Day one!
Antigua and Barbuda are part of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean, and the destination for my 46th birthdaypalooza. Having only been familiar with St. Maarten and Saba, Antigua is a nice departure, because it is largely underdeveloped. It is also British, so imagine my surprise when our rental car was backwards! Not being used to driving on the left side of the road, it took a true partnership to drive (Tiff reminding me to keep left and me to actually drive the car), and it actually made my brain feel weird. Sugar Ridge is located on the west side of the island, about a 20 minute drive. Maps are useless, as there is not one single street sign, so directions are given like southerners give them- with land marks. After a wrong turn, which put us in the middle of St. John on cruise ship day, we got to the resort in time to check in and get settled.
So far, being on this island is like being in a tree house! The hotel is nestled on a cliff overlooking the ocean. Above our room is a restaurant and bar called Carmichaels, so we went there for a drink and check out the view. Our bartender Alex introduced us to the local rum, which is English Harbor 5. Unlike some of the neighboring islands, like the banana rum of St. Maarten or Saba Spice, their rum is just aged for 5 years and is very smooth. They just drink it with a little cranberry juice and lime, it was yummy! Alex (our bartender) fed us several and we sat by the pool and watched the sunset.
Afterwards, we went out to dinner down the road at another place called Sheer Rocks- Recommended by several people on the island. It is just a series of small bungalows clustered together... We had tuna tartare, scallops and pork belly and a coconut curry with local clams and scallops- all were amazing. Had 2 bottles of French Chablis, which were delicious. Crisp, a little creamy, and a great pairing with the seafood. Runs about $90/bottle, here, and about $20 in the US.
That's the other thing- this island is outrageously expensive compared to St. Maarten...we dropped about $300 on dinner last night. Won't be doing that again. The currency used on the island is called the ECU (Eastern Caribbean Unit), but everyone also takes dollars. The exchange rate is about 2:1 ECU:US.
Anyway- there were Cuban frogs in the bushes all around us, (the locals called them crappos) and they make a pinging sound- not a croaking like you would think... It almost sounds robotic. It was very cool. The moon rose over the water, just a sliver, but enough light to make the water sparkle, and was an excellent backdrop for a lovely dinner. There were also little beds everywhere... It would have been perfect to lay there after dinner with a cocktail and look and the billions of stars in the sky. Thoroughly buzzed and ready to go back to the hotel, we stopped back by Carmichaels for a nightcap, and ended up crashing early.
Day 2... Friday... Spa Day!
Once we got to the hotel and got the lay of the land, we quickly realized that we needed to do some rearranging of the schedule in order to get the most of our time here. That meant hitting the spa after breakfast to see if we could get everything done in one day. So, after breakfast (eggs Benedict, bacon, fruit punch, coffee- yummy) we headed off to the spa to see what we could do. Luckily, the spa gods were smiling on us and we got everything moved to that afternoon. Since we had the morning to kill, we asked where we could go to the beach, and Jacqui O's at Love Beach was suggested. We hopped in the car and drove over (it was about 5 minutes from the hotel) and found an awesome spot! Antigua boasts 365 beaches, which is easy to do, because the island has a lot of pockets and rocky coastline, so they count each patch of sand as a beach. This was no exception- Love Beach is very secluded, and felt a lot like what you would find at Orient Bay on St. Maarten, but without the tourists, and clothing a must do. The staff made us feel very welcome, and got us set up on a round rattan beach bed ($38 for the day, which ends at Sunset).
More yummy rummy goodness, served up by Priscilla (our server) and some great conversation with Kershell and Raquelle made the morning go very quickly. We broke away around 1pm and headed back over to the spa for our treatments. We each had a massage, then Tiff got a facial and I got a Caribbean Body wrap, which made my skin feel amazing! More recommendations led to making a dinner reservation at OJ's, which is a local favorite, and had a great reputation for seafood. We also learned that Seafood Friday's are big on the island- probably because of religion, but I never really found out for sure. We showered up and headed back to Jacqui O's for a drink before dinner. When we got there, they were just shutting down for the day- Lance, the owner was there with some friends, and us, so he invited us to join him. One of the many fascinating things about the island are the people you meet, and how the "locals" really aren't locals, but people from all parts of the world who made island life a choice. Around the table: Lance, who was the creator of DentMaster in England, the U.S., Dubai, and who knows where else, sold everything and decided to buy Jacqui O's because he wanted to own a restaurant on the water. He also bought the house next door. A beautiful French woman who spoke little English but was apparently in town long enough for lance to take a fancy to- she was supposed to cook him dinner at his place later in the evening, and Scott and Simone. After a few drinks, the stories started to come up about how everyone got to the island... Scott was an online gamer, who allegedly got in trouble state side and had to leave the country, and was one living permanently in Antigua. Simone, his girlfriend of 2 years, was a native Antiguan and came from a prominent family on the island. They invited us to dinner, and the whole group told us we had to go, so Tiff and I decided to take a left turn and go with them. We blew off our reservations at OJ's and followed them to Jolly Harbor down the road to a Greek restaurant located at the harbor. They are regulars, so we were seated at a great table and Scott promptly ordered a bottle of chateau Neuf de Pape (fab), then ordered another one for fun. We ordered dinner, and talked about the states, got into a philosophical discussion about life and relationships, at which point Scott was a little drunk and launched into a raging case of the hiccups. He got up from the table, and wandered off into the bushes to pass out... Simone promptly had their dinner packed up, paid the bill, and invited Tiff and I to finish dinner, which we did. The owner of the restaurant talked to us (another transplant who chuck edit all and moved his whole family to the island) and let us know that what happen to us was a pretty regular occurrence. I can only imagine how homesick he is, and what it must feel like to never be able to go back home. He'd been gone for 8 years. (Note to self- check out the book "Straight Flush"- it's apparently all about him).
