What A Week

Work has been cool more or less this week. Living in a different country and getting the opportunity to explore the island when you have free time makes the entire experience holistic for me. I get to work and be a tourist at the same. Hehe!! Anyway..

Saturday I did my first tour of Barbados with Island Safari, one of the leading tour companies in Barbados. We basically did a drive through each parish, apart from Christ Church and St. Michael, since these are 2 parishes everyone tends to frequent. Our tour guide's name was Ian, and he was very knowledgeable about new developments and history throughout the island. One thing that had me a bit disappointed with Island Safari beforehand is the package we took, they told us no refreshments would be provided apart from cups and ice, so the group of us decided, to just walk with our own refreshments. To my pleasant surprise however, the tour guide offered us jungle juice (just a variation of the famous Bajan rum punch), and orange juice.

We went to several major look out points and I got some fantastic shots of Bathsheba Bay and Cove Beach on the east coast of the island. It was absolutely amazing, and I thoroughly enjoyed the safari experience with the tour team.

Isn't Port St Charles absolutely gorgeous?

When I saw the first class port in the parish of St. Peter, Barbados and how beautiful the water looked, I just thought wow Trinidad and Tobago has a lot of work to do as it regards its tourism industry. I remember there were some talks about investing in yachting tourism, but damn, after seeing this port facility, we have a lot of work to do.

I snapped photos of the yachts in the distance >.<

Barbados is indeed a beautiful place. The one thing I probably should have done is make note of the major points Ian drove us to, because I honestly cannot remember the name of some of the gorgeous places I've seen.

Cove Bay, St. Lucy

The tour was finalized by us going to the Bathsheba Bay and through a rainforest that is either Joe's River Rainforest or Turner's Hall Woods. I really cannot recall :/

Bathsheba's Bay

The forest

In the rural areas, agriculture predominates

Black-bellied sheep :)

Mayne that tour was awesome, and to top if off, we got some refreshments, which I was not expecting lol.

Afterward, my friend and I ventured to The Crane. I have no shame in saying this, it was the first time I took the bus in Barbados. And I laughed in my head, because I had to stand, and I kept swaying initially, and the people around me watched me as though I wasn't right in my head. The Crane is one of the premiere resorts in Barbados, and it really is an awesome property.

For me, The Crane has a more romantic, secluded atmosphere, as opposed to Atlantis Resort, the Bahamas, which I've had the pleasure of visiting earlier this year. Atlantis Resort is of course probably the most popular resort in the Bahamas, and there is more of a fun, bright atmosphere up there.

Just a snippet of what I first saw

The Crane I believe was named after the nearby Crane Beach. It is a beautiful beach, and if I only had my swimsuit, I would have been in that water in a heartbeat, but there is time to do that still in Barbados.

Crane Beach

We happened to meet up with the manager of the property, and we were able to see how the suites looked. I was literally on a high. We walked around the property and took several shots, and afterward, went to 1887 Bar to try the talked-about rum punch. In my opinion, their's was just alright and really strong.

I met some pretty cool employees at The Crane afterward, and listened to their life stories, while I heard remixes to mostly Rihanna's music in the background. I found out about the extent of domestic violence and a person's quest to be independent and settle down. It was good vibes. Afterward the intention was to revisit St. Lawrence Gap for dinner, but that did not happen, but it's all good. There's still time for that of course.

Sunday evening, I went to the Globe Drive-In Cinema, we watched two movies: 2 Guns with Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg and Redemption with Jason Statham and Agata Buzek.

Part of the drive-in cinema

2 Guns was okay for me, but because I was more or less distracted while the movie was going on, I didn't really take it in as much as I would have liked to, but the part at the end was awesome. And I'm huge fan of these two fantastic actors, so I would recommend it. Redemption was awesome for me because I actually paid attention to what was going on. It was really symbolic and interesting especially the relationship with the two main characters; in the end he was indeed redeemed.

For the first time in my life, I have been a part of a television audience, called 'Destination Caribbean', on CaribVision. It was really cool with all the lighting, and the cameras. It was hard not to laugh at some things though, but it was such a great experience. The panel discussed Festival Tourism and whether it is truly beneficial for the Caribbean region, and basically at the end of the discussion one can say so. My personal difficulty has always been whether we actually make money from these festivals, and how these festivals can remain authentic, if it's a cultural, and not become highly commercialized.

