Antigua & Barbuda: Soca, Steel Drums, and Sunsets
In this special two-part episode of Travel in 10, your hosts David Brodie and Tim Johnson record for the first time on location—from the stunning Tamarind Hills Resort in Antigua and Barbuda. Famous for its 365 beaches (one for every day of the year), this Caribbean paradise offers so much more beyond its shoreline.
In Part 1, David and Tim explore the vibrant culture and music that define the island, featuring exclusive interviews with some of Antigua’s most celebrated musicians including Soca star CP and steelpan master Khan Cordice. From beach bars and live music to deep-rooted traditions and the rhythm of Carnival, this episode gets to the heart of what makes Antigua truly unique.
Find out more about visiting Antigua and Barbuda here.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode:
- 🎶 The evolution of Soca music and its roots in Calypso
- 🥁 A behind-the-scenes look at the steelpan tradition with the Hell’s Gate Steel Orchestra
- 💃 How Antigua’s hotels celebrate local culture through live music and performance
- 🏰 Historical insights from Nelson’s Dockyard & Clarence House
- 🐢 Underwater adventures including sea turtles, stingrays & scooter snorkeling
- 🏖️ Beachside relaxation and unbeatable Caribbean views
- 🛥️ Sailing, snorkeling, and why this is Tim’s fifth time back!
Our Favourite Places to Stay:
- Tamarind Hills Resort: Hillside villas, ocean views, private plunge pools, and luxury living on Frye’s Beach
- Curtain Bluff: Classic luxury meets beachfront relaxation, perfect for families or couples
- Boone’s Point Estate: Private villas curated by a top luxury hotelier, ideal for groups seeking total seclusion
- Cocobay Resort: A romantic, adults-only hideaway with pastel cottages, plunge pools, and sunset views
🎧 Episode Highlights Include:
- First-hand perspectives from musicians shaping Antigua’s cultural scene
- Scooter snorkeling and sea life sightings at Galleon Beach
- Nelson’s Dockyard, UNESCO heritage, and colonial stories
- The magic of Antigua after dark with steel drums and Soca beats
💡 Enjoyed the episode? Subscribe, leave a review, and follow us for more travel inspiration!
🔗 Follow Us & Stay Connected:
📷 Instagram: @voyascapemedia
🎧 Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music
This episode was supported by the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority. Some links above are affiliate links, which help support the show at no cost to you.
Transcript
All right, so here we are at Tamarind Hills Resort.
Speaker A:We are in Antigua and Barbuda, a beautiful paradise in the Caribbean.
Speaker A:It is my fifth time here, David, and this is going to be a very special episode.
Speaker A:It's the first time that we have recorded on location and what a beautiful location to record from.
Speaker A:Antigua is famous for 365 beaches, one for each day of the year.
Speaker A:Although on this trip we've learned that the beach is just the beginning.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:So in this first episode of a two part episode, we are going to talk about a little bit about culture.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker B:And I think culture is really one of the things that sort of sets this apart from maybe a lot of the other islands in the Caribbean or other similar tropical destinations around the world.
Speaker B:I mean, we've certainly seen a lot going on here from a, from a music perspective.
Speaker B:We're going to talk a little bit about that.
Speaker B:A lot going on from a food perspective that I know we're going to talk about a little bit in our second episode.
Speaker B:And it's been great the five days here, the first time me and you traveling together for a long time.
Speaker A:For many years in Australia.
Speaker A:Many years.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:So, yeah, great to.
Speaker A:Great to be in the same place at the same time experiencing the same things.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:So I don't know.
Speaker A:What do you want to talk about first?
Speaker A:Should we talk about some of the music?
Speaker A:You know, I feel like culture, you know, there are only certain aspects, certain entry points to culture.
Speaker A:Language is one and that can be difficult.
Speaker A:History is one.
Speaker A:We're going to talk about that in a little bit.
Speaker A:But I feel like music is an element of culture that speaks directly to the heart.
Speaker A:And we had the pleasure and let's talk about it to meet with and chat with a couple of the, the island's most prominent musicians.
Speaker A:Yeah, for sure.
Speaker B:I mean, getting a chance to talk to them a little bit about a local music scene.
Speaker B:One of the things I think we've seen is kind of everywhere you go here you hear the, the sounds of the island, right.
Speaker B:Every, every resort it's pretty common to have live bands and live music there in, in the evening at, at almost every resort here on, on the islands.
Speaker B:And that, that seems to be, you know, a big part of kind of the development of, of professional musicians here on the island is that, is that opportunity to play at the resort.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's a, I mean it really feels like the heartbeat of the island.
Speaker A:Right?
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker A:And so, yeah, so maybe do you want to tell us a little bit about.
Speaker A:So we spoke With a.
Speaker A:With a steel drum artist and Ahsoka artist.
Speaker B:Yeah, and we're going to hear actually.
Speaker A:From them directly in this episode.
Speaker A:But yeah, let's talk a little bit about those interviews.
Speaker B:Yeah, for sure.
Speaker B:So, I mean, getting.
