St Vincent & the Grenadines, Caribbean

In January 2022 I went on a Caribbean cruise. We went to the eastern Caribbean and many of the ports we visited were new to me. We flew to Barbados to join the ship. On they way from the airport to the port, I managed to get a photo of the empty plinth that used to hold the statue of Nelson. On 30 November 2021 Barbados became a republic, which meant the British Queen was no longer head of state and it was no longer a British colony. However a year earlier, the statue of Lord Nelson was removed from National Heroes Square as he was not a local hero. The statue was moved to the Barbados Museum and Historical Society. See my blog on the statue.

The first island we stopped at was St Vincent. This is the main island of the country of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles. The islands were under British colonial status until gaining independence in 1979.

The island is volcanic and very hilly and heavily forested. The capital is Kingstown, which is the main port.

Kingstown from the ship -

Blue sea at the port -

Due to Covid restrictions we were only allowed to get off using a ship's tour. And the one I chose was rather disappointing as we didn't see a great deal of the island. We drove through the town. The Assumption Catholic cathedral with its striking architecture which is a combination of styles (Moorish, Romanesque, Byzantine, Venetian and Flemish) and the police station -

Our first stop was up at Fort Charlotte. There were good views but not much to see of the fort.

Looking at the Grenadines (and rain cloud). Some of the better known Grenadines are Bequia, Mustique and Young Island. Bequia is the big island in the foreground -

We then went to the botanic gardens. These are located above Kingstown and are the oldest botanic garden in the Western Hemisphere, established 1765. A third-generation clone of a breadfruit tree came from an original plant brought from Tahiti in 1793 by Captain William Bligh (of Bounty fame). The Botanic Garden's Scottish curator Alexander Anderson took great care of these plants. Breadfruit is one of the most useful food plant in the West Indies. The gardens are a popular venue for weddings. Mahogany tree -

Pride of Barbados -

Cannonball tree

Some of the parrots called out hello as we were there. It was impossible to get a good photo of them through the netting. 

From here we drove to a beach place for a rum punch. We managed to see a small part of the hilly island. We went past the old airport at Arnos Vale which is now used as a road, and saw the new airport which is further out of town. 

Flag St Vincent and Grenadines

Nelson's statue removed from Bridgetown, Barbados

 In Feb 2020 I was in Bridgetown, Barbados, and took photos of Nelson's statue in Trafalgar Square, opposite the Parliament buildings. I wrote "Statue of Admiral Lord Nelson. It was erected on 22 March 1813 in the area known as Trafalgar Square, opposite Parliament Buildings. The statue predates Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square in London by nearly 30 years. Bajans (Barbadians) are grateful to Nelson due to his victory at Cape Trafalgar in 1805. This meant Barbados would not become a French West Indian colony, which would have been the alternative if Nelson had not gained victory for the British off Cape Trafalgar on the southern coast of Spain. This battle was the most decisive naval victory of the wars. It was also important for trade routes from Britain to Barbados."

So I was really surprised to read in the news in Nov that Nelson's statue has been removed. Apparently in September Barbados announced plans to replace Britain’s Queen Elizabeth as its head of state and move on from its colonial past. 

In 1999 Trafalgar Square was renamed National Heroes Square, although Nelson is not on the list of Barbados’ 10 National Heroes. 

In 2020 the Black Lives Matter campaign sprung up worldwide after a black man whilst being arrested by a white policemen in the US. Lots of statues in England were removed if they represented someone who had connections with the slave trade during colonial times. 

So Nelson's statue in Bridgetown was a particular target, as it was a vestige of colonial rule, made even more controversial because of Nelson’s defence of the slave trade upon which Barbados’ plantation economy was based.

The bronze statue was put up in 1813 to commemorate Nelson and the British Royal Navy’s victory over the French and Spanish in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The Caribbean was an important battleground in the Napoleonic Wars. There were 3 big colonisers, Britain, France and Spain.

The statue will be housed at the Barbados Museum in the Historic Garrison Area.

I wonder if anything will happen to Nelson's Dockyard on Antigua, which I visited in 2019. 

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UPDATE

I was in Barbados again in January 2022 and managed to take a photo of the empty plinth where Nelson's statue used to be.

Another change - In 2021, the name Barbados Police Service was selected to be the new name for the Royal Barbados Police Force and replaced the old name when Barbados became a republic on November 30, 2021.

Bridgetown, Barbados, a world heritage site

Bridgetown is the capital and biggest city of Barbados. Formerly Town of Saint Michael, Greater Bridgetown area is situated within the parish of Saint Michael. Locally referred to as "The City", the most common reference to Bridgetown is simply "Town". Bridgetown City was established at its current location in 1628 by English settlers. The previous settlement was at St James Town.

Bridgetown serves as a major financial and convention centre, as well as a major cruise port. In 2011, Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I had missed it last year as I was too tired and hot to do it after the tour to Harrison’s Cave.

Port Bridgetown is located along Carlisle Bay on the island's southwestern coast. From the cruise terminal it’s about a 10 min walk along the esplanade to the town. The buildings are really interesting, with balconies, shutters, roofing shingles etc.

