Alison are in competition, setting the bar higher and higher as they pull ears from the fire. We all start to tease Alison about eating only the smallest ears. She responds by leaning back and unzipping the fly of her jeans, a gesture that jars with her petite, demure appearance.

I, of course, am the slowest eater. After three ears I take a break, but I’m eventually shamed into a fourth. Spring and Alison are up to ten; Clifford has seven or eight cobs at his feet. Susie says only, “I don’t count. I just ate a bellyful.” Agnes, who has joined us, quickly matches my count.

We can’t finish it all. There’s just too much. I lean back on my bucket seat, splaying my legs, no longer caring about appearance. I look around and realize we are all in the same posture. Green corn has brought this greenhorn Turks Islander into the fold.

Grand Turk is one of the last great “undiscovered” dive gems of the Caribbean. And the 8,000 or so annual visitors would like to keep it that way.

It’s a sleepy little island, ringed by the famously gorgeous turquoise waters of the Turks & Caicos chain. The architecture is handsome Bermudan Colonial, though some of the buildings are crying out for a facelift. Neoprene-clad divers parade along the main drag, Duke Street, occasionally trailed by a free-range local horse or two. From the distance you hear the braying of donkeys and cackling of roosters, and bougainvillea blows through the street like tropical tumbleweed.

Grand Turk is the kind of place where everyone knows everyone else, and their dogs follow you home. Though just 7 miles long by 1.5 miles across (at its widest), it was the first island in the chain to be settled by Europeans and has claimed the governmental seat for the past 400 years

Legend has it that Grand Turk’s first tourist was a certain Italian fellow named Christopher Columbus (who logged a reference to the “bean-shaped island”), but today’s visitors are mostly North Americans brandishing scuba C-cards. They come to dive the calm, clear waters and explore the pristine reefs, but they stay for the relaxed and friendly vibe that’s becoming harder to find in the Caribbean than a five-foot Nassau grouper.

During a typical week-long stay, you will dive a majority of the sites, eat at practically every restaurant, meet the notable locals and half that week’s divers — and hear local rock icon/divemaster Mitch Rolling and his band High Tide perform at least once, if not a few times. If you take a tour of the island on foot or bike or by scooter or car, you will easily see all the sights and do pretty much everything there is to do.

If this were almost any other island, you could scratch the name off your destination list, turn to your dive buddy and say, “Been there, done that, on to something new.” But with Grand Turk, you’re more likely to have the opposite reaction: Been there, did it all, how quickly can we get back?

Most of the people we met during our visit were GT veterans, and each had his own version of the same story: “Came on a lark three (or six, or ten) years ago, and have been back every year since.” Or: “We went to some other places but after Grand Turk we’re always disappointed, so we just save ourselves the frustration and come back here.” There were a few other rookies, but by the end of the week, every last one of us was scheming to return as soon as possible.

Dive right in

It’s mostly divers who frequent this quaint island, but if you’re a nondiver whose idea of a culture-packed vacation is reading a book at the beach, petting a donkey and maybe seeing an artifact or two, you’ll have nearly as much fun. But when divers hit on the right combination of excellent diving, siren-song beaches, laid-back lifestyle, friendly locals, quality cuisine and a proliferation of cold beer and hot weather, they tend to talk in language not unlike that of a religious zealot. Hence the apotheosis of Grand Turk as a shallow-diving mecca, and nothing short of heaven for underwater photographers.

Grand Turk is for divers who like long, easy dives and whose computers don’t lock up after 99 minutes of bottom time. (I did say long.) The three dive shops on the island follow essentially the same routine. No need to rush breakfast: no one’s going out before 9 AM — which in reality is closer to 9:30 and can even be, as we once experienced, as late as 11.

Most of the divers here are pretty competent, but even so, divemasters don’t just throw you in the water and leave you to your own devices. (Unless you insist on it, of course.) Once the DMs have checked you out, you’re welcome to dive your own profile. My dives averaged 70 minutes, and I never came up with less than 750 psi. This is the easiest yet most exciting you’re likely to do anywhere.

The DMs are there to serve, so if you’re on the lookout for something special, normally all it takes is one request to score you that photo, or at least a log page full of exclamation marks. Looking for frogfish? Batfish? Flying gurnards? Maybe a newborn, still- yellow spotted drummer the size of a cat whisker? Seen any quill-fin blennies lately? How about a trunkfish so tiny it looks like a pair of dice had a baby? Yeah, whatever: on Grand Turk, that’s just another ho-hum day of diving.

The diving takes place off of Grand Turk’s western (leeward) shore, along a fantastic wall that runs parallel to the island. There are some two dozen marked sights and, if you ask real nice, you might get taken to one not on the map. A typical dive starts out by following the wall at 60 to 90 feet. You’re welcome to drop down deeper, but the joint’s not exactly jumping much below 60 feet. I went below the 90-foot mark only twice, and for me to stay shallow and be happy is saying something.

My dive buddy observed that the Grand Turk wall is the only place where you turn around at 45 minutes. It’s true. Gradually you make your way up to the top of the wall, in the 20 to 30-foot range, and this is where things get really cool. It reminded me of my first train ride through the Swiss Alps: 360 degrees of scenery so jaw-droppingly gorgeous, I didn’t know which way to look.

The variety and health of the hard and soft coral is heartening. With increasing frequency, we cringe to find whole reef systems in the Caribbean dying or being bleached out. Yet Grand Turk seems to have been smiled on by Providence. (There’s that religious talk again.) Competing for your attention with every fin kick are glorious brain, pillar, branching, lace, staghorn and colorful plate corals; social feather dusters; elephant ear sponges; lilting gorgonians and so much more. Do linger and peek: tiny hamlets, gobies, blennies and harlequin bass inhabit these mounds — and an Argus-eyed diver may be rewarded with an inch-long pygmy scrawled filefish camouflaged in a gorgonian.

Another ho-hum day of diving

At the top of the wall, marine life proliferates. Shall we name names? Trunkfish, cowfish, filefish and parrotfish galore. Squirrel- and cardinalfish stare bug-eyed from inside every other ledge. Trumpetfish, clever hunters that they are, change color before your eyes to blend in with the scenery. Mitch Rolling, who has an eye for tiny, rare critters, pointed out a pike-throated blenny, about an inch and a quarter long, that I could have spent the entire dive watching. Refocus your eyes and take in floating battalions of yellowtail snapper, grouper sized S to XL, shy rock beauties, brazen eels, horse-eye and blue jacks that school up and swarm you. Barracuda aren’t lone rangers here; for some reason, you tend to spot them in foursomes. Angelfish, triggerfish, puffers galore, squid in squadron, rays in rows, hawksbills one after another — it’s almost military in its precision.

