Starting January 12th, the Seaborne airshuttle will be flying into San Juan International seven days a week, with flights leaving as early as 6:15 am and returning as late as 6:15 pm. This opens up a whole new world of flight options for VI residents, as San Juan offers flights on carriers that don’t come to the Virgin Islands such as Jet Blue and Spirit Airlines. It offers more airlift to people traveling to and from the VI and we’re really excited about the new options for travel Seaborne will be enabling. If you haven’t taken a trip on the airshuttle yet, you have to try it. I was in the airshuttle this weekend and the flight is unbelievable– the windows are so big that you feel like you’re floating in the clouds. What a cool experience.

Seaborne will still offer service to Isla Grande Friday to Monday and is perfect for weekend trips to Puerto Rico. This smaller airport is super convenient to San Juan so you can be exploring Old San Juan within an hour of leaving St. Croix!

The airshuttle will be flying into SJU from St. Croix, St. Thomas and Vieques and not only does it help VI residents get to where they need to go, it’s going to keep promoting the VI and Puerto Rico as travel destinations and offer visitors to our island more opportunities to get down here and enjoy everything we have to offer… passport free!

We’re excited about this new development and look forward to more exciting news from Seaborne. Remember that Seaborne SmartPak tickets are a great holiday gift, and that FastPak freight is this fastest way to ship between the VI and Puerto Rico. Check out more at www.seaborneairlines.com.

GoTo: Describe the experience of filming a reality show– the challenges, the living situation, the relationships with other contestants. Was there anything completely unexpected?

Alex: I think that I went into it knowing that it will all be unexpected. So I kind of my opened up myself to the experience. The one thing that really surprised me was that I got along with so many of the other contestants. Having a camera follow you around 24/7 was interesting but in a way exciting, but made it hard to design outside of my normal environment. The challenges were incredibly difficult. They actually are a lot harder than they look on TV.

GoTo: When did you realize that design was your passion?

Alex: After I left corporate America, I spent a year working odd jobs and trying to figure out what I really wanted to do. So I looked back in my childhood to see what I was interested in. I spent most of my time growing up drawing houses, redesigning rooms and watching design shows. At that time I didn’t think of it as a career, but it was evident that it has always been a passion of mine.

GoTo: Your style is so urban and modern—how does St. Croix fit into your aesthetic? What Caribbean influences do you incorporate into your design?

Alex: All of my designs usually bring in some form of natural accent or texture. Being from St. Croix, I always have to incorporate nature into my designs. Many times my island background comes through in my choice of color and accents. But the biggest contribution of my hometown is definitely the organic flow of my designs. Even my modern geometric elements tend to be asymmetrical or random. Having nature as my inspiration has left me with the desire to have things unique, unexpected and less structured.

GoTo: Were there any early supporters of your design dream that have been important to your development?

Alex: My parents have been my biggest support system. My father realized early that I didn’t need toys, just art supplies. Trips to the art store became a weekly event and both my parents always celebrated my creativity. They even let me draw up the plans for our first home renovation at a very young age. They gave me liberties with my room to constantly keep redesigning it. But the most important thing they gave me were options. They never told me that I couldn’t do something. Whatever I said  I wanted to do, wanted to be, they told me it was possible. This was essential for my growth as an artist and I am eternally grateful.

GoTo: What is one essential interior design tip for island homeowners?

Alex: In the islands you need to let your surroundings be your inspiration. Bring the outdoors in! Use nature to select your color palette and don’t distract from the view, which is your natural art, by over-cluttering. Incorporate work from local artisans and play with texture. I think the most important rule is to break the rules of traditional design. What you see in stateside homes doesn’t usually translate well in the islands.

GoTo: What do you miss most about St. Croix?

Alex: I miss the lifestyle. There is a connection that you have with your home that nowhere else can replace. And when it’s a place like St. Croix with natural beauty everywhere, it’s hard not to miss. I miss having family around me and culture. St. Croix is a unique place that is laid back and easy. people are very straight forward and genuine and the atmosphere is one of freedom that can not be duplicated.

