Cobblers Cove

Barbados airport was like a big car park, but nicer than the St. Lucia equivalent. Looked wistfully at the Virgin 747 as we crossed the tarmac, 30 degree heat hitting us in a not unpleasant kind of way. Entertaining taxi ride up north with an elderly Barbadian lady as our driver - "we got a laaang drive ahead a us, you goin waaay ap narth today" - turned out to be 20 minutes past lots of sugar cane fields and colourful houses. There's obviously poverty here but in general it seems more prosperous than St. Lucia. Cobblers cove is very nice - the rooms have the feel of an old colonial cottage, with a big sitting room, balcony and shutters, and are arranged around a beautiful Caribbean garden. The main house is an old (well, 1942) summer house build by a sugar baron and turned into a hotel in 1968. Some of the staff, especially Philip the restaurant manager, look to have been here ever since. It's all very quiet and genteel, although C was briefly annoyed by a small child with a loud voice in one of the neighbouring buildings. The restaurant is excellent, as is the rum punch. Yesterday evening we had a rum punch and half a bottle of Chilean white each with the swordfish and a rather animated theological/existential conversation ensued. Other diners must have wondered what we were getting so exercised about.

 

This morning (Sunday) it is overcast, but we don't expect that to last. We'll stuff our faces with breakfast and then explore.