WELCOME TO CHATEAU DU MER BEACH RESORT

If this is your first time in my site, welcome! Chateau Du Mer is a beach house and a Conference Hall. The beach house could now accommodate 10 guests, six in the main floor and four in the first floor( air conditioned room). In addition, you can now reserve your vacation dates ahead and pay the rental fees via PayPal. I hope to see you soon in Marinduque- Home of the Morions and Heart of the Philippines. The photo above was taken during our first Garden Wedding ceremony at The Chateau Du Mer Gardens. I have also posted my favorite Filipino and American dishes and recipes in this site. Some of the photos and videos on this site, I do not own, but I have no intention on the infringement of your copyrights!

Marinduque Mainland from Tres Reyes Islands

Marinduque Mainland from Tres Reyes Islands
View of Marinduque Mainland from Tres Reyes Islands-Click on photo to link to Marinduque Awaits You

Friday, August 31, 2012

Earthquake in the Philippines and the Balearic Islands



When I woke up this morning, the first thing I saw while checking my FaceBook page was a short message from a friend asking me if my family is ok. I told him my family is still in US and my relatives in the Philippines are in another island not directly affected by the earthquake.

In case you have not heard , a 7.6 to 7.9 intensity quake hit the Eastern part of Mindanao yesterday. Several homes were destroyed and one child was killed as of this writing date. I am sure more damage will be be reported in the next couple of days.

So what is the connection of this earthquake in Eastern Mindanao to Balearic Islands in Spain? :Let me explain. My Facebook friend who inquired about my family is from Menorca in the Balearic Island, Spain. Evidently, he was also reading the news at the same time I was surfing my FaceBook page. We were able to chat for about 10 minutes. I learned he owns two hotels in Menorca with 100 beds. I also learned that the tourism business in Menorca has not been affected by the poor economic conditions in Europe. As a matter of fact tourism is up 15% this year. Most of the tourist comes from Northern Europe. Menorca is only about 40 minutes plane ride from Barcelona and one hour from Madrid.

This conversation aroused my interest about the Balearic Island and specifically Menorca,(also spelled as Minorca) where the two hotels of my friend are located. He has two websites, Calabona.net and Marblava.com in case you are interested in vacationing to Menorca, Balearic Islands, Spain. Here's a short summary in the net about the Balearic Islands for your information.

The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain, with Palma as the capital city. The co-official languages in the Balearic Islands are Catalan and Castilian Spanish. The current Statute of Autonomy declares the Balearic Islands as one nationality of Spain.

The island of Minorca was a British dependency for most of the 18th century as a result of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht. This treaty—signed by the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Portugal as well as the Kingdom of Spain, to end the conflict caused by the War of the Spanish Succession--gave Gibraltar and Minorca to the Kingdom of Great Britain, Sardinia to Austria (both territories had been part of the Crown of Aragon for more than four centuries), and Sicily to the House of Savoy. In addition, Flanders and other European territories of the Spanish Crown were given to Austria. The island fell to French forces, under Armand de Vignerot du Plessis in June 1756 and was occupied by them for the duration of the Seven Years' War. The British re-occupied the island after the war but, with their military forces diverted away by the American War of Independence, it fell to a Franco-Spanish force after a seven-month siege (1781/2). Spain retained it under the Treaty of Paris in 1783. However during the French Revolutionary Wars, when Spain became an ally of France, it came under French rule.

Minorca was finally returned to Spain by the Treaty of Amiens during the French Revolutionary Wars, following the last British occupation, which lasted from 1798 to 1802. The continued presence of British naval forces, however, meant that the Balaerics were never occupied by the French during the Napoleonic Wars. The main islands of the autonomous are Majorca (Mallorca), Minorca (Menorca), Ibiza (Eivissa) and Formentera, all of which are popular tourist destinations. Among the minor islands is Cabrera, which is the location of the Parc Nacional de l'Arxipèlag de Cabrera.

The history of these islands is indeed very fascinating. Today, I am glad my Facebook friend chatted with me this morning. It gave me an inspiration to read more information about this tourist spots in Europe. Please note that my family and I had spent one week of vacation in Southern Spain ( Costa del Sol, Marbella, Malaga and the Rock of Gibraltar) about 10 years ago. Please visit my friend's websites at calabona.net or at marblava.com if you get a chance.

I hope yesterday's earthquake in the Philippines did not cause a lot of damage and loss of lives.

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Beach Wedding at Chateau Du Mer Slide Show

Beach Wedding Slideshow: David’s trip from Citrus Heights, California, United States to Marinduque, Philippines was created by TripAdvisor. See another Marinduque slideshow. Create your own stunning free slideshow from your travel photos.

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ABOUT ME

I am a retired (Chemistry Team Leader from USFDA) Filipino-American who loves writing, gardening and photography. My wife (of 58 years) and I enjoy our snowbird lifestyle between the US and the Philippines. We have a small but very private beach resort (above video) in the beautiful island of Marinduque, Philippines. I have several blog sites(ten), a personal blog, blogs about Marinduque and our beach resort and conference center-CHATEAU DU MER. I also write for www.squidoo.com now owned by Hubpages.com

I will appreciate very much any comments on my postings.

Gardens of Chateau Du Mer Slide Show

The Gardens of Chateau du Mer Slideshow: David’s trip from Citrus Heights, California, United States to Marinduque, Philippines was created by TripAdvisor. See another Marinduque slideshow. Create your own stunning free slideshow from your travel photos.

Sunset from CDM Beach Resort

Sunset from CDM Beach Resort
Click on Photo to link to Marinduque Blog

Recent Photos of Orchids in the Gardens of Chateau Du Mer

A dark Yellow Vanda A dark pink Vanda A Small light yellow Phaelonopsis A reddish Vanda A pinkish-white Vanda Another favorite Vanda My twin blue Princess Mikasa One of My Favorite Vanda The above photos are some of the orchids blooming in the gardens of Chateau Du Mer from January to April, 2011. I hope you like them as much as I do! I have a dozen more plants that are blooming, but it will just be too boring to publish them all in this blog. Your comments will be appreciated.

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Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort
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Blue Orchid - Chateau Du Mer
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Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort Logo
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Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort
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Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort and Conference Center
Conference Center and Multi-Purpose Hall

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Chateau Du Mer Beach Resort
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