Farsighted Fly Girl

Barbados is an island noted for upscale dining and luxury hotels but there's another side to "Bim.". I ventured out of the busy capital of Bridgetown and took a hiking tour of the untamed East Coast of the island. I immediately noticed a difference between the hilly landscape of the East Coast and the South Coast, where most of the hotels are located. Nature grabs all the attention here. There are few hotels or even people to distract from the beauty. Everywhere I looked, spectacular views of the Atlantic commanded attention. The East Coast is where Barbados agriculture is centered and I spotted fields of bananas, passion fruit bushes and almond trees. The panoramas of lush green and sparkling blue ocean waves really made me think I was on another island. Barbados is famously flat so I wasn't expecting all the hills I had to hike under the unrelenting Caribbean sun. The tour is called Hike, Grill and Chill,  so I was really happy to relax in the shade...

It's been a while but I'm happy to be returning to Barbados for the annual SATW Travel Writers Convention.  I'll be in meetings for a big portion of the trip but I will still find time to visit the legendary Oistins Fish Fry, take in a beach and rum shop, as well as hike along a nature trail. I'm also scheduled to check out the fabled Cin Cin By The Sea  with al fresco dining and views of the west coast of the island. Stay tuned for pix and videos!

My best friend Sheila the Bajan Beach Bunny, travels to Barbados frequently. I have been pushing for her to get a nice oceanfront house so that we can all ditch Chicago and live in the Barbados sunshine but until that happens, she unselfishly supplies me with many tales of laid back Bajan life. A favorite is Peter, the Birdman. A sculptor and painter, Peter in the picture above, carves intricate  bird designs out of coconut shells. His gallery is the pearly-sand beach in front of Amaryllis Hotel in Hastings.  Perched in the sand, you'll see delicate lovebirds topping bowls, branches and containers. Peter sits in the sun and creates his art under the shade of palm trees, with waves lapping in the background. Such a peaceful work setting attracts not just art fans but locals, who lounge on tree stumps, card tables and car hoods to eat lunch, discuss politics or just watch Peter's magic. Visitors can browse through Peter's portfolio, which features photos of ...

A colorful Barbados memory that will always stick with me is winding down craggy country roads with the lovely resort town of Bathsheba as a backdrop. Only my attention wasn't on Bathsheba and its milky waters splashing the shores. I was singing a clever calypso led by art historian and musician Trevor Marshall and trying to figure out the punch line. A good calypso tune bursts with double entendres but it's not always immediately apparent. Trevor introduced me to this famous hit by Dave Martins and The Tradewinds and I'll always associate it with Barbados, even though the group members also represent Guyana, Trinidad, Grenada and the Cayman Islands. It's quite wicked, which is how I like my calypso! HONEYMOONING COUPLE A honeymooning couple was in a bedroom/ packing up to go away/in the middle of June/ Well all of a sudden/ a big argument break out/listen to the bridegroom/ listen what he shout/ You get on top/ that's the way it must go/I am your ...

You can spot piles of clay all over Barbados but especially in Chalky Mount, a little village in St. Andrew famous for its potters and rich clay reserves. I didn't make it to Chalky Mount but I did witness the three generations of artistry at work in Fairfield House. Perched on a rocky incline in St. Michael's, Fairfield House Gallery and the adjoining Red Clay Pottery factory, three generations of the Bell family have molded Bajan clay into terra cotta pots and unique pieces like the mermaid mirror above. I watched Maggie Bell, the main Fairfield designer, whip up bottles and bowls on the homemade machines that fill Red Clay factory. Her father Peter, had originally designed it as a clay processing plant. Now Fairfield is the largest pottery maker in Barbados and all of the wares are created from local materials and then individually painted. The Fairfield House has been in the Bell family for 70 years and I could feel all the history seeping through the walls. When I was ...

Okay, so I'm not over Christmas yet. I just started feeling it last week and now it's over. Blogger was also not cooperating during Christmas week and I couldn't post these lovely pics. So this will be my last holiday post. Silver bells and twinkling lights might signal the holiday season up North but in Barbados, the vibrant blooms of yellow Christmas Candle pants means that the season has started. The island doesn't get any snow but the delicate white blossoms of the Snow on the Mountain plant cover the hills just as prettily. Both plants bloom only during the winter months when temperatures drop into the cool low 80s.