Speaker B:Getting to hear a little bit about SOCA music and the impact that that's had here on the island.
Speaker B:And I think one.
Speaker B:One message that came through in VO fitteries Loud and Clear, is the importance of.
Speaker B:And carnival being like a huge important time for the music industry here and where musicians come together.
Speaker B:I know cp, when we sat down with her, she talked about her.
Speaker B:Brought up Peters Peters.
Speaker B:Her participation in Carnaval and.
Speaker B:Well, maybe we'll let her say a little bit about some of her favorite things here on the island in her own words.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker D:Thank you so very much for having me.
Speaker D:I mean, it's a pleasure.
Speaker A:We heard a little bit about that.
Speaker A:You've won competitions many, many times.
Speaker A:And tell us just a little bit of your.
Speaker A:Your background, your style of singing and musicianship and these competitions as well.
Speaker D:Yeah, I mean, in the Caribbean, when you're growing up, you're always governed by your grandparents and grandparents, basically Christian background.
Speaker D:So when I was growing up, I was not allowed to listen to calypso music.
Speaker D:You may be a little bit of Bob Marley, but majority would be more gospel, jazz and all of that.
Speaker D:So I really did not have a firm background as to where calypso and soca music, you know, would have come from.
Speaker D:But then I had an uncle who was very fond of my noise in the house because I started when I was five, but at the age of 14, because he.
Speaker D:He loved my vocals, he entered me into a pageant.
Speaker D:And then it was another pageant after that.
Speaker D:This is another one.
Speaker D:It was really tiresome because it's not something that I ever thought that I would do because I was basically somebody who would just sing at home, at church, for Sunday school, at school functions.
Speaker D:That's it.
Speaker D:Competition wise, it's a no.
Speaker D:No.
Speaker D:Eventually, when I got a little bit older, because those days we didn't have CDs as your background music or flash drive.
Speaker D:It was a backing band.
Speaker D:And they would often invite me to come to the hotel circuit to, you know, to entertain.
Speaker D:And I did that.
Speaker D:And then here I am, I was just gradually lowered into was Ms.
Speaker D:Allison Hines, who I was listening to an interview while going to.
Speaker D:I cannot forget Sandra Zantiga to perform.
Speaker D:And she was talking about her life through music.
Speaker D:And then she started to play a lot of audio with her singing and all I was like, wow, I can do that.
Speaker D:And then I started to look her up and I felt like she had all the qualities that a diva should have.
Speaker D:So, I mean, in essence, I am pretty much the first female Soca artist in Antigua.
Speaker D:And when I started to compete, I was the first female to have won the competition.
Speaker D:First female to have won so many times, which is 11, and first female to have won our road march.
Speaker D:So I would have covered a lot of grounds where we're first as a female to music and, you know, being an inspiration to a lot of the other upcoming females, you know, try to make sure that I give them, you know, the mentorship, mentorship that they need, especially since we didn't.
Speaker D:I didn't have one when I was coming up.
Speaker D:We had Calypso female Calypsonian.
Speaker D:But that was so much more different than who a Soca artist should be because it's more entertainment and all of that.
Speaker D:With Calypso, you just deliver the song, you sing the song, you make sure that you're clear and all that.
Speaker D:Soca, you have to do a lot more.
Speaker D:You have to get people involved, you have to dress the.
Speaker D:It just is so much that is incorporated within entertainment to Soka.
Speaker A:And for our listeners who might not be familiar with Soka, just on a baseline level, can you talk?
Speaker A:Just sort of introduce that style of music for our listeners.
Speaker D:Okay, so Soca is pretty much a break off from calypso music.
Speaker D:Calypso music, they have several tempos in terms of beat per minute or per second.
Speaker D:And so it's pretty much a breakoff where you have.
Speaker D:It's more of a fun spirited type break off from Calypso, where Calypso is more of.
Speaker D:You're speaking about things that are happening in societies politically oriented and all of that.
Speaker D:But we are more of party.
Speaker D:We speak of the vibes, the parties that are around.
Speaker D:It's more of, you know, the fun spirit where our lives encompass.
Speaker D:You know, that sound and I quite love it.
Speaker D:And for my music, what I try to do for the last couple of years, I mean, so much has been going on where folks are going through so much.
Speaker D:So I try my best to, you know, give them feel good music for the best part of it.
Speaker D:Just to make sure that persons realize that, you know, whatever you're going through, you're.
Speaker D:It is going to be okay.
Speaker D:You know, I have a song called not yout.
Speaker D:It goes.
Speaker D:I found myself a happy place Only good vibes around me with my friends and family.
Speaker D:So whoever sent you, tell them you listen me, you won't keep me down?
Speaker D:You want to break my joy And I tell you, not you, no, no, no, no.
Speaker D:Because I'm gonna have a good day today, today, today, Tell them.
Speaker D:But my people stay away.
Speaker D:And I was surprised of the.
Speaker D:The feedback I would have been getting from a lot of people on my social media pages if I caught it.
Speaker D:Thank you so very much.
Speaker D:Because I've been going through depression and.
