Antigua & Barbuda Day 1

October 28, 2016

Fall is here in New England and the cold and winds of winter have started blowing. It's a good time to take a Southern Break. I needed to recharge and what better way than a low mental impact and high intensity beach bumming of a Caribbean Island. Meeting my criteria for interesting, Antigua and Barbuda here I come.

We had a terrible rain storm lasting almost 24 hours and just poured...all night long. Even Mike Pence, Donald Trumps running mate' plane ran off the runway upon landing at La Guardia airport in NYC. It was a windy event and I wasn't sure we would leave until we actually boarded and headed ...up, up, and away.

I slept almost all the way to Miami and needed it terribly. I was tired. I stopped and got a breakfast snack of an egg and cheese asiago bagel from Einstein Brothers. YUM! I also stopped in at the Emporio Armani, like I have so many times before. It was a nice fall collection but I backed away from the clothes.

As usual, D terminal is the 30s gates, gets a bit confusing and it's at the total opposite end of where flights from Boston arrive. I found my gate and just in time for boarding.

This trip will be the last time I fly priority for a long time. I had so many trips on Turkish Air, last year, I will not quality for gold for next year.

Anyway...I slept for about an hour on the second leg. I needed to get up and drink some caffeine. I watched the season premiere of Rectify...powerful tv!

Antigua was far...almost 7 hours of flying, not that I'm complaining. Avon we were landing and it was mostly sunny. There were a few big puffy clouds...humidity borne

Immigration was a breeze and customs..- just keep on going. It took me less than 10 minutes to be out the front door...with no checked bag, that is.

I walked to a building around the corner and a lady called the Hertz rep to come to the rental counter. Everyone was so friendly.

The paperwork was minimal and she even had a gps! Whoohoo! The car - a ragged out Toyota Yaris, had dents, scratches, and a broken front spoiler. It did have a/c and run just fine...rattles and all. It was a good price at $25 a day. Used rentals are getting easier to find. I rent them.

I read through my directions several times, a quick prayer, and off I went. Now, I've driven in many countries that are right hand drive. It always takes me a bit to get into the grove, I usually scare myself in the first 30 minutes and then I'm good for the rest of the trip.

I followed the directions well until I entered the developed neighborhood, it's a large area and still quite rural even though it's divided. I had no house number, just landmarks and fence colors. About twenty minutes of driving around and constantly second guessing my direction decisions, I found it, it was a cute white, wooden house with yellow gingerbread trim. I lulled in and Chrys walked out. She welcomed me and I unpacked the car.

She showed me around the cottage. The was small but really just perfect as it has enough space for me or even for a second person, it was perfect. Her daughter is an architect and had put together the design...good job.

Chrys took me to a massive grocery store to pick up supplies and we also took a quick run through of St Johns, the capitol. It was Friday and the town was quite busy. People were getting paid and cashing checks. It was quite chaotic and I wondered how I would deal with parking on my day in St John's....stress for tomorrow.

During I've drive around, we talked about the economy of the island, it's politics, and the politics of the US. It seems that we share similar political challenges.

We returned and I unpacked the groceries, gathered my camera bag and decided to visit Jabberwok Beach, it was close and Chrys said it was more of a locals beach...quieter.

I set the gps and was surprised that it was only about 15 minutes. Well..it surprised me again with the trek taken. It was taking me almost off-road and behind the runway of the airport. I was skeptical but it turned out to be very, very easy. There was almost no traffic which helped me build my confidence driving,

I parked at Jabberwock Beach, there were just a few cars along the road. Large dunes ran the length with thick grasses, and marshy trees and a few spindly palms. The little path to the beach revealed a wide cove with soft white sand, crystal clear warm water, and just a few clouds here and there for texture. This was perfect, I took off my shoes and enjoyed the cushy sand and perfect temp water. I would have to return and swim here...perfect.

There were a couple of people on the beach but they were much further down and I really had it all to myself. The water gently breaking across my feet and running between my toes felt like a beach massage, I walked towards a tall object and the closer I got the more sculptural it revealed. It looked like a tree with no foliage but was actually the upturned roots of a mangrove tree/bush. It was jutting out into the water and towards the sky...modern art. It's something that you would see on a postcard or in a book about Antigua. How lucky was I! Just past there was a strange set of concrete steps that led right into the ocean...from a concrete block building. It had no windows or doors but had a skull and Frankenstein's head on the window openings facing the water. It was strange and fascinating at the same time. I kept my distance,

I returned to the car and continued west and long the north central coast, There wasn't much coast to see through low level development and residential between Beggars Point and Boon Point. No real places to see the beach, Stopped at an unidentified embassy near the German Embassy, a brick fence with the faded blue arch topped doors and raised design attracted me so I risked my life to get turned around twice to go back and get the pics. So cool! It was a piece of art on its own, I didn't stay too long as it was an embassy and I was taking pictures...looks kinda creepy to do that. I continued on.

On the drive back, I walked Jabberwock Beach again, such a great spot. The sun was starting to set to the west and the sky was filled with color.

Back at the cottage, I walked the street a but and then settled in. I made some dinner, wrote a bit, edited pics, and watched some English speaking tv...a treat for me when traveling. :-)

Looking forward to more Antigua, tomorrow.