Robyn's Wanderings

“Simple exchanges can break down walls between us, for when people come together and speak to one another and share a common experience, then their common humanity is revealed,” President Barack Obama.

Where in the world would you study?

“Why do you want to go to Florence for a semester?”

I was not quite sure how to answer my parent’s question. Why wouldn’t I want to go to Florence, Italy? More importantly, why wouldn’t anyone want to live there?

I was tempted by sarcasm, but I resisted realizing my study abroad choice would be quashed if I did. So, instead I mounted my case.

My problem? My university in the United States did not have a programme in Florence, Italy. Did that stop me? Have you followed this column?

Of course it did not stop me. I went online and started my research. I found a great programme through Fairfield University, which had a partnership with a college in Florence and courses so I could finish my double major and graduate with my peers.

My case was mounted and I presented my research.

“Plus, a semester in Florence would give me a chance to continue learning Italian and it will cost the same as sending me to college in the United States for this semester.”

I was given the green light and applied for the Fairfield programme and years later I sat down to write this week’s Rock Fever column: studying abroad and why every student who about to leave Bermuda in the upcoming weeks should apply!

Before I go any further in this column and you tell me that Bermudians are already studying abroad when they choose to leave the island for a college, I will say this: studying abroad, in this column, refers to taking a semester or two away from “regular” college to “try” a different country, culture and community.

And now I move to reason one leads me to the timing of this column: don’t procrastinate! The applications are going to be due soon, are easy and take no time with the help of your college’s study abroad office or, failing an office, this website: Global Student Experience: http://www.gseabroad.com/can help.

Add stamps to your passport by studying abroad!

Which brings me to reason two for study abroad: it is a chance for college-age students to experience a culture that is completely different from their own in the safety of a college setting. Case in point? I studied in Florence which allowed me to live in Italy without having to organize my own apartment, figure out transportation or traveling alone.

Ok parents, you have your child safe in school abroad, but you’re worried about finances. Well reason three for a study abroad programme: you will be paying the same if not less for the school programme your child would be attending in the US, Canada, or England, but now they will be in Morocco, India or Italy! Possibilities also abound for students to receive scholarships for studying abroad too! They can ask their study abroad office for more information (or work two jobs before studying in London like I did).

Worried about their studies? Well reason four for travel abroad is: the programmes are so developed that your child will be able to find courses abroad to satisfy their degrees in economics, english or even social work! Don’t believe me? Visit here: http://www.studyabroad.com/ for more information.

Which brings me back to you, students. Reason five: you will be able to finish your degrees so do not give up studying abroad no matter what your programme of study. I managed to complete a double major in English and Women’s Studies while studying in London for one semester and Florence for a second semester in my four-years of studies. Visit your study abroad office at school or failing that, visit the websites I have already suggested in this column.

Reason six brings me back to Florence, which is: do not give-up on studying abroad if your college does not have the country or programme you want. I was able to study in Italy because I found a programme through a different college. Yes, my application process was slightly more intense and I had to do more to ensure my credits would transfer, but I spent three months walking past the Duomo in Florence and traveling to Rome for the weekend. Fair trade? I would say so.

Which is why you, students, should go abroad and Rock Fever reason seven: Three days or three months in a country, which would you choose? Without a doubt three months! Be a tourist no more and take the chance to better understand a different culture, learn the language, meet new people and actually enjoy weekend trips into countryside you previously only saw on the covers of olive oil bottles.

Now for reason eight parent/s, sponsors, basically anyone supporting a college student financially, close your eyes. Ok, students seriously when in your life will you be able to live in another country on the bill of someone else???? Fill-out the application already!

Ok parents open your eyes and let me win you over now. Reason nine is: a study abroad programme will make your daughter or son more attractive to employers. With an international workforce and clientele in Bermuda who would be better to understand the different cultures than someone who chose to live in a different country? Those who have studied abroad, of course! They will be more confident (they would have to be to travel to a completely different country) as well as being better placed to understand these different cultures and the rules!

Travel to India for a semester and enjoy an entirely new culture!

Which brings me to my last reason for a study abroad programme (which, by the way could be a semester at sea) is for you students: a chance to expand your worldview and therefore better yourselves. Ok, when I spent three months in India I wasn’t studying abroad, but I could have been. The lessons I learned traveling through that country changed me forever. I had never seen poverty like that before or since and I found it very difficult to return to Bermuda. The trip also gave me a very different view on my life ambitions.

Before I finish this article I want to apologize for not taking you on a vacation as I promised last week. So I will next week. But only if you have applied for your study abroad programme! Until next week, adios.

Sometimes, the words you speak just don't add up!

Happy Sunday everyone! We are well into the end of the weekend (unless you are traveling like me. Sorry it had to be said!), but good thing we have an amusing little note from our wanderer Nicola.

Nicola, this week, is applying for a job (sacrilege!). Have no fears…the position would still be in our traveling world and hopefully she will continue writing. Before we can jump to that position, however, a job interview had to be completed. Been? heard? Have I confused you? Well let Nicola explain:

Shoulders squared, legs folded to one side, sitting up straight, hands clasped. Smiling but not grinning, enthusiastic yet not overly excited. The job interview was progressing nicely, when all of a sudden I realized that the words flowing out of my mouth were wrong. Horrendously wrong. WHAT did I just say??

