(Am re posting this as it seems to have posted itself way down in the blog so was all in the wrong date order. And I do like to keep a tidy blog....)
We just couldn't resist this title as fanny is huge on this island, Fanny Nisbet that is. This morning wasn't promising, supremely comfy rooms but the weather was more Wales on an autumn day than the Caribbean in peak season. Gale force winds faced us as we had breakfast overlooking the breaking waves on the bleak beach. But food was good and Ant had kippers, obviously, the Brit influence is still strong here.
The Nisbet Plantation was once the home of Fanny Nisbet, who married Horatio Nelson. They married at the Montpelier Plantation up in the hills, so we decide to take a bus round the island and end up with lunch there. They are the usual minibuses and are great. The locals helped us understand the system. But with one road round the island, it really wasn't too difficult. We go to Charlestown, the tiny capital and then jump on a bus going in the other direction to see where it took us. It took us up Figtree Drive and on to Gingerland, pretty but perhaps not worth stopping. On and off the bus got the local schoolkids, well behaved and dressed in their super white blouses and pleated skirts, as usual we looked scruffy in comparison. We ask to be dropped off at the main road where it turns into the Montpelier Plantation. The bus driver took it upon himself to take us right to the entrance, another example of local kindness, in that way, this is a lovely island.
Montpelier is peopled not by Americans but mainly older Brits. Sort of sub aristocracy, very plummy accents, so guess even here there would be a dress code for dinner of which we would fall well foul.... The bar area by the pool was lovely old colonial, but after lunch we take a stroll to nose at the rooms. Interestingly, this place charges as much an arm and a leg as the Nisbet Plantation, but the rooms, all set in the lush gardens with views over the Caribbean looked equally holiday campish and also as if they were gussied up prefabs from the 1950's..... We didn't find Fanny and Horatio's bridal suite though..... Everywhere seems so old fashioned and these sort of places must die out unless they sharpen up a bit. Diana and kids stayed here 17 years ago, think they're still trading on that. It did however have a nice welcoming atmosphere unlike Nisbet and we had the best food on the trip with gazpacho and salads around the pool, but with two rum punches each the bill was $98US.... So much for backpacking.....
We walked from the hotel, the mile or so to the main road. It goes to show how few tourists actually walk here, we appeared to be a novelty, and got greeted by everyone. Amma was kind and a bus came immediatley. These buses provide a great social service, this was in evidence again today, a young schoolgirl got on with her baby brother in arms. In order to drop them off at their home, the driver, first asking if it was ok with us, took a detour, can you imagine that happening in the uk?
Back in town, we were yet again feeling a little squiffy, so went on an icecream hunt, Ant was lucky, Gill wasn't, before catching another bus back to Nisbet. We know that they are loathsome, but we had planned on going to the manager's cocktail party/ beach barbecue tonight. We planned on faking it as travel journalists and having some fun. But as we appached we could see these groups of "cruise wear clad" Americans and we both thought NAH! Not for us. Small talk is too much like hard work...... So we escaped the hotel for the evening to Gallipot, it was 100% tourist and 100% white, hanging out its economic apartheid laundry for all to see, so again not normally our scene, but must admit the US inluenced food was good.
At least on day three it was sunny and we spent the morning on the beach. It may have been sunny but it was also windy and so rather unpleasant. We did enjoy watching the pelicans dive for fish. In the afternoon, we found some shelter further inland, near our rooms. A day of reading and relaxing, and Ant getting red as he didn't apply any suncream at all. tut tut!
And Gill trying to recreate those iconic pictures of Diana on the beach here - a task too far even for Adobe Photoshop....
We decided to go out for some sunset drinks to a well known beach shack bar called Sunshine's. The beach, Pinney's, is grey, a mix of coral and volcanic sand, with ramshackle beach bars, loud music, and reminiscent of Goa. There was a fantastic view over to the dark peaks of the St Kitt's volcanic hills and a few white yachts bobbing about. Sunshine's is famous for their Killer Bee rum punches and reggae. We have no idea what we imbibed, or even whether it was legal, but funnily enough, the sunset looked particularly colourful.....
We sat on the beach watching the sunset together on this trip for the last time. We strolled up Pinney's beach to the Four Seasons. The beach was even more volcanic here and lined with beach chairs but the hotel was very nice and was what we thought The Nisbet Plantation was going to be like. We are so getting used to throwing wads of money at people in the Caribbean that we barely flinch at the 15% service and 10% tax on top of our 10US$ each glasses of Sauvignon Blanc. It was nice to sit here though and even Gill used their posh loo, a real treat....
We had originally planned to eat at Sunshine's but to be honest it didn't look great, so both feeling a tad tipsy by now (what was in that killer bee punch, we really thought the brown powder was nutmeg.....) we returned to Gallipot for our last supper. We drank no more booze, the earlier drinks had knocked us out! Gallipot is run by a local and her Brit husband and appeals to the white expat crowd, but sometimes we just don't want goat water or fried chicken so the European/US menu is welcome. She was telling us about the rise of gun crime on the island and the fact that the Four Seasons employs 40% of the island's population. This island has certainly sold it's soul. Couple this with a dramatic drop in tourist numbers and the ultra high prices and the future isn't looking rosy.
Tracy, the owner of Gallipot's also informed us that her family had owned Nisbets till 15 years ago. Maybe, at last, we had found our Fanny?
But perhaps our view of Nevis has been coloured by our unrealistic expectations and a bad choice of hotel. It's not the Caribbean Dream of white, palm finged beaches and blue seas, it's a pleasant, prettyish place with lovely friendly people. But it's old fashioned charm is carried too far with old fashioned formality in it's hotels.... So last century dahling......
So writing this on the last morning, it's raining (no surprise there). We head to the ferry at 12.15 back to St kitts and BA to London for Ant, whilst Gill disembarks at Antigua. It's been a fun trip and we are glad to have seen more of the Caribbean, and enjoyed linking up the islands by whatever means available but it has lacked the adventure of previous trips and the camaraderie of meeting fellow travellers. Yanks in cruise wear not suiting us AT ALL!
But we have collected a record number of pins in one trip.......
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