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Time Off: Travel: Feel at Home in Paradise; Daisy Dawes Samples Island Life on Barbados
By Daisy Dawes
Owners Paul and Nuly Doyle head a team working around the clock to develop the Crane, meticulously observing the historic detail while keeping natural beauty at the fore.
Barbados won its independence from Britain in 1966 but around every corner there are reminders of home. The islanders are Englishspeaking, they drive on the left, the road signs are the same as ours and there are even lollipop ladies.
Guinness is brewed under licence on Barbados, at 7.2% proof. Follow that with several glasses of the notorious rum punch, containing a hefty amount of the island's most famous export, and you're on for a pretty interesting evening.
The food was delicious both on and off the resort. Red snapper, grouper, dolphin (aka the mahi mahi fish - NOT Flipper, as our waitress was keen to point out), barracuda and eel were all beautifully cooked. Every entertainer in every restaurant we visited included a Beatles song in their set but the Waterfront Cafe in capital city Bridgetown went one better, boasting a Liverpudlian singer.
On a tour of the west coast we passed an Englishthemed pub with red phone box outside - sure to keep Anglophile Madonna happy on her way to exclusive resort Sandy Lane.
Destination of choice for Wayne Rooney and girlfriend Coleen's recent holiday, Sandy Lane is THE celebrity hangout. Our tour driver, Winston Holding, recalled driving Dionne Warwick and Ray Charles as we passed Oprah's pad My debut in the playground of the rich and famous, however, left quite a lot to be desired as I was sporting a snorkel, mask and inflatable yellow vest.
I was on board the Spirit of Barbados catamaran: Our destination - to swim with sea turtles.
Snorkelling with these gentle giants wasa dream come true - I could have stayed in the water all day.
Back on board the boat, we set sail for more snorkelling at a coral reef, watching as flying fish fluttered above the waves and throwing banana bread to the brightly coloured tropical fish.
As a contrast to the celebritypacked west coast, a drive through some of the more remote routes allowed us to see deeper into the soul of this paradise island.
Our journey revealed haunting echoes of the days of slavery, abolished in 1838, the threads of which are woven deeply into the foundations of modern independence.
Bustling with life and boasting natural beauty, genuine charm and a gripping history, Barbados has it all.
My eight-hour flight back to Blighty was made a little more bearable thanks to the British Airways Club World service.
I waved goodbye as we soared over the azure seas, settling back in my seat/bed to watch the SpongeBob SquarePants movie on my own screen with limitless gin and tonic, sunburn still sore.
Back home, the pilot brought us back down to earth in more ways than one: 'Welcome to London Gatwick, where the temperature outside is a cool 2C.' Aaaargh, Britain
Fact File
DAISY stayed at the Crane Resort and Residences in Barbados. See www.thecrane .com for details of suites, timeshare and options to buy.
Daisy flew Club World with British Airways. BA also offers World Traveller, World Traveller Plus and FIRST class flights to Barbados. For details, including information on the new BA drive-through check-in facility at the IAM Jet Centre in Barbados, see www.ba.com Kuoni World Class offers seven nights at the Crane Resort and Residences from pounds 1066 per person, based on two sharing, including accommodation, flights and transfers. For information call 01306 747001 or visit www.kuoni.co.uk/worldclass Tall Ships Tiami Catamaran Cruises: www.tallshipcruises .com Recommended restaurants: Josef's, St Lawrence Gap, Christ Church, email josefsrestaurant@hotmail .com; The Round House Inn, Bathsheba, St Joseph, email roundhouse@sunbeach.net; The Restaurant at Southsea, St Lawrence Gap, Christ Church, www.therestaurant atsouthsea.com; Waterfront Cafe, The Carenage, Bridgetown, waterfrontcafe.com.bb Winhold Tours Inc, island tours. winholdtoursinc@yahoo .com For more information on Barbados, visit www.barbadosbrochure.org
Source: Liverpool Echo
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