Monday April 11. Nothing like finally chillin’ in the scorching Barbados sun!
The first thing we noted, once power was restored and we could see again, was that Barbados is similar to Canada in their Covid safety measures. Masks are required everywhere indoors, and this applies to outdoor spaces that are technically indoors, like resort lobbies and open-air coffee counters. They also insist on sanitizer everywhere and unlike home, they watch you like a hawk to make sure you aren’t cheating on the sanitizing. Or else they spray it directly on your hands themselves. This is irritating in restaurants where it’s pretty easy to cross-contaminate your food. Tip: head straight to the bathroom and wash it off with soap, which works better anyway.
After the ridiculous stresses of getting here, we started the vacation off with quad massages – 3 aroma hot stones and 1 swedish. Massages are booked in pairs so of course Dave and I went first, followed by Jeff and Andi. We double checked that we didn’t accidentally end up being booked into couples massages (awkward!) but I still think the spa desk clerk was a bit puzzled.
After massages and a resort orientation that consisted mostly of telling us we needed to book dinner reservations early, there was time for a bit of shoreline reef snorkeling before lunch. The corals seem to be in very bad shape, sadly. I’m not sure if they are dying off due to global warming or if the shores are just a hard place to live. But despite the lack of thriving coral, there were still lots of tropical fish – Dora fish (blue tangs), parrot fish, gar, and um, stripey ones, black ones, little ones swimming in schools (I am very scientific). At one point I saw what I am convinced was a group of reef squid – call that a highlight! While snorkeling, I was torn between worrying about getting run over by a jet ski and getting eaten by a shark, but we returned unscathed and in time for some more lying around in the sun.
We walked to nearby Holetown after lunch and window-shopped in a few tourist-centric stores selling beach wraps for $800 Barbados dollars ($400 US). We settled instead for $3.50 local beers at the Surfside Beach Bar.
Holetown is a cute little village with a not-so-cute name. Apart from the high-end mall, and the very expensive tourist shops, much of the town seems to exist at the poorer end of the spectrum. But there are some lovely colour-washed buildings and quite a few cute little churches.
That is literally all we did today. It was awesome.
Sunshine and warmth! Enjoy your time there!