Panelists: The Gabby, Ms Sutherland, Mr Keens-Douglas and Sr Villalba

But it was a pleasure to have and meet a Trini representative, Shaneil Sutherland, and the other three panelists Elias Villalba of Venezuela, Anthony 'Mighty Gabby' Carter of Barbados and Ricardo Keens-Douglas of Grenada. If you want to catch episodes of Destination Caribbean, just YouTube 'CTO Destination TV Show' and enjoy!

Ah what adventures beheld in Barbados :)

Bridgetown Market and Grand Kadooment

Saturday evening I went to a popular event for the Crop Over Season called 'Bridgetown Market' in Spring Gardens. Before I went to the event, I heard the ad for it, and the announcer said it would have 250 stalls.

I was like Pfft...Yeah right.

So we found a park, and made our way into the Bridgetown Market. The first thing I noticed was Kensington Oval.

Kensington Oval

Outside the stadium, some people were lining up to go inside. I knew some cricket  matches were going on; and I wanted to go to the Trinidad and Tobago versus Barbados match, but I figured it would have been the next day. By the time I got home after Bridgetown Market and the TV was broadcasting the cricket match; it turned out that it was T&T vs Barbados at the oval, and T&T was losing pretty badly too; they made only 52 runs after batting first -_-

But anyway, walking in I saw stalls on either side of the highway.

View of the highway and its many stalls

There were lots of craft items, food stuff, and other items like inflated balloons, toys and such. On the field opposite the highway, there were some jewellery, paintings and cultural displays.

Traditional Bread Cart

There was also a fashion show going on, with great African print outfits on display. Afterward, I bought a fantastic pistachio ice-cream from BICO Ltd, and I also sampled sorrel wine and breadfruit wine from a company called Shalana's.

Varieties of wines at Shalana's

The sorrel wine was delicious; the breadfruit wine was really strong, but both were great! I also had some really great smoked chicken :D. And yes there definitely 250 stalls for the event!

On Monday 5th August was Grand Kadooment, which is the last big hoorah before the end of Crop Over 2013. The word 'Kadooment' I heard means 'letting go' and 'freeing up oneself'; which is very fitting for what takes place on that day. It's similar to Carnival Tuesday in Trinidad; but the difference in Barbados is that they pass through the National Stadium, and then through the streets of down town Barbados.

We sat at a spot in Black Rock, and watched the bands parade through the streets.

Masqueraders walking in the street

What I've noticed with Kadooment is that the bands are much smaller, and the costumes were basically all the same, which is the direction Trinidad's Carnival is taking; basically with beach outfits and beads and feathers. Also with the parade in the street, there was a half an hour up to an hour wait between each band procession, which I think is way too long; I expected a continuous stream of masqueraders, but it wasn't that way at all for the rest of the day. But the music was so great; even though there were half-naked drunk people everywhere.

Masqueraders up on de big truck

Drunk dude clearly wanted a picture, lol.

After leaving town, all I wanted to do was go to the beach, but we got back home too late :/

But definitely next time.

Really cool band from Martinique, drumming!

Two bands stood out to me, and they were from Martinique, not only because of their costumes, but also their amazing drumming! It was really different and fresh.

Below are just some of the couple hundred pictures I had taken for Grand Kadooment, before taking a cold shower and watch an episode of Suits.

:)

Probably the Best Week Ever!

Sigh it's been a while since I came to this website.

The past week and a half have been pretty eventful. In between work and being out more has really been so relaxing and made me love Bim a bit more (it has no callaloo here, so no total love for Bim yet!)

This weekend I attended a fish fry fundraiser event in St. Patrick. I didn't carry my camera to that event, unfortunately. I thought I would have been bored for about three hours. But after I ate a delicious meal that of course consisted of fried flying fish, a couple people and I started engaging in conversation about our recent travels, and one of the ladies has travelled quite a lot. She was telling me about her Disney land trip. She went a few years ago, and said it was really expensive then. Imagine the price now! Yes I know I'm not a child anymore, but I would still love to visit Disney World one of these good days. I would prefer to go with my family, especially my younger sister, just because it seems very much like a family place. At the fish fry fundraiser, I got the opportunity to meet the Minister of Labour for Barbados, Senator Dr. The Honourable Esther Byer Suckoo.

The next day, I got my hair braided (woop woop!), and Sadie literally did it in exactly four hours like she promised. But we talked and talked for four hours straight. It turns out she goes to UWI Cavehill, and we know a mutual acquaintance. I can go on and on talking, and we literally talked til she finished. She told me I need to go "The Gap" at least three times before I leave Bim. St. Lawrence Gap (the full name for it) is literally a one-way tourist street, with restaurants, hotels, bars, clubs and souvenir shops lining either side of the street. I said I would definitely check it out some time.

