Barbados Diary: Day 2

Breakfast then beach seemed to be our regular routine in the mornings, allowing us to soak up some sun, swim, read and not get sunburnt.

We then hopped on a bus to Speightstown (pronounced Spicetown). This destination is quite a way up the west "platinum" coast, passing all the fancy boutiques, mansions, golf clubs and restaurants.

Being the most traditional of towns in Barbados, the atmosphere is very relaxed, the buildings sometimes colonial, sometimes just local architecture. A lovely bit of coastline, a pier, and a great Fisherman's Pub. Here we stopped for some refreshments (it was nearly midday and the sun was beating down on us) whilst watching the boats pass by.

Next up, try and find a bus that would take us to Farley Hill Nature Reserve and the Barbados Wildlife Reserve. Crossing the road to speak to various drivers, we realised there wasn't actually a bus that would be stopping where we wanted (most people would drive themselves), but one of the little minibuses said they would make a diversion and drop us at the end of the road. This they did, and we arrived at Farley Hill to find that the entrance fee only applied to vehicles, so we could walk in for free and marvel at the stunning views of the island from this high point.

After looking over the lush forested landscape and coastline, we headed to the other side of the road where the Wildlife Reserve was to be found. This was not free entry, but was well worth the price. Here we walked around an "open" enclosure and saw tortoises (who seemed to rule the pathways and would head straight for you until you moved out of their way), green monkeys (running and playing around in the trees, on the ground, and anywhere they could get to), plus other local wildlife such as deer, birds and alligators (don't worry, they were in a "closed" enclosure).

We ended our visit to the reserve just after feeding time, when all the animals come together to feed in a central spot. This they generally did harmoniously, although occasionally the monkeys would take the food out of the deer's mouth and eat it themselves.

We took a bus (now we knew when they would pass here) back to Bridgetown, although shortly after boarding noticed that it was the end of the school day. The children in Barbados get free travel on the state buses, so it filled and filled until there was not even any room to stand. This in the afternoon heat whilst travelling for a couple of hours meant that we arrived back at our hotel sticky and tired.

After showering we headed down to the beach, where we could relax in the sun, and had a plate of cheesy chips to help us recover.

The evening saw us take a bus down the coast a bit to Oistins. On Fridays and Saturdays there is a big fish market here, where then turns into a big Fish-Fry in the evenings, serving up their catch to the bustling crowd. Getting down here on these nights can be very slow. Traffic crawls to a halt as many cars try to find a non-existent parking space. Best to take the bus to nearby and walk the rest.

So amongst the music, the people and the smoke from the cooking, we joined the queue to have flying fish, mahi mahi, mac pie and coleslaw. The food is some of the tastiest, with the atmosphere very buzzing. Wash it down with some local Banks beer (or even better, the rum-cask-aged 10 Saints beer). Definitely an experience worth having, although it was very busy. Maybe next time we'll also try during the week when it should be more relaxed and fewer queues.

Now fully fed, we walked back a bit and then took a bus back to the hotel for the night.