Antigua, January 25, 2018

The 25th found us in Antigua.  The day was sunny and warm and we had decided to take a trip to Nelson’s Dockyard, also known locally as English Harbour.  We met Jimmy and Barbara on the dock as arranged.  Here they are discussing the plans for the day.

The first thing on the agenda was a stop at tourist information.  On our way to information Jimmy “saw a squirrel” which is his phrase for a completely unrelated idea.  He wanted to get his photo with the local dancers.  Here it is.

Jimmy brings an unrivaled zest to things that are frequently fun, interesting or silly but always off topic.  Hence, “a squirrel.”  He does things conservative me would not consider.  We love traveling with Jimmy and Barbara.

Joan in the tourist office told us about Nelson’s Dockyard and, at my request, suggested a reliable taxi driver, Hazel, . . .

. . . to take us on our journey.  And we were off.  Our first stop was St. Barnabas Anglican  Church, which was built by slaves in the 1670’s and is the oldest church on the island.  In its simplicity it is quite lovely.   Here are a couple of photos.

From St. Barnabas it was on to the The Blockhouse, an old English fort.  What a beautiful place to look at Antigua and, across the bay, at Monserrat.  The day was beautiful and the view exceptional, except for the fact that Monserrat was only a shadow in the distance.  Here is a picture looking toward Monserrat from the Blockhouse.

Here’s some photos from the Blockhouse.

From the Blockhouse it was on to Shirley’s Height where, once again, the view was spectacular.  Take a look.

From Shirley’s Height Hazel took us to Nelson’s Dockyard.  We had lunch at the Copper and Lumber Store Hotel.  It was very nice.  Here are a couple of photos of the hotel.

And some more photos from our luncheon table.  It was a lovely view and certainly a place one could return to for a stay.

I should mention that Hazel was very knowledgeable about Antigua and an excellent guide.

From Nelson’s Dockyard we returned to St. John’s where we bid Barbara and Jimmy adieu.  We, on the other hand mailed our postcard and strolled around a bit, visiting places we had seen last year.  Here are a couple of shots that are not on my blog from last year.

Back on the dock, I took this shot of the Eclipse . . .

. . . and this photo of JoAnn.

Sailing, as always, is lovely.

On to St. Lucia.