Devil's Bridge, Antigua

That’s one of many pictures. It’s a photogenic place. When the waves are in a mood to crash, the spray can be spectacular.  The immediate area is mostly undeveloped, maintained by a Friends-of-the-Bridge-type organization. It’s a bit off the beaten path, and therein hangs a tale.

Several locals told me I ought to go find the place—off the beaten track, but definitely worthwhile. They even all gave me directions. Maybe it’s the relaxed style of life on an island like Antigua, maybe it’s that they hadn’t actually been to the place themselves in years, maybe it’s that no matter where you go on Antigua you’ll find something interesting, but everyone gave me bad directions! They were all approximately right, but they all lacked critical details. I thought I was getting close, and one fellow said, “Next left, go straight until you come to it.”  That led me to the Devil’s own road. It consisted entirely of cement truck dumpings. The puddles of now hardened concrete weren’t even slightly smoothed together.

Devil's road—looking back

At the end of that causeway I found a nice view of an unknown bay with a nice line of surf out a way,

Bay with surf

—and a pile of hundreds of conch shells.

A few of the shells in the pile

The remains of an overturned auto chassis and several broken surfboards lay nearby. Creepy.

On this sort of adventure, even wrong turns are interesting. Several more worthless directions and a couple lucky turns later, I found the place.  Yup, off the beaten path, but worth seeing. See the photo at the beginning.

Have you struggled to find something, only to encounter adventure on your way? Share with us.

If you drive along the road that leads from the capital to Nelson’s Bay, then keep right on going, you can travel along the inland coast for a while (seeing some wonderful scenery, by the way, and at least two trees on the top of a hill that clearly demonstrate the nature of the prevailing winds).

one of the windblown trees

On the landward side of the road you’ll see a village or two, a church with a very old and still-active graveyard (meaning sunken grave sites with indecipherable headstones, and fresh, plastic-flowered ones)—and Aunty May’s Garden Shop.

Aunty May's

If you have an elderly friend named May, you really ought to stop in, take a look around, and snap a photo to show your friend that you were thinking of her. A visit is worthwhile anyway. It’s an interesting store, and the proprietress is a lovely lady who originated in England, lived in Annapolis, Maryland for a quarter century, then, following that aforementioned dream, moved to Antigua and set up a garden shop. She says that everyone told her that her mum would be proud of her for taking the step, so she named the shop after her mum, who was everybody else’s auntie. She says her business is too small to have a web site, but do drop by Antigua sometime, and give her a visit. Tell her I sent you.

How about your travel dreams? Tell us in the comments.

You have no doubt heard the story of the bricklayer who, asked what he was doing, answered “laying a wall” and his companion answered, “building a cathedral.” Antigua has at least one cathedral builder.

A crew of men were harvesting yams in a field north of Nelson’s harbor. This is backbreaking, hot work. A plow comes though to loosen up the soil, then the men dig through the entire row of dirt feeling for yams, and set them on top.

The guy in front turned out to be the cathedral builder.

Here’s the difference between a sweet potato and a yam. The scrawny guy is a sweet potato.

They were happy to show me their wares, and amused that I wanted to take pictures of them

We talked a bit about the process, and their roles. I commented that he had a tough job. His reply: “We feeding the world.” I’m sorry not to know the man’s name, but I would be proud to have him as a friend.

Have you found wisdom in unexpected places? Tell us.

BTW—I have heard that some people don’t like the roads—too many potholes. Humbug! (to use a seasonal term) I had a fine time on the roads. Of course, I’m not a little old lady who drives only on Sundays…