Speaker D:And, you know, listening to this song, it makes me feel so great.
Speaker D:Yes, I'm fighting.
Speaker D:But then for that little time, that two, three minutes that I'm listening to this song, I feel so much better.
Speaker D:And it encouraged me to fight.
Speaker D:So that kind of have me going for the last couple of years of like, okay, so I'm doing something great.
Speaker D:So it's just not only me performing on stage, looking great and sounding great.
Speaker D:I'm doing something to help presence, you know, mentally forget about what's happening or give them an opportunity to try to see how best they're able to deal with that or try to make sure that they, you know, kind of untangle the ruffled space that they're in.
Speaker D:So for me, it's more of, you know, a love.
Speaker D:Or just call me Dr.
Speaker D:CP.
Speaker A:Well, I was gonna say, I mean, that was absolutely beautiful.
Speaker A:Thank you so much, Dr.
Speaker A:CP, for that.
Speaker A:You know, we all need that on a Monday morning, even in paradise, you know.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:Before anyone, you have to go to work.
Speaker A:Yeah, exactly.
Speaker A:Exactly.
Speaker A:Can you talk a little bit about your music and then music in general as being sort of the voice of Antigua and what people are gonna experience in terms of the music side of the culture when they come to this beautiful place.
Speaker D:I mean, our style of music is deemed as Bena music, and so I often incorporate our Bena sound.
Speaker D:Our Bena sound is basically comprised of a few elements within the production.
Speaker D:It's the iron and it's also the bass.
Speaker D:And we say that our Bennett music with our music, the bass actually speaks.
Speaker D:So it is not a boom, boom, boom, the bass talk.
Speaker D:And so I try my best because I find myself very culturally inclined.
Speaker D:Like, I grew up, you know, with the calypso music.
Speaker D:And when I say grow up, that's when I started to get into music.
Speaker D:I had to learn what is calypso so that I can find myself musically as an artist and as an Antiguan artist, because I know that all of the different islands, they have their sound, and we have to make sure that we help to develop our sound.
Speaker D:Some years it's been a little Bit on the low side and so somebody's gotta do it.
Speaker D:So I try my best.
Speaker D:Whenever I produce my songs, I have a bit of the elements that is deemed of Benner within my production.
Speaker B:One question I had is you mentioned early on that Samuels played a big part in your career early on that you started off sort of singing there.
Speaker B:It seems like the local hotel industry does support local musicians a lot.
Speaker B:Can you maybe talk a little bit about that interplay and how they do that and if people are interested in coming and staying somewhere where they're really going to get an opportunity to experience a lot of the local music scene.
Speaker B:Any recommendations?
Speaker D:Listen, all of our hotels carry live music.
Speaker D:So I mean, doesn't matter which hotel you go to, they always make sure that they have an Antigua day which they would experience not only the music, but our cultural characters, you know, fire breathers and what have you.
Speaker D:So we don't miss with that, especially being a tourist destination.
Speaker D:I mean, we must have that in each and every hotel.
Speaker D:So I really don't have to speak on that because you're going to get it regardless.
Speaker A:And do you think it's an essential?
Speaker A:I think, you know, Dave and I have both.
Speaker A:David and I have both traveled a lot and for me there are a few parts of culture that really almost speak to the senses more than they do to the food.
Speaker A:You breathe it in.
Speaker A:We were at Shirley Heights last night and I said the number one thing that I think about when I think about Shirley Heights is the smell of that beautiful food, barbecue and then the sound of the music.
Speaker A:And so can you talk about lookout and the.
Speaker A:I mean the lookouts, you know, so three, three big senses there.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker D:And so, yeah, yeah, this is something that we have going for us.
Speaker D:I mean, we have quite a few attractions that I'm sure that you would have been to quite a few of them.
Speaker D:And you know, when you incorporate, you know, our food and we are going to be dealing with the culinary part of things in a couple of weeks.
Speaker D:And this, you should have been here then the culinary expo where you get an opportunity to go and sample everything everywhere and there is also a passport.
Speaker D:But in terms of our attractions, I mean it's a go to.
Speaker D:We have so much history.
Speaker D:So our tourism department, they're actually making sure that they develop as they go along.
Speaker D:Making sure that you not only come to the island just for 365 beaches, but we have a story in the back end where, you know, you need to know about when it comes to Antigua.
Speaker D:Barbuda and when I say Barbuda, I mean Barbuda, our pink sand beach that is to die for.
Speaker D:It is so beautiful.
Speaker D:When I go there, I'm like, am I from here?
Speaker D:Because I mesmerize artist?
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:And yeah, and it is a sensory place, right?
Speaker A:It is a place that you taste and you smell and you hear the music, right?
Speaker D:Most definitely, yeah.
Speaker D:I mean, as long as you have all of these contributing it.
Speaker D:It supports what is deemed as Antigua for you.
Speaker D:Because we love the nightlife.
Speaker D:You know, we do love our music.
Speaker D:And I'm sure you saw the people partying, all right.
Speaker D:The music was just pumping and people we love.
