The island hopping really begins with smiles, waves and an ATM machine

A typical scene...!


Brimstone castle...quite formidable












FIRE...

Phone boxes still in use...

After three days on St.Kitts we had seen most the sights and spent a staggering £7 on fuel! Not the biggest island in the world.


One of St.Kitts little ‘quirks’ are the signs along the roads. Ever so often there is a huge poster: “Disaster, swift, sudden death: BE READY” I didn’t realise Corporal Fraser from ‘Dad’s Army’ had been at work out here...”We’re all doomed Captain Mannering”.

FOG with a typical sign on the beach: no comments please!

We then planned to venture on the ‘Sea Bridge’ ferry to Nevis. This always resulted in raised eyebrows from the locals and would always be followed by the same question, “Has your car hire company agreed to using the Sea Bridge?” We now understand their concern. One piece of standard advice given by all: Never let a deck hand park it for you.

Sea Bridge ferry with Nevis Peak in distance:

The ferry can only be described as a copy of the landing craft used in WW11. We arrived so early we saw the previous ferry still making the crossing; some things never change. Boarding the ferry has to be done by reversing your vehicle onto the boat. As the quayside is uneven, planks are laid out to ensure you don’t disappear down the yawning gap and into the drink. FOG (Female Old Git) surveys the scene and her worried frown brought back dear old Corporal Fraser again... Another piece of advice had been to never follow the deck hands instructions as they take pride in ensuring you leave a layer of paint work as a souvenir. FOG then starts gestating to me as I reverse down the ramp but all I could now see were her ankles.., she finally turned away in disgust as she thought I was totally ignoring her desperately flaying arms; I had no alternative I had to take instructions from a deck hand. The directions of this man were somewhat bemusing to say the least. My assumption is he had the DTs or was just taking the p**s: I think the latter as I had firmly told him I was driving the car...

We did finally park without a scratch and but just as we were about to leave an oil tanker arrived and, after a lot of effort and manoeuvring, did manage to park, inch perfect, without damaging it or the superstructure... The exit onto Nevis soil could only be described as downright perilous and has left a tinge of fear about our return journey.

Oil tanker next to wheel house

Nevis is a beautiful island and we immediately took to it. Charlestown is the classically Caribbean with a kaleidoscope of colour, smiling faces and laughter everywhere. I stood in the middle of town, checking my map for a particular bank, when a security guard from one of the local branches came over and asked if I needed help. (This is very typical of these islands and my natural scepticism had embarrassed me on several occasions when a genuine offer of help would be answered with suspicion and a defensive grabbing of wallet or rucksack. The problem is one day I’ll drop my guard and I’ll be robbed blind!). I answered that I was wondering which bank to rob but quickly showed my Debit card. A huge smile and friendly clenched fist hand shake accompanied “That’s lime mon; be garn.” The local dialect is difficult to understand but our security friend was saying, ‘that’s fine sir, I’ll see you later...’ I just love it!

We stayed at the Banyan Tree B&B and our hosts Anne & Jonathan Rose kindly put us in the Bamboo House. The breakfasts were as good as we had experienced on St.Kitts...

Bamboo House, Banyan Tree B&B

I know we have only been here a week but the essence of the trip is to find interesting places at good value for money well both Rock Haven and the Banyan Tree fall squarely into this category.

We will be updating the blog site shortly: www.facts-oldgitsgapyear@blogspot.com

Monkeys are treated as pests out here, similar to our opinion of rabbits, for a troop can strip a vegetable garden in minutes. I laid out a banana as bait and let the camera do its stuff...

A bit of monkey business:

Nevis is a lush green island and we experienced a wonderful walk on the upper ground trail under Nevis Peak. It would have been perfect except for the distant roar of huge trucks thundering down the only major road on the island in their efforts to build a by-pass for Charlestown. Why by-pass it...?

MOG in the tropics

OK, let’s get it over with..., why an ATM machine? The ATM fiasco proves two things first I haven’t really managed to ‘lime’ into Caribbean mode yet, and secondly I am truly becoming an old git. In this part of the Caribbean most people still like US dollars but the ATM machines will only dispense Eastern Caribbean dollars and the local banks charge an earth to exchange US$, especially the state the sterling is in.

Then I was told that there was an ATM machine at the Marriott Hotel. So on our way to the ferry for Nevis we pulled in at the main reception and MOG headed into the main lobby; which was about the size of two football pitches. I was told the said machine was in the casino and after having to remove my sunglasses, the security guard pointed to the far corner with a grunt which I took as being where my quest lay. The room was so large I had to have my shoes re-heeled half way across and then I found the machine ‘guarded’ by a 6’7” giant. Feeling very conspicuous in shorts and sandals I quickly rammed my card into the slot. I waited for what seemed an age and the screen still just kept flashing adverts so in frustration I pulled the card out just as a “welcome Mr. P.R.Jordan” came on the screen. Quickly pushing the card back in, I entered the PIN and duly completed the instructions to withdraw $400.

A whirl of notes being counted preceded my card being dispatched and a receipt...but no cash. Fortunately the giant standing menacingly beside me had seen the whole episode and, to be fair to him, he immediately radioed the maintenance department and told me to go to the cashier to report the incident, with my receipt that that was so faint it was unreadable. The people in front of me where arguing with the cashier about who had won what, but as time was getting on and I still had to hike back to the car, my patience snapped and I pushed forward thrusting the receipt at the cashier garbling my story. She calmly turned the receipt over where upon the vividly clear print proclaimed the transaction had been void. “Had I interfered with the card during the transaction?” retorted the disdainful look opposite me. “Err, no, well actually...” She had already returned to her previous clients.

The second attempt was successful and the giant made the point of talking very loudly into his radio that the machine was in fact not broken, just some English guy... I found a worried FOG waiting by the car when my phone rang; a very rare occasion lately. It was my bank asking me where I was as a rather strange transaction had just taken place in a Casino in St.Kitts at 10 o’clock in the morning... “I know; everything is in order” I bellowed testily down the receiver.

Still not quite into the Caribbean mode yet!