We did most of our diving with Oasis Divers. DMs Macky and Ty went to great lengths to honor all critter requests. One place that left a lasting impression was Coral Garden. This site, about dead-center of the island, is home to three Nassau groupers who deserve a reality-TV show all their own. Alexander (the big, friendly fella), Pretty Boy (with bites on his nose) and Actor (the baby) come right up to you and, like agreeable children, allow you to hug them, pose with them for photos and, if you’re so inclined, kiss them.

Fish Pond (one of the sites not on the map) is aptly named. We liked this spot so much, we went back the next day. You can’t actually get a headcount, but my logbook makes reference to “gazillions of obviously happy, colorful reef fish and particularly huge schools of Creole wrasse, tang and jacks.” A juvenile indigo hamlet held a tableau long enough for me to get a postcard-like shot. And a French angelfish got so close I couldn’t even shoot it. Nurse sharks and hawksbill turtles swam by, seemingly unaware of our presence. A four-and-a-half-foot green moray was out hunting with his buddy, a grouper, while two cowfish turned luminous silver-blue as they circled each other in a warp-speed mating dance.

The next day, we spied a large porcupine fish with doe eyes, an elusive scorpionfish and five turtles, including one grass-munching youngster who seemed to actually like the camera. We joked that Grand Turk must have the cleanest fish, as we saw cleaning stations around every corner.

I think most dive destinations have a site called Aquarium or Amphitheater, and for some reason, they never fail to impress. At Grand Turk’s Aquarium, we found a rare quill-fin blenny, which struck me as the offspring of a lizardfish and a golden eel with a tall dorsal fin.

It’s impossible to pit one site against another — like trying to pick a favorite child from among your brood — but under threat of not being allowed back, I would have to go with The Pits. This 100-minute-plus dive was like a fish identification course unto itself. Smitty, of Sea Eye Diving, has made this a claim to fame. The dive runs along the old South End pier, but its days as a viable site are numbered. With a big pier being built to accommodate the cruise ships that will be coming in on a near-daily basis in 2005, this one will go the way of free airline food. In water never deeper than 20 feet, you will see — if you’re observant and persistent — everything from octopi and batfish to 50-pound bags of rice and men’s underwear. Because it’s a nonsaturation dive, it makes for a perfect last dive of a trip.

On my Pits dive, I started out by somehow missing 13 squid — and the dozen divers staring right at them. But I had a good excuse: I was busy trying to photograph a 3/4-inch sharp-nosed puffer and a 1/2-inch pygmy scrawled filefish in the grass. Next photo op: an octopus coiled inside a conch shell. Just as the last shutter stopped, Barbara Shively, whose stunning photographs accompany this story, treated us to an extraordinary sight. A tiny, unfamiliar fish had swum into her camera housing and was showing no interest in leaving. (It wasn’t until she got home that this veteran underwater photographer was able to identify it as a blackfin cardinalfish. So it wasn’t Nemo after all!)

As the dive continued, we saw peacock flounder, a very photogenic seahorse, a four-inch slip of a balloonfish, soapfish playing dead, lizardfish, rays, not one but two batfish, and a flying gurnard who clearly was an exhibitionist. It was a dive none of us are likely to soon forget.

Apres-dive ain’t too shabby either

Unless you’re a hermit, by your third day on Grand Turk, you’re sure to have made some friends. The residents live up to their super-friendly reputation. Georgia native Dale Barker has run Oasis Divers with her husband Everette Freites, a local, since 1996 and is a font of information about island life. (She’s such a good instructor that she recently taught the governor to dive.) Mitch Rolling is the unofficial ambassador of Grand Turk. As a divemaster, he’s got a keen eye, and in his other life, as a rock ‘n’ roll star of Turks & Caicos, he gets to show off his great voice. Erika Faller, a Swiss-trained hotelier, runs the Salt Raker Inn, a 150-year-old hotel with Old-World charm. She landed here after her friend Lisa Wandres bought and renovated the charming three- bedroom apartment she calls Sea Breeze and was lonely for company from home.

On any given afternoon, any combination of locals might be sharing a cold one at any one of their establishments, and guests are always welcome to pull up a stool and join them. There are only half a dozen places to sleep, and about the same number of places to eat, so you tend to run into the same people, often several times a day.

Your diving done and stomach full, you either hit the beach, where the water’s a fairly consistent 80 degrees, and continue off-gassing, or you can be ambitious and tour the island. It doesn’t take long, but there are actually many sights of interest. The capital, Cockburn Town, is a cluster of Colonial-style buildings. The town may feel almost deserted, but behind the peeling facades of these 200-year-old structures, a brisk off-shore finance business is being run. On your stroll, be sure to visit the Turks & Caicos National Museum, home to old pottery, tools and, most notably, artifacts from the Molasses Reef Wreck, the oldest-known European shipwreck.

At the north end of the island stands the stately lighthouse. Built in England in 1852 and reconstructed on-island, it’s still in use today. In the last century, salt production was the main industry on Grand Turk, and the evidence is still visible. Abandoned salt ponds (or salinas) occupy much of the island’s interior. Left untended, they have become oases for wildlife, particularly birds. West of the inlet of North Creek you can find pink flamingoes, blue herons, white egrets and osprey.

At Grand Turk’s south end, where the cruise ships will dock, are a number of historic sites, including the Governor’s House (Waterloo) and Governor’s Beach. This gorgeous strand is a great place to take in a sunset. Colonel Murray’s Hill offers great island vistas. You’d never guess it was once home to the space tracking station that monitored astronaut John Glenn’s heart rate during the first orbit of Earth, back in 1962.

If you need a more Club Med kind of experience, you can go horseback riding on the beach, windsurfing, or kayaking in the mangroves along South Creek. But these are such rare sights that people actually put down their beers and zoom in with their cameras to get a better look.

One worthy activity is whale-watching between January and March, when the humpbacks make their annual migration around the island to their breeding grounds further east. Dive operators run trips in the winter, and in good weather year-round, they offer day trips to nearby Gibbs Cay, where you can snorkel and barbecue, and to uninhabited Cotton Cay, to see the wild goats and swim in natural pools along the coral shoreline.

New York-based writer Suzanne Gerber hasn’t had a bad day of diving since first taking the plunge in 1999. You can book your trip to Grand Turk through her at www.worldofdiving.com.

Photographer Barbara Shively became fascinated with the underwater world from her first sight of a stoplight parrotfish in Tobago in the late 1960s. She graduated to scuba in 1988, with her interest in underwater photography becoming a passion to share the beauty of the sea with her family and friends. She currently uses a 20mm wide-angle Sea and Sea lens for her Nikonos SB 105 camera, typically burning through a minimum of one roll of film per dive. She fell in love with Grand Turk in 1997 and has returned one or two times a year ever since.