GoTo: What’s your favorite island activity while you’re visiting home? Favorite food? Favorite beach?

Alex: When I come home I love going nighttime kayaking with Caribbean Adventure Tours. I have to stop by Brady’s on Queen Street to get me a fried chicken plate. Beaches change every year on St. Croix. The last time I was there I was surprised by how beautiful Salt River (Columbus Landing) beach was. That is my new favorite beach.

GoTo: What’s next after Design Star?

Alex: There is so much that I want to do! I have been working with development companies in Washington DC to renovate houses in neglected inner city neighborhoods. I am really enjoying this and plan on changing neighborhood thru my design. I am back to mentoring kinds more often and using my platform to encourage kids to pursue their passion, especially in the arts. I will continue designing houses for clients that break rules and inspire. I am also looking to get more involved in designing restaurants and public spaces. I am planning to enroll in graduate school to get my Masters in Architecture next year. My goal is to develop a new, more efficient architectural design for island homes. I want to utilize the abundant sun, wind and views to maximize how we live in the Caribbean.

Thank you Alex! Good luck!

Be sure to check out Design Star on HGTV on Sunday nights at 10 pm to check out Alex in action! And definitely be sure to vote for him on the Design Star website, and help Alex get his own show! You can vote up to 10 times a day, so get to clicking and supporting one of St. Croix’s own!

The lionfish is a species native to the Indian-Pacific Ocean, and began popping up in the Atlantic Ocean area in the early 2000s. Some speculate that their appearance may be due to their presence in exotic aquariums in the States.

Lionfish are distinctive for their brown or maroon and white striped appearance and for the long venomous spines on their fins. These spines are used defensively and are not lethal to humans, though if stung, some people often have strong reactions beyond just pain, redness and swelling, such as headaches, cramps, nausea, paralysis and seizures.

The real threat posed by the lionfish is their voracious appetite for smaller fish—it is said they will eat anything that swims. Because of their striking natural defense mechanisms in their spiny fins, they have few predators and exist at the top of the food chain. They often corner smaller fish with their intimidating spines. They have already overtaken reefs in North Carolina, and 85% of young fish on reefs in the Bahamas were lost in a matter of just 5 weeks due to the lionfish, disrupting the delicate ecosystem of varied animals that keep the reefs alive and healthy. With their presence noted in St. Croix, it is of utmost importance that we monitor their presence and preserve our world-class reefs.

Michelle Pugh at Dive Experience told me that St. Croix has the best response team to this invasive species she has seen so far, and I think that is due to the early awareness and proactive organization of the community in partnership with Fish & Wildlife. In spreading the word to locals and tourists alike, everyone who goes for a snorkel or a dive in our beautiful tropical waters can be on the lookout for these stripy, spiny predators. Michelle herself has found two lionfish at the Salt River underwater canyon.

Lionfish stay within an area of five feet for several days at a time, so divers who spot one can leave a marker and then alert DPNR Fish & Wildlife, or even just let one of the local dive shops know so they can contact the right people to search for and capture the fish.  The homemade markers are made of a metal washer connected to a wine cork wrapped in red tape. This DIY flag works well for marking a spot where a lionfish was spotted, and you can pick some up from DPNR, Fish & Wildlife, The Nature Conservancy and most dive shops, along with an information card with a photo.

IF YOU SEE A LIONFISH:

1-      Do not touch it! Lionfish spikes are highly poisonous!

2-     Mark the location with a cork streamer. Take a GPS reading if you can or get a detailed description of the location.

3-     Call DPNR immediately (anytime, 24/7) to report the sighting: (340) 643-0800 or (340) 773-1082.

4-     Fill out the Lionfish reporting form from DPNR.

Dive Experience also does free dive trips once a month for experienced divers to search for lionfish at Buck Island National Monument and East End Marine Park. It’s a great (FREE) dive trip and is also a fantastic way to give back to the community and keep our St. Croix marine ecosystems free of this dangerous predator. You do have to be experienced and have navigational skills as a diver to go on this trip. The three tank dive takes place the last Saturday of every month and includes two dives at Buck Island and one at East End Marine Park. Pack a lunch for a picnic at the beach at Buck! If you’re a SCUBA enthusiast visiting St. Croix, it’s a great way to give back to our island by searching out lionfish, and you get a free dive trip out of it!

