Barbados, Our Caribbean Home

Who’d ever thought that I’d call Barbados home? I guess that’s another one of the bonuses of being married to a British and Guyanese goddess.

I first traveled to Barbados in 2016 for Caribbean Fashion Week before reconnecting with my, now, wife. Together, we have visited the island every year since then with the exception of the Covid-19 quarantine period and Barbados’ extended Covid travel restrictions. In fact, our last trip prior to the pandemic was to Barbados in February 2020 when my wife and I visited the island one last time to tie up loose ends for our wedding. Little did we know that so much would change due to the pandemic. Nevertheless, after two long years away, it felt great to return to Barbados, our Caribbean home.

Barbados is more than just a beautiful Caribbean Island surrounded by clear blue and warm beaches as well as breathtaking cotton candy sunsets. It’s a country full of amazing people, vibrance, culture, and life!

Due to Covid-19, far fewer people are traveling, so now there’s only one JetBlue flight per day that departs from JFK.

Family First

My wife and I spent the first week of our trip at her auntie and uncle’s house. We are both extremely family oriented so more than anything, we love spending time with our families. 

We spent the week kickin’ it! We had late-night drinks at Primo Bar & Bistro in St. Lawrence Gap, smashed a ton of fresh fish, macaroni pie, and rice and peas at the Friday night fish fry in Oistin’s followed by drinks and dancing in the Gap, and indulged in her aunties homemade cooking like her chicken chow-mein then we watched basketball. The time spent with her family always reminds me of what it’s like being home with mine. We may be from different cultures and backgrounds, but the vibe and energy are just the same!

Five Adults and a Kid

The second week, we met up with our homies from NYC who took a break from reality to celebrate a 40th birthday. We stayed in a cute three-bedroom Airbnb in a boutique complex called Turtle Nest, located on the South Coast – steps from Dover Beach. Our days mainly consisted of our friends, Gretchen and Alice’s son, Andre James, entertaining us until he went down for nap time, followed by us spending a little adult time sipping ice-cold Carib’s under the sun.

We weren’t complete beach bums. There were definitely highlights like Andre James strategically figuring out how to crack open a fresh coconut, us five adults competing over who could hold their handstand the longest and straightest in the ocean, and my favorite part, my wife’s cousin, Jamal, taking us out on his boat, Transformers Water Sports, so that we could swim with the turtles and see some shipwrecks. It didn’t stop there, after all of that, me, my wife, Alice, and Archana agreed to letting him whip us all across the ocean on his 4 seater towable tube. It was jokes!!! Arch and I were struggling to hold on in the back while my wife and Alice were laughing so much they almost peed themselves.

It was the perfect four days spent with our friends outside of NYC.

A Date to Remember

Quality time is extremely important to the Mrs. and I so we make it a point to schedule time alone when traveling to see our families.

We spend so much of our time on the southwest coast of the island so the Mrs. thought it would be cute to head further north and I’m glad she did! She surprised me with a late lunch at Local & Co, a farmer-to-table restaurant located in Speightstown. This hidden gem prides itself on working with local farmers, artisans, fisher-folks, and butchers to maintain the health of their oceans, soils, and food communities. These partnerships allow for the Locals to nourish folx like us with the best homegrown, sustainable-and clean food. I can honestly say that they are doing just that! The food was soooo fresh and delicious!!!

We finished our meal just before sunset, which allowed us to spend the rest of the early evening watching the sunset on the beach just steps away from the restaurant.

The Mrs. never seizes to amaze me. It was truly the perfect date!

Until Next Time

It’s always bittersweet when saying goodbye. I always want a little more time, just one more week, but that’s the beauty in having a second home. There’s never goodbye, but simply… until next time. See you soon Barbados!

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