Originally Published:
Bajan. n. A Barbadian. adj. Of or characteristic of Barbados.
Yankee. n. Someone of general United States origin.
Bajan Yankee. An American of Bajan descent.
I’m not quite sure when I first heard the term Bajan Yankee, but I know I was in Barbados and I know a Bajan said it…about me. It was a very long time ago, but I like it. Made me feel like I belong somewhere; and as you can imagine, belonging is pretty important for an American of African ancestry.
I've been back in the US from Barbados for just over a month now and I have been thinking about some of the places I was able to visit, some of the beaches I was awed by, and some of the delightful people I was able to meet. You see, the last time I was in Bim, it was 10 years ago (for my wedding) and as a descendant of both Euro-Bajan and African-Bajan grandparents, great grandparents, and great great grandparents (on my mum’s side), I admit I do feel a bit of guilt about not visiting more often. My mother is even a Bajan citizen. Guilt-y.
Truth be told, I am also thinking about a number of places I didn't get to in Barbados, which – although I don’t really need one - gives me an excuse to go back. For now, though, I’m going to re-live my 10 days in Bim (in 2 parts) by giving you some of the highlights in an effort to entice you to visit this beautiful island in the Lesser Antilles. Okay, here we go:
The Set Up
Since my mother is relatively obsessed with documenting Our Family Tree, and because she was in Europe when I got married 10 years ago, I bought her a ticket to join My Fella and I for the first part of our 10 year anniversary celebration. I knew she would need to spend some time at the Registrar’s Office in Bridgetown - Barbados’ capital – after she got back from the Department of Archives in Black Rock (St. James) to compile ancestral research. I also knew that she would want to take tours of all or any of the local homes and gardens since it’s a hobby of hers to tour homes of historical and/or architectural interest and because she is a member of her local Garden Conservancy. Of course since she’s my mum, I was right.
Bridgetown
Barbados - an island that is 21 miles long and 14 miles wide - is divided up into 11 parishes (Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip and Saint Thomas), only two of which don’t have their own coastline. The capital city of Bridgetown is in the parish of St. Michael which is also the major port of entry for cruise and cargo ships docking in Barbados and where my mum ultimately spent time at the Registrar’s Office making arrangements to collect family records. Bridgetown is where the bulk of the commercial activity takes place, where you can get some shopping done and where there are a number of points of interest including National Heroes Square (formerly Trafalgar Square), Independence Square, and The Pelican Village and Craft Centre, just to name a few. One of the places we were on the lookout for in Bridgetown was The Jewish Synagogue (built in 1654!), one of the oldest synagogues in the western hemisphere. Of course, we spotted it on our last day and weren’t able to check it out, but like I said, here’s just one excuse to go back. Interesting cultural fact: About 300 Jewish people of Recife, Brazil, persecuted by the Portuguese, settled in Barbados in the 1660s.
Mt. Gay Rum Distillery
Also in St. Michael and not far from Bridgetown is the Mt. Gay Rum Distillery. I don’t know about you, but a tour of a rum distillery will always make my list of Things to Do While on any island in the Caribbean. Even if you don’t drink, it’s interesting to hear and sometimes even see how rum is made starting from sugar cane. It’s also cool to smell the different varieties while the guide explains the nuances of rum. There’s a place to have lunch at the distillery (and we were all hungry), but we arrived too late so after the tour, we took a short drive and ended up having lunch at a cool shack-like restaurant on the beach (I should’ve written the name of it down). The food was hecka tasty. Interesting fact about Mt. Gay Rum: The oldest surviving deed for the company is from 1703, making Mount Gay Rum one of, if not "The Oldest," rum companies in the world. The current parent company of Mount Gay Distilleries (since 1989) is Rémy Cointreau.
Barbados National Trust
Another cool part of the trip was what I call house snooping. Not in a black burglar’s outfit mind you, but in casually chic island attire and put on by the Barbados National Trust, a charitable, non-profit body founded in 1961 to preserve the unique heritage of our island home, be it historic buildings and sites, or places of natural beauty or environmental importance [BNT Official Web site] Every year, from January through March, the Barbados National Trust hosts an Open House Programme where you can tour selected properties every Wednesday for a mere $10US which funds go towards supporting heritage preservation efforts in Barbados. On January 12, we toured a home appropriately name “Elsewhere” in Sandy Lane (also a golf course), a very upscale area of Barbados in St. James parish. To put it bluntly, this home was off the charts…Moroccan/Middle Eastern style! Not an old house, it was initially built in the 1980s and is surrounded by big trees including immortel, mango and African tulip. Fountains, lagoon koi ponds, a swimming pool, domed ceilings, verandas, red clay tiles, circular stairways, private bedrooms, an al fresco dining terrace, and amazing grounds (I got lost!) made this a day to remember. There’s even a man-made cave beneath the house! From the brochure: "Early inhabitants of Barbados used caves that were hewn out of the rock in regular forms, similar to those found in the Canary islands, complete with niches to serve some mysterious purpose." Since there is no photography or drinks allowed inside, I only managed to snap a photo of the outside of the estate and no one was allowed inside the cave, but of course, my one little photo does no justice to the interior or the rest of the grounds. What a great tour.
Accommodations
I’m going to end here and then pick up this article with Part II because there is a lot more to talk about, to do and to see in Bim, including a re-cap of the rest of our fabulous! days at Hunte’s Garden, Friday night at Oisten’s, a memorable Sunbury Plantation tour, beautiful Bathsheba, the Gold Coast, Holetown, the people, the weather, the food, etc. But before I go, I thought I would tell you about your choice of accommodations in Barbados.
Because my mother was on board, I opted for a lovely two-story condo smack dab in the middle on Dover Beach, one of the more popular local beaches and a 60 second walk to the heart of St. Lawrence Gap (aka The Gap), a 1.3 km stretch of road in Christ Church parish (where we got married, BTW) famous for its fine restaurants, diverse accommodations, lively nightlife and good shopping. These condos are brand spanking new and I splurged even more and hired a chef to cook our first meal. (I will never forget walking into that condo and smelling the food made with Bajan seasoning. Yum.)
My mother had her own suite downstairs, including patio access to the pools and the beach while the kitchen (marble countertops and high end kitchen appliances), living room, upstairs balcony and my living quarters were upstairs. And when we didn’t feel like cooking, we sashayed on down to a nice pink hotel called The Southern Palms with good food (and good rooms according to my mother) right on the beach. It's where my mum stayed the last time she was in Barbados. Naturally, there are loads of hotels of all levels to choose from.
I’m nearing my maximum word count, so I’ll sign off for now. For a few photos that track back to my ramblings above, please click here. I’ll be back with more (Part II) before you can slip into your favorite swimsuit.
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