If the ship feels like home to us, these islands feel like our neighborhood. Today in Antigua proved to me, in a way two days at sea did not, why we love spending our winter this way. The weather wasn't perfect, but in the end it was a perfect day.
I was up early to walk this morning, and although there was no thunder and no lightning, there were some large, ominous looking clouds. By the time I finished two miles, a light mist was falling. We went to breakfast in the dining room, and took our photo IDs required to get back to the cruise ship pier, and walked over to Redcliffe Quay to use the Big Banana wifi (Big Banana is a restaurant in Redcliffe Quay). The holy grail of wifi meets five criteria: free, fast, cool, quiet and shady. Big Banana meets two of these (free and quiet), which isn't bad for the islands. I was able to get a broken Skype call out to mom, and download my emails. The sun was out and the air was humid and hot.
Eventually, the wifi slowed to a snail's pace, which was frustrating enough for us to finish up and return to the ship to pack for a day on the beach.
This was our first beach packing exercise this winter. Luckily, snorkel gear and wetsuits weren't required; otherwise, we'd have even more things to pull together. But even for a simple beach day, a serious amount of stuff is required. We put ice in a metal water bottle and took a beer and a Coke (for G) and a water bottle for me in our big cooler which doubles as a beach bag.
We walked off the ship for the second time, and walked along the waterfront past Redcliffe Quay and down Market St. to the bus terminal (Google Maps Wesf Bus, St. John's Antigua). There was a #15 bus to Valley Church Beach already there (we usually take the #17), so we boarded it. And waited.
Do you remember my blog post about waiting on a bus in Antigua last year? Well, it was that all over again. People boarded with their shopping, raw meat and fish, wrapped in newspaper and packed in bags, buckets and baskets. Thankfully, a woman boarded with a bag of spices and sat near us, providing a natural air freshener. A man popped his head in the door selling water bottles and Cokes. People came and went, babies cried, babies were born (okay, maybe that's a stretch). You know, it was riding a bus in Antigua. The driver doesn't leave until every seat (and that includes the jump sets that unfold down into the aisles) Is filled. The limited aisle space was littered with shopping bags, buckets and baskets. Just as the bus finally left the station (really, a parking lot), it had started to drizzle again.
Lovely.
Photo 1: a bit of a sunrise
Photo 2: packing for a few hours on the beach