summary response #1

Nicola Venning wrote “A Caribbean island where the beaches are empty and the holiday homes are affordable – in St Kitts, Nicola finds a brief window of opportunity”. The author’s main idea can be found from the title. The author showed her audience that they can buy beachfront homes that are at a lower cost in Antigua, where the sea is so beautiful, clean and glittering. The cost in these places will be approximately a million dollars. The author also gave the audience more information about St Kitts, where she made a choice, and picked amongst all the villages and cities. Because of its tropical lushness, and sugarcane farms, it is still undeveloped, with fair population ratio in a quite small area, she called it an exceptional place.

The author claims that homes are affordable at a good price too; that is about 300,000 US Dollars. The author is giving reasons why the prices are affordable. The main reason is because of the death of the sugar industry in that region. So the government is encouraging tourism for the long and short term. As part of these initiatives, some airlines and international development companies are moving in. As a result of investment, the author declared that prices of land are increasing. It has already doubled and will be doubling rapidly.

The author highlighted in her article the southeast peninsula, where the place is designated as an up market having all the services with low population. It is meant to be a tourist zone. He stated in his article that current investors are building hotels and lots of homes. He also said that one of the property groups has already built a complex containing more than 150 homes both hillside and ocean view which will finish at the end of 2008. As the author reported in his article that the island suffered hurricanes in the 1990s. The government does not have any design control either and therefore they are offering the one bedroom homes for about $300,000 and around $500,000 for the two bedrooms. And as the author is saying, the government is only promoting upmarket development to protect the environment.

The author also gave an example of a couple who bought land and was willing to build a four bedroom home. This is to show that people are also buying land and building their own homes. It is not the only option to buy a ready built home.
There should be more efforts from the government and the media companies to encourage the development of the Caribbean islands, i.e. living as well as the environment. This can only be achieved by heavy advertising and heavy investment.

I always did wish to own a beach, where I wake up in the morning and see the wonderful sea. But I had never heard of the Caribbean before. Is it because it is not well advertised by the media?

If you have a home there, then you would absolutely do whatever it takes you to protect the environment.

The prices there are so affordable. So why don't you get one before the price doubles? It is a good choice for living. If you change your mind, then you still have a chance to sell it after the price doubled. Don't you think so?


References:
Venning, N. (2006, September 27). This other Eden;A Caribbean island where the beaches are empty and the holiday homes are affordable - in St Kitts, Nicola Venning finds a brief window of opportunity. The Independent (London). Retrieved May 29, 2008. from Lexis Nexis