R
Central American and the Carribean


The Island of Bequia in the southern Caribbean remains mercifully remote and unspoiled; but the Bequians really know how to put on a weekly bash that catches international attention.

By Nicholas J. Klenske

Songwriter Jimmy Buffet's single "Margaritaville" (1977) established him as a cheerful musical advocate for Caribbean beaches, bars and laid back living. According to Jimmy, somewhere out on that tranquil expanse of turquoise water, lingering on what seems to be the edge of the world, there is a spit of sand playing host to the grandest party of all. Although there is no place called Margaretville and no such sandwich as a Cheeseburger in Paradise, Mr. Buffet is actually right about there being a party at the end of the world. The party is called The Jump Up and it happens weekly on the remote southern Caribbean island of Bequia.


Bequia's obscurity makes it feel like it exists at the end of the world. It has been a well-kept secret of the yachters for years and just recently got somewhat convenient air service. But its seclusion, coupled with the government's commitment to promoting culturally sensitive tourism, is what makes this tropical rock worth visiting. Those who do find their way here are rewarded with a rare glimpse of the authentic, local and surprisingly diverse Caribbean that, at least on other, overcrowded and resort lined islands, seems like only a fairy tale.


To start one's discovery of the authentic Caribbean, head to Friendship Bay, host to Bequia's most pristine beach best reached via taxi. Located on the windward side of the island on the Atlantic coast, the waters here tend to be less clear and rougher than on the other beaches. However, its panoramic scenery, isolation and lack of boats blocking the view easily make up for any shortcomings. Further, the complimentary beach chairs are worth the trip themselves. The Moskito Bar, an open-terraced pub and restaurant located beachside, mixes up a wide array of tempting tropical drinks which can be enjoyed either on the sand or dangling from a bar-side swing, the perfect to place from which to strike up a conversation.



Even the island's dining scene is local yet pleasantly diverse. Take pizza, for instance, where they cook up the best lobster pizza on hot brick ovens, a local specialty. Further, at the Gingerbread, curry is a popular spice used to create a fusion-dish of the best of Indian food with a splash of the Caribbean combined into a dinner of chicken curry garnished with mango salsa.




In Bequia everything is local--from the shops to the top hotels, all is authentically Bequian and everyone is better for it. Here there is no need for gated communes or warnings to stay on the resort. One can take a leisurely stroll down the bayside Belmont Walkway anytime, day or night, and be greeted by familiar faces. That is how local the island is. Like a small town, after being here for only several days, one will feel at home amongst neighbors.

Like the food and restaurants, everything on the island seems to be a unique mixture of international influences kept tame by local pride and culture. In Port Elizabeth not only is the food local, so is the shopping. Port Elizabeth is the only real "city" on the island. However, a place that has two streets, efficiently named Front Street and Back Street, can hardly be considered a city. Yet it is here where all of the island's energy converges. Besides being the starting point for the hotel and restaurant lined Belmont Walk, the city proper has its fair share of attractions. At the very least, a stroll down harbor lined Front Street and back on neighborly Back Street gives one a glimpse of daily Bequian life.

Along the way there are numerous boutique craft, clothing, art and grocery shops all worth taking a browse through. For a selection of colorful local crafts and clothing, start at the Local Color. Located on the Belmont side of Port Elizabeth in the upper story of a dive grocery store, the Local Color specializes in tropical inspired women's clothing and basic island souvenirs. Noah's Arkade, adjacent to the Frangipani, also sells an excellent collection of homemade crafts, postcards, antique replica maps and clothing. For local books, along with a good selection of paperback fictions for beach reading, There is the Bequia bookshop.

Before heading back to one's hotel, a visit to the local market, known as the Rasta Market, is a must. It is held daily in a government funded market structure given to the local Rastafarians. Here, amongst a sea of dreadlocks, fruit bins and stray cats, farmers banter with customers over the price of pineapple, passion fruits, mangos and guava.



Historically, Port Elizabeth was a place of boat building. But as the carriages of the sea transformed from wood to steel, the town adapted by taking the same skills and craftsmanship and applying them to building model boats. All around the harbor are small boat building shops where visitors can buy model boats, some costing as much as a real boat, or just watch the craftsman practice their time-honed trade. The best places to catch boat building in action are Withfield Sails and Model Boats, Mauvin's and Sargeant Bothers', all located on the far end of Port Elizabeth.


Excursions:

Even excursions are uniquely local and authentically Bequian. No trip to Bequia is complete without a sail on The Friendship Rose, a wooden schooner built in Friendship Bay. Launched in 1967, The Friendship Rose was originally commissioned to carry fertilizer between the islands, before becoming the Grenadines official mail boat and later serving as the ferry between Bequia and St. Vincent. Today its sole responsibility is to usher tourist to and from Bequia and such magical islands as Mustique, Caanouan and the Tobago Cays.