Speaker A:I loved it when Claudette talked about Soca.
Speaker A:You know, I didn't know anything about.
Speaker A:About Soca.
Speaker A:And, you know, calypso, you know, a very, very common throughout the Caribbean.
Speaker A:And as she explained to us, you know, that it can often be political and Soka is more about feelings and emotions and.
Speaker A:And then she sang us a few bars of a song that was definitely a highlight and super cool to speak with Khan Cordis as well about this, the steel orchestra and the steel drum as an instrument.
Speaker A:And I guess he's going to tell us a little bit about it himself, right?
Speaker B:For sure.
Speaker B:And I think tell us a little bit about some of his favorite of those 365 beats.
Speaker A:Yes, that too, exactly.
Speaker A:So here's Khan.
Speaker A:You were 11, you said when you discovered steel was.
Speaker A:Do you remember, was there like an epiphany?
Speaker A:Was there a moment?
Speaker A:Was there something about that instrument in particular at that moment in time that.
Speaker A:That after the light turn on?
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:Well, as it relates to the steel plant, there wasn't.
Speaker C:No, there wasn't any, you know, instant like, whoa, you know, I didn't get that kind of like, wow, you know, out of this world type of reaction.
Speaker C:It was just, you know, I got there and that's why I knew.
Speaker C:I probably knew the instrument prior, but it was like, you know, if I wanted to stay and hang out with the guys at night, I needed to be in the pioneer and I got invited to play, so I went to play.
Speaker C:Fortunately for me, music is something that comes very easy, especially the practical side of things.
Speaker C:So I did jump in.
Speaker C:I think the.
Speaker C:When something did hit me would have been the night before the competition.
Speaker C:So in the steel pan world, you know, these shiny drums, so we call it.
Speaker C:We call them chrome pans.
Speaker C:Those are like what we consider to be the elite patterns.
Speaker C:And at the time, the band was in this restructuring phase, so they just started Getting these chrome pans.
Speaker C: se of Hurricane Lewis back in: Speaker C: year I'm talking about now is: Speaker C:So they're now restructuring and they just got two brand new ones.
Speaker C:And what I do remember vividly was coming into the Panyard the night before the national competition, and the captain, who was in the same section as me, which would have been like the viola section, if you're looking at orchestras, is called the double tenor section.
Speaker C:There were two chromed ones.
Speaker C:He played one and then he invited me to play the other one.
Speaker C:And I was like, yo, this is like, you know, the most amazing thing.
Speaker C:So I do remember that part, you know, and that, you know, I did enjoy that that entire season because it definitely changed a lot of things in my life.
Speaker C:Well, which is why I'm here.
Speaker B:The band that you play with, is it Hell's Gate Orchestra?
Speaker C:Yeah, so it's Hell's Gate Steel Orchestra.
Speaker C:But we do have.
Speaker C:So it's culture for us here in the Caribbean that if you do have what we call an exclusive sponsor, that is, you know, a business partner, you do carry the name of the business sponsor.
Speaker C:So the full name of the band currently is the Caribbean Union Bank Hell's Gate Seal Orchestra.
Speaker C:So you may sometimes see a cub attached to it.
Speaker C:But the band's original name is Hellsgate Seal Orchestra, and we're celebrating 80 years this year.
Speaker A:And so you travel.
Speaker A:You're talking about bigger than Antigua.
Speaker A:So you guys travel internationally.
Speaker A:You play in international competitions.
Speaker A:Tell us a little bit about that.
Speaker C:Right.
Speaker C:So traditionally, this band is one of the most toured bands in Antigua and Barbuda.
Speaker C: , I think the: Speaker C: This band in: Speaker C:But that got shut down because Trinidad was a Mecca.
Speaker C:And there's a whole story behind that.
Speaker C:But they've been traveling quite a bit.
Speaker C:So we have participated in, well, all of the national competitions here.
Speaker C:So there's quite a bit of local competitions.
Speaker C:I don't recall us ever, I could be wrong.
Speaker C:Participated in international competitions, but we've traveled quite a bit.
Speaker C:Places like Germany, all over the us, the uk, quite a bit across the Caribbean.
Speaker C:And if you have smaller groups of the organization would have traveled to places like South Korea or just to sort of spread the instrument and a bit of what we do here in the Caribbean.
Speaker C:So those are some of the interactions we've done.
Speaker C: albums out there from the mid-: Speaker C:Actually probably one of the most expensive albums.
Speaker C:You can get a Jake album for 20, 25 pounds.
Speaker C:You know, that's the kind of money that you got to buy, you know, the album for.
Speaker C:But is that is, you know, we would have done that in at a point in time where steel band was now being accepted.
Speaker C:So if you go on, it's called Steel Bands, Brute Force Steel Bands of Antigua and Hell's Gate, I think did about two or three tracks on that album.
Speaker A:And, and when you tour places like Germany, you know, that are very different from.
Speaker A:I've been to Germany many times.
Speaker A:No, nothing like, nothing like Antigua.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:And so what, what reaction do you get from people not specifically in Germany, just as you travel internationally and you.
