Antigua - Friendly Faces

The people of Antigua are universally friendly and very proud of their small island. They are happy to assist the lost tourist and a little effort goes a long way. We made sure to interact with people wherever we could, both at our resort and out on the island.

One of the first things we noticed about our resort, besides the seclusion, and water, and rum punch, was the effort that many of the staff made to introduce themselves and to also learn our names. It was nice to be something other than merely a room number.

Vanda in our resort restaurant The Bay @ Nonsuch always made an effort and had great suggestions on food options, while Tim and David made some fabulous cocktails.  Terita, Zoe and Donika at the concierge were so great in helping us to sort out our rental car and tour options and were so patient with our questions, especially once we helped Terita get rid of a flying cockroach on her late shift!  

The guys and gal at watersports took great care of us, especially Akeem who gave us an extra long tour of the mangroves and Shakimba who took us to Little Bird Island for a truly deserted island feel. Really there were too many wonderful people there to list them all.

We came across plenty of other wonderful people outside the resort as well. Xabier owns the catamaran company Wadadli Cats. Half Spanish, half Trinidadian he has lived in Antigua for more than thirty years. Captain Sheldon skippered our catamaran and had a quick wit, expansive knowledge of local history and ready smile. The rest of the crew were always happy to point out something during snorkelling or pour a refreshing rum punch and made the whole day that much more special. 

Dennis worked for twenty five years to buy the magnificent point of land above Ffryes Beach where his restaurant Dennis Cocktail and Bar Restaurant sits.  He had loads of stories about how he built the place by hand, locals and the environment and how easy it is to bribe his dogs with some chicken!  Marianna at the All Things Local shop at Nelson's Dockyard made jewellery entirely from local shells and beans and showed us how to darken up our new Warri board made from Antiguan mahogany. 

On our way back from our catamaran tour we came across a woman who asked for a ride to St John's.  Two other women then also jumped in and we served as a local taxi for the day.  They were such fun to be crammed in the back seat with, and had stories aplenty about their jobs and home countries Jamaica and Dominica.

The people of Antigua were so warm and so friendly. We don't doubt that life is difficult there and certainly the over dependence on tourism probably stifles some people's opportunities, but it was wonderful interacting with people who smiled, laughed and engaged.  A little effort from our side always went a long way, and once we made a connection they were all truly beautiful and welcoming people.

For more images of Antigua visit our Antigua Gallery.