Luckily my brain was able to catch the error, which my mouth then sought to rectify. Sending out a ripple of laughter in an interview room is a great way to calm the nerves… careless mistake turned comic relief. What was my faux pas?

In an effort to say “I have never been to Kenya or Ecuador”, I had actually uttered the phrase “I have never heard of Kenya or Ecuador”. Riiiight…

I've monkeyed around in South Africa... but have never heard of Kenya!

Clearly, that is not the case! As a university graduate, fervent traveller and someone with a keen interest in country geography… I have INDEED heard of Kenya and Ecuador.

I've stood in front of a door... but I've never heard of Ecuador!

But you never know… perhaps being quick-thinking and righting your wrongs scores you points in an interview. Heck, if I get the job I will know more about Kenya and Ecuador than ever before – and hopefully get a chance to visit these exotic destinations! All shall be revealed in due course…

Beautiful Barbados and I never entered the water once!

I have a confession this week: I went to Barbados for a month and I never swam in ocean. Yes, I was in a country that others flock to for sun and swimming, but I never took the plunge. Am I crazy?

Don’t answer that question; instead, hear what I have to say. I promise, I have a valid (ok, semi) reason.

My reason? Well that brings me to my Rock Fever column this week: business travel vs. holiday travel and my views (this is a column).

As anyone who follows this column knows in June I had been accepted onto a month-long course, the Caribbean Institute in Gender and Development (CIGAD), in my previous role as Amnesty International Bermuda’s director.

I was thrilled when I actually got on the course, but daunted by the task of planning. Why? Because the professional course was in Barbados for one month! Oh, and might I add that I only had five days to organize it?

“But Robyn, it’s Barbados! I would love to spend a month in Barbados! How can you complain?”

I heard what my friends said and yet I knew, deep down, that this trip was going to be very different from any casual trip I had taken in the past.

The difference between traveling for a vacation and traveling for the professional course (business) started at number one and the planning stage: planning is fun for my personal travels! For the business trip to Barbados? As I booked apartments, looked at hotels and confirmed my space on the course I knew I was simply signing myself up for a lot of work. Sure it was work I wanted to do, but nonetheless work! And sure it was in a foreign place, but I knew it was not all going to be fun and games.

Difference two: where I was booking my housing in Barbados. If I had been in Barbados for a vacation I certainly would not have booked the apartment where I ended up. It was not a terrible location, but I was booking for how close it was the University of West Indies Campus rather than for beauty.

University of the West Indies Campus

My third change in travel mojo thanks to the business nature of my trip? Renting a car. Sure in the US you might need a car to get around, but had I been in Barbados just for fun and without the time constraints, I think I would have saved money and suffered the buses. Instead my month abroad for business I needed to maximize my time after the course-day to get groceries and return to the rented apartment to set into work for the course as well as any Amnesty work that needed to be done.

The fourth difference happened before I even got to Barbados: a canceled flight. If you’ve been reading my column you know all about it (‘Know your Travel Rights’, which you can find on www.robynswanderings.com). The story? Basically, I was stranded in Miami for a night. Now had my trip been for fun or my vacation then I would have taken the time to go into Miami, enjoy the city or the beach and not been bothered nearly as much as I was.

Now I come to the crux of this column and number five difference: when traveling for business the time is yours and it’s not yours.

Which brings me to six: when you miss a family dinner because a flight got canceled on your business trip leaving you stranded, you resent the airlines. When it is canceled and you are on vacation, well…..you enjoy yourself.

Case in point brings me to seven: a few years ago, I missed my flight from New York to Bermuda thanks to traffic for days to JFK. Thanks to missing my flight I returned to New York and I bought some shoes! What else was I to do?

The Barbados' Flag

When my flight was canceled in Miami on my way to Barbados? Well point eight: I was not happy; I had missed a family gathering, I had rushed to get the flight and I had work to do (because I was not on vacation). So instead of enjoying Miami, I begrudgingly stayed in the airport and worked.

“Robyn quit complaining. At least you got a month in Barbados! I would love a month in a different country and a tropical one!”

I would have loved a month in Barbados too, but unfortunately for my number nine I finally understood my father. Huh? I remember when he would travel for work and I always asked how Tokyo was or Sao Paulo and he would say: “Robyn, I saw the hotel and the office so I really don’t know.”

I never understood how he could spend a week in these new places and NOT see anything. I swore I would never miss seeing a country if I were there, but then I went to Barbados. If my friend had not come to visit me the second weekend I was there, I don’t think I would have seen much more than Crop Over concerts. I understand my father a bit more now: I never went for a swim in Barbados.

So for my final comment on business versus casual travel is simply a comment to those who send others on business for their company: understand they are not traveling for fun. Luckily I had a very forgiving sponsor who helped me along the way and was supportive when I returned, but I can understand others may not be. So for bosses out there: give your employees a day-off (or two) for their business travels. A day traveling is work and a day traveling for work is, well….double work. Be nice.

So here ends my views on travel for business versus vacations and next week I’m sending you on vacation. Where? To Holland of course.

Until next week: Good bye.