Speaker C:Play, so the, the, the, the reception that you get or the response that you get from people is what you think I would have gotten when I first started, which is this, wow.
Speaker C:You know, but for most people, it's a very new sound.
Speaker C:This instrument is not yet 100 years old.
Speaker C:It's getting there in about another 10 years.
Speaker C:So there's.
Speaker C:Imagine that, you know, the world is filled with billions of people.
Speaker C:This instrument would have started in a place where, I mean, in comparison to some of the big countries, it's a pin drop, it's less.
Speaker C:It's not even a full village.
Speaker C:Right.
Speaker C:A full community.
Speaker C:So you can imagine it's taken a little while to get out there when we travel.
Speaker C:I was just in Greece last summer and I remember bringing my instrument out onto the street.
Speaker C:I like to play, so I was.
Speaker C:Go out and interact with people.
Speaker C:There was a hung drum player, we were playing in the street and everybody was coming.
Speaker C:They're looking to see if there's any speakers or microphones or underneath, because it does have its own sound.
Speaker C:It's what we call an idiophone.
Speaker C:So it creates its own sound.
Speaker C:So everybody's looking.
Speaker C:It's like, yo, where was this?
Speaker C:You know, we've never seen it before.
Speaker C:It has such an amazing sound.
Speaker C:And I, I am very much the, the entertainer.
Speaker C:So, you know, when I see you, I mean, if I'm in, in Greece, I'm going to find Greek songs, you know, to play.
Speaker C:Like, wait, you know, so no, it starts to become very familiar.
Speaker C:You know, do things like when I travel to the UK and performing things like classical music.
Speaker C:You know, and I make it my, my, my intention to make sure that people understand.
Speaker C:Yes, it's an instrument from the Caribbean.
Speaker C:An instrument that we, we spend heavily, we do heavily here in Antigua and Barbuda, but even outside of that, it's an instrument that can perform in any, any space.
Speaker C:If I go to Canada, you know, if you have traditional music in Canada, I'm pretty sure that we can, it can be done right.
Speaker C:Once it has a melody, we can play it.
Speaker C:So, you know, the, the reception is always like, you know, wow.
Speaker C:A lot of people have this sort of out of the world experience because it just, just can't imagine, you know, this instrument.
Speaker C:It's there, you're looking at it, it's a drum.
Speaker C:You know, how does it make such melodious sounds when you look at a drum?
Speaker C:Most times people think of it as something very loud and, you know, obnoxious.
Speaker C:Here we can actually sit down and play bedtime music.
Speaker C:You know, sometimes you'd play maybe we had a little lab, you know, for kids, that kind of thing.
Speaker C:So that's usually the reception you get, especially when you play music that day, though.
Speaker C:So when you hear Caribbean music.
Speaker C:Okay, cool.
Speaker C:When I come to you and play, like when I went to Dubai, for example, a couple of years ago, and we were in the middle of the desert with one of the sheiks, and I played like traditional, you know, music from that side of the country, and he was just blown away.
Speaker C:Like, I mean, yes, of course, a Caribbean instrument.
Speaker C:We expected to play Caribbean music.
Speaker C:But when I play your music now, it's, wow, you know, that's usually the reception again.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Okay.
Speaker A:Can you, can you talk a little bit about music as an Antiguan experience?
Speaker A:You know, people coming here and experiencing the island and music as a part of that.
Speaker A:Specifically, even your music.
Speaker C:Yeah, dear.
Speaker C:We, we vibrate a little differently from, you know, the U.S.
Speaker C:you know, the UK, the Middle East.
Speaker C:I've never been to Australia, but I'd love to at some point in time.
Speaker C:And I'd never been to Canada, but I imagine I must say that the vibrations are different.
Speaker C:Is the way that we feel music and interpret music slightly different.
Speaker C:It's not that it's wrong or right.
Speaker C:That's not the conversation that we're having.
Speaker C:It's very much of a feel.
Speaker C:So when you get here, it's a much more jumpy, you know, and this is generally, you know, if you go into most of the churches, especially the more evangelical churches, sorry, it is a bit more of, you know, because of the music because of the culture and, you know, both of them sort of help one another.
Speaker C:The music is a bit more vibrant, it's a bit more energetic, it's a bit more lively.
Speaker C:A lot of times people come here and they consider us happy people.
Speaker C:You know, it's.
Speaker C:And a lot of that has to do with the type of music that is produced.
Speaker C:Whereas I've traveled to spaces and they're especially, you know, tied to religious cultural beliefs.
Speaker C:You have music for a particular time of year, a music of a particular setting.
Speaker C:We will go to funerals.
Speaker C:And it's, you know, it's this, you know, up and jumping kind of kind of vibe.
Speaker C:And I think that's because of the vibration of the people.
Speaker C:I mean, people who come here to Antigua and Barbie, they usually experience that sort of energetic side.
Speaker C:You know, it's a bit more fun and frolic and some people consider revelry.
Speaker C:And it's not just tied to Carnival.
Speaker C:It is what it is.