As Providenciales’ first small luxury hotel, Grace Bay Club turned heads and earned accolades from the moment its hand-carved wooden doors swung open in 1992. An international melange of guests, including many high-profile celebrities, adored the property’s prime Grace Bay Beach location, eclectically furnished suites, superior service and the privacy that a lushly landscaped, 21 suite hotel can promise. Grace Bay Club stood apart as an intimate, romantic, five-star enclave on an island that had more than a touch of frontier to it.

In the dozen years since, Providenciales has changed dramatically. The once-wild beach has been tamed by upscale condominium resort developments, the formerly rugged road is now a streetlight-lit, four-lane highway and a bevy of supermarkets, restaurants, bars and boutiques make eating, drinking and shopping a pleasure, rather than a chore.

The Hotel at Grace Bay Club

That said, it would be easy for Grace Bay Club to rest on its laurels. Besides continuing to attract a fiercely loyal clientele, it was ranked #12 in Travel & Leisure magazine’s 2004 “World’s Best Awards” and termed “exceptional” in the 2004 Zagat Guide to Top International Hotels & Resorts.

But “complacent” has never been a word in Mark Durliat’s vocabulary. When Mark and partners John Fair and Jerry Landeck purchased the property in 2002 from Provo pioneer Klaus Kreis, they immediately embarked on an extensive renovation/refurbishment program with the intention of significantly improving guests’ experience and creating a better working environment for their loyal staff. They also unveiled plans for The Villas at Grace Bay Club, a 38-unit ultra-luxury condominium project, just to the west of the existing hotel.

These days, improvements to The Hotel at Grace Bay Club continue; The Villas at Grace Bay Club are nearly sold out with the first two buildings opening in July, 2005 and the second two in September; and a new residential property, The Estate, has made a splashy debut. (See below.) On-site owner Mark Durliat explains, “This successful boutique hotel is being redeveloped into a $100 million five star resort and spa. With each new project on Grace Bay Beach raising the bar in terms of buildings, amenities and service, we intend to continue to be pacesetters in the high-end luxury resort market.”

A key step in staying at the forefront was the recent appointment of Nikheel Advani as General Manager. Nikheel brings 15 years of experience in the international luxury hospitality industry, most recently from a 2 1/2 year assignment as Hotel Manager at the iconic Raffles Singapore, ranked among the world’s top hotels. Prior to that, Nikheel worked for seven years with the renowned Ritz Carlton Hotel group, with locations across North America and in Singapore, Japan and Malaysia. Mark is thrilled to attract talent of this caliber, recognizing that as a destination, the Turks & Caicos are earning international recognition within the industry.

Energetic and enthusiastic, Nikheel has definite ideas about the philosophy of service. “Genuine care is part of the cutting edge credo that we are working to develop in each of our 70 staff members. It’s more than simply providing an expensive bottle of champagne or greeting guests by name . . . it’s letting each guest know that their unique needs are being acknowledged.” He goes on to explain how a Grace Bay Club housekeeper recently heard a guest commenting that her pillow was too BIG, and that she preferred a smaller one like she had at home. After checking the hotel’s inventory and finding no suitable pillows, the housekeeper went home and made a pillow that was just the right size. “That’s the difference we’re trying to create.”

Mark adds that the resort is also committed to developing great hoteliers among Turks & Caicos Islanders. Each year, the hotel selects three staff members to participate in hospitality training courses at Cornell University in New York. In the future, there will be a Grace Bay Club Hotel School, where employees can be trained on an ongoing basis.

One of Nikheel’s many tasks is to develop a personalized marketing program focused on letting “everyone” know about the “new” Grace Bay Club. Of course it helps that he has a long-standing relationship with top travel agents and many of the most prestigious world travelers. Nikheel eagerly anticipates the forthcoming opening of The Villas at Grace Bay Club suites. “With 38 new units, we can finally stop telling people that we’re sold out! What is really great is that The Villas are positioned as a family-friendly property. Whereas we’ll continue to market The Hotel at Grace Bay Club as a romantic couples hideaway, The Villas will have a broader family appeal with organized watersports, hiking, cycling and ecotourism activities, as well as its own beach.”

The distinction between The Hotel and The Villas reflects Grace Bay Club’s new branded identity, in which each component of the resort (including The Estate) wears a separate personality, while sharing a common bond of award-winning hospitality and unsurpassed service. The sheer size of the property (now 11 acres, with 1,100 ft. of beach frontage) makes it easy to create zones of privacy for a wider variety of guests.

The resort’s eateries reflect this idea. Anacaona, the acclaimed gourmet restaurant, will continue to cater to adults with additional oceanfront private dining enclaves. The Lounge open-air cocktail bar attracts the up and coming professional set with its sophisticated blend of international music, vintage rums and trendy martinis. More casual options are planned for The Villas, including a swim-up bar and grill.

Pool at Grace Bay Club

Complementing The Hotel’s secluded pool nestled amongst tropical landscaping will be a second oceanfront pool for The Villas. This area will also embrace a European spa and state of the art fitness center along with the existing watersports, tennis and spa facilities.

At press time, Mark, Nikheel and the rest of the Grace Bay Club staff were looking forward to an exciting winter season and new year. Nikheel summed up their enthusiasm, “Here we have the resources and ability to create world-class excellence. We can make the Grace Bay Club the next ‘best place.’”

For more information, visit www.gracebayclub.com or www.villasatgracebayclub.com.

THE ESTATE AT GRACE BAY CLUB
When Mark Durliat and partner John Fair had the chance to purchase five acres of prime land on Grace Bay Beach — the site just to the east of the existing hotel — they knew it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. With the acquisition, the Grace Bay Club’s total property size increased to 11 acres, with an astounding 1,100 ft. of beach frontage. This opened the doors to a new option that would continue in the brand’s tradition of high quality and low density, while elevating the product to the next level in the international arena.

“It’s no secret that many people dream of owning a luxury house on world-renowned Grace Bay Beach,” Mark says. “Unfortunately, this is just no longer possible. So in response we have created The Estate at Grace Bay Club, which is the finest alternative to a private home on the beach. We’re offering 22 expansive penthouse-type residences of the highest caliber. At 4,300 sq. ft., each four bedroom/four bathroom condominium residence will enjoy 70 feet of ocean frontage, similar to that of a typical house lot.” (In keeping with Grace Bay Club’s philosophy of intimacy and exclusivity, the site will be limited to 22 residences, although it could accommodate more than 75.)

With prices starting at $2,500,000, The Estate promises to provide its owners “with the finest residential experience ever to be constructed on Grace Bay Beach.” Each residence will be custom designed to its purchaser’s taste, with 11 to 12 foot ceilings and vast patios and terraces to welcome light, space and the beachfront vista into each home.