The photo of Nicola's dad moments before it all began

There are a few things that seem odd when traveling, but how about a man who likes to travel in a kilt? Our Wanderer, Nicola, has done it for years: traveled with a man in a kilt! She had to; he’s her father!

What’s it about? Tell us Nicola:

[Disclaimer: No plaid or tartan was kilt in the making of this blog]

I should have seen it coming. After all, looking back now, the puzzle pieces all fit together. Little did I know that the signs were there all along…

- My sister and I donned plaid kilts at school from kindergarten up until graduation day (we even wore matching tartan headbands… all the rage in the 90’s). In addition, a kilt-clad bagpiper led the annual Halloween parade at our school

- Locals used to flock to McDonald’s on the US base in Bermuda until it closed in 1995. Oh… wait… scratch that, McDonald’s isn’t Scottish is it? [I’m just teasing! On a serious note, brothers Richard & Maurice McDonald of the famous franchise were Irish-Americans]

- The first fashion show that I ever attended, in France of all places, was tartan-themed. Truly exquisite!

- Harry Potter fans, like myself, all know JK Rowling first jotted down ideas at the Elephant House in Edinburgh in the late 90’s (while exploring Edinburgh in 2009, my sister and I visited this café where HP was once just a scribble on a napkin)

- My favourite actor is Scotsman Ewan McGregor, who also penned two of my favourite travel books. But then again, maybe that circles back to him being my favourite actor. Hmm… it’s debatable.

- My roommate & friend from my semester in Paris was a McGarry, hailing from a Scottish family in Fergus, a town in Ontario of Scottish heritage. Fergus actually hosts the largest annual Scottish Festival and Highland Games outside of Scotland [I had the pleasure of attending the festival last weekend with the McGarry clan, where we got our fill of highland dancing, piping, the caber toss and of course kilts, kilts and more kilts]

From Paris to the Scottish Festival in Fergus, Christine and I wear our tartan with pride!

Okay, enough foreshadowing – let’s get straight to the facts. My name is Nicola Arnold and my father wears a kilt. There. I said it.

It’s been happening for just over two years now, triggered by a family wedding in Australia, where other men were also affected. As I mentioned above, the kilt may run in our family. While I was not present when my father’s symptoms started, family friends had sent me photos of the first outburst at the airport in Bermuda.

Said photo of the first incident…

Slowly, I began to learn more about what to expect of a father with a kilt. While it was shocking at first, we have learned to deal with the staring, the laughter and the plain curiosity of others. It’s only natural, after all. You get used to the attention, especially when travelling, as the whole paraphernalia is rather conspicuous. After all, airport security is most curious about, well, everything weird, wacky and wonderful.

You think it’s rough when security asks you to take off your scarf, boots and watch? Try wearing a formal kilt outfit! You may have to strip off any/all of the following: your kilt hose (woollen socks), your garter flashes (RELAX! They are sock ribbons), your ghillie brogues(Scottish shoes), your sporran (pouch), your kilt pin, your jacket & vest, your kilt belt & buckle, and your sgian-dubh (kilt knife, though for obvious reasons you may not be travelling with one).

After having borrowed a kilt for several functions, my dad jumped into the deep end. Last summer, my family traipsed to Paisley, Scotland (just west of Glasgow) for our complete “dad is buying a kilt” experience. Indeed, Houston Kiltmakers did not disappoint us.

Which sporran strikes your fancy?

As you can imagine, the kilt spawns plenty of questions. Some are stereotypical… some are hilarious… some are bold… some evoke deep thought… and some are downright bizarre. Regardless of the type of wonder & awe exhibited, one thing is certain – the kilt exudes happiness :)

Top 10 questions, comments & concerns:

1. Are you a true Scotsman/What do you wear underneath the kilt? [Most popular by far!]

2. Do you play the bagpipes/Are you in a pipe band?

3. May I have a photo taken with you? [Or, there are the less courageous admirers who, be it with smartphones or bite-size digital cameras, take more clandestine photos]

4. What clan is your tartan? [Dad wears Mackenzie Ancient tartan, FYI]

5. What is the special occasion?

6. What do you do when the wind blows/Are your legs cold?

7. I love a man in a kilt!

8. Are you from Scotland?

9. My niece/great-grandfather/uncle/friend’s dog… is/was Scottish!

10. Comments on smartness, regality, stunning beauty of the wearer [For a man who has dressed up as Mrs. Claus for past Christmas parties, and almost upstaged me at my university graduation, the phrase “dress to impress” has not been overlooked!]

Plus the understated (yet much-noticed) non-verbal affirmations: whistles, thumbs-up signs, laughs and chuckles, openly gawking children, teenage monosyllabic grunts, or some form of acknowledgment or look of approval from other men.

My hands-down favourite moment? While waiting for a train in the Toronto subway, an elderly lady on the platform across from us, Scottish flag hanging from her wheelchair, yells out loud to my dad, “I like yer kilt!”… AWESOME!

Let’s wind down with a pint, or some Scottish whiskey, at the Twisted Kilt!

I shall sign-off with a famous quote, with a twist: “What lies behind the kilt and what lies ahead of the kilt are tiny matters compared to what lies underneath the kilt.”

Emily's last photo taken in Hong Kong

Happy Thursday everyone! We haven’t heard from our wanderer, Emily Ross for a while as she transitions from traveling around Asia to returning home, but now she’s back!