Speaker C:It's who we are as a people.
Speaker C:So oftentimes I do perform classical music in different spaces on concerts.
Speaker C:I don't present it the same way, you know, a traditional classical musician would, because I have this bounce inside of me.
Speaker C:So I'll be playing my Moonlight Sonata on my instrument, right.
Speaker C:And I'm there like, you know, but it's very much a, you know, a groove.
Speaker C:It's.
Speaker C:That's just who I am.
Speaker C:And it's very much a vibration of the people.
Speaker B:Can I maybe ask for people who are coming to visit the islands and really want to get immersed a little bit in the local music scene, local cultural scene?
Speaker B:Are there any great music venues or ways that they can really sort of get access to, kind of discovering some of that there?
Speaker C:Quite a bit.
Speaker C:And it's sort of turning around.
Speaker C:So prior to.
Speaker C: When I've known myself, I'm a: Speaker C:Right.
Speaker C:So prior to that, there were quite a bit of established music venues.
Speaker C:That was the culture.
Speaker C:Since I've known myself, we haven't.
Speaker C:We've had established performance venues, but they weren't like a nightly thing.
Speaker C:It would have been people putting on, you know, private shows or the government would have been investing, you know, resources into putting on, like, mini festivals and larger festivals of the sorts, if depending on the time of the year.
Speaker C:So for us, our seasons are nuts.
Speaker C:How to put it, it's not a summer, spring, you know, that kind of thing.
Speaker C:It is a Carnival season.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker C:It's a, you know, a sailing week, you know, that's how we started it.
Speaker C:So Carnival season, it's an established thing, you know, so from anytime from May all the way down to the middle of August, it is Carnival.
Speaker C:Even though Carnival is a two week, you know, sort of celebration, between now and then it's going to be every weekend, two, three, four, five events on a day, on a Saturday, on a Sunday.
Speaker C:There are quite a number of things happening.
Speaker C:But what I can say is more if you do come to Antigua outside of the Carnival period, outside of the established festivals, there's quite a bit of community bars and community centers that are actually trying to bring back this live music scene.
Speaker C:So at Wetherills is a new one, a beautiful space.
Speaker C:Wetherills Estate.
Speaker C:It was, you know, an estate before that day.
Speaker C:I can't even say redesigned, they just refurnished it.
Speaker C:If I want to put it that you go in and you do feel that sort of estate type living.
Speaker C:It's a small boutique hotel, beautiful, amazing food.
Speaker C:On Thursday evenings you're going to get live band, you know, playing music there every Thursday and it's a free entry.
Speaker C:I just can't imagine, you know, place on Friday, Saturdays and Sundays.
Speaker C:There are quite a bit of bars.
Speaker C:I know a very popular band or that does local sort of party music.
Speaker C:Is.
Speaker C:What's the name of this, this bar up in Pickett's Landing strip, right?
Speaker C:And it's right next to the landing strip of the airport.
Speaker C:That's why they get the name.
Speaker C:So there are a couple of those bars that are promoting live music.
Speaker C:We are fortunate to have, you know, a very thriving tourism season.
Speaker C:So a lot of musicians that you may know or you may not know, not necessarily you, but people generally who ply their trade every single night, every afternoon in hotels, just that's all they do, you know, they play music.
Speaker C:So for some hotels it's close to.
Speaker C:For most hotels it's close to, you know, outside guests.
Speaker C:But for those who do come and stay in hotels, you're likely to meet not just music, arts, entertainment, fire breeders, cultural dancers, folk dancers, masqueraders.
Speaker C:You will see those things there.
Speaker C:And then outside of that masqueraders, folk dancers, you'd see them very much a part of our festivals.
Speaker C:If you come here for conferences, it'll be very much a part of opening ceremonies and closing ceremonies because that is what we do, you know, as a people.
Speaker C:That's how we, we feel we to share our art culture which, you know, with our guest.
Speaker B:It's pretty unique to this island culturally is what's all you can see and do from a historical perspective, I mean, as we've driven around the islands, you see fortifications everywhere.
Speaker B:Up on the mountains, around the hills being this is an area that what I mean, the French, the British, the Dutch, the.
Speaker B:So many nations have fought over these islands.
Speaker B:And you can see why.
Speaker A:Yeah, exactly, exactly.
Speaker B:And because of that, you see, you see how they've, they've.
Speaker B:The British, the many years they were here, fortified the islands.
Speaker B:And we got a chance to dig into that a bit at.
Speaker B:At Nelson's dockyard.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:And it is so interesting, this island, because you can see what is it.
Speaker A:We can see Guadalupe, we can see Montserrat, we can see Nevis.
Speaker A:So you can actually see some of the other islands from here.
Speaker A:So you can tell how close.
Speaker A:You know, Guadalupe is a French island and there are also Spanish islands.
Speaker A:So, you know, these were hotly contested places.
Speaker A:And so all those fortifications are related to that.
Speaker A:Nelson's dockyard, I thought, was very, very interesting.
Speaker A:UNESCO World Heritage Site had a great tour guide who really brought those stories to life.