Later that day, I met my friend Amanda at Dover Beach, and gosh what a fantastic beach it is!

Shot at Dover Beach

We literally lazed and chatted in beach chairs beneath an umbrella for about an hour and a half, and then we decided to dip in the waters and take some photos on rocks further down the beach. At the time, some people were sailing, jet skiing and canoeing in the waters, as well as just swimming and just being submerged in the waters. I did not want to leave the water for nothing. It felt too right!

Beach at sunset.

I honestly didn't know that the 'The Gap' was just walking distance from the beach, and Amanda and I walked through the stretch, that was basically empty because of the time (we're talking minutes to six in the evening). She said it would have gotten much more crowded as the evening went on.

The beginning of The Gap

It's similar to Ariapita Avenue in Woodbrook, Trinidad. Along the way I even bought a beach towel with Barbados all over it :D Saw some restaurants that I saw in the Ins and Outs Barbados magazine, such a Pisces and Paulo's Churrasco de Brazil; and I saw Cafe Sol as well!

Cafe Sol

I just have to include this shot of the board walk near The Gap.

Oh yes

When we walking back up The Gap, we stopped at this bar that still had a Happy Hour drink special going on.

Jobu's Sports Bar and Restaurant

I  had my first rum punch in Bim, and it was so good. When we asked the bartender what it contained, he said Mount Gay Rum, lime, nutmeg and water. So simple and so flavourful. Yummo!

Afterward, we walked back to Dover Beach and bought burgers for dinner from a restaurant and bar called Daddy's. Amanda said the burgers are really good, so I said I'd give it a try.

Burger and Fries

Indeed the burger was really really really good. I was surprised at how good it was, and the bread was also really good too! I would definitely purchase another one probably in September or so (I don't consume too much red meat overall). But it was so so good.

Weekend was pretty eventful! And I would love my weekends to continue along this route! :)

On Monday at the CTO, about twenty five children from a vacation camp visited the office to learn more about tourism. So I assisted in planning the activities and executing them. Before the campers came, I got the impression that there was a bit of disorganization, but the campers' visit turned out to be great, with no mishaps. The children were really adorable, and the first thing they said to me was 'You're not from Barbados.' Afterward the interns and I splurged on some fish cakes, cheese sandwiches and sponge cake (Serious cardio the next morning! Lol).

On Wednesday of that same week, Machel Montano held a concert called Soca Titans at Concorde, Barbados. Machel Montano is one of Trinidad and Tobago's biggest superstars ever, and he is my all time favourite soca artiste. I saw artistes like Cooper Dan, Bobo, Lil Rick, Ravi B, Patrice Roberts, Kerwin Dubois and of course Machel himself.

Ravi B singing 'Prescription'

Lil Rick killing the stage!

The crowd from the middle at Soca Titans

Before the show, I really was not much of a fan of Lil Rick, but I did love the song he did for CropOver 2013 with Kerwin Dubois called 'Monster Wine'. However, after seeing him perform for Soca Titans I was literally wow-ed. I am a fan now, lol.

The show was good overall though. I am so glad I went.

De Big Show

Yesterday I was supposed to attend an event I was looking forward to since seeing the CropOver 2013 calender called 'Pan Pun De Sand'. Bajan steel pan groups were performing as well as the familiar Exodus Steel Orchestra. However, since my chief company was not going, I could not attend the event as planned. Although my friends at work told me I should have gone by myself, which I probably should have done since I wanted to go that badly to the event. I was pretty upset that I could not attend, but something is always better in store.

Since I came to Barbados, I've heard some amazing music for the CropOver season; songs such as Rupee's ''Nothing Sweeter'', Biggie Irie's ''Need Ah Riddim'' and Mr. Dale's ''Fearless'' and a host of others that is quite catchy. I've wanted to see these artistes perform live since I heard these songs, and I got this opportunity yesterday at 'De Big Show'. This event was held at the Plantation Garden Theatre.

Entrance to the Plantation Garden Theatre

The only lame thing about this event, is that I could not take photos, but I did manage to snap ONE shot at the end when all the performers were on stage (except one very important performer).

De Big Show is basically a calypso tent, where calypsonians perform songs based on political, social and economic issues; it's a forum to basically expresssocial commentary with a musical background. Some of the calypsos were quite riveting. For instance Classic, sang a calypso about politicians using 'big' words to to fool citizens'. Through this song, he encouraged the audience to read between the lines, because 'de words big, but de meaning small'. Another that caught my attention was a guy named Serenader who sang about how many women dress these days, particularly about short clothing and how 'dey always pullin' dong'. What was hilarious was that he wore an extremely short multi-coloured skirt and a pink t-shirt with a wig. Lord, everyone was laughing. I could not get a picture unfortunately. Another young calypsonian was Miguel, who sang a song about everyone has to stand up for something.