With the goal of borrowing some magic from the existing hotel, architects Siskind & Carlson, designers of the original Grace Bay Club, will create its elegant architecture. Interior designers RTKL of Miami and its principal Howard Snoweiss, one of the most accomplished designers in the US, have been appointed as well. Each residence will enjoy outdoor Jacuzzi tubs, imported Jerusalem stone and Brazilian hardwood floors, and top quality kitchen cabinetry and appliances.

While The Estate’s grounds will be accessible only to owners and their guests, its residents will be able to partake of Grace Bay Club’s array of resort services — including housekeeping, butlers, room service and spa — at will. Mark explains, “The Estate is definitely an exclusive residential project, but it will benefit from the best services and management Grace Bay Club can offer . . . and more. This gives owners the best of both worlds.” For more information, visit www.estateatgracebayclub.com.

The Tainos were an agricultural people. We estimate that they cultivated or managed more than 80 different plants that provided foods, medicines for their ailments, and fibers for nets, rope and hammocks. Taino agriculture was not like anything that Europeans had seen before. While the main food crops in Europe were cereal grains, the peoples of the West Indies emphasized root crops. Moreover, European gardens involved plow agriculture where plants were cultivated in neat rows; fields were fertilized with manure from domesticated animals and/or fallowed for a few years in a process of crop rotation. In contrast, Taino fields must have appeared messy and disorganized.

The Spanish encountered several types of Taino gardens. First, various plants and herbs requiring special care or of immediate use were planted around houses in what we call “house gardens” (guada). These were the precursors of our modern herb and flower gardens, which mainly serve aesthetic purposes. In contrast, Taino house gardens contained useful species.

The second type of garden was located a short distance away from the main village. Called conuco, these were areas of the forest that were cut and burned and then planted in a haphazard manner with a variety of cultigens grown together. The Taino conucos can be characterized as “slash-and-burn” horticulture. A plot of land was cleared of trees and bushes and then allowed to dry. Large trees were “girdled” to cause them to drop their leaves. Just prior to the start of the next rainy season, the cut vegetation was burned to release nutrients that were bound up in the vegetation. A wide variety of crops were then planted in the cleared-and-burned land, sown with a digging stick (coa). Coas were six feet long with fire-hardened tips.

The Taino cultivated multiple varieties of root crops including many different strains of manioc and sweet potato (boniata) along with lesser-known tubers such as arrowroot and yautia or cocoyam. Because these plants matured at different rates they allowed nearly continuous harvests. The fields remained productive for about four years after which they were fallowed.

But the tropical forest is what anthropologist Betty Meggers has called a “counterfeit paradise.” By this she means that the lush vegetation belies an impoverished and shallow soil that is susceptible to erosion during heavy rains and is easily baked into a hardpan by the tropical sun. The vegetation must be burned to release the nutrients and fields must be allowed to fallow for decades before new gardens are planted.

It took years for Western agricultural scientists to recognize these unique characteristics of tropical gardens. At first they tried to transform tropical farming into a more regular and orderly system and for a few years they found good yields from plowed fields, but after that the land was unproductive. They learned the hard way that tropical soils will not support long-term cultivation in the same way as the soils in temperate climates. In the end they had to acknowledge that slash-and-burn techniques were ideally suited to farming in most areas of the tropics.

Still, some soils, particularly those along river flood plains where nutrients were annually renewed by flooding, supported a more intensive form of cultivation. In these areas the thin soil layer was piled into semi-permanent mounds (montones), which provided good drainage and loose soil to plant and harvest root crops. Montones were three feet high and nine feet in diameter with flat tops.

The Taino’s staple crop was called yuca, known today as manioc (Manihot esculenta). The yuca was processed into cassava bread called casaba by the Taino. According to Taino mythology it was the culture hero Deminan and his brothers who stole manioc from the high god Yaya and brought it to the Taino people. The story mirrors other cultures’ myths in which humans wrest their means of subsistence from supernatural beings. This myth was referenced and recreated when the Taino buried stone carvings of Yocahu (literally, the giver of manioc) in agricultural fields. The stones were triangular in shape and resembled a sprouting tuber. The god image on the “three-pointed stones” often has an open mouth, which eats the soils to make room for the tubers to grow. Yocahu was the Lord of Yuca and also the male fertility god.

Manioc occurs in numerous varieties but the main distinction is between “bitter” and “sweet” varieties. These names refer to the amount of cyanogenic glucosides concentrated in the tissues. Put more directly, all varieties of manioc contain cyanide. The bitter varieties contain toxic levels that require special forms of processing to be edible, while the sweet varieties are less toxic. Sweet manioc can be peeled, cut and boiled like a potato. By boiling the tuber, the cyanide is released and the flesh becomes edible.

So why grow bitter manioc? Why grow a tuber that is toxic to humans? So toxic, in fact, that the Taino reportedly used the juice to commit suicide. The answer seems to be that bitter manioc has a higher starch content and can be processed into a flour or farina that can be stored for many months. Sweet manioc is a perishable commodity and must be eaten soon after it is harvested.

Manioc is extremely drought resistant, has a high calorie content and can, though it matures in ten months, be stored in the montones for up to three years before harvesting. The Franciscan chronicler of the 16th century, Bartholome de la Casas, reported that 20 people working 6 hours a day for 1 month to plant manioc in the Taino fashion could feed 300 people for 2 years.

Though manioc is an abundant starch resource, it must be supplemented with fish or other protein sources to provide a healthy diet. This fact was made clear in the late 1960s when the people of the United States were implored to give aid to the starving children of Biafra (Nigeria), whose bellies had grown distended due to a lack of protein in their diet that caused a disease called kwashiorkor. This situation occurred because manioc had been brought from the American tropics to tropical Africa as a way to increase the food supply. The consequences were unanticipated.

During public lectures we often ask members of the audience to raise their hand if they have ever eaten manioc. Very few people do. But when we ask if they have ever eaten tapioca, almost everyone has. Tapioca is made from manioc. A more recent culinary development may also strike a chord. The “fish eggs” at the bottom of the new, haute beverage Bubble Tea is manioc.

The process of transforming the poisonous manioc root into the staple cassava bread begins by peeling the skin away with a sharp implement. Then the flesh was grated to produce a pulp. Grating could have been accomplished in a number of different ways, but one of the most common involves the use of specially prepared grater boards (guayo). The boards are made from a flat piece of wood into which small flint chips are embedded and then sealed with the resin from a tree. The tuber is shredded by moving it across the sharp flakes. The pulp is then placed in a basket tube (cibucan) and squeezed. The cibucan is similar to the child’s toy known as a Chinese finger puzzle — a woven tube into which you slide your fingers at opposite ends. As you try to pull your fingers out, the tube contracts to hold them fast. By putting the manioc pulp in the cibucan and applying pressure to both ends, the tube contracts and extracts the juice from the pulp.

