We have this horrible feeling that this is going to be the last really hot stop of our odyssey. After Barbados it is off across the Atlantic for five days to Madeira before heading north for home. Anyway, it is not a bad thought, we are looking forward to getting home again and we are keeping a tally of how many sleeps to go in much the same way as we understand some little folk are doing back in Lincolnshire.
But before the pleasure and joy of being back with family we have the delights of Barbados, and delightful it is too. By no means a large island, it is 21 miles across at its widest and only 166 square miles in total, the most easterly of the West Indian islands, it sits more in the Atlantic than the Caribbean with pleasant temperatures usually around 24-27C offset by cooling breezes.
We dock in Bridgetown at the Cruise Terminal, this is a regular cruising destination, frequently being used as an embarkation point by some vessels on Caribbean itineraries. And lo and behold there sits the Celebrity Constellation, another floating apartment block. Some of you will have heard of the joyous experiences we were subjected to by Celebrity in an earlier cruise a few years ago. Oh for a torpedo! But we are not bitter people, well, not much.
The terminal itself is warm and welcoming, well organised with a range of attractive shops, the only slight blot is our inability to access the wifi.
We had already decided to get out of Bridgetown in the first instance and so took a local taxi to Sunbury, a 300 year old former sugar plantation house, now a museum with many artefacts. We are particularly taken by the delightfully preserved 200 year old enema can, thankfully empty! The house has been restored and is surrounded by beautiful shady gardens. We stop for a drink and watch the outdoor restaurant being prepared for an evening wedding reception - what a beautiful setting!
Our venerable driver, with his equally venerable taxi, undertakes to return us to Bridgetown via the scenic route, all within the agreed price, so off we go with a colourful running commentary. One thing we have noticed in the last few weeks is how unfailingly polite and helpful taxi drivers have been everywhere we have gone, bit of a contrast to their invariably miserable and morose counterparts back home. Barbados is delightful. We pass through acres of sugar cane fields, cricket pitches too numerous to mention, all with carefully manicured grass wickets (none of your artificial concrete strips here), the odd rum distillery here and there, through villages of small colourful houses, eventually reaching the coast near Oistins.
Carlisle Bay is beautiful. Oh, the beaches, the colour of the sea, the beachfront cafes, the boardwalks. Even the most dyed in the wool, grumpy old "not bothered about beach holidays" merchant slumped in the back of the taxi was heard to remark that it wasn't bad!
Closer to Bridgetown we pass by a few low, picturesque, colourful buildings; these are the government offices including the office of the Prime Minister. No security worth the name in evidence, government is clearly pretty close to the people here it seems. Grantley Adams Airport, for all it's frequent direct flights to the U.S. and Europe, looks equally laid back and low key, this place becomes more attractive by the minute.
Our amiable driver continues the tour, he tells us nearly every roundabout on the island is individually named, imparting this little nugget of information as we navigate round Garfield Sobers, the roundabout that is.
Eventually he drops us off back in the town centre of Bridgetown giving us plenty of time to browse. Tourists shop tax and duty free here, and one store has a 20% discount sale running also. Well it would have been foolish not to wouldn't it? We are introduced to another endearing local custom when a charming young lady and her friend ask us to buy a very fetching leather purse on her behalf; thus she benefits from the tax free discount obtained against our cruise card and she hands over the money to the cashier. Everyone is happy (not sure about the taxman, stuff him though), free enterprise at work.
We wander through the local market area, resist the temptation to purchase the advertised cow heels, yum yum,(as we did the pigs' snouts in Curacao), but enjoy the atmosphere.
You sense we have lost something in life back home when you notice the somewhat aged local bus pull over whenever flagged and the conductor, yes they still have them, hops off to help the lady back on board with her several bags of shopping, traffic backs up a bit to the accompaniment of good natured hooting and general encouragement. Evidence of the colonial background is everywhere, especially in the architecture and street names - Hastings, St. John, Trafalgar Square and they drive on the left, mostly!
We are still failing miserably to achieve wifi connection for our weekly link up back home so decide to walk back to the ship to see if we can be more successful there. The terminal is very busy, Celebrity Constellation is scheduled to sail off into the sunset shortly, best place for it. We catch the little port shuttle bus over to Oriana as another day in paradise, or pretty close to it, draws to a close. Another one on the "we could come back here" list, ye gods those inheritances are going to take some hammer. Did we mention the new sylph like Janey will need a new wardrobe, it's no good having the body of a goddess if your clothes no longer fit!