Newsletter for alumni of The Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict,
Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Caracas, 3 December 2016 No. 787
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Dear Friends,
Dedicated to a wonderful trip to Anguilla by Ronald Ferreira.
Don, slowly your wish is coming true, your Old boys hall of visits
is being populated.
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horsey <oats@rogers.com>
Nov 13 at 9:48 PM
On a whim, in early
October, I decided to make a pit stop on Anguilla on my way to Guadeloupe.
I shot off an email
to Don Mitchell who I never saw since our time at the mount in 1964, not really
expecting a reply.
Received a reply in
a few minutes and was a bit disappointed at the fact that he couldn’t place me
at the Mount during our 5 years there.
Could be the result
of the 50 years of water under the bridge, his selective failing memory for
unimportant people or simply because of our different pursuits and interests
while at mount.
Then again it could
also be or his total dedication to Anguilla and its citizens .
After a few back and
forth emails he eventually had me correctly slotted and seemed to be really
excited that a 3rd mount boy was going to visit him in Anguilla.
Spent a few days in
busy St Maarten checking the calm channel to Anguilla, only to wake up to
choppy seas on travel day as a result of hurricane Matthew brewing in the
Caribbean.
The 20 minute
crossing by ferry was a bit rough with one or two people suffering the effects.
The Customs
clearance at Blowing Point easy, with nothing but idle chat and willingness to
help, even calling my ride.
Contacted Don who
immediately offered to give our party of 4 an island tour at 09:00 a.m the following
day.
He showed up the
stroke of nine and after a short re acquaintance session, off we went.
No one better to
show us around than the person who has exhaustively researched the past of
Anguilla and either knows everyone on the island or if there is anyone he
doesn’t know, they definitely know him.
We crisscrossed
every paved road on the island, with a non-stop running commentary, while
seeing all the opulent resorts which I could only stay at if I ever won the
Powerball lottery.
We were also lucky
enough to witness one of the rare instances of tropical snow courtesy of
hurricane Matthew.
Halfway through our
tour, while at Shoal Bay I got a big clue of why he couldn’t initially remember
me.
After a short look
around Don couldn’t find the car key.
We frantically
searched the sand adjacent to our footsteps, a few times, Don’s pockets and all
the hiding places in the car, we eventually giving up.
A quick rescue call
to Maggie to bring a spare was his next move.
While waiting for
Maggie the key was found in the passenger door lock which saved Maggie the
trip.
We met Maggie over a
relaxed cafe lunch and soon it was as if the entire group were longtime
friends.
Don had to run as he
was hosting a lecture on the constitutional changes that night but we had
already done the whole island in a few hours.
Anguilla was
basically in shutdown mode, the beaches, restaurants and resorts were either
closed or totally empty, as they usually are during the off season.
If you are a beach
lover who can entertain yourself or enjoys solitude it would be the ideal time
to visit, since at this time of year you could have any of the 33 beaches to
yourself.
Don and Maggie are
both retired. I quickly realised what that really meant.
They don’t have to
dress up or follow a routine every day to earn a salary.
But don’t be fooled
they still have full appointment books, the only difference is that they get to
do the things they enjoy without getting the monetary reward.
They are both fully
immersed in Anguilla, trying to keep the elected officials honest, meeting with
foreign fast talking investors, most of whom have $billion plans with 3 figure
bank accounts, and helping some sectors of the population in any way they could
be it the older folk or educating the younger population.
At the end of their
busy days they seem to really relish returning to total isolation of their
remote home to recharge and get ready for the next day’s agenda.
On Saturday we met
Don at a local award ceremony for deserving aged volunteers, followed by a
wonderful creole fish lunch on the beach at Sandy Ground before Don had to bolt
to his next appointment.
Having our own car
allowed us to spend most of the time checking out every nook and cranny on our
own.
But be aware that it
you are looking for excitement on Anguilla you might be disappointed, no
casinos, lively nightspots etc, just the occasional cock crowing.
On our final night
there we had dinner with Don & Maggie at Spice of India which offers full
Indian menu not the usual West Indian roti and curry.
The food and company
were both excellent.
We said our goodbyes
hoping that it wouldn’t be another 50 years before our next hookup.
