Okay, I fell a bit behind my self-appointed schedule while Crown Princess refused to delay hers. So this post begins as a throwback to 54 hours ago, on the morning of December 23, when the ship cosied up to the old sugar pier in the harbour of Bridgetown, Barbados.
Little geography lesson. I could tell you all to go back to the # 1 post in this series and look at the map again, but I can guess how many readers would bother. So here's the map again, right here on this page because -- well, why fight it?
Looking at the location of Barbados closely, you can see that this island sits well to the east of the neat crescent formed by all the other islands in the Caribbean chain. Strictly speaking, Barbados lies outside the Caribbean Sea so it is -- geographically -- an Atlantic island. But historically and culturally, it is thoroughly Caribbean so the point is moot.
Geologically, it's a very different story. Barbados is the only island from the Virgin Islands to Grenada which is not volcanically formed. The land mass of Barbados is formed of layer upon layer upon layer of sedimentary rocks formed under the ocean and then gradually pushed above the sea's surface by the collision of the Atlantic and Caribbean plates of the earth's crust. That collision, of course, is also the force driving all the volcanic eruptions all the way along the main island chain.
So the landscape of Barbados is very different. The land rises in a relatively gradual slope over several broad terraces from west to east, ending in some dramatic cliffs on the eastern side. The main beaches are found along the western and southern coasts. It's prime agricultural country, and for centuries the economy of Barbados was all about sugar cane and its two lucrative derivatives: molasses and distilled molasses. By the way, for those not aware, "distilled molasses" is more usually referred to as "rum." And Barbados is a world-famous producer and exporter of that delightful by-product of sugar production.
So there we were, tied up to the outer end of a working harbour pier formerly devoted to -- and still used for -- the export of cane sugar, molasses, and rum. This fuller picture provides a truer view of the situation. Just on the left edge of the picture you can see one of the three huge cranes used for unloading bulk sugar cane from ships.
We had to walk all the way down the pier, under those three huge cranes (which look like they predate World War 2) and on to the mainland. We then had to zigzag our way through the cruise terminal on a course carefully chosen to make us walk past every single shop in the place just to get to the exit. There is no escape. That was a good brisk hike of 15 minutes each way if it was a second.
Our coach tour took us on a scenic drive through the suburbs of Bridgetown and up into the rising country of the centre. On the way, we passed through Warrens and saw a spectacular, block-long mosaic mural devoted to the importance of preserving the environment. Here are just a couple of the dozen or so pictures I snapped as we drove along the street by it.
Farther out of town, we got a few glimpses of the traditional plantation country at the heart of the island.
A beautiful avenue of royal palms leading to an old plantation house. Our guide explained that when the slaves became disoriented after hours of stooping and scything in the fields, they could sight the line of palms and find their way back to the plantation.
From higher up in the rising countryside, a panorama back down to the western coast of the island.
And here, we passed small country church built of local limestone. Apart from the roof, this church was very similar to the classic limestone architecture of Bermuda, a geologically similar island, although much smaller in size. Even the wall resembles the style of roadside walls found in Bermuda.
Our destination, almost an hour's drive north of Bridgetown, was one of the prime tourist attractions of Barbados: Harrison's Cave. Opening this cave up to visitors involved a complex and ingenious plan of building engineered tunnels to give access to a number of main chambers, and then paving the floor of those tunnels so that visitors can be driven through the cave in electric-powered trams.
Each visitor is issued a hardhat with a mesh liner to protect the hair. It rained frequently enough inside the cave that I could see no reason why other and heavier items might not fall from the ceiling.
The tour lasted for nearly an hour, after a short video introduction, and the roadways are cleverly designed so that three different tours can be in the cave at the same time, even though all have to use the same single roadway to drive down into the cave and back up and out.
I think I snapped about eighty pictures altogether in the cave, and once I'd weeded out the duds I still had thirty-five good ones left. Here's a selection of the best of the best. By the way, as in all show caves, the dramatic lighting is an essential component of the experience. My phone got beautiful results as long as the flash was turned off. When I accidentally managed to turn the flash on, I lost half a dozen good ones because those came out all blurred.
Thanks to the guide for this one. I rocked the hard hat, but the damn mesh hairnet was more hassle than help.
Yes, it's an actual waterfall, spouting from a hole on the chamber's arched roof.
The guide repeatedly mentioned that this would be a good place to get rid of someone in a hurry. The Mirror Pool has 6 cm of water covering nearly 3 metres of soft, spongy sediments which act like high-speed quicksand.
The upper stalactite formation, known as the Chandelier, is of course growing downwards at about 2.5 cm per 100 years. The lower stalagmite formation is growing upwards at the same rate. At some point, many thousands of years hence, the two may finally join to form a column.
After that amazing experience, we drove back by a different route, going from the cave in the centre of the island more or less due west to Holetown on the coast. Now, the name "Holetown" may sound not-too-promising, but it's the centre of a district of wealthy homes and high-end resorts. The highest of the high end, Sandy Lane, is booked up more than a year ahead, charges a room rate in the neighbourhood of $2200 a night, and requires a mandatory pre-paid reservation for 14 nights. I'll stick to cruises.
Instead of that exclusive enclave reserved for people with more money than brains, here's a photo of a picturesque shopping centre with all the buildings designed to resemble the "dower houses." These modest, small homes were the favoured type in the old days -- and still today -- for people to build as their starter homes. Here, they are housing some high-end shops and professional offices.
Back in Bridgetown, we drove along Westbury New Road, a street lined with these modest homes, and I caught a couple of examples on camera so you can see the diverse palette of colours favoured by Barbadians ("Bajans").
And then there was this example, two-thirds of the way down the street.
Sorry I didn't capture the sign embedded in the sidewalk in front of the house. It bears one single word: RIHANNA. So, yes, this is the birthplace of the international singing star. It was no surprise to me when the driver told us that the incessant stream of tourists going by the place is driving everyone on the street crazy -- this, as we were busy contributing to the problem. At the end of the block, a special commemorative sign makes sure you don't miss the point.
Our last drive-by sight was the spectacular new cricket stadium. As in all the islands from the former British Empire, the Bajans are huge cricket fans.
We sailed from Barbados at 3:30pm, after a pretty short visit, and forged steadily northwards through the afternoon, evening, and overnight. At 9:00 the next morning, Christmas Eve, we glided slowly into the harbour at Basseterre, on the island of St. Kitts. Looks beautiful in the morning sunlight, doesn't it?
The sticking point: those other ships. I already knew from consulting a website that collates cruise schedules, that there would be five ships in port that day. I could just picture the resulting swarms of people, and decided to cancel all other plans and just relax on board the ship. Later in the afternoon, I leaned over the edge of my balcony, and looked along the narrow pier towards the obligatory shopping mall on the shore end of the pier. The ship on the right is Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas. From the appearance, I would guess it's about the same capacity as ours. I think that staying aboard was a smart decision.
And now you've seen exactly as much of St. Kitts as I have.
Later in the afternoon, I whipped downstairs to the Piazza for a cappuccino, and decided to catch a few pictures of the phenomenal display of gingerbread houses and icing-sugar Christmas trees I'm guessing, but from the look of the crumbs appearing on the floor and the tables, I'm pretty sure that all of these are real and -- perhaps? -- edible.
While I was was taking pictures and sipping cappuccino, the ensemble Duo Elegance was giving a concert of classic and modern Christmas favourites. I went up to the top level of the Piazza on Deck 7 to catch them at work.
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