The Tobago Cays are a collection of five uninhabited islands that comprise a national maritime park. Once there one can fill the day exploring the underwater treasures of Horseshoe Reef, where the movie Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed, or enjoy a relaxing nap on one of the numerous desert island beaches. Regardless of how the day is spent, nothing beats swaying in the canvass Crew hammocks strung up between the ship's tall masts, digesting a gourmet lunch and enjoying the collision of a pure blue sky with a tie-dyed cobalt sea. This is the essence of The Grenadines' splendor.



Finally, a trip to Brother King's Oldhegg Turtle Sanctuary, the island's sole tourist attraction, is in call. The turtle sanctuary, located near Industry Bay, nurses and breeds hawksbill and leatherback sea turtles in an effort to replenish the Southern Caribbean's quickly disappearing turtle population. Mr. King started the project when he was camping on the beach now located next to the site. While sleeping under the stars he was awakened by the unsettling feeling that something was throwing sand at him. As he cautiously came out of his slumber he saw a mother sea turtle laying her eggs at his feet. Fascinated by the creature, he built his home here so he could watch the turtles hatch. Inspired by this event, Mr. King eventually started the sanctuary program and to date has raised and released thousand of turtles throughout the surrounding islands.



Thurstay Night Jump Up:

Nowhere is this small-town-under-the-tropical-sky feeling more prevalent than at the Frangipani's Thursday Night Jump Up. Started in the early 1970’s as a way of providing entertainment to a typically uneventful island, today the event brings people from all corners of the world. "Jump Up" is the local term used for a fete where people come to socialize, relax and, most importantly, dance. The concept is simple: create a backyard-styled party with barbecue, buffet and steel drum music. The Frangipani's Jump Up first attracted attention by preparing all of its food fresh the day of the event and serving US imported steaks and professional-looking desserts, all things never seen before in this area of the world. Soon word spread and yachts and chartered boats began making Bequia their Thursday port of call. Although today the meals are bigger, the crowd larger and the bar busier, nothing has really changed. Just as in the beginning, the event is held for the locals; everyone else is just lucky enough to be invited.

The party commences with reservations for the first sitting at the Frangipani Restaurant, The buffet line looks more like a work of art in a Guggenheim museum than something that should be eaten, but eating is what everyone does. Starting on one end of the floral lined table, plates are filled with rice, pastas, juicy crescent wedges of passion fruit and mango, fried plantains, fresh produce and sizzling meats. Back at the table one can enjoy a glass of wine while placing an order for a charbroiled steak. The dessert table includes tantalizing treats, including lime meringue and French silk pie, cream filled cakes and chocolate mousse truffle.


After dinner, Elite Steel, a classically Caribbean steel band from St. Vincent, or the "Mainland" as the locals refer to it, has begun the night's entertainment. Elite Steel represents the essence of Bequian nightlife: live and local under the stars on any given night of the week. The members of the band clearly enjoy themselves, bantering back and forth with the patrons and sporting cocky smiles like true rock and roll stars. The crowd starts to shift towards the dance floor, which is nothing more than a cleared area of white sand beach. The melodic twang vibrating from the steel oil drums produces a magical voice that comes from somewhere deep within the hollows of the drums.

Revelers sway to the serenades of steel on the sand dance floor, mirroring the girations of the towering masts of anchored yachts bobbing on the bay. At night, with the boats' beacon lights blinking on top of their masts, the bay looks like a rocking city skyline.

After a bit of dancing, patrons head to the bar and order a rum punch garnished with nutmeg before heading to the shoreline and strolling out onto the salt-encrusted wooden dock. From this vantage point one can take in all of Admiralty Bay, the mountainous terrain of the island, and the Jump Up in full swing. The stars above are so thick the sky has an eerie, cloudy look, and it’s easy to have the impression one truly is at the end of the world. What’s startling is just how much the end of the world feels like home.


For More Information:

Frangipani: www.frangipanibequia.com, 784-458-3255
Caribbean Star: www.vincyaviation.com
Mustique Airways: www.mustique.com
SVG Air: www.svgair.com
Grenadine Travel: 784-458-3795
Bequia Sweet: www.bequiasweet.com
Bequia Toursim: www.bequiatourism.com


Photo Credits: Nicholas J. Krenske, SVG Air


Nicholas J. Klenske is a freelance writer and practicing attorney. He is based somewhere in the cornfields of Iowa, where, at last count, the pigs greatly outnumber the people. Read more at www.nickklenske.blogspot.com.


© 2007 ROMAR TRAVEL GUIDES