Another highlight for me was the MC himself. His jokes were on point, and he had the crowd itching with laughter when he was on stage. He performed a couple of songs as well, which were so hilarious. I remember he asked members of the band to play individually at different parts of the event. They are really talented people.

Of course the highlight of the event for me was seeing Rupee, Biggie Irie and Mr. Dale perform live!

I've been a fan of Rupee for as long as I can remember, and it was such a blessing to see him perform live for the first time. He is such a fantastic performer, and I definitely enjoyed the show he put on for the time he was there. I always admired the work he did for HIV/AIDS awareness, and the fact that he is known as a humble person. Not many stars at his level of success remain humble, and I have much respect for Rupee for remaining grounded. He performed ''Tempted To Touch'', ''Jump'' and ''I am a Bajan''. He has a great Trini accent too ;) I did not get a picture of Rupee, but I have a good feeling I would see him perform live again in the near future.

After Rupee performed, another Bajan artiste named Mr. Dale performed his hit ''Fearless''. His hook for me is ''I doh care, we partyin' whole day''. Indeed. Finally, Biggie Irie closed off the show with his mega hit ''Need Ah Riddim''. His song is so fantastic for me because it is just about having fun at a party, and he describes how music can literally take over your body (combined with alcohol) and vibes to have a great time. The song is groovy and totally catchy. I hope he wins a major soca competition in Bim's CropOver season 2013. At the end of the show, all the performers lined the stage, and I got a photo, but unfortunately Rupee had already left.

Mr. Dale is at the extreme left, and Biggie Irie is in the middle with the hat and plaid shirt

There were a couple things I could not help but observe: while Rupee and Biggie Irie performed, they encouraged the crowd to get up and enjoy themselves, and most of the people sat there, making no move to dance in anyway. I was quite appalled by that, but I guess every culture is different. It kinda killed the vibes-y atmosphere I looked forward to from an event like that. It was as though they were afraid to loosen up; which was interesting to observe. Another thing that was off for me was for the first half of the show there were a group of calypsonians, and for the second half we got the same calypsonians singing different songs ... It made me wonder if calypso as an art form is being phased out.

But all in all I had a good time. I think it made up for not going Pan Pun De Sand. But I would definitely attend a Pan Pun De Sand in the future ^_^

Bridgetown

Bridgetown is just good vibes.

Firstly, we got some parking, and we walked to Independence Square. Some of the people sitting in the square looked at me all funny, taking pictures like a tourist. Well technically I am lol.

Independence Arc...well part of it

Even saw a statue of Errol Barrow, who was the first Prime Minister of Barbados #HistoricVibes

Statue of Errol Barrow, the first PM of Barbados

I saw a SIPS truck as I entered the city. SIPS makes one of the best milkshakes I've ever tasted with Dutch chocolate ice-cream, coffee, almonds and milk. I was this close to buying one, but since they come to my workplace to sell, I decided I would just buy another one then. One thing that struck me about Bridgetown is how clean it is. I was kinda amazed for a few minutes. Of course I walked on the Boardwalk, which I hear there will be steel pan performances this Saturday #TriniVibes

Somehow the boardwalk gives the city a very international feel

We walked through Cave Sheppard which has a lot of international brand items on sale such as Mac Cosmetics and Aeropostale shoes, all priced in US dollars and could have been purchased duty free (some stores) if you had your passport and plane ticket. Then we walked down Swan Street (which has a lot of history too), and did a little shopping there.

Swan Street

Swan Street seemed to be a street strictly for pedestrians, which i appreciated. I was told that cars would only drive there if there is some sort of delivery. DaCosta Mall wasn't to far away, and I had an epic lunch of split pea rice, scalloped potatoes and stewed chicken. It was so delicious and the Bajan lady there was so friendly, and she engaged me in a little conversation even #InterpersonalVibes.

After palancing through Bridgetown, we drove to the outskirts and I saw Carlisle Bay that had a lot of activities going on, and as we neared home, we stopped at Miami Beach for a bit.