Please spread the word about the lionfish, the only way we can really combat this threat is with widespread knowledge throughout our community. Be sure you know what a lionfish looks like and to contact authorities as soon as you see one.  Be sure to pick up a marker before your next dive or snorkel trip!

Read more about the lionfish here:

USVI Department of Planning and Natural Resources

NOAA Ocean Service Education

It’s important to note that the Boys & Girls Club Recycle Center is in Phase One right now, which means they are only accepting cans to recycle. Any kind of aluminum beverage cans or steel cans from soup, canned vegetables and fruit, juice, etc. are okay to drop off. Please make sure everything is rinsed well to minimize pests.  Hopefully the Recycle Center will be so successful with cans that they will be able to move on to Phase Two, which is plastic bottles and then Phase Three– glass. They cannot accommodate plastic, glass or motor oil as of right now, so please don’t drop off these things until they have moved on to the new phase.

As important as the service the Recycle Center provides us islanders, it’s even more important that we show them our consistent support. They need to process at least 5 million cans to break even– it sounds like a lot but that’s only 20% of the 27 million cans that are imported into our island each year. We need to do our part to keep those cans out of the landfill and into the recycling system. Our island is too small to sustain that kind of waste and damage to our ecosystem will affect us all immediately.  If we want to keep recycling on St. Croix, we need to be sure to support the facilities that provide such fantastic resources for us.

Also, restaurant, hotel, bar and condo owners and managers– it’s really important that you make the effort to collect cans and drop them off at the center. Because such a high volume of cans move through restaurants, bars, and hotels, contributions from those places will make a huge difference in supporting the center and making sure they reach their 5 million and more mark. Making lasting environmental change is all about the small contributions and lifestyle habits we as a collective group must adopt to sustain the world around us. Just a small effort by a large group can make an enormous difference.

I’m very excited about the ability to recycle on St. Croix! I’ll raise a can to their efforts, and then promptly drop it off at the new center!

For more information, you can contact us at info@gotostcroix.com or Colleen Sullivan, who is the new director of the Recycle Center– her email address is recyclecolleen58@yahoo.com.

If you haven’t had a chance to fly on the Seaborne airshuttle, it’s a truly enjoyable and comfortable experience– not something we expect from air travel these days. The windows are huge so passengers can really enjoy the view of our beautiful islands and Caribbean Sea. I’ve always loved flying into and out of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, and seeing the green hills rise out of the clear blue waters. As you get closer, it’s always fun to try and make out the landmarks and familiar places.  Seaborne has been working hard to bring the enjoyment and fun back into flying, by making the process as easy and comfortable as possible, which lately seems like a rare quality in air travel.

The expansion to Vieques is great news for us Crucians. There’s a huge population of people from Vieques here, and the island is currently having a renaissance– being named the best Caribbean island by Travel & Leisure Magazine in 2009, and with the recently opened W Hotel (the first W Hotel property in the Caribbean).  If you don’t want to stay in a big resort, Vieques is dotted with little bed and breakfasts for a quiet and quaint weekend away.

Seaborne is flying direct airshuttle flights from San Juan and St. Croix to Vieques starting tomorrow, and are running special deals through the end of March. Be sure to check out seaborneairlines.com for the most up to date schedule and fares. Happy Island Hopping, and maybe I’ll see you tomorrow on that first flight!

Also… New York Times columnist Paul Krugman was also revealed to be a St. Croix fan as well in this week’s issue of the New Yorker. Our island is getting a lot of attention these days– the secret’s out!

We’re happy to see St. Croix getting the respect that it’s due, and it’s sure to attract more intrepid travelers to come explore our island. And ifyou’re just discovering St. Croix for the first time, welcome, you’re in for a treat!