Speaker A:Believe it was in the 18th century for about three years that Horatio Nelson was stationed in that dockyard.
Speaker A:So stories about, about him and about the, the sailors and the ships there and just.
Speaker A:I mean, I think my favorite part was that even today, I mean, it would look very, very different in the 18th century.
Speaker A:But today it's a beautiful place.
Speaker A:I mean, just lined with yachts and sailboats.
Speaker A:A lot of life, a couple of restaurants there where you can go dine and just seeing the, the.
Speaker A:The life that is there now.
Speaker A:It was a hop in place with everyone sailing out.
Speaker A:I think there's a regatta coming up, so there were some sailboats there related to that and.
Speaker A:Beautiful sunny day, right?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I think sailing week happening in about.
Speaker B:We're here now, what, at the middle of April.
Speaker B:I think sailing week happening in a couple of weeks, which is another one of those big events that attracts a lot of people here.
Speaker B:And Nelson's Dockyard for sure, kind of a.
Speaker B:A central point for that.
Speaker B:And then also, as we were digging into history a little bit, we got to go just sort of across the bay and up the hill up to Clarence House as well.
Speaker B:Yeah, which had a great interpretive center which was kind of built out by cedif.
Speaker B:The International Development Agency contributed there, and they've got kind of a fun interactive display up there about local history and culture as well.
Speaker A:And I really thought it was a fantastic way to get a lot of Antiguan history in a short amount of time.
Speaker A:And I believe correct Me, if I'm wrong on this Clarence House, Princess Margaret stayed there on her honeymoon for at least for one night, very, very briefly before going to the sister island to Barbuda, which we did not see on this trip, but we would love to see on any sort of return trip.
Speaker A:But interesting to have that little bit of history as well, right?
Speaker A:For sure.
Speaker A:So, yeah, and then one last activity and then we're going to talk a little bit about accommodations, including this beautiful place we spent an afternoon at on Galleon Beach.
Speaker A:So a little bit of history there with cannons and we were at a beach bar called Loose Cannon.
Speaker A:And beautiful food, beautiful view.
Speaker A:And you had a quite.
Speaker A:I didn't go on this experience, but.
Speaker A:David, why don't you talk a little bit about scooter snorkeling?
Speaker B:Scooter snorkeling?
Speaker A:For sure.
Speaker B:I mean, whenever I, whenever I get to a tropical location like this, I try and get.
Speaker B:Get on my snorkel mask and get into the water as quickly as possible.
Speaker B:And they had a bit of a unique experience here.
Speaker B:If you've ever watched some of the old school James Bond movies where they do the, the underwater scooter, they had exactly those.
Speaker B:I'm not sure I looked like Daniel Craig on it, but.
Speaker B:But it was good fun, I think.
Speaker A:You did.
Speaker A:I don't know.
Speaker A:Yeah, I'll give you that.
Speaker B:You know, they were electric.
Speaker A:Maybe not as many hours in the jam as Daniel Craig, but yeah, good fun, though.
Speaker B:They charge up as about 125 US to do the tour.
Speaker B:They charge up.
Speaker B:So you've got about an hour and a half, two hours of sort of scootering time underwater and, you know, if you've ever done a lot of sort of offshore snorkeling where you're trying to get to, you know, a little bit more remote reef location, you know, where there's a little bit more coral, usually a little bit better visibility.
Speaker B:Usually you're either going out on a catamaran or on a boat to do that, or it's a long paddle out, you.
Speaker B:And swim out from the shore where in this case, you know, you just hooked up to the scooter.
Speaker B:You could, you could go as fast as you wanted, take it underwater, take it on the surface.
Speaker B:It was good fun.
Speaker B:It was.
Speaker B:It was definitely worth doing.
Speaker A:And you saw some sea turtles, right?
Speaker B:Yeah, saw some sea turtles there, saw some stingrays snorkeling here at Friars Beach.
Speaker B:So no shortage of undersea life.
Speaker B:Visibility has ranged a little bit depending on the day we've been out because it's been a little windier this week.
Speaker B:But getting out earlier in the morning has made a big difference.
Speaker B:Definitely a little bit clearer then.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And you sway here on Fries Beach.
Speaker A:You went this way.
Speaker B:I did, yes.
Speaker B:Just, just kind of around the point here and that's, that's where I saw a couple of stingrays there.
Speaker B:And I'm hoping as soon as we're.
Speaker A:Plans, you know, that way going that we are going to.
Speaker A:You're going to go snorkeling that way.
Speaker A:I'm going to grab a book and I'm going to sit right there on the beach and maybe, maybe I'm not going to go quite so far into the water.
Speaker A:But let's talk a little bit about this resort, Tamara Hills.
Speaker A:So my understanding is it was built as a villa, all villa destination, most of them purchased and owned by, by visitors.
Speaker A:Now it has expanded to a full resort.
Speaker A:They've built some new accommodations as well which we are each staying in for sure.
Speaker A:My favorite part and beautiful restaurant where we're sitting right now.