Happy New Year! It's a season of celebrations and in Barbados, that usually means the raucous sounds of a tuk band will be streaming through the streets. Tuk bands produce Bajan folk music that truly represents the offbeat mix of African and British culture. Since traditional African rhythms were outlawed during slavery, enslaved Africans learned the music of British military and maritime bands, along with classical waltzes. After emancipation, a sound that merged all of these rhythms surfaced. The band plays a kittle drum also known as a snare drum, which was originally made from animal skins, the bass drum, a penny whistle and a triangle. The Tuk band rhythm moves progressively from a slow waltz, to a fassy or march beat and explodes into a frenetic African rhythm. Typically, the performers are a trio of roaming minstrels accompanied by a stilt walker, a moco jumbie or masquerade figure called Shaggy Bear and a man dressed as a woman with big bosoms and behind called Mother Sally...

Sugar in all forms generally makes me happy. I refuse to patronize restaurants without dessert menus and have been known to start dinner with a decadent dessert and end with a small appetizer. Life's too short to always leave your favorite thing for last. So I was especially struck by the symbolism of this sugar mill converted into a house. Tucked onto a hill in St. Peter, this sugar mill house represents Barbados' history as a major sugar producer. It also reflects my sweets obsession in a major way. What would be cooler than living in a structure that used to create sugar? I'm sure just the sugary walls would provide creative inspiration and a jolt of psychic energy.

A cricket obsession, a pub culture centered around rum shops and the people's reserved manner, have helped earn Barbados the nickname of "Little England." The island definitely exudes a singular quality that blends Caribbean spirit with a British sensibility. I found the best example of this in the quiet village of Speightstown, on the Eastern coast. Founded in 1653, Speightstown is the second biggest town in Barbados, after Bridgetown. It's a sleepy place filled with crumbling, historic buildings and serene beaches. I found the town charming, from my first stop at the iconic Fisherman's pub, which serves flying fish burgers and a spray of sea water if you sit too close to the beach side windows, to the outdoor market spilling over with papayas, plantains and pudding & souse. I have scary childhood memories about souse, which is a gory mix of pig parts, that my grandmother would make but it's a popular Bajan ritual to buy the stuff on Saturdays...

Wandering through Barbados, I was struck by the wit and color of the street signs. Humor and welcoming vibes seemed to ring out from these brightly colored placards, in ways that I never see in the U.S. Even the dollar store sign looked inviting with a wash of sunny hues. The City Woman sign caught my attention because it captures the basic Caribbean sensibility of living practically but with joy. Fish frys are a cultural constant on the island but I was partial to the red sign above because it's my name, minus a "d" at the end. My favorite of course, is the Barbados Jack sign, nothing beats booty!

I certainly wasn't expecting to learn about American history or George Washington while I was in Barbados but that's exactly what I did. I was surprised to discover that the Eastern Caribbean island played an important role in the course of American history. Besides supplying the settlers who founded North and South Carolina and about seven of the first governors for these states, Barbados was the only country visited by George Washington and the experience left a major impact on his life. The 18th century, two story, Georgian style house where George Washington lived in Barbados for seven weeks, has been restored into the George Washington House and Museum in Bridgetown. Enveloped by lush gardens and balmy sea breezes that blow through the house, the museum presents a huge amount of information in an unlikely place. The rooms where George Washington lived are bare and utilitarian but the second floor boasts a life-size Washington that reads from his diary at the push of a...

Caribbean cuisine is one of my favorites. I love spicy flavors, exotic combinations and anything accented with tropical fruit. Most island dishes offer that and more. So I was looking forward to sampling Bajan food, to say the least. I did have a fleeting experience with the Bajan staple flying fish, years ago. My former mother-in-law, a Tobago matriarch, enthralled by the recent popularity of the fish in Tobago, insisted that I smuggle frozen flying fish in my luggage on the eight-hour flight back to Chicago. But that's another story. Barbados is called "land of the flying fish" for good reason. They are everywhere. Popping up on little pectoral fins in the harbors, decorating Bajan coins and the coat of arms, flying fish are part of Bajan life. And they are truly a part of the daily cuisine. The national dish is flying fish and cou cou, which is a cornmeal side dish called fungi on other islands and polenta in Italy. Succulent and slightly oily, flying fish was f...

