Barbados & St Lucia...

 

When asked if I wanted to spend 10 days on two Caribbean Islands scoring for a cricket tour there was only ever going to be one answer...yes and how long do I have to wait before we go? Despite not knowing anyone who was going to be on the tour apart from my granddad who had been on tour with the Dooras a team of doctors from Birmingham 3 years previously in Sri Lanka, I couldn't wait for the opportunity not only to go back to the Caribbean but to experience a cricket tour from a different perspective.

 

 

Our first stop was Barbados, after the 8 hour flight from Gatwick filled by lots of chatting, eating too many sweets and doodling in my latest airport purchase of an adult colouring book which is surprisingly more therapeutic than it sounds! With the time difference and jet-lag already kicking in the journey to the hotel while only being about 40 minutes felt a great deal longer.

 

We were staying at the All Seasons Resort Europa in Holetown, a small town located on the west coast of Barbados. The hotel was a collection of small self service apartments dotted around the surrounding pool area giving you a sense of privacy even in the close community. The resort also only 10 minute walk from Holetown Beach one of quieter surrounding beaches, perfect for watching the sunset or a early morning stroll, or in our case a highly competitive game of beach volleyball!

 

 

On our first full day in Barbados we did a whole island tour, hiring a mini bus meant we were able to stop and pull over at various points where we wanted to. We started by heading north towards Speightstown, where our first main stop was in the small village parish of St Andrews at Cherry Tree Hill. An open vantage point overlooking the Scottish District, its believed many years ago the hill was lined by thousands of cherry trees that have since been replaced by mahogany trees.

 

 The next stop off was at the ground that we would be playing the first game (which ended up being the only game) of the tour at. Isolation Cavaliers CC. A relatively large ground set on the side of the road in the middle of mountainous landscape. The opportunity to go and inspect the wicket couldn't be passed up, as we all jumped out the bus to say we were surprised at the waterlogged wicket would probably be an understatement, given the game would be in less than 24 hours it didn't look anywhere close to being ready but with the reassurance from the grounds man we could only hope that it would be.

 

 



Leaving for the match the following morning we weren't entirely sure what to expect with regards to the opposition standard or how playing cricket in well over 30 degrees would be, we may not have won the game however the manner in which it was played and the friendly welcoming nature of the opposition made the day thoroughly enjoyable regardless of the result. It was fascinating to look around the tiny clubhouse at the excess of caps and shirts they had collected from various touring sides along with the international players and teams that had visited.

 

We got back on the road on our way to the Kensington Oval, Bridgetown the international cricket stadium in Barbados. We couldn't miss the opportunity to have our picture (or multiple in a variety of cricket poses) taken outside the ground with the famous Sir Garfield Sobers statue.

 

 

Although the stadium wasn't open that day in preparation for a concert that would be held the following week for Prince Harry's arrival tour around the Caribbean, we chanced our luck with the security asking if we could get in and have a look around the inside of the  ground...with a spot of luck and agreeing to pay 5 dollars each we were allowed to go in and wonder around near enough wherever we wanted too. Starting with another photo opportunity under the main 'Kensington Oval' sign we then walked up all the stairs to the top level of the stand to see the best views across the whole ground. After seeing the view from the stands we made our way down onto the outfield and out to the middle...its safe to say that's the closest I'm ever going to get to walking out at a test venue in my cricket career.

 

 

 

 

With the seasonally strong rain showers the night before washing out our second scheduled game of the tour the only option was to spend the morning lazing around the pool and an afternoon down at the beach. This time we did the walk down to Sandy Lane Beach notorious for pristine white sand, clear blue sea and home to Simon Cowell and Rihanna...apparently. After setting up camp in an empty area of the beach a re match of the first nights beach volleyball began in which I more than likely lost more points for my team than gained. The whole evening was spent playing various beach games, watching the most breath-taking sunset I've ever seen while making time to pose for a few photos to make everyone back at home very very jealous.