And she’s back with a disclosure……a travel blogger, yes? Petrified of flying? Oh yes! Who would have thought a travel blogger afraid of flying, but Emily has found a way to deal with it and it has everything to do with….Akon. Huh? Read on:

Hello, bloggers!

I return, after a shameful month’s hiatus. I was sucked into the Bermuda Triangle’s hedonistic whirlpool, but now I emerge, ready to type once again!

Now, Asia is a distant memory, the skyscrapers of Hong Kong have evaporated as though they’d never existed. I ought to write a sappy love letter to Hong Kong…but instead I shall address a different but nonetheless prevalent issue in my travelling microverse.

Flying.

Necessary.

Unavoidable.

Terrifying.

Yes, travellers, I am afraid of flying.

Don't make me!

I haven’t always been: when I was a kid you had to wrestle me off the plane. But only once the kids meals and gift bags were gone did I see the plane for what it truly was – an unnatural, rickety death trap. Every bump my heart is in my mouth, every air pocket brings more stress than you can imagine.

I understand that it’s rather tragically comical for someone who comes from Bermuda to be afraid of flying. There’s no other way out. I will never, ever go on a cruise (I think if I’m unlucky enough to be eternally damned, Hell for me will be an eternal cruise. With cold showers) so sea travel isn’t an option. No, the plane is the only way off the rock.

Asia I pushed for ANY mode of travel other than flying. Bus, boat, train, hitchhike – sounds good! Let’s go! Anything to keep me below 30,000 feet. But of course, when flight was unavoidable, we were flying the budget airline. If you think I freak out on British Airways, you haven’t seen me on Air Asia. Lao Airlines? Cue hyperventilation.

How am I supposed to sleep on this death trap?

Thankfully, while I still have to fly in order to get to university this autumn, once I’m in the UK there’s no need for me to fly to experience the history and beauty of Europe. I can take the Eurostar, then travel round Europe by train! Oh, wait. The Channel Tunnel’s 250 feet under the ocean. Hmm.  Right. Well! I can go by coach! Catch the ferry from Dover to Calais, then free to roam about Europe!

Ack. So long as I don’t coach the whole way. I’ll never forget the 24 hour journey from Bristol to Prague….which could’ve all been so much easier if I’d just paid the extra 20 pounds for a 2 hour Easyjet flight.

So, yes, flying is the most convenient if still highly unnatural mode of transport.

Thankfully, though, the answer to my inflight terror was found in a pair of ill-suited headphones.

My brother gave me an iPod shuffle in 2010 for my 20^th birthday. Unfortunately, I lost many of the accessories to this iPod shuffle, including the headphones which allow you to pause, play and skip songs. Normal headphones work with the iPod, but you’re stuck with whatever pops up on shuffle. This unskippable feature and a serious of well timed musical manure became invaluable when tackling my fear of flight.

Man was not meant to be this high!

We’re flying over the Cambodian-Lao border. We encounter bad turbulence. I begin to panic…but then I realise that Akon and Kardinal Offishall’s ‘Body Bounce’ is playing on my iPod.

I am not going to die listening to Akon.

He will not be the last thing I hear.

The universe is not that cruel.

And I relax.

So pepper your playlist with awful, awful music. I can guarantee that it will come in handy.

Trying to board a plane!

“Sir due to some very serious physics, no matter how much you push you will not be able to get any further ahead.”

He had already stepped on my feet, bumped into my bag and made it clear through his throat clearing that all of this plane loading was irritating him before I spoke.

I was as equally frustrated as we tried to board our plane back from Barbados; however, before I trampled him, I realized no good could come out of stepping the person in on front of me (or behind) or getting exasperated. At the end of the day the plane was not going to leave with me standing in the aisle regardless of fellow passengers’ manners.

Which brings me to a Rock Fever Column I have thought about almost every time I travel (mostly while waiting): plane-boarding and disembarking etiquette. For a period of hours when traveling we will all be in the same bo….plane, so why not follow some simple manners?

My number one in plane-boarding manners: check your boarding pass BEFORE you alight onto your aircraft of choice. What good is that piece of paper buried under your laptop or hiding among the small office you have packed? Not much.

Number two on plane-boarding etiquette? counting. Sure if you are a two-year-old in nursery school trying to count out the most mundane task could be understood. A 50-year-old adult? Not so cute or understandable. Seriously do you need to read every number along the way to your seat? Surely it is understood if you are standing at seat 1 upon entry and you are in seat 26, logic would have it that you will have a fair task of traveling down the plane. Do you need to count and peer into every row you pass?

Ok maybe that one was more of a pet-peeve, so why not continue with pet-peeves? Counting is one and the alphabet is another. This pet-peeve comes with a free travel tip too! So for the alphabet-challenged: B always comes after A so if A is the window seat, B will be…..the middle! So where do you think C is? Right, the aisle. Of course planes change in size and the number of seats before the aisle so when you walk onto a plane look at how the seats have been arranged alphabetically so you know where your seat will be. Sure this gets tricky when you move from business class to our regular class, but I have faith in you!

Then again not all of us are adults. Which brings us to number four: if you have small children please listen to the airlines when they allow you to board early. Sure it may be cute to you when your two-year-old takes each step by him or herself at the pace of a snail, but I can tell you no one else does!

