Wednesday, 3 April 2024

Crossing the Atlantic

Today is the second full sea day as Sirena crosses the Atlantic on our way to the Cape Verde Islands, an independent nation off the coast of North Africa. The sailing is very smooth and the temperatures in the mid 80’s. But the wifi service has been terrible, and I have been able to access my email only today since we left Barbados. So I am way behind in blogging and I still am not sure I can post photos until we reach land again.

Monday, 1 April 2024

Bridgetown, Barbados  

Another day of beautiful weather as we dock at Bridgetown's cruise port. This is the first of our ports that has a large visitor center with lots of shops and tourist information. In fact, it's a rather long walk just to get through the terminal to reach the tour buses. And the shp itself is quite far from the terminal. But Oceania runs a shuttle bus between the Sirena and the building. There are two much larger ships docked here as well, Oceania's Marina and Das Schiff, an even larger German liner.

Because we have an early shore excursion, we opt for room-service breakfast, delivered on time at 6:30am and very hot, with French toast, bacon, sausage, English muffin, juice and coffee.

After Room-Service Breakfast

Our shore excursion, “Discover Barbados,” runs from 8:45am to 12:15pm, although there is a bit of delay because getting everyone from all three ships through the terminal and on to the buses requires quite a bit of logistical legerdemain. The tour, in a small but comfortable bus, takes us on a scenic drive across the width of the island from the Caribbean to the Atlantic coasts. The driver navigates hilly and sharply curving roads as scary as the ones in Dominica yesterday. Although Barbados no longer processes and exports sugar, sugar cane is still the dominant crop. But we also see large green bananas weighing down the branches of their trees.

Our first stop is at the hilltop Highland Centre, part of a lovely botanic garden. We drink local punch and visit the gift shop. Will enjoys the views from the terrace while I take a short walk through the gardens admiring the exotic plants. 

We next stop at St. John’s Parish Church, a Gothic-style building constructed in 1836 that also offers panoramic views of the Atlantic coast and its beaches.  Other versions of the church have stood on this site since 1645, but hurricanes and fires have destroyed them.

 

From this high point we head treacherously downhill to Bathsheba, a small oceanside village popular with visitors. The weather is cooler and the views are delightful, especially the big-ass rock poised on its base in the water.

We take a different route as we head back to the Caribbean side of the island. But the roads are just as narrow, steep, and curving as the way we came. We reach the west side of Barbados at the high-end town of Hole, where the coast is lined with luxury resorts and private estates. One of the mansions is owned by Rhianna, who was born here in Barbados.

We return to the ship for lunch in the Waves cafe--yes, steak and lobster sandwich again for me. Since we get free wine and beer with meals in the restaurants (not at the bars), I enjoy a very cold Heineken to quench my thirst from this morning's exertions.

After the tour, the lunch, and the beer, I am ready for a long afternoon nap. And even without the beer, Will is ready as well.

We arise for a light dinner in the Terrace Cafe: fresh pizza slices, mixed fruit bowls, and coconut shrimp. We decide to skip tonight's stand-up comic entertainment and sail off to bed.