Headed back to the hotel, because we heard there would be dancing, and found a really lame cover band in a empty bar (except for a table of Canadians). We stayed for a few minutes, gave up, and went to bed.
Saturday Day 3- adventure day!
Since we were able to have all of our spa love the day before, we decided to take a boat trip around the island on a catamaran. The Wadadli Cat took off from Jolly Harbor and was a day long excursion... After making a few stops to pick up people from different beaches, we headed off to our first stop for snorkeling. The crew o of the boat was great- very hospitable and very knowledgable about the island- Wadadli is a name you see on everything on Antigua- it's literally a nickname the locals gave the island, and call Barbuda Wiomi (not sure that's spelled right). They also have a dialect that is very similar to Gullah or Geechie in the Carolinas, but they don't have a name for it. It's largely English, but very sing-song. Some other notable facts- Antigua attracts a lot of celebrities because it still is undeveloped and very private- Georgio Armani, Oprah Winfrey, and Eric Clapton had a few of the houses we passed along the way. Long Island, which is a barrier island off of Antigua, held a lot of celebrity homes. The island was was also a volcano, so a lot of the cliffs are striking- it looks like a plate recently shoved out of the water.
Our snorkel spot was a very private spot with very clear water on the Atlantic side of the island. There were lots of fish- snapper, chum, jacks, sea urchins, parrotfish...just to name a few. Once we got done snorkeling, the rum punch came out, followed by a hot lunch of chicken, tilapia, rice and beans, pumpkin, and Mac and cheese (I guess they were trying to appeal to the Americans) and a banana cake for dessert- all of which was delicious. Locally made hot sauce came with it...it had a kick but wasn't painful and available for sale along with other souvenirs. We also stopped along the beach for another swim, so tiff and I grabbed snorkels and masks and puttered around the boat to see if we could find any more fish- we found a starfish instead.
We got back to shore around 3:30 and headed back to hotel to shower up and get ready for dinner at OJ's since we had blown them off the night before.
OJ's was a much different experience than Sheer Rocks- it really is more of a local favorite, and a lot more down and dirty. The menu is very simple. Mostly seafood, but burgers as well, and live music on Saturday nights, which was appealing. We ordered grilled lobster and grilled snapper (which was some of the best fish I've ever had- simply grilled whole, with lemon, garlic and herbs), served up with rice and beans, salad, and garlic bread. Our spicy shrimp was spicy and garlicky, but very good. The band came on, and played reggae versions of a lot of cover songs. The only bad part of evening was when we tried to get the check- there was no bartender and no stations, so the servers were scattered and running around trying to get everything done and failing miserably. It sort of put a damper on the evening so we went back to the hotel and had a nightcap, and was in bed by 11- I think we were both just wiped out by being out all day in the sun.
Day 4... Sunday and homeward bound :(
Since we had to be checked out of the hotel by noon, we spent a leisurely morning having breakfast and one last quick trip to the beach- we only had an hour, so we headed back to see our new friends at Jacqui O's, say goodbye, and leave a note to thank Scott and Simone for dinner. The beaches are so beautiful and it was hard to leave.
So... Some learnings:
Sunday's are big family days on the island- almost everything is closed, so our original plan to check out St. John was thwarted. BUT... It's also the big night to go out in Shirley Heights, and seafood is a must do there, along with great music and parties. A lot of the locals go there. We didn't hear of anywhere specific, but it sounded like fun. Next time, a Sunday stay over is a must.
Car rental- it was nice having a car for the flexibility of getting around, but not really necessary. The hotels have shuttles that are free and will take you wherever you need to go- beaches and St. John in the daytime, dining at night. It was nice having the option at night time, so drinking and driving wasn't a problem.
Dollars are accepted everywhere- even though it's technically a British country. Go figure.
Everyone is very nice, and all of our advice on where to go was good.
4 Days is not long enough to see the island!!! One week is better. There are a lot of Europeans and Canadians who visit there and/or have vacation homes there- it might be a good idea to research and see if VRBO might be an option.