Want to get in that plane? Follow my plane-boarding etiquette tips!

Then for those who do not have small children, but are carrying the equivalent in their carry-ons I have place number five on the list for you. Look I am not one to follow regulations unless faced with jail-time, but the size requirements for your carry-on luggage make sense! How many times have you watched (or been) that person whose wheelie suitcase cannot fit through the aisle, but it’s too heavy for them to lift so…..you wait another 20 minutes to board! It’s annoying, right? So don’t be that person and make sure your bags can either roll down the aisle or small enough to carry in front of you down the aisle.

The case for smaller suits aboard also relates to elbows in my number six spot. What am I talking about? I am talking about fellow passengers who insist on waving their large bags into the elbows of their poor fellow aisle-seated passengers. Not to mention the person in front of them who will get whacked by the oversized luggage. Oh and then, fellow passenger, you won’t be able to lift it to place the bag in the overhead bin!

And don’t be that person who brings their closet into my number seven or onto my plane. I know it’s annoying waiting at the other end for your bag, but it is more annoying for 100 passengers trying to board a plane when you cannot find a place for your closet.. As everyone waits for you to call the attendant, try every overhead bin and finally concede to checking it under the plane believe me you are NOT making friends.

Another suggestion for number eight? Make sure you board the plane as soon as you can if you have a lot of luggage in order to keep your luggage over your seat. Do NOT steal bins from seats you are not sitting in; that’s just not nice. Oh yeah and it also means those people will get stuck with bins in the back and will slow your disembarking time.

And when theplane lands? Don't clog the aisles! Wait if you're going to take a while.

Additionally? When you find your seats on the plane pull in. Pull into your row, wait for others to pass and WHEN there is a break proceed to place your bag in the overhead bin! Look it just makes sense. I know you want to get rid of your bag, but if it does not fit perfectly and you have to struggle you are ensuring that a hundred people behind you will be ready to fit YOU perfectly in the bin.

Which brings me to my final manners’ comment and the only one when it comes to disembarking: you have options to strategically remove your overhead bags that do not require everyone behind you to wait and watch.

Option one: make sure the luggage is over your seat and is light enough for you to remove with one fell swoop.

Option two: ensure that your bag is not behind you on the plane! Try and push your way through a group of people who have been sitting for hours desperate to go home, go on vacation or visit loved ones! Best of luck.

Option three: if your bag is ahead of you (maybe the bin ahead) ask the person in front of you to take it down while you wait for the plane to open its doors and everyone to disembark. Failing that wait!

And finally option four: if you have children or very heavy bags then wait for everyone else to get off the plane and then take your time deplaning. You will not be as stressed and the rest of the plane will not have to wait for you.

Ahhh wouldn’t it be nice if we could all think of the greater good when it comes to flying? And these are just a few of my own travel manners (and pet-peeves) what are yours?

Soca Royale in all of its glory during Barbados' Crop Over festival

It’s 8 a.m., I’ve had two hours of sleep, my legs have turned green and yellow from paint and I’m walking through Bridgetown, Barbados sandwiched between two trucks.

Don’t worry, I’m not alone.

I have been joined by thousands of others on the streets to celebrate the beginning of the end of Barbados’ Crop Over Festival in a party called Foreday.

What is Foreday? What is Crop Over? Good questions.

Which is why before we can move-on in this week’s Rock Fever column we will have a Crop Over beginner’s vocabulary lesson (don’t worry Foreday is explained below):

Crop Over: Barbados’ version of Carnival though it does not occur before or during lent like many carnivals do. Instead, Crop Over began as far back as the 1780‘s to mark the end of the sugar season and celebrate a successful sugar cane harvest. Over the years it declined only to come back in 1974 as a culture-infused celebration for the island and its thousands of visitors!

Pan Pun De Sand: a free steel drum band concert offered on a beach from early afternoon and into the evening. The steel drum bands have become more involved in the Crop Over celebrations over the years (and it was fantastic!)

A tent: No, not the thing you sleep in when you camp. At least not in Barbados in July. There are tents (competitions) in different parishes in Barbados and throughout July to decide who is the best performer (oh and they are also great parties!). Each tent then sends their top performer to the finals of the Soca, Calypso or social commentary tents!

The judges' tents at Soca Royale

Soca Royale: the culminating competition between the various soca tents on the island and it crowns the Sweet Soca Monarch (slightly slower soca) and the Party Monarch (power session).

Foreday: a night-time street party with a parade of organized bands of revelers covered in mud and body paint partying through the streets. It is the precursor to the last main event the Grand Kadooment Celebrations. It started in 1995 and can now average 15,000 people all divided into bands.

A Band: A group a person will join to participate in Foreday. These bands are divided by t-shirts, shorts and the truck followed with DJ and speakers. Following the members of the band will be the drinks’ truck with ropes between the two to ensure the integrity of the band. There were 23 bands when I went!

Mas: Or more like playing ‘mas’ or masquerading: getting dressed-up to parade down the streets during festival time (this includes both Foreday and Kadooment)

To jump: used in reference to the Kadooment celebration. Revelers dress-up and are said “to jump” up to the beach front (end of the route).

