Antigua!

March 21 - I love Antigua... It's a classic example of British Caribbean, with a ring of forts, quaint colonial architecture and best of all, 365 beaches! One for every day of the year.

Original plans were for a catamaran lobster and champagne cruise, but I opted out of that days ago. Patti and the sun just don't mix, and even with cover I'd be fried after 61/2 hours on the water!

Each time I'd been to Antigua was for a specific reason; a cruise on Star Clipper and later a visit to Pineapple Beach Club. Both delightful events, but never a chance to see the pier area downtown and shop!

It was great! Step off the ship, maybe a few hundred feet and voila! You are there! Right at the end of the the Heritage Quay Pier was a myriad of shops all just waiting for our arrival. Highlights were Diamonds International (and stroll down a bit further for the a DI clearance center), Tanzanite International, Abbott's Jewelry with Gingerlilly (a women's resort shop with lovely clothes), a Del Sol and Cariloha (the bamboo bedding and bath shop). Sound a bit like Bridgetown? Somewhat, but keep in mind, if you make a purchase on one island then see something you like better in another port, you can upgrade without a problem! I think that's a great benefit to shopping in the Caribbean!

I was delighted to find a new watch band for my watch, and someone kind enough to show me how easily they can be changed, so I can have a wardrobe of watch bands! As if I need to worry about is another wardrobe!

On our Cruise Director Jamie's recommendation we walked a bit further up St. Mary's Street to have lunch at Hemingways - established in 1987. They are on the second floor of a small wooden building and have a lovely balcony overlooking the street, and provide classic Caribbean service. I really don't know a kinder way of putting it. It was so slow that it was well over an hour between the time we ordered lunch and it's arrival at the table. We enjoyed sitting on the balcony, catching the lovely breeze and sipping our Red Stripes. We had heard about the fantastic lobster in Antigua and we were going to enjoy some for ourselves; so two orders of Grilled Caribbean Lobster - Market Price. Beware Market Price! With a good deal of savoir faire,  we placed the order - hey, we're international travelers, how bad could the market price be! The late lobster was delicious! Served with lemon butter and fries, we were happy campers! Now maybe we were just so hungry by the time it arrived, anything would have tasted good, but they were really tasty. Ah, a bit of relaxation after the meal, a little chat and the request for the bill. OMG! Shocking doesn't begin to describe it! For the price of lunch, we could have hired a boat, scuba equipment and caught our own lobster! Possibly less! Lesson learned. ALWAYS ask the market price!

On the way back to the ship we wandered into a couple of other shops, but there was nothing compelling capturing our attention (or money!)

It wasn't far but by the time we walked back to the ship, we were both exhausted! It was bloody hot outside! It was a delight to get back to the ship and its air conditioning. We both crawled back to our cabins, showered and had a lovely nap!

We were in the Compass Rose for dinner with the regular menu, however four of us had requested escargot. One of the lovely things about cruising with Regent is that with 24-48 hour notice, they will cook anything for you! We enjoyed our little snails and have actually put in a request for a Chinese Dinner on Thursday evening... I love cruising!