Barbados was settled by the same gentleman planters who settled the colony of South Carolina. A lot of connections exist between these two places, from the Bajan dialect that bears a close resemblance to the South Carolina Gullah dialect, to farming practices that were developed in Barbados and transferred to South Carolina plantations. But the most visible is the similarity in architecture. The jalousie windows and sweeping verandas that grace grand old South Carolina houses also decorate many Bajan homes. Georgian and Victorian style great houses line streets in Bridgetown and Charleston. However,the most distinctive Bajan architecture is purely Caribbean. The chattel house is basically an old school mobile home. Simple wooden houses placed on limestone blocks, chattel houses are designed to be taken apart in a day. The term comes from the days when plantation workers journeyed from different estates, working the fields and leasing the land that they lived on. Their mova...

I have always loved everything and anything tropical. Although I grew up in the arctic climate of Chicago, I never enjoyed any of the classic Midwestern bounty. Apples? I don't think so. Peaches"? Please. Mulberries? Try again. I only eat pineapple, papaya, coconut and my all time favorite, passion fruit. I drink passion fruit juice like most people sip lattes and passion flower tea crowds my cabinet next to the chai. Imagine my wonder when I kept noticing this lush bush of little green fruit. I asked my South Carolina friends what the fruit was but they could only guess. Lime? Unripe lemons? I knew better but I couldn't quite figure out why. Finally, our Bajan guide handed one to me. As soon as it hit my hand, I knew. Passion fruit! All those years of gobbling it in dozens of forms, I had never seen the actual fruit. I felt like I had rejoined a long-lost part of myself. These bushes line the path going up to St. Nicholas Abbey in Northern Barbados. Although the passi...

That's how locals describe Barbados and I have to agree with them. It's not a big island, it's not a small island but you'll find something to make you smile, whether it's the weather, the landscape, the culture or the people. I did a lot of laughing and smiling while I was there, I think Bajans are very intriguing people. I heard loads of thought-provoking comments and discussions that I'll detail later. Going through my photos, I jogged through my memory to try and find the most memorable experience I had there. I'm still processing them (along with a cold I got from the combination of rainy season and air conditioning )but I did find a shot that counts as one of the most unforgettable scenes. On the northern side of Barbados, in the parish of St. Andrew, Cherry Tree Hill Reserve boasts the most spectacular view on the island. Despite it's name, it's not cherry trees that fill the grove (they died a long time ago) but gorgeous mahogany trees. Looki...

I'm off to the lovely coral island of Barbados. Besides drowning myself in soca, I'll be exploring the cultural connections between South Carolina and Barbados. Both places were established by the same man and the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor is sending me on a Caribbean-Carolina discovery tour. There won't be any more posts this week but look for my dispatches from Barbados next week.

Next week, I'll be traveling to Barbados. People may associate a handful of things with Barbados--Rhianna, flying fish or even a British sensibility. But for me, Barbados represents my favorite soca band, Krosfyah. Soca music is the manic, hip-swaying, offspring of calypso. It's most associated with Carnival time and Crop Over in Barbados but for true soca warriors, all the time is soca time. Soca never quite broke in the U.S., most Americans prefer the more languid melodies of roots reggae. Soca requires energy and rhythm. It's party music with a non-stop, staccato beat and Krosfyah works it like no one else can. I wrote a biography for Krosfyah at Allmusic here But to sum up Krofyah, I'd say that they stir up joyful, sexy, sounds made for fast-paced moves and all night partying. Founder and lead singer Edwin Yearwood wraps his silky, cajoling voice around a tune and pulls you in sweetly. Krosfyah displays a lot more soul and well-crafted songs than most soca groups, w...