A Trip to the Beach (30 page)

Afterword

We lived for seven weeks without full electricity. Our two small generators gave us enough power to rebuild the restaurant and take showers at home. But life became even simpler than before: no television and no going out for lunch. Hotels and restaurants were closed and everyone was busy re-creating their own little world in hopes of reopening for the high season.

When the two containers of materials arrived from Florida, this time we knew to identify every single item purchased, and customs processed our entry in record time. The Davis brothers worked with Bob to rebuild the restaurant and neighbors from Long Bay came to help remove debris that Luis had dumped in our yard. A large tree had uprooted and crashed down over the front door, and it took six people to stake it back into its upright position. I nursed it with fertilizer and lots of water until it eventually took hold again in the ground.

Cap Juluca's beach had eroded badly, but they were spending a fortune to dredge the sand and get things back to normal. Malliouhana was moving ahead at full speed and the new Sonesta Hotel would open for the season. Cuisinart Resort and Spa still had a way to go, but we saw the plans and knew it would be a great addition to the economy.

We opened on November 17 and that night, Blanchard's kitchen was just as it had been before the storm. Bug was up to his elbows in soapsuds, Clinton hummed a little tune to himself, and Ozzie danced as he chopped. Before the first guests arrived, Lowell and Miguel insisted that Bob and I celebrate with a relaxing dinner for two at our most romantic corner table. The newly painted teal shutters framed the garden, which was already starting to bloom in its many shades of pink and blue. Candles flickered, ceiling fans swirled overhead, and the sea breeze ruffled the new white tablecloths. Hughes grilled us two fresh lobsters and we were in heaven.

We listened to the waves break against the beach and raised our champagne glasses in toast. A little lizard wiggled in the sand, making rings around a newly planted palm tree. “Here's to dreamy Anguilla,” I said.

The soft evening light made Bob's meltaway blue eyes even more entrancing than usual. He smiled and said, “Here's to living on island time.”

Copyright © 2000 by Melinda Blanchard and Robert Blanchard

Illustrations copyright © 2000 by Nicole Kaufman

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published by Three Rivers Press, New York, New York. Member of the Crown Publishing Group.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Blanchard, Melinda

A trip to the beach / by Melinda Blanchard and Robert Blanchard.

1. Anguilla—Description and travel. 2. Anguilla—Social life and customs. 3. Blanchard, Melinda—Homes and haunts—Anguilla. 4. Blanchard, Robert—Homes and haunts—Anguilla. 5. Restaurants—Anguilla. I. Blanchard, Robert. II. Title.

F2033 .B53 2000

972.973—dc21      00-029466

eISBN: 978-1-4000-4532-7

v3.0