1. As you walk off the pier, grab one of the fairly nice road maps they hand out. You’ll especially need the enlarged view of town.
2. keep an eye out for a kid holding a Handwritten “scooters for rent” sign.
3. Express interest, and he’ll lead you through (clean) back streets, parking lots, and alleys to a short street with several 150cc motorbikes. Find out the rate and schedule before you agree. The guy will explain the operation of the vehicle–they have automatic transmissions, they’re low-slung, light, and powerful enough to climb any hill and break any speed limit on the island, which appears to be 40KPH. I think the requirement is that you have a motorcycle endorsement on your drivers license, but I don’t think the guy actually cares. He’ll explain everything you need know about operating the bike, and answer any questions you have.
4. You need to return the bike with the tank full. The helmet is a laugh, but wear it. In fact, wear jeans. If you take a tumble, you don’t want any road rash. You pay any damage you cause to the vehicle. They have insurance, but it’s a laugh; $1500 deductible. Don’t waste your money.
5. Remember that map? Have the guy show you how to get back! Town is full of narrow, crowded, one-way streets, and coming back is different from leaving.
6. This is your chance to participate in the casual style of driving so common on the islands. People in town will be pretty tolerant of you scooting around. Remember:  In Antigua they drive on the LEFT. Actually, they drive down the middle in the country, and swing left when someone approaches. Watch the traffic circles. They’re tricky.
7. You’re off! The bike is not likely to be stolen, but take the key with you when you get off.
8. You can stop about anywhere and ask directions. People like to show off their knowledge of their island, and give you advice about good spots. Only the professionals expect tips.
9. Remember to plan enough time to get back, drop off the bike, and get to your ship. If you get an escort back to the pier, give the kid a tip.

I forgot to get a photo of my scooter or the scooter rental guy. Sorry. You’ll see plenty of nice pictures in the next set of posts. They’re about what you can see on a scooter in Antigua.

So. Have you gone off on your own like this? How did it go? Tell us!

Suppose you had $50 in your pocket and didn’t feel like going shopping. Again. You could do worse than rent a motor scooter and go looking around on your own.

Just remember to give yourself half an hour to get back to the ship. Instructions on how to do this and maybe some of the adventures you’ll have coming up in the next few posts.

Personal note: I’m just coming off the worst cold I’ve had in a decade—three days in bed, and I’m still weak. Hence the dearth of posts this week. I’ll make it up to you, I promise. Antigua is a pretty interesting place.

If Dominica has 365 rivers, Antigua boasts 365 beaches. It also has the best harbor in the Caribbean, bar none. Admiral Lord Nelson built a naval port there, and now it’s a World Heritage Site. It was restored about 20 years ago, and it’s the finest example of Georgian architecture in the Western Hemisphere (my opinion). The harbor reaches far into the island, and by way of an S-shaped channel, so it’s even safe during a hurricane, unlike the other ports in the Caribbean.

Sailors have a long tradition of music. One song has the chorus:

I’m marching inward from the shore
Over me shoulder I’m carryin’ an oar
When someone asks me “what’s that funny thing ya got?”
I know I’ll never go to sea no more no more.

All that to mention that the song mentions Lord Nelson in one of its verses (sorry—I don’t know the exact words). He has a cure for seasickness: “Sit underneath a tree.”

Nelson's bay seen from a home on one of the hillsides.

Have you ever sat underneath a tree in Antigua? Tell us about it in the comments.

Everyone knows that the cruise lines low-ball the fare (and some travel agents, especially, ahem, travel clubs, can discount them even more), for which you get the cabin, the food, the evening entertainment, and many activities. If that’s all you care to do, a cruise is a really, really  good deal. You can stay fairly busy and have a pretty good time without ever leaving the boat.

However, the cruise companies also offer shopping, gambling, and alcoholic beverages on board, and those aren’t free. Justifiably, perhaps—after all, people have so many individual preferences that it’s impossible to include these in a way that would please anyone, much less everyone.

Don’t drink? Gambling against your religion? You’re satisfied with your possessions? You’re still not out of danger. If you’re not into any of those vices, you probably want to do some sightseeing or have an adventure while you’re on shore, right?  After all, you won’t find much snorkeling in Kansas, or catamaran rides, or a Georgian naval base. If you have any intellectual curiosity or spirit of adventure, be prepared to go on a couple cruise-sponsored activities. Every port of call has something worth doing, and unless you speak the language fluently, and have local relatives, you’re ahead to stick with the planned itineraries. Prices range  from $35 to $100, and they have something to suit every taste. They’re worth it. Sign up for something at every port. The memories are worth far more than the cost of the excursion.

Replica of the original Endeavour—the space shuttle was named after this ship

Here’s a pic of the Georgian (architectural style) naval base, on the island of Antigua in the Caribbean. You can go on a really interesting tour of the place if your cruise ship stops at Antigua.