 

 

 Our following day was a travel day a 6am wake up call for the ride to the airport which I think everyone had great difficulty in doing, but was made that bit more bearable by watching the sunrise. However making it to airport to find out that our flight to St Lucia was delayed by up to 2 hours certainly made some of us question why we had got out of bed at such an hour.

 

 

After a short 30 minute flight to St Lucia we made the brief car journey into Rodney Bay where we were staying at the Bay Gardens Resort. Ideally situated in the heart of Rodney Bay this hotel offered everything you could want for a quiet Caribbean getaway. Wasting no time when we got there the rest of the day was spent lounging round the pool topping up my tan.

 

With jetlag still playing havoc with any sleeping plan and waking up long before 6am the only thing that could make that time in the morning acceptable to be awake was exploring the new area and visiting Reduit Beach, passing Rodney Bay Harbour on the way down. The stretch of the beach with the mountain on the far left certainly was easily the best way you would want to spend any morning a far cry from my usual daily commute into London.

 

With the cricket again being rained off it gave us the opportunity to hire a taxi and take a road trip around everything St Lucia has to offer, while everyone else on the tour took the sea route on a catamaran. Our tour guide who's name coincidentally was Lucia, a bright and passionate West Indian local told us everything and anything that we wanted to know showing us some of the islands viewpoints along with many of the most popular tourist destinations.

 

 One of the first places that she took us too was the region in which the Government General House was situated, although you weren't able to get anywhere near the house the surrounding landscapes were fit for a king. Directly opposite was a ledge 1000ft above sea level looking over the capital of Castries and down the coastal road, despite the terrifying prospect of getting that close to the edge the view made it all the more worthwhile.

 

 

Next we visited one of the most highly recommended tourist stops, Diamond Botanical Gardens and the Sulphur Spring. The Botanical Gardens are known for being the oldest gardens in St Lucia, they are situated in the foot of the Pitons close to Soufriere. The mineral baths in the base of the waterfall at the heart of the gardens are believed to have therapeutic and healing powers. The 2,000 acre land covered by multiple nature trails offers a unique insight into the multitude of nature on the island.

 

 The Pitons, two mountainous volcanic plugs situated just outside Soufriere are known for being a World Heritage Site in St Lucia. They have become one of the islands most popular tourist stopping spots from various viewpoints all over trying to see them to scale all 2,500ft!

 

 

Being a highly volcanic island although dormant means there are areas of Sulphur erupting from the ground, the water boils up to around 340 Fahrenheit creating plumes of steam out from the rocks. Tourists in particular often visit the springs as its one of the few places in which you're able to walk right up to the edge of the springs, up into the 1990's you were able to walk into the springs themselves until a tourist fell into the burning water resulting in second degree burns and a popular talking point named Gabriels Hole after the man himself, many tourists also use the mud baths down stream where the water is still warm enough to bathe in.

 

 

 Our last stop on our road trip was Marigot Bay, a tiny harbour littered with bars and restaurants along the bay front. One of the main features being a small bar in which you needed to paddle through the shallow water in order to get across to where the harbour front bar is.

 

If it wasn't for Lucia we wouldn't have been able to see so many of the inland vantage points gaining as much knowledge about all aspects of life in St Lucia.

 

 

 After a day of exploring the island we were told that you couldn't visit St Lucia without going to the Gros Islet Street Party. Having no idea what to expect from it its safe to say my eyes were well and truly opened to how West Indians party. Either side of the street was covered by food stalls and barbeques cooking any type of food that you could think of, with the music resounding to anywhere remotely near the area. After eating just about all we could managed we made our way through the hoards of people congregated around the main speakers dancing and drinking the night away!

 

With our flight not leaving until 8pm that evening meant we had the whole day to spend at the beach playing endless games of beach cricket with the odd local joining to have a bat and a bowl and a mandatory game of catch in the sea.

 

From starting the holiday not knowing anyone who was going to making new friends based off the mutual passion for cricket and experiencing a new culture, I couldn't have asked for a better trip. Even though we didn't get to play the majority of the cricket we had primarily gone out there to play we made the most of 10 days in the sun and on the beach!