Speaker A:We have breakfast here.
Speaker A:We're going to have lunch here in a little bit.
Speaker A:A wonderful stretch of beach.
Speaker A:My favorite part has been the, the balcony.
Speaker A:I mean I've been, I've been a, a balcony monster on this one.
Speaker A:You know, just sitting out.
Speaker A:We had a good slice of the afternoon yesterday just to enjoy the fresh air and I finished my book, I'm done.
Speaker A:I had to download another book.
Speaker A:I finished my book and just sat out, enjoyed the view and just that sweep of mountain.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Beach and that blue water.
Speaker A:I mean I hope our, our listeners can, can pick it up on the video here.
Speaker A:That just had the different shades of blue water.
Speaker A:So, so that's been, that's definitely been a highlight.
Speaker B:Yeah, beautiful resort and I mean I really like the fact that it is sort of built into the as.
Speaker B:As the name suggests, built in from the hillside here so you get a great view over Friars Beach.
Speaker B:You can see Jolly beach.
Speaker B:You can see some of the reef there front.
Speaker B:Great snorkeling right right off the resort.
Speaker B:You can take out paddle boards and kayaks here and just a, just kind of an idyllic Caribbean beach that you've got right out front.
Speaker B:And then we had a good chance to kind of tour around today and see the range of accommodations here.
Speaker B:Everything from, you know, the studios we're staying in which are beautiful and really quite large to two bedroom suites to four bedroom suites with plunge pools and outdoor living spaces and a big range.
Speaker A:Of that four bedroom villa I mean, I could just see checking there for a while, checking in with your family or whatever.
Speaker A:It had the full kitchen.
Speaker A:It had the grill.
Speaker A:Um, Andrew, the.
Speaker A:One of the manager directors here was saying that you can.
Speaker A:They'll arrange for a chef if you want to bring in a chef.
Speaker A:And I can see just settling in and relaxing and being with your family and going into the pool and just spending lazy afternoons at the villa, maybe wandering down here for dinner.
Speaker B:Yeah, great spot.
Speaker B:I know you've had a chance.
Speaker B:This is your, as we said, right off the top, your fifth or sixth trip now.
Speaker B:You've been five times.
Speaker B:This is your sixth.
Speaker A:Five times for.
Speaker A:This is.
Speaker A:This is five.
Speaker B:Oh, this is five.
Speaker A:This is five.
Speaker A:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker B:So you, you stayed in a wide range of accommodations around the island.
Speaker B:Any other places that really kind of stood out for you?
Speaker A:Yeah, one of my favorites is a place called Curtain Bluff.
Speaker A:A property that's been here.
Speaker A:It's on a beautiful stretch of beach.
Speaker A:Some of the units, as the name suggests, do climb up on top of the bluff.
Speaker A:Very old school luxury, which is, in this case a very good thing.
Speaker A:Beautiful place.
Speaker A:And it has a special place in my heart because I visited there.
Speaker A:I mean, it's years now since I visited, but I visited with family, so it was like a family vacation.
Speaker A:And we had those just playing tennis, going out and doing paddleboarding, snorkeling, and just enjoying the place and being settled.
Speaker A:And we did get out, we did a couple tours, but mostly just relaxed.
Speaker A:And it was just felt like a really beautiful slow pace.
Speaker A:So that was great.
Speaker A:And then we've been.
Speaker A:We didn't really get to visit, but we heard good things about another property.
Speaker A:Very, very different from these other two properties that we've been discussing.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:A local hotelier who we met, Andrew, who's worked at some of the best luxury hotels all around the world and has a number of sort of villas that he rents out on the island.
Speaker B:I think he was telling us one of his favorites and his properties was Boone's Point.
Speaker A:Boone's Point Estate.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Beautiful place.
Speaker B:And based on how well he's taken care of us here at Tamarind Hills and some of the incredible resorts he's worked at around the world, I can imagine his villas must be pretty unique, pretty special places.
Speaker A:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:Absolutely.
Speaker A:Anything else you want to chat about this.
Speaker A:This episode before we move to the second one?
Speaker B:I mean, it definitely, I would say in terms of a destination skews a little higher on the.
Speaker B:On the price point.
Speaker B:From a price point perspective.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:But that's reflective of the experience that you get here as well.
Speaker B:Right?
Speaker B:And it really is pretty, pretty beautiful.
Speaker B:Stunning beaches, definitely a little bit higher end accommodations and yeah, I think pretty, pretty unique spot.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's a beautiful place.
Speaker A:I mean there's nothing necessarily that many places in the world that I've been drawn back to five times, you know, and you know, a small island, but really a lot of options and a lot of things to do and there are things that I've done on this trip that I've never done before on the previous four visits.
Speaker A:So yeah, it's a special place, Antigua and Barbuda.
Speaker A:So, so I guess that that wraps it for part one.
Speaker A:Everyone tune in next week for part two of our very special on location live episode of travel in 10 in Antigua and Barbuda.
Speaker B:Sounds good.
Speaker B:Thanks, Jim.
Speaker C:Thanks, Steve.
