Monkeys and Mountains
I said goodbye to Karol this morning before an early drive to the airport with Merve. I cannot thank you both enough for a great two night stay at Stoneyhill! Merve and I had a great conversation during the drive, and we arrived at the Antigua airport in no time. I checked in and found my gate in what I would say is by far the nicest airport in the region, and then I had a large slice of pizza before boarding my flight, because I had no idea when I would eat in Saint Kitts!
It was a very short flight at twenty minutes. After I landed I took a taxi for about five minutes to where I would be staying: the Culture House! Thank you so much to Culture House for sponsoring this night of my stay. Upon arrival I met the owner, John. He was great! I also met all of the dogs on the property. They were all so cute! John took my things up to my room and then showed me on a map everything that I should do with my short time in Saint Kitts. After gathering everything I would need for the day I sat off on what I would definitely describe as an adventure!
I walked to the main street where I took a “bus” (once again, more of a local van) into town. After a few minutes I realized that I was on the bus going the wrong direction, but the driver was very helpful and told me that after a few minutes his route goes right back into town, so crisis averted! I actually got to see more of the country so it ended up being totally fine. Once in town I walked to transfer busses to take me to Brimstone Hill Fortress. After about a twenty minute drive, I was dropped off at the bottom of the hill. I then had to walk uphill in the heat for about forty minutes, but it was definitely worth it!
Brimstone Hill is a UNESCO World Heritage Site from the 1700s. It has an amazing history and was such a cool place to explore. John recommended that if you see one thing in St. Kitts this should be it, and I completely agree! After spending a few hours exploring everything and taking plenty of pictures of the incredible view, I started my trek back down the hill.
Down hill was much easier! And I saw monkeys! The monkeys that Karol and Merve had told me about were definitely a real thing. I saw about four as I walked back down to the main road! They did not bother me at all - instead they would run away as soon as they saw me, but I tried to get a few pictures.
Once I was back at the main road I took the bus back into town and then back to Culture House. On my way back to Culture House I was picked up by Tina. Tina is from Germany and used to work in hotels but is now doing her own thing at the Culture House! After all of my walking today I definitely appreciated the ride. When I got back I made plans with John to go to dinner in the Frigate Bay area, one of the most popular areas with locals and especially tourists.
We walked through the different food options and settled on a good local place on the beach. I had some really great ribs and another Ting grapefruit juice like I had originally in Jamaica - they are so tasty! We talked for quite a while about everything from the island and its development to U.S. politics. It was a really great night!
After returning to Culture House I was exhausted and went straight to sleep. I have to be up for a very early flight tomorrow, wake up time at 4:45!
12 countries down, 184 to go.
To learn more about Culture House click here.