The juice, albeit toxic, was not discarded but was boiled to remove any remaining cyanide and then used as the stock for “pepper pot” (casiripe), a stew of meat, fish, shellfish, vegetables and chili peppers that was simmered for long periods of time. It was then eaten by using pieces of cassava bread like a spoon. This method of cooking helped to preserve foods for longer periods of time in a tropical climate without refrigeration.

The manioc pulp was spread out and left to dry. The dried flour would later be spread on a clay griddle (buren) over a fire where it was baked into cassava bread. It is the thick sherds of the clay griddles that we find in archaeological sites that provide our best evidence for the baking of cassava bread. In addition, charred manioc tubers have been recovered from the Taino archaeological site of En Bas Saline in Haiti (circa AD 1450).

In 1979, one of us (Keegan) was excavating the archaeological site on Pine Cay as part of his Master’s Thesis research. The focus of this research was shell tools made from the queen conch, and he had purchased manioc from North Caicos to test the efficacy of shell tools for peeling the tubers. The tools worked remarkably well, but only a small fraction of the cassava tubers were used in the experiments. Months later, he returned to Pine Cay with Chuck Hesse. Naturally, the first thing they did when they got to Chuck’s house was to look for something to eat.

In those days you couldn’t run off to the grocery store. The commissary on Pine Cay was depleted, and the nearest (and only) store was BWI Trading on Provo. Even there supplies were hit or miss. (When Brian Riggs went to Provo to get peanut butter and jelly for Shaun Sullivan’s field team on Middle Caicos in 1977, he found only mint jelly in the store. For the next week Sullivan’s team had peanut butter and mint jelly sandwiches for lunch.) Keegan and Hesse peeled, grated, squeezed and dried the manioc that had been left in the kitchen, and then baked cassava bread. It tasted like cardboard. The bread would have been inedible if it wasn’t for a can of Hershey’s chocolate syrup.

Years later, the two authors were returning from a site visit in Haiti. Arriving at the main intersection in Dondon we encountered a woman with five, three-foot diameter cassava breads balanced on her head. We purchased one for a few Gourds (Haitian currency). It was one of the most delightful snacks we have ever eaten. It was warm and nutty tasting, and had the addictive quality of potato chips or popcorn.

The Spanish immediately recognized the usefulness of manioc. The cassava bread could be stored for long periods, and it came to replace hardtack as the staple for expeditions throughout the Americas. Some Taino villages were forced to pay tribute in cassava bread, and villages, especially in eastern Hispaniola, were responsible for provisioning Spanish ships. You might say that by providing cassava bread the Taino could ensure that the Spaniards would eat roots and leave.

Bill Keegan is Curator of Caribbean Archaeology, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. Betsy Carlson is an archaeologist with SEARCH, Inc. Gainesville.

Low-tax jurisdictions such as the Turks & Caicos Islands are under attack again. Like the movie vampire that never quite dies, the European Union’s “Savings Tax Directive” appears to have come back to life, and is apparently due to come into force on July 1, 2005.

The Savings Tax Directive
The Savings Tax Directive is the widely-reported process by which the high-tax governments of Europe are hoping to stop their citizens from sheltering their savings in low-tax countries like the Turks & Caicos Islands. If the plan comes into effect, then affected countries will have to either charge tax on all interest payments to EU residents (and pay it over to the EU governments) or automatically report the amount of interest paid to the recipient’s national tax authority so that they can tax it themselves.

Automatic reporting would make it easy for the investor’s home authority to impose tax, but would run against the tradition in many countries of protecting investors through client confidentiality and banking secrecy.

Taxing interest payments to EU residents might therefore appear at first sight to be more attractive, but the EU clearly sees this as merely a temporary measure. The rates demanded are 15% for the first three years of operation of the system, 20% (the international norm for tax deductions from bank interest) for the next three years but a clearly punitive 35% thereafter. Tax will be deducted from interest payments by the payer (whether a bank or other entity), and 3/4 of the tax must be paid to the investor’s home government.

EU tax havens
The European Commission (the EU’s bureaucracy) has been pushing for such a scheme for 15 years, but the process was held up primarily by two members of the EU that effectively act as on-shore tax havens.
The first, Luxembourg, has for its size a massive financial services sector, fuelled by its tax exemptions for interest payments; it is therefore unwilling to agree to anything that would risk losing any of this business. Indeed it was the loss of tax revenue to the German government through its citizens putting their money into Luxembourg banks (a process made easier by the removal of border controls in the EU and by the introduction of the Euro) that arguably started this whole process.

The other tax haven is the UK, whose massive $3 trillion Eurobond market is tax-free. (This allows mainly US and Japanese companies to raise money more cheaply by paying interest to investors without deducting tax.) The existence of this market in London brings much wealth to the UK, particularly highly paid financial sector jobs, associated legal and accountancy work and rents and taxes paid by banks and traders.

For both of these countries therefore, the Savings Tax Directive would damage their national economies. Both the Luxembourg bank deposits and the London Eurobond market are attractive primarily because they are tax-free. It is true that both countries also have reasonably efficient banking and dealing sectors, but no more than many other jurisdictions. If tax had to be imposed because of the EU then there would be no particular reason for this activity to stay in either country. Indeed the Eurobond market used to be in New York, and only moved to London in 1964 when the USA started levying tax on bond interest.

In the European Union, tax measures can only be imposed by unanimous agreement of all Member State governments, which means that Luxembourg and the UK could, and did, veto any moves to introduce the savings directive. However after several years of strong pressure they extracted valuable concessions (including an exemption from the new rules for existing Eurobonds) and finally gave way.

What has this to do with the Turks & Caicos Islands?
One of the strongest arguments used by the UK and Luxembourg was that the Savings Tax Directive would do only harm, not good — if all savings within the EU were taxed, then investors would simply move their money outside. The EU would therefore lose valuable financial sector business and the related income, but without collecting any more tax. Bank deposits are clearly mobile, and although the Eurobond market seems more permanent it has moved once already (from New York) because of tax and would presumably be ready to move again.

The agreement between the EU member governments therefore made the Savings Tax Directive conditional on its rules also being accepted by various non-EU countries, to ensure that there was nowhere for these markets to move to. Specifically it must cover:

* The main non-EU European tax havens: Switzerland, Liechtenstein, San Marino, Monaco and Andorra;

* “Dependent or associated territories” of EU members: the Channel Islands, Isle of Man, the Dutch Antilles and Aruba, and the UK’s dependencies in the Caribbean (including the Turks & Caicos Islands).

The EU has no formal jurisdiction over these countries, but they were clearly chosen because the EU felt that it could pressure them into agreeing to its demands, either due to geographic proximity or political or economic ties. The Turks & Caicos Islands accepted the inevitable and agreed to sign up to the EUÕs proposals on January 26, 2004, after pressure from the UK Treasury that even the UK’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office regarded as excessive.