Miami Beach

Later in the evening, we went to New Century Chinese Restaurant and Bar for dinner. The food was awesome too =)

Monday afternoon, Barbados was under storm watch, and my co-workers and I were hoping for a few days off. Work ended at 3:30 that afternoon and we were allowed to go home. Tropical storm Chantal was expected to make land fall in Barbados at midnight. And indeed it did rain most of Tuesday. Fortunately no flooding or major damage was reported. I enjoyed my day at home; slept a lot, watched some shows, read some books (reading five books at once) and slept some more. #RelaxDayRainyDayVibes

This weekend would be steel pan weekend for me, whether it's Pun De Sand on In De City.

But we'd see #PanVibes

BMEX 2013

Ah yes, another week in Barbados. Another week of work and back home on my laptop, and looking forward to the weekend because I know I would be able to visit somewhere I've never been to before.

So this weekend I went to BMEX 2013, which is the Barbados Manufacturer's Exhibition. Essentially some of the major manufacturers as well as up and coming entrepreneurs showcase their products and services, and members of the public as well as tourists are welcome to attend once you purchase your ticket. 

The time we went was closer to late evening, and there was a line to get in. 

The Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre, Barbados...where BMEX 2013 was held

After getting in eventually, it was jam packed! It was kinda hard for me to manoeuvre my way through the people, but all good vibes right? The first stall I spoke to was The Crane, who stated basically that they had Staycation specials until November. The prices were really attractive, but it's only for locals, but it was fun speaking to the representative, who was obviously exhausted, but still very pleasant nonetheless. As I walked on, there was Sagicor having a big promotion where you can win a trip for two to some island that I can't recall exactly. I remember one of their reps walked with me convincing me to enter, and I kept repeating that I honestly was not interested.

There was a new food product on display that served coconut pieces flavoured with sweet cinnamon, curry and hot pepper; all were interesting and I think it would make a delicious snack. The snack is called 'Organic Coconut Bites'. 

Samples of the awesome coconut bites

There was another room filled with only food products from Barbados and I saw one Trinidad-based company, Bermudez. I stopped at a chocolate stall, just because, and I engaged the entrepreneur in conversation about his brand of chocolate which I still have yet to try. I've been told the chocolate is exceptional, so I'm looking forward to trying it when I do.

Grenada Cacao flavoured chocolate from Agapey Chocolate Factory

Afterward I sampled soursop sorbet which tasted delicious compared to the soursop ice-cream I bought later. I also sampled conkies which I thought initially were pastelles the way they were packaged. But it's really an amalgam of ingredients like cornmeal, sweet potato, pumpkin, nutmeg, etc etc. It's sweet and has a pone-like texture. To me, it's pone with a pastelle shape. It's wrapped in fig leaves as well. 

And of course I go crazy when I see a cake stand, and I bought a slice of rum cake and apple cinnamon cake. I should have bought two slices of that rum cake...it was DELICIOUS.

The cake stand I went crazy for. The rum cakes are dark brown slices clear-wrapped at the bottom of the photo

The guy really told me it would be the best fruit/rum cake I'd ever have, and he did not lie. I also tried Mauby Milk and Ginger Milk for the first time. I remember the guy was telling me they use fresh cow's milk, and he was asking me if it was as creamy as he described. Lol, it tasted like part mauby and part milk to me.

Mauby milk!

I walked out of that room, and was welcomed by a Banks beer stand. Since I've arrived in Barbados I've seen Banks beer advertisements everywhere! Banks is the beer of Barbados, and I was told you can't leave Barbados without downing a bottle of it...lol I'm not a beer drinker, so there's a slim chance of me ever drinking an entire bottle of it. I sampled a new beer flavour the rep said is infused with honey. I tasted no honey, but the beer was aite. I got a picture of the stand but unfortunately it came out blurry. 

Blurry picture of Banks Beer's stand

Opposite that booth had a creative cake stand or specialty cake stand. But the cakes I saw were too cool. I even asked the owner if I wanted one in Trinidad if it would be possible, and she said just let her know in advance. She even told me her bestie is Trini! The name of the business is 'The Lady Caker'.

Creepy hand cake, burger and fries cake, did you see the popcorn one at the top? :O

I had to get a shot of the Phineas and Ferb cake.

Even tried some Mount Gay punch a creme

Bar tender pouring my Mount Gay punch a creme sample

Then I sampled Nfuze wine which was delicious... really delicious....I hope it goes worldwide!

Nfuze Wine

I saw some basket stalls, jewellery, clothing, a spa - I immediately went to the spa entrepreneur and asked her some questions and I got some great tips. I think I may visit her spa, once I have extra money.

There was a section for schools to showcase their talent, and I saw woodwork and soap making, it was just really cute.

Wood work by students ... amazing!

The only thing missing honestly was technological innovations, so maybe at BMEX 2014?