When you fly in to Barbados you spot the colourful houses and pristine white beaches along the west coast facing the Carribean sea. At the airport the locals meet you with steeldrum music and when you get into town it is the weed smoke smell that is significant anywhere you go. At that point you get the real feeling of being in the Carribean. Despite being illegal, it is very common to smoke weed. You would think that rum is more common but we were told that weed, brandy and whiskey is what locals do to have fun and relax whereas rum is for the tourists (which I can confirm indeed....).

Barbados is the most eastern island out of all the Carribean islands and the one you first hit if sailing across the Atlantic. The island was colonised by the Europeans in the 16th century and became fully independant from Britain in 1966. However they still remained under Elizabeth II being Queen of Barbados until 2021 when they became a republic. Today they have a female Prime Minister who seems to be popular amongst the local population.

Having a population of about 280,000 most of them live in the south west part of the island around the capital Bridgetown. On the east coast facing the Atlantic, the wind and waves are stronger and bigger attracting a lot of wind surfers whereas on the west coast the sea is a lot calmer and you find the luxury villas and hotels like a string of pearls all the way down to Bridgetown. Barbados has attracted a lot of rich and famous people for many years which is one factor why Barbados is very expensive. For example has Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson, Mick Jagger and Rihanna (being born and raised in Babados) enormous properties on the west coast. In case you have some spare USD in your bank account, you can stay on the islands most exclusive hotel Sandy Lane. The "cheapest" double room is almost USD 1,700 per night and if you are feeling very loaded you can rent your own villa in Sandy Lanes regime for USD 17,000 per night. We only stayed there for a couple of nights...... 

All beaches around the island are public. Sandals hotel chain are currently in a dispute with local government claiming that they want a private beach for their guests and the dispute has been ongoing for many years but government will not agree to this so it seems they want to keep them public and not allow any exclusivity for specific hotels (nor private individuals with seaside location). Or you do what Richard Branson did, reroute the public road outside his property to avoid being "disturbed" by passers-by.

Rum production you can find on most Carribean islands and so also Barbados with Mount Gay being the oldest distillery dating back to 1703. The main ingredient in rum is sugar and sugar canes are grown everywhere, hence rum is a major product in these regions. Apart from sugar, the two main other ingredients are yeast and water. What makes Barbados rum so special is that the tap water is crystal clear since it is being filtered through limestones. Other elements that affect the rich toffee flavoured rum is the tropical air and a dedicated, skilled and passionate head blender. Rum Punch is the traditional drink including sugar syrup, lemon juice, rum, water and Angostura bitter topped with some nutmeg. Nice and refreshing but should be limited to 3 units (talking from experience).

Barbados has 1,800 rum shops which is a simple bar venue selling bottles of rum. You cannot buy a fancy cocktail, nor a tap- or bottled beer. Together with your rum bottle you get as many glasses as you are in your company and you get a Domino board game. You sit there playing Domino and drinking rum until the bottle is empty. If you want / can handle more, you order a new bottle and stay there until the second bottle is finished. The shops are open from 6:00am until "late".

The locals are extremely happy, chilled, friendly and show an enormous appreciation of tourists. Everyone you meet on the street will greet you with a big smile and us being two blonde girls from Sweden, we were proposed to at least 3 times meaning I could have been married and divorced 3 times in 17 days! Me not being married once in my lifetime, I could have set a record if I wanted to.

Fun (and not so fun) facts about Barbados:

• It is one of the most expensive islands in the Carribean due to all goods having to be imported mainly from the US and Europe and also because there are a lot of international wealthy individuals that have invested in properties and land driving up the prices. And of course, the global inflation and the weak Swedish Krona hasn´t helped....
• It is illegal to wear camoflage clothes (also for children)
• Certain homosexual acts are illegal and you are recommended to be very restrictive with displaying affection in public. This applies both to same sex and opposite gender.
• 1 litre of milk in the supermarket cost USD 4 (about SEK 45)
• During rainy and low season June - August, there is a Crop Over summer festival where people dress up in colourful costumes and dance on the streets. This is an old tradition in order to celebrate that the harvesting of sugar canes is over.
• It is illegal to sunbathe topless.
• The local currency in Barbados (Barbados dollar) is tied in value to the US dollar. The USD is half of the BBD although you get more for the money if paying with BBD. 
• There are an average of 2 cruise ships stopping in Bridgetown port daily during our winter months.
• You can drink water from the tap - it is crystal clear being filtered through limestone on the island