Think I’ll have to
revisit some time to see ALL the things I missed.
PS: It’s
not everyone’s cup of tea but definitely worth the trip, especially if you
would like a preview of heaven where the highlights of the day are peace,
serenity and boredom.
The entire
population were courteous, helpful and willing to chat without being in a hurry
to go anywhere.
Most of my best
chats were with people during my daily visit to coconut man near by the
airport.
Seems like he is
making a small fortune on the add-on ‘steel drops’ the local aphrodisiac. The
guys I spoke to all swear by it !!!
Don, Maggie and
everyone on Anguilla are anxiously waiting for you mount boys, even the folks
like me with 3 figure bank accounts.
Cheers…..
Ron Ferreira.
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Don Mitchell <idmitch@anguillanet.com>
Nov 22 at 10:44 PM
Hello, Ladislao,
I was going through
my 2016 photos on my computer, transferring them to an external hard drive in
order to save my computer space, when I came across this photo from earlier
this year.
It is a shot of me
in court making an application for the Call to the Bar of one of my first High
School Students in Anguilla, Ojeda Vanterpool.
She left my High
School class in about 2010 and went on to complete her law studies in England,
where she graduated with the highest grade.
I was very proud of
her, and when she invited me to come out of retirement in order to move her
application to the court, I was honoured to do so.
But, it is likely
that this will be the last time I will be putting on my gown and bands and
appearing in court on behalf of anyone. So, I thought you might like to see it.
Keep well.
Don
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mailto:idmitch@anguillanet.com
Nov 27 at 12:30 PM
Kazim,
It was especially
good to see you looking so well, if a little cold, judging from the warm layers
of clothing you wore :-)
Don
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From: Kazim Abasali
Sent: Sunday, November 27, 2016 9:59 AM
Subject: Re: Response to Question in Circular
Thank you Don for
this information about column A of our MSB Database.
The database now is
updated and reflects the correction.
So wonderful to
video chat with you on Skype today.
A little face to
face correspondence once in a while, even if it is done over the internet is
good.
Regards.....Kaz
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On Sun, Nov 27, 2016 at 2:26 PM,
Don Mitchell <idmitch@anguillanet.com> wrote:
Thank you, Kazim.
Deleuze’s Form V
year for column A would probably have been 1963 if he had stayed till then.
Don
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From: Kazim Abasali
Sent: Sunday, November 27, 2016 8:43 AM
Subject: Re: Response to Question in
Circular
Don,
here is the updated MSB Database with this info.
....Kazim
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To Charles-Henri Dunoyer de Noirmont
Nov 3 at 12:05 PM
Hello,
Charles-Henri,
I remember the
Deleuze boy, but I don’t remember the years he was there, and I don’t remember
his first name either.
And, what is
disturbing is that his name is not in the data base of all the names of all the
Old Boys, which I attach.
We shall have to ask
Ladislao to put an “All Points Bulletin” for him.
Keep well.
Don
-------------------------------------------------------
From: Charles-Henri Dunoyer de
Noirmont
Sent: Thursday, November 3, 2016 10:36
AM
To: Don Mitchell
Subject: RE: First Abbot - Mayeul
de Caigny
Dear Old Boy,
I read your message about Joël Blandin, who was at Mount St
Benedict with me too, along with another Frenchman: Deleuze, ( I forget his
Christian name). I have a picture of Blandin and myself, plus some of my
cousins, taken while we were vacationning at Chantal and Guy de Pompignan's
estate, located at Mayaro.
I had taken Blandin for some days there, since he had no family in
Trinidad.
Guy de Pompignan was the brother of my grandmother: Elizabeth Agostini,
who lived in Port of Spain, 145 Henry Street.
Could you give me more details abouth his death, i.e. approximate
date and location?
Best regards
Charles Henri de Noirmont.
I will try my best to find something about him.
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EDITED by Ladislao Kertesz, kertesz11@yahoo.com, if you would like to be in the
circular’s mailing list or any old boy that you would like to include.
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Photos:
14LK6528FBEFA, Elias Farcheg
15GI0001GIWFE, George Iwaszkiewicz and wife
16RF0001RFEDMI, Roland Ferreira photo
visiting Don
16RF0009DMI, Don Mitchell by Ronald Ferreira
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