Chapter 3 - The Wadadli Catamaran circle island tour

Christopher Columbus discovered the island in 1493 and named it Santa Maria de la Antigua after the church in Seville.  At that time, the island was known by the native people as Waladli,  later changed to Wadadli.   This name is perpetuated throughout the island, but nowhere with more prominence than the Wadadli Catamarans which circle the island and offer snorkeling as well as sightseeing trips.

We took the day-long trip which included lunch and snorkeling.

Eric Clapton's house (for Alan)

                                     

Reputedly, the yacht owned by Putin's nephew

So many amazing yachts in English Harbor,

some with helicopters parked on top

Snorkel time

The crew were always happy to assist.
This is Ronnie

Lunch

A swim at Cades Beach

A serious conversation in a very unserious place!

Travel is often an introduction to very interesting people!

What happens when the rum punch flows...

The end of an amazing day

Chapter 2 - Carlisle Bay Resort, Cades Bay Beach and Gina's stall

Checking out the Carlisle Bay Luxury Resort

We stopped by this resort and were shown around.  It lies between a rain forest and the sea on the Southern coast of Antigua.  Beautifully maintained and extremely quiet and secluded.




























Most of the resorts are exclusive, but the beaches are not and it is said there are 365 beaches on Antigua, one for every day of the year.  Even though our visit took place in January/February, the busiest tourist season, we often had the beach to ourselves, with only a few other visitors, both locals and tourists










Cades Bay Beach where the sea is very calm









I have no idea who this person is!

Gina was only too pleased to pose, a great sport.  

Chapter 1 - We arrive!

With really very little knowledge of where we were going, eight of us, neighbors in the same small town in the North West, decided to rent a house in Antigua in the Caribbean.  Several of us scurried to the map to check the location and found that Antigua and Barbuda, together with Redonda, form one nation, and is located in the "Heart of the Caribbean" between the Greater and Lesser Antilles, about 402 kilometers (250 miles) east-southeast of Puerto Rico or 60 kilometers (37.5 miles) north of Guadeloupe. 

We were to discover so much more about this beautiful place, its troubled history, its culture and above all its amazing people who must be amongst the friendliest in the world.

Sarah and Darrell
The glue that stuck us together with their charm and good humor

Our first evening together at the Sugar Ridge Resort Restaurant

The house, Villa Sea Glass, is situated high above Jolly Harbor, which is on the South West coast of Antigua.  (On the map, in the yellow St. Mary district where the red road veers to the North East.)   It has four en-suite bedrooms, a large living/kitchen area and amazing views across Jolly Harbor and the Carbibbean.   Since we had not elected to rent a car, a decision we never regretted, this did mean a strenuous walk up the hill to the house.  Since most of us are avid walkers, we were able to take this challenge in our stride (sorry!) and viewed it as our daily exercise.

















 

Steps down from the patio to our gate

To the left of this road leading from the house is
the Sugar Ridge Resort where we could enjoy swimming, the gym (the road
was mostly enough exercise for us!) and buy pina coladas galore.

The Final Stretch to our gate

8 minus 1 enjoying our first meal in the house

The guys!

Enough of the home life, time to check out the beaches.  A short bus journey took us to a variety of lovely spots.  The one we chose had a pretty restaurant run by Lance who, like many people we met on the island, had an adventurous history.

Lance on the left

    

Note the color of the Caribbean.  It really looks like that, the light shifting throughout the day to change it from blue to turquoise, to dark blue, to almost purple