Switzerland gives way
It was widely thought that the agreement to the Savings Tax Directive by the UK and Luxembourg, and its acceptance by the smaller low-tax jurisdictions, was an irrelevance because the process was conditional on Switzerland also agreeing. The Swiss government was thought to be unlikely to ever agree to anything that might damage its international banking sector.

However, the Swiss were put under intolerable pressure, particularly by Germany (which was losing the most under the old system through its citizens investing in Luxembourg banks) introducing excessive customs checks and administrative inconveniences in an attempt to practically close the Swiss border. (The Spanish have been using similar tactics against Gibraltar.)

Finally in June 2004, the Swiss government, after extracting other concessions from the European Union, agreed to sign up to the Directive.

Is the Directive now final?
The Swiss government has agreed to comply with the Savings Tax Directive, agreements from the other European tax havens are said to be “forthcoming,” and it is claimed that “all matters of substance” with the dependent and associated territories have been resolved. However the agreement by the Turks & Caicos Islands is of course dependent on the Savings Tax Directive coming into effect, and this is still not certain.

Firstly, although the Swiss government has agreed to the EU’s demands, this still needs to be ratified by the Swiss federal Parliament. It shows the EU’s attitude to democracy that they regard this as an administrative inconvenience, but the Swiss have been exerting their independence strongly recently and may well reject the proposal (although other elements of the deal, demanded by the Swiss negotiators as a condition of their acceptance, are valuable).

Secondly, although at the time of writing the full details of the European Council’s decision are not yet available, it appears that the Directive will still not come into effect until the Council of the EU agrees that the agreements with Switzerland and the other low-tax jurisdictions are satisfactory. This may sound like merely a technical process, but the way that the EU works means that this will be, in effect, a final political decision on whether to go ahead with the Directive. If they disagree with the general principle, then governments are quite capable of voting against overwhelming evidence that the conditions have been met.

The final acceptance by the Council is therefore far from certain, especially as it needs the unanimous agreement of the representative from each of the member governments, which now includes the 10 new members from eastern Europe. Some of these, such as Estonia, have celebrated their escape from communism by repositioning themselves as low-tax industrial centres and may be unwilling to allow the EU to reverse this policy by imposing Europe-wide taxes.

Level playing field
Furthermore, the agreement by the Turks & Caicos Islands is conditional on Switzerland, Liechtenstein, San Marino, Monaco and Andorra adopting “substantially the same terms.” Once the EU’s agreements with these countries are finalised and published, then they will be subject to close scrutiny from the other low-tax jurisdictions to ensure that the European tax havens have not been given a better deal.

Impact of the Savings Tax Directive
Even if the Directive does come into force it is unlikely to destroy the offshore finance industry, even in those jurisdictions that have been pressured to implement it.

Firstly, of course, it only affects investors who are resident in the EU; deposits from USA and other residents will not be affected.

However even for EU investors, the Directive is full of holes and should be easily avoidable; indeed the Swiss have dubbed it the “fools’ tax” because only those who do not take proper advice will be harmed by it. It is of course impossible to give firm advice at this stage, but there seem to be two main methods of avoiding the impact of the Directive:

To begin with, the bank or other person paying interest is under no obligation to investigate whether or not the person to whom interest is paid is actually the beneficial owner. For example, if a bank in the Turks & Caicos Islands pays interest to a trustee based in a jurisdiction not subject to the EU’s rules, then the bank will not have to deduct tax from that payment unless it is actually informed by the trustee that the beneficiary of the trust is an EU resident.

Secondly, the Directive only applies to interest, not to dividends. An EU investor can therefore set up a company in the Turks & Caicos Islands and invest share capital into it. That share capital can then be deposited by the company into a bank, but provided the company is tax resident in the Turks & Caicos Islands the recipient of the interest earned (the company) will not be an EU resident and so the Directive will not apply. The EU resident individual investor will receive dividends from the company, not interest, and so again the Directive will not apply.

This second restricted application of the Directive may well prove to enable EU investors to effectively deposit money in Turks & Caicos banks through some form of redeemable preference share, giving a return commercially equivalent to a bank deposit but legally a dividend that will escape the Directive.

The future for low-tax jurisdictions
Despite the claims of the European Commission, the Savings Tax Directive is still not certain and it appears that even if it does come into force next summer it will be relatively easy to avoid.
However this is not the only assault on low-tax jurisdictions. Various other international bodies, including the United Nations, have begun processes to try to impose minimum levels of tax on savings and business activities, but the most serious after the EU is the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The OECD “Harmful Tax Competition” initiative
The OECD’s campaign against low-tax jurisdictions began in 1998 with the publication of its paper “Harmful Tax Competition — an emerging global issue.” The Organisation’s members are the governments of the leading industrialised countries, primarily Europe, the USA and Canada, Japan, and Australia and New Zealand, but the main drivers of this particular process are again the high-tax European governments.

Tax Competition is the process by which countries compete to attract investment by lowering their tax rates, and the OECD accepts that it has had very beneficial effects in forcing governments to give more thought to the effect of their tax policies on investors. Indeed, the 1998 paper stated that: “liberalisation of cross-border trade and investment has been the single most powerful driving force behind economic growth and rising living standards.”

However some governments clearly feel that things have gone too far, and want to restrict international investment in order to protect their ability to raise taxes. As the first part of this initiative, and to minimise accusations of bias, the OECD attempted to define harmful tax regimes, giving four “key factors”:

1. No or low effective tax rates;

2. “Ring-fencing” (i.e. the low tax applies primarily to foreign investment);

3. Lack of transparency (i.e. the nature of the tax reductions are hidden); and

4. Lack of effective exchange of information.

The last factor, lack of information exchange, is similar to the EU’s desire to force low-tax jurisdictions to report all payments made to EU residents to their home tax authority so that they can be taxed.

Resistance to the OECD
The OECD intended to force non-members to comply with its demands by imposing sanctions on non-compliant countries. However it was met by organised opposition from the low-tax jurisdictions, particularly from the Caribbean states which have seen their economies threatened. Antigua & Barbuda has been a leading voice in the opposition to the OECD, and the government of the Cayman Islands has recently spoken out against the “interventionist high-tax” approach of the EU.

Almost all of the low-tax jurisdictions conceded to the OECD’s demands to publicly commit to removing all “harmful” aspects from their tax systems, but mostly on the explicit condition that they would do so only when all other countries, including the OECD members themselves, had done the same. The commitment by the Turks & Caicos Islands, signed on March 8, 2002, demands as a condition that “those jurisdictions, including OECD member countries . . . that fail . . . to satisfy the standards of the 1998 Report will be the subject of [sanctions].”