Grand Kadooment Celebrations: Final celebration of Crop Over and offers a parade of thousands of costumed band revelers and masqueraders.

End of the lesson (of course I have missed events, but like I said….this is a beginner’s guide).

The streets of Bridgetown...before the chaos!

The best part of Crop Over? While I would have to miss Cup Match in Bermuda, I would have Crop Over through the month of July to keep me busy. Yes, we celebrate two days of Cup Match, can you imagine a full month?

As my Trinidadian friend in Barbados said: “Carnival time just requires a different mindset.”

So the best way to prepare for your Crop Over experience?

Start with Pan Pun de Sand. It’s free and fun. People are in a great mood and the abilities on the pans is intense.

Next? Head to the tents because this is where the music for the end of Crop Over and the next year is decided upon. So which tents? Well that depends on your music preference. There are soca tents, calypso tents and social commentary tents. Me? I like Soca. Of course you can visit all of the small tents, but that depends just how much of your mindset has changed.

Pan Pun de Sand!

My suggestion? I waited until the finals of the Soca tents, which was called Soca Royale and was held in a field/racetrack in the middle of the island. Isolated between sugar cane fields and empty land, the site was just enormous; maybe the Somerset Cricket Club multiplied by five.
Surrounding the pitch were rum vendors, which makes Barbados slightly dangerous, and the pig tails and other local delicacies which make sure the rum doesn’t take over.

But these amenities, including clean porta-potties, barely registered as the performers took to the stage. Ok, keep this in mind, these men and women are competing for thousands of dollars and a new car as well as the title of Party Monarch and Sweet Soca Monarch so it’s fierce.

Each performer is judged by various attributes which include the song, the crowds response AND their delivery. To help with their delivery are trampolines, guys on stilts and even an ambulance to deliver a performer to the stage. The creativity was amazing and the stories told through the acts on stage were ….well nuts.

By 10.30 p.m. I had my Crop Over music down and one week later, I was ready to be up…all night for Foreday, or so I thought.

How did I arrive at the beginning of this column at 8 a.m. covered in paint and wandering the streets of Bridgetown?

Step one: I decided on a Band to join. Instruments are not expected, but a performance? yes.

Two: The Band gave me a t-shirt and other paraphernalia. There were 23 bands on Saturday morning.

Three: I joined the band at the Bridgetown Wharf at 12 a.m. to begin at 1 a.m., Yes, I told you it requires a different mindset.

Four: Paint, paint, paint, more paint! This was part of my performance and everyone in my band helped me with paint is thrown on your clothes, legs, arms, and face….well everywhere!

Five: movement. Each band consists of a truck with speakers and a DJ, which leads and behind is a truck handing-out drinks (mostly alcoholic). Ropes between these two trucks makes sure that US$50 I paid goes towards drinks for me, not those outside on the streets.

Looking lovely after Foreday!

And finally it was time to go! Chaos. Mayhem. Nuts. People trying to jump the ropes. Security throwing them out. And music!!

Really the enjoyment of the Foreday event is up to the music. If you don’t recognize the songs then the experience really will be lost.

So following our pied pipers we wound through the streets of Bridgetown, along the coastline and finally at 8 a.m. the music petered-out. Some bands headed to the beach. Others grabbed breakfast.

Myself? With green and yellow paint everywhere, it was a shower and then bed!

I can only imagine what Grand Kadooment is like. Maybe next year!

Oh Barbados, I don’t know how you do it. Until next week, when I recover, bye.

A Bermuda Overseas Mission Volunteer takes a break from work

For the past month we have been following the Bermuda Overseas Mission (BOM) team as they prepare and finally arrived in Zambia for their Habitat for Humanity trip.

They have faced mammoth plane rides, ridiculous heat and heart-wrenching scenes, but conquered it all to help a community in need. What are they doing now? Here is our wanderer Adrienne Smatt to wrap-up our visit to Zambia:

So, we’re finally back home. And MAN does it feel weird. I’m home with my family, my friends, my favorite foods and most importantly, my bed. At many points during our slow progress home (which included a 2 hour flight from Lusaka to Johannesburg, a 9 hour flight from Jo-burg to Dubai, a 13 hour flight from Dubai to JFK, an 8 hour layover in New York and the usual 2 hour flight home) I wondered if I would ever get back.

Let’s take a few steps back in time.

The beginning of a home in Zambia

Dedication Day: Every house ended up with a roof on it. We finished 8 homes. The average home in Zambia holds 10 people. With that said, we put roofs over 80 people’s heads and started on 2 other homes as well to potentially assist 20 more people. Our group of 45 people from the small island of Bermuda helped a potential 100 people achieve their dream of having a house to call their home. It’s an incredible statistic.

Finally a home!

From the dedication we went back to the hotel to pack, the next morning we had two planes chartered to take us from Ndola to Livingstone. At this point, our trip was non stop until we reached Bermuda – no down time. That morning we peered out through the windows of the tiny Ndola airport to spot our two miniature planes waiting to take us.

However, we had picked up a considerable amount of souvenirs along the way, and evidently Bermudians do not know how to pack light. We were overweight in baggage. In total, we had over ONE TONNE of baggage. Instead of leaving some bags behind to be brought to us later that afternoon, our kind pilot decided he was just going to leave some fuel behind to lighten the plane and take all our luggage.