Concentrating on the game -

This is nothing to do with F.W. Woolworth that used to be in England. This one is a leading department store, owned by a Barbadian company.

Statue of Admiral Lord Nelson. It was erected on 22 March 1813 in the area known as Trafalgar Square, opposite Parliament Buildings. The statue predates Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square in London by nearly 30 years. Bajans (Barbadians) are grateful to Nelson due to his victory at Cape Trafalgar in 1805. This meant Barbados would not become a French West Indian colony, which would have been the alternative if Nelson had not gained victory for the British off Cape Trafalgar on the southern coast of Spain. This battle was the most decisive naval victory of the wars. It was also important for trade routes from Britain to Barbados. I visited Nelson's Dockyard on Antigua last year.

Parliament Buildings

I went over the pedestrian swing bridge and towards the beach. There were some interesting old buildings along the road.

The beach was really busy. I wished I'd taken my swimming things.

Walked back through the market and shops area and it was all very pleasant. School children -

Pedestrian shopping street -

Policeman on Segway

After a lot of sightseeing I bought some beer in a supermarket and sat and watched the sunset -

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See the next blog on my Amazon & Caribbean cruise - St Lucia, Caribbean

Barbados island tour

Barbados is the easternmost island in the West Indies. Barbados is one of the few islands in the Caribbean that are 100% coral. It was formed from old coral reefs and not volcanic eruptions.

There are 11 parishes on Barbados, named after saints. Bridgetown is the capital and biggest city of Barbados. Formerly Town of Saint Michael, Greater Bridgetown area is situated within the parish of Saint Michael. Locally referred to as "The City", the most common reference to Bridgetown is simply "Town".

Port Bridgetown is located along Carlisle Bay (on the island's southwestern coast). The sugar loading towers where we docked

Storage for sugar (pyramid) and molasses (circular tank) -

As usual we were not alone, there were 2 other cruise ships plus the Christian bookship Logos Hope. This is similar to the Doulos which I saw in Malaysia in 2006. Viking Sea on the left and Logos Hope on the right -

I went to Barbados last year, but didn't see much of the island as I wanted to go to Harrison's Cave. So this time I wanted to do an island tour and also see Georgetown.

So I got a share taxi for an island tour. We went along the coastline which is the very upmarket area we had driven through last year. Up through some estates and a 44 hole Sandy Lane – Green Monkey golf course. Saw some green monkeys, which originated from West Africa.

Saw Mick Jagger’s holiday home and passed a road leading to Simon Cowell’s and Cliff Richard’s. Went back down to the coast road and through Holetown,

Then Speightstown with the 2 marinas, Port St Charles (natural) and Port Ferdinand (manmade). We then turned inland to go across the island. Traditional house -

Went past St Nicholas Abbey which is surrounded by mahogany trees. This photo was taken through the car windscreen, hence the odd colours

We stopped at a view point over the Atlantic (east) coast, at Cherry Tree Hill vista, by an avenue of mahogany trees, which is the end of the abbey railway. The view was rather hazy.

Zenaida dove with Carib grackle

 

Souvenir stall at Cherry Tree Hill. The broken trident of the Barbados flag is supposed to represent independence, a symbolic break from being a colony -

Then down to the coast, stopping at Morgan Lewis sugar mill, the Caribbean's largest and only working sugar mill-

The Atlantic coast is much more wild, with white waves, and cheaper resorts. Went through St Andrews parish which is mostly formed of sand rather than the crystalline limestone. Some impressive huge rocks along the beach. The rocks might be remnants of an ancient coral reef. Or they might have come from the old cliff faces (geology report). We stopped for photos at a large rock on the beach.

Looking back down at the coastline -

We stopped at Bathsheba for a while. Lots of tourists here. Legend has it that Bathsheba, wife of King David, bathed in milk to keep her skin beautiful and soft. Legend also says that the surf covered white waters of Bathsheba, Barbados, is rich in minerals and life and said to resemble Bathsheba's bath in both appearance health giving value.

Then we made our way inland again, over Horse Hill, Bushy Park, and very close to the area where Harrison’s Cave is, although I saw no signs. Saw old colonial plantation houses. Then stopped at some rock carvings but I didn't catch what the driver told us about these apart from the cricket stumps representing Barbados cricket -

Went up Gun Hill and past the signal station, built in 1818. At the foot of signal station is a magnificent lion statue which was carved out of a single piece of rock in 1868 by a Britishofficer at the signal station.

A cotton plantation

This mill is now a house

Came back to the coast on the Caribbean side at Worthing, saw the university and sports stadium and Olympic pool.

Drove north back to Bridgetown. The World Heritage site starts at Hastings, with the fort and garrison.

Saw the race course and drove by George Washington’s house. Went through Bridgetown with its colonial heritage buildings and on to the terminal. After lunch I went back to the town to have a look around.

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See the next blog on my Amazon & Caribbean cruise - Bridgetown Barbados World Heritage Site.