The OECD process is still on-going, but this insistence by the low-tax jurisdictions on a level playing field is difficult for the OECD to either reject or satisfy. Rejection of demands for fair play would be a clearly unfair move (accusations of neo-colonialism have already been made) and damaging politically, but many of the OECD’s members (including again, Switzerland and Luxembourg) are unwilling to dismantle their own valuable tax regimes.

Interestingly, Liechtenstein, under the close protection of OECD member Switzerland, is one of only five jurisdictions to have completely refused to comply with the OECD’s demands, suggesting that Switzerland will not allow the process to go too far.

The OECD members have carried out a review of their own harmful tax practices, and claim that they have removed or rendered harmless almost all of them. However this review has ignored many of the more important regimes, and is open to strong accusations of favouritism with OECD members being treated more leniently than non-members.

One of the many regimes that were not examined was the UK’s “non-domicile” exemption. This effectively allows foreign nationals to live in the UK, being tax-resident almost indefinitely, but remain exempted from tax on their overseas income. Not only does this clearly come within the OECD’s definition of a harmful tax regime (being a ring-fenced and largely hidden system that allows a low effective tax rate), it is also harmful in the OECD’s sense of actually distorting economic activity. Indeed it is incredibly successful; a recent study suggested that of the UK residents with annual income over £100,000, half of them were non-UK nationals likely to be benefiting from this exemption. The UK gains from this regime by attracting wealthy individuals and their spending, and despite numerous reviews it shows no sign of removing this exemption.

The low-tax jurisdictions are therefore in a strong position against the OECD, provided they keep insisting on the “level playing field” of fair treatment for OECD members and non-members. The danger is that the OECD is trying to separate out information exchange; most of the OECD members are willing to introduce this if they can then insist that the non-members do the same. The low-tax jurisdictions must resist this move and insist that the whole package needs to be implemented before a level playing field is in place. In other words, that the OECD members must genuinely dismantle all of their harmful tax regimes before information exchange is imposed. As many of the OECD members are clearly unwilling to do this, the OECD process can be lost in the sand for many years, possibly indefinitely.

In addition, the current USA government is not fully supportive of these moves by the OECD. This should make OECD sanctions, should any be imposed, less effective.

Why are these attacks being launched?

“highly efficient and low-cost environments . . . protected by the rule of law”
(description of low-tax jurisdictions by the Cayman leader of Government Business, July 2004)

Jurisdictions such as the Turks & Caicos Islands are clearly valuable in international investment. By providing such an environment, they make international capital markets more efficient and in many cases make international pooling of capital possible when it would otherwise be prevented by a lack of co-ordination of cross-border tax and investment regulations. By doing this they increase the amount of available international investment capital, help it to go to the places where it will do most good, and therefore increase jobs and the global standard of living.

Furthermore, as most of the low-tax jurisdictions have very little industrial base (due to geographical constraints), most of this investment and these benefits end up back in the OECD countries themselves. Even the OECD itself accepts this — its 2001 Progress Report on its initiative against tax competition states:
“The more open and competitive environment of the last decades has had many positive effects on tax systems, including the reduction of tax rates and broadening of tax bases which have characterized tax reforms over the last 15 years. In part these developments can be seen as a result of competitive forces that have encouraged countries to make their tax systems more attractive to investors. In addition to lowering overall tax rates, a competitive environment can promote greater efficiency in government expenditure programs.”

Although this is a process that is beneficial to their citizens, it is not one that is attractive to governments themselves. Faced with the choice of making their activities more efficient or increasing taxes, most governments would find it much easier to raise tax.

In Europe at the moment, politicians are feeling trapped by electorates who are unwilling to pay any more tax but want better public services for what they do pay. In the UK for example, government advisers now believe that tax levels above 43% of GDP (only just above the current levels) will seriously damage their electoral prospects.

With nearly half the nation’s wealth, one would have thought that governments should be able to provide a few half-decent hospitals. However most of this money is creamed off by the politicians’ various client groups, whether those who have become dependent on welfare payments or the armies of middle managers who have a stranglehold on the inefficient state services. In the rest of Europe the problem is even worse, with even less reform and crippling unfunded pension liabilities.

What the politicians would like to do is soak the “rich” for a little more tax money, raising more funds without directly affecting any electorally significant group. Of course high taxes on savings income damages investment, reduces economic activity and jobs and ultimately makes the whole country poorer, but it is still a very tempting short-term target. Their problem is that since the last time this was tried in the 1970s, capital has become much more mobile and now can easily shelter in tax havens. Raising taxes on the rich would simply move money offshore rather than increase the government’s revenue.
European governments have therefore given in to the temptation for a short-term solution. Whatever the long-term effects on the economy, they would rather muzzle the tax havens to leave themselves free to raise taxes on investment capital.

Conclusions
Low-tax and lightly-regulated jurisdictions like the Turks & Caicos Islands play a beneficial role of the world economy. Not only do they improve the efficiency of international capital markets, and therefore increase investment and jobs all around the world, but they also force other governments to use their tax revenues more efficiently.

High-tax governments resent this and would rather stamp out such jurisdictions, leaving themselves free to raise taxes whatever the cost to the economy and long-term detriment to their citizens.

The EU’s Savings Tax Directive is a current danger to low-tax jurisdictions. Although it is still not yet final and should be possible to avoid in its current state, it may well be pushed through and later extended.

The OECD’s process is currently less of a worry, having been slowed down by the concerted insistence by non-members on a level playing-field. However this needs to be maintained. Non-members must insist on the whole package being taken forward together and resist the current OECD moves to drive through information exchange on its own while effectively dropping those parts that would harm its own members. A change in government in the USA could also give new force to the OECD. The process was started under the Clinton government and lost speed when the Bush administration signalled a lack of enthusiasm.

Overall, there needs to be continued co-operation between low-tax jurisdictions like the Turks & Caicos Islands and their friends and supporters in Europe and the USA. It is important for all of us that the European governments do not win this fight, not just to preserve the sovereignty of small nations but also for the sake of investment and the global economy.

Richard Teather BA (Oxon) ACA is Director of the Centre for Finance & Tax Research, Bournemouth University, UK, in which role he writes and speaks regularly across Europe in support of international tax competition. He previously worked in private practice, advising multinational businesses on tax law, which gives him a deeper understanding of the role of low-tax jurisdictions in the world economy that is not shared by many of his fellow academics. He can be contacted via e-mail at rteather@teather.me.uk or through his website www.teather.me.uk.

Seven Stars Residences

By Kathy Borsuk

The sky is no longer the limit when it comes to development on Providenciales’ Grace Bay “Gold Coast.” Seven Stars has set its sights on another galaxy by offering luxury residences that surpass expectations in an upscale market where standards rise with each new offering.

