First Visit - First Part

Our ship the Pearl docked in Antigua on 18 December 2007.

waterfront from the quay - Saint John's

There were three other ships in this port. One was the Astoria. (I know because I took a photo of her)

Other ships in port

It was overcast and looked like rain.

Our excursion today was a tour to Nelson's Dockyard which 80 other people had signed up for. They divided us up into 4 groups, each in a separate small van.

Our tour van

Our guide was named Jane. Bob was sitting in a jump seat and two black ladies whom we had eaten dinner with the previous night were also on the bus. The one in the first seat was bantering back and forth with the driver whose name was Charley.

Jane was concerned that we'd be caught by the rain, so we hustled (and Charley was driving REALLY fast - I'm sure over the speed limit) out to the first place. I took some photos as we drove

Bus shelter - Antigua

There is some local bus service; schedules and routes can be obtained through the hotels.

Field with Brahma cows

On the way we passed a place where they had a combination fountain and car wash (there was a ramp in the side of the pond with the fountain where people could drive their cars down to the water).

Fountain with car washing ramp on the far side

Antigua has many water sports activities, but one of their main passions of a land based sport is cricket. They have this in common with many other formerly British countries.

We Love WI Cricket Pepsi billboard

There are also golf courses and playing fields for football (aka soccer), baseball, volleyball and rugby union. There are three large cricket grounds in St. John's. One is the Antigua Recreation Ground which is the national stadium, a second is the Stanford Cricket Ground and third is the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. The latter stadium was built for use in the 2007 Cricket World Cup. The stadium is named after former West Indies cricket captain Viv Richards.

Sir Richards cricket stadium

The stadium constitutes two main stands: the Northern Stand and the five story South Stand. Other facilities include a practice pitch for the various cricket teams, training infrastructure and a media centre. Sir Viv Richards Stadium is one of the few state-of-the-art venues that encompass underground passageways for the cricket teams to move about in

There was also a village (in the All Saint's Parish) with 13 churches including 10 different denominations.

Holy Family Cathedral: Antigua Church

All Saints Parish Church

Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church

The stone in this area has a lot of copper and has a greenish tint . It's very unusual looking.

ST. BARNABAS ANGLICAN CHURCH

When I took the picture of the church "of the parish of St. Paul with St. Barnabas, on the island of Antigua, in the Anglican Diocese of North Eastern Caribbean and Aruba - Province of the West Indies", I didn't know that it is one of the most photographed churches in Antigua or that it was the oldest church on Antigua at over 250 years old. I had to do a good bit of searching of photos on the internet before I even found the name of the church in my photo. One source says that the bricks that were used to build this church were brought from England on HMS Royal Navy Ships but The brick may have come from England, but I'm pretty sure that the green stone originated on the island. This church is still in use to this day.

The book "The Birth of the Village of Liberta, Antigua" says

As you enter Liberta from the north on the main road that runs through the village is Barnabas Hill.... as you climb to the summit, you find a quaint little chappel called St. Barnabas Church, better known to the people of the village as Barnabas Hill Church..

It was built of indigenous green limestone in the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century, long before Anglican Communion started to accept Afro-Antiguans as members, several years after the emancipation of slaves. According to Ms. Flannigan, an English writer who wrote extensively on the lives of the island's people, regarding the 1842 earthquake that pummeled the island and caused widespread damage, St. Barnabas Chapel, which was not only used as a church sanctuary, but also a kindergarten school, was among the buildings destroyed. The structure was rebuilt.

We drove up a large hill to reach a place called the Blockhouse which was a lookout point for the British military. The building there was built in 1787 and stands 46ft above the sea atop a sheer cliff above the mighty Atlantic Ocean. We looked at the view more than at the ruins.

Block House

We were the first group there. It offered wonderful of the sea below. And we could see Monserrat from there - at least we could before it rained.

Warning sign at Blockhouse

Bob standing at the overlook - no fence

Looking down from where Bob was standing

Unknown plant

Looking down at the Prickly Pear Cactus from where the sign was

There are several varieties of cactus that grow here - Candelabra or dildo cactus, and Turks head are two of them and there is also Night blooming Cereus and Monkey-no-climb

We could see the rain coming, so..

Rainstorm approaching - Antigua and Barbuda

..we left there and hustled to the second overlook which was Shirley Heights, the most southerly point in Antigua. One of the most outstanding views of English Harbour is from Shirley Heights. It is named for Sir Thomas Shirley, Governor of the Leeward Islands, who strengthened Antigua’s defences in 1781. Britain had lost all her West Indian colonies (including North America) at this time except Antigua and Barbados. Much effort, therefore, was put into Antigua’s defences, mainly because of the island’s great sugar producing value and the important Dockyard. This high point (about 490 ft.) affords a superb view of English and Falmouth Harbours, the best view in Antigua.

Bob taking a photo of the souvenir sellers

We all took shelter in the Shirley Height's Pub "The Lookout" when it rained.

Outside of the restaurant

Apparently in the evening, they have a steel drum band and it is a nice place to go for dinner and drinks. Behind the gun platform is the site of a flagstaff that once sent signals all around Antigua.

Some of the other cruisers took the chance to get some food (we were to have a fairly long tour), but I was afraid we wouldn't get our food in time to eat it before we had to leave.

Even though the CFTC historical architect drew restoration plans, the historic planners regret that the building was reconstructed as a profit making investment, the main problem being the use of dormers and the battlement built on where another section further north had been designated. The site is still a fine tourist attraction, mainly because of two of the best views (of the Atlantic and of English Harbour) to be had in the island.

Jane told us that the only snow on Antigua was a flowering bush called "Snow on the Mountain"

Bush called Snow on the Mountain

This is a plant which is not generally eaten by wild animals, as it is somewhat poisonous. Mourning doves eat the seeds

Snow on the Mountain bush

More Snow on the Mountain

Also there the various tropical flowering plants like hibiscus, Bougainvillea, Poinciana, Frangipani, and Plumbago

When the rain let up, we got back in the bus, and drove to Nelson's Dockyard, which is a National Park.