I voted for fuel over luggage but apparently, somehow, luggage won out.

Victoria Falls from above

Given I’m still writing this blog, we did end up making it without insult or injury and even with some of us getting a chance to sit up in the cockpit with the pilot and first officer. After learning about what we were in Africa for the pilot also took us for a little detour over the famous Victoria Falls. Later that day some of us who didn’t have excursions planned got to see The Falls up close and personal. That evening we went on a little cruise up the Zambezi River where we spotted some hippos and crocs.

On the Safari

The next day it was off to our overnight safari which was in Botswana. We had to cross the Zambezi River in basically a little Boston Whaler. On the other side we were met with our tour guides. We took up 4 of the 6 safari trucks that the tour company owned. The first day driving around Chobe National Park we saw giraffes, elephants, water buffalo, zebras, impala, baboons, kudu and hippos. The only thing we were really missing was some lions. That night, we slept in tents in the park and woke up the next morning for an early morning game drive – where 3 of our 4 trucks managed to spot some lions. Very exciting stuff.

Some local dancing!

After our safari we crossed back over the river to the Zambia side and got back to our lovely hotel in Livingstone. Still no rest, we went from there to a cultural evening with native dancing, singing and music as well as some arts and crafts. The next day, most of us had some excursions to attend to which included a lion encounter, zip lining, microlites, white water rafting, helicopters rides over Victoria Falls and an elephant safari.

Lions on the Safari

I chose the elephant safari. We all got back from our respective excursions in the early afternoon to be greeted by our bus which was not at the hotel waiting to take us to Lusaka. It arrived, 2 hours late, and half the size it was meant to be. We needed it to hold 40 people plus their luggage, and it was built for 20 (and no luggage). Somehow, we crammed 20 people and their luggage onto one bus, and waited for the other half of our luxury bus to arrive. It did, we loaded it, and 3 hours late, we set off on what was supposedly a 4 hour drive. Somewhere along the way it turned into a 5 hour drive, and then upon speaking with a local they laughed and told us it was a 6 hour drive.

SIX HOURS crammed into a bus like sardines with luggage toppling on top of those of us lucky folk crammed into the back of the bus. Six hours without a bathroom. Six hours without sufficient water. Six hours with a  driver who may or may not have illegally passed through Zimbabwe on his way to get us from Livingstone to Lusaka. Nevertheless, a little worse for wear, we arrived in Lusaka in the pitch black of night, all of us too tired and miserable to think about finding food for dinner. We went to bed – for 5 hours. In the morning, we got up for breakfast, went to the airport and started our long journey back home.

Saying Good-Bye

And here we are. All home, safe and sound and (thankfully) … (and maybe surprisingly) with all of our luggage. I look forward to writing another blog in a week’s time when I’ve adjusted back to this time zone and have spoken with a few people about how it feels to be back. Not to mention with a few anecdotes from the trip I couldn’t fit in this as I was too busy detailing exactly how non stop our trip has been since we stopped building a week ago.

You can have your wedding cake and eat it too… or wear it!

I couldn’t think of a more appropriate topic for today’s blog post: destination weddings. Why? Well that’s because one of my longest-serving and best friends will be getting married this Friday!

Our wanderer Nicola must have read my mind as she travels through the different destinations and their wedding traditions this week. What do they do in India? Who wears kilts? Tell us Nicola!

Weekends in the summer are wedding primetime.

In July, I attended a wedding where one of the girls at my table said she has been to 8 weddings this summer. And yesterday?  Well my hairdresser said she was attending a wedding this weekend.

Of course, people flock to Bermuda in the summer for weddings – overseas family, destination weddings or honeymoons. As summer in Canada is  “limited edition” (short & sweet), you have to act fast or else more than just the cake will be frosted… unless you want your special day to be extra “white”!

If you get hitched in Scotland, you may need white Wellington boots and umbrellas on your wedding day.

In the southern hemisphere, December/January is wedding season – summertime and Christmas holidays. My South African cousins were both married in December, but sadly the dates fell around my undergraduate exams… twice!

In fact, as a testament to how spread-out my family is, my other cousins live in Australia and 2 out of 3 are now married. While they held their weddings in April/May (autumn time), my exams and commitments STILL kept me from celebrating with them. At this rate, I shall miss my own wedding…

My cousin’s wedding in Sydney, Australia, with the cake baker none other than his younger sister!

And in India? On the first night of our 4-week stay with an Indian host family, my roommate and I were bombarded with our host parents’ wedding albums… all four! Their photos were spectacular, capturing the colours, the traditions and joyful celebrations that were a part of their wedding ceremony – although our lack of Hindi/English communication left an air of mystery as well.

We later learned that the married women in our village wore a red powder along their hair parting. This is Sindoor, a mixture of dried turmeric and lime, which indicates that they are married. Widows will no longer wear the Sindoor, but they may still wear bindis. A bindi, the traditional dot on a woman’s forehead, is worn by married women in India, but may also be worn by unmarried girls and children. The specific meaning of why someone sports a bindi depends on the occasion, the colour and the shape.

One of the women in our village in Northern India, wearing the Sindoor and bindi.

The two weddings I have attended in my university town were for friends that I met while studying, but in both instances we met on exchange in France – one during a semester in Paris, and the other over a year abroad in the French Alps. French is the language of love, after all, and the romantic charm of both the City of Lights and the quaint Alpine towns is incontrovertible. [That is, at least, because neither couple has had the chance to visit Greece… yet!]

An appropriate champagne flute for a bride who studied in Paris, and a couple that got engaged during a visit to the Château de Versailles.

Everyone does their wedding in a unique way, and if there is Scottish lineage in your family, you may find yourself surrounding by kilt-clad men. Who take great pride and joy in swishing their pleats and posing for photos. Chances are that if you are brave enough to sport a kilt… you won’t mind basking in the glory!

So to wrap up wedding weekend, here’s a glimpse of the cheeky side of weddings – no pun intended!

Hmm… what a great segue for next weekend’s topic, the kilt [Hint – that is my father on the far left all kilted up… this was neither his first nor last kilt trip!].

“Our Nature lies in movement; complete calm is death.” – Blaise Pascal

Barbados' Flag!

I could hear the rain pelting down. The wind stirred and the house creaked. By daylight the rain had cleared and the sun was out.

By the afternoon the clouds gathered again and the storm would pummel Barbados for a second time.

Those storms really didn’t matter, though, because the day was beautiful, sunny and not too warm! Can you think of a better destination during the heat of Bermuda’s summer? I didn’t think so.

That’s why this month, August, my destination of choice for the Rock Fever column is Barbados (not to mention I am currently visiting this Caribbean country!)

Sure it is their rainy season, but out of the 30-odd days I was in Barbados the skies opened actually during the day, three time.

Which brings me to reason one to visit Barbados in our summer months (July and August): the hotels offer their reduced rates and there are fewer tourists! Honestly, I could not imagine the roads with more tourists on them; traffic was crazy in the rainy season let alone tourist season. Don’t even get me started on my very own traffic lesson I was given by a crazy Barbadian man. Read my blog www.robynswanderings.com for that one!

Reason two: There is so much open land and it is all lush and green. Of course every Barbadian I spoke to laughed when I made this observation. For them the land is overdeveloped, but compared to Bermuda….well it’s a wide-expanse. Which is why you should go during this time of year, but also why you have to go hiking here.

Reason three is free hikes! Sure you could pay almost $100 for an safari by jeep (and if you want to I would visit islandsafari.bb/ for information), but isn’t it better for the environment and your health to hike? Hike Barbados offers a variety of hikes every Sunday morning that will take you to places you could never imagine. When I went we hiked down a cliff to secluded St. Martin’s Bay with its rock outcroppings and back through, what I can only describe as, a rain forest! Bonus? It’s free! Visit hikebarbados.com!

Crane Beach

After the trek you’ll need some time to relax and good food. Reason four should send you to The Crane Beach Resort. Voted as having one of the ten best beaches in the world (though it was filled with seaweed when I went) by Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous, the resort also has a stunning view of the Atlantic from its restaurant L’Azure. Sitting on a cliff overlooking the ocean, the food and the view will take you far away from the muddy hike. Even better it is not as expensive as I would have thought for that type of resort (www.thecrane.com/).

Reason five: after lunch there is plenty of sightseeing to do and so you need to plan your trip. To start there are really two coastlines when you visit Barbados: East and West. The West has beautiful resorts, shopping, white-sand beaches and is the best place to go swimming. The East coast, though, has cliffs, rock out-crops, surfing sites (swimming is not advised on the East) and green as far as you can see. And of course there is the middle of the island!

Ok, since in this column we are already at Crane Resort I will take you up the East Coast. Reason six: take the coast road for hills that pull you up above the Atlantic and between one-room houses offers vistas of cliffs and crashing waves. The road will meander to Codrington College, which is the Theological College of the Church of the Province of the West Indies, and has been instructing students since 1830. It also sits in a tranquil setting with some of the most amazing water-lilies. Perfect place for a picnic and you will see many locals there on the weekends doing just that.

After your education, follow the coastline to Bathsheba where surfers will outnumber anyone else and the setting reminded me of Thailand. Even better would be to visit the RoundHouse, which sits above it all and offers amazing Flying Fish (a traditional Bajan dish!). The perfect way to finish your day.

Bathsheba's beach

From the East we move to reason seven and the middle of Barbados! The middle of the island truly offers an understanding of how the country formed! Start at Harrison’s Cave, which takes our Crystal Caves and just multiplies! There is a tram ride to help tourists through the extensive system and an informative guide who instructs you on the formation of the island. Next stop: Welchman Hall Gully, where a walk through the collapsed cave (i.e. a gully) which is filled with palms with spikes, flowers for days will give you a sense of what Barbados used to be like.

Culminate your tour at St. Nicholas’ Abbey, which is an old sugar cane plantation that now makes rum! It also offers a peaceful place among the mahogany trees for a great lunch!

Finally reach the top of the island (or at least you feel like you have) at Cherry Tree Hill, which is an ancient natural passageway connecting the east and west coasts. Take your pic and then head back south.

St. Nicholas' Abbey

It’s time for reason eight to visit Barbados and that has to be the nightlife! On a Friday night that will mean heading to Oistins Fish-Fry. This