Most distinctive are the size and location of the Steven Stars property, encompassing 1,200 feet of uninterrupted beach frontage in the heart of the Grace Bay cosmos. This bestows each Seven Stars residence a stellar view of one of the planet’s most beautiful vistas; each resident is just steps away from the tickle of silky sand and caress of warm ocean waters. Other sybaritic pleasures are nearly as close — Seven Stars is the center of a constellation of Grace Bay’s most vibrant shops, boutiques, restaurants and cafes.

But it takes more than location to sparkle in already brilliant galaxy. It requires a vision of excellence and the determination, knowledge and commitment to make it happen. And that’s where developer Jak Civre and his colleague Luigi Behar come in. Jak and Luigi have been in business together for nearly 30 years, becoming Italy’s market leader in consumer goods and leading residential and commercial real estate developers in the Milan region. Jak has lived part time in Providenciales since 1988, carefully following the island’s steady progress. In 2002, he made the decision to sell his European assets and reside full time in the Turks & Caicos. As one of Italy’s leading entrepreneurs, Jak decided to turn his energies towards what he found most appealing: the TCI real estate market.

After carefully considering the handful of prime sites still available on Providenciales, Jak purchased the coveted 22-acre Allegro Resort property, formerly home to one of the island’s first hotels, the Ramada Turquoise Reef. This represented the largest equity purchase of a single piece of property in TCI to date. And from the beginning, Jak and the Seven Stars development team set their sights beyond the horizon. “Seven Stars is a carefully thought out process,” Jak says. “We spend lots of time brainstorming, discussing, listening, and thinking. We want every detail to be unequalled.”

The group chose internationally renowned architect Robert Swedroe following the bold request for a competition among leading firms for the project. After over six months of revisions, the first phase of Seven Stars was born — marked by a gracious design concept and magnificently over-sized residences. Jak explains, “We were very concerned that Seven Stars blend naturally with the environment and bring charm and beauty to the Grace Bay shoreline. We didn’t want it to overwhelm the landscape.”

The result is a fan-shaped trio of seven story buildings gently curving around a beachfront pool and patio. Each of the 72 residences is oriented for the best ocean view, with two, three and four bedroom designs ranging in size from just over 2,000 to well over 6,000 square feet for the penthouses, literally the epitome of Grace Bay living.

Seven Stars development manager is James Slattery, another long-time resident with nearly 20 years of experience in the local condominium market, most notably as the visionary and former CEO of luxurious Point Grace. James says that most Seven Stars residences were designed to include two ocean view master bedrooms, one of which is a spacious lock-off suite for possible vacation rentals. Sweep-around terraces and window-lined grand salons ensure that the celestial Grace Bay panorama is a constant feature of life at Seven Stars. James adds, “With six different floor plans, interiors reflect the best in convenience, accessibility and comfort. Gourmet kitchens include high-end appliances and stone countertops, bathrooms have whirlpool tubs, bidets and stone-tiled showers with benches and flooring is travertine stone tile, with acoustical cork for sound insulation.”

James adds, “Additionally, we have re-circulating hot water systems and multi-zoned air conditioning which are essential in large-size suites. Other details like a staff service elevator and inter connecting tunnels for staff traffic means back-of-house activities need not interfere with guests’ experience. Attention to detail is key as this level. We’ve all drawn on our past knowledge and tried to improve every aspect of living at Seven Stars.”

While the Seven Stars residences more than meet the most discriminating buyer’s expectations, it is Jak’s well-honed dedication to detail and personal knowledge of island life that take them into another dimension. For instance, Seven Stars residents will enjoy dual elevators to each floor. Each residence has a private underground parking space and personal storage area. Laundry and trash chutes add ease, while state-of-the-art communications electronics bring the world to residents’ fingertips. Built-in smoke detectors and fire sprinkler systems, along with hurricane resistant window glazing provide safety. A concierge is on call 24/7, with a resident manager living on site and a gatehouse promising secure access.

Set behind the residential buildings on phase one’s 7.5 acres are all the amenities of a self-contained tropical universe. The handsome clubhouse/activity center is home to the lobby, library, Internet/business center, meeting room and owner’s lounge. A dedicated fitness center and spa have their own building nestled into the landscape. Nearby are a children’s activity area and two flood-lit tennis courts, as well as a full-service gourmet restaurant. Poolside are a cabana bar and grille, serving light daytime fare. Seven Stars also has one of the few beachfront docks allowed on Grace Bay, giving residents rare direct access to a constellation of watersports.

Designed by landscape architects DSBoca, the landscaping, Jak says, “is like icing on the cake. When it is finished, I want residents and guests to take pleasure in strolling the grounds, sitting under a tree, relaxing by a fountain . . . it will all be very elegant and quite beautiful.” Best of all will be the atmosphere of luxurious privacy, as Seven Stars’ deliberate low density ensures that beach, pool, patio and walkways remain peaceful and uncrowded.

After facing the initial challenge of demolishing an existing resort complex, construction manager Steve Mull (most recently involved in The Sands and Royal Bay Resort [Beaches] projects), members of Engineering Design Services (EDS), a TCI-based chartered civil and structural engineering firm and the entire Seven Stars team are eager for construction to begin in early 2005. Meanwhile, they took the unprecedented step of building a full-scale, furnished show home on site. A $1 million investment, Jak says, he wants potential purchasers to see what they’re buying. This is complemented by scale models of the entire Seven Star resort concept at the sales center and in the airport arrivals area.

Connolly Zahm Properties is Seven Stars’ exclusive sales agent, led by managing partner Joe Zahm, who has been involved in the design and development of Grace Bay resort condominiums since the first, Ocean Club, opened its doors in 1990. Joe is especially impressed with the generous size and frontage of the residences and the time and thought given to the resort management part of the project ahead of time. He says, “Owners have the freedom to choose whether or not they want to participate in the rental pool. The fact that there are well-designed lock-off suites offers further flexibility.” With pre-construction prices ranging from $800,000 to over $3 million and averaging in the $1.5 million range, Joe has no doubt that Providenciales’ high-end market will make the leap to the best.

As a highly successful businessman in his own right, Jak Civre believes the time is right for purchasing property on Providenciales. “Seven Stars is a unique opportunity to purchase a place in paradise and a wise investment for years to come. It’s obvious that the island is booming — we’ve seen massive change over the last five years — and in another decade it will be too late.”

And where did the rather exotic name come from? In characteristic fashion, Jak mulled over dozens of possibilities until he hit upon the Pleiades star cluster, named for the seven daughters of Atlas who, in Greek mythology, metamorphosed into stars. It seemed to suit the focus and scope of the project, and “Seven Stars” was born. Each phase 1 building — the Alhena, Maia and Alya — is also named after a star.

For more information, visit the on-site sales center on Grace Bay Road, call (649) 941-7777, e-mail sevenstars@sevenstars.tc or visit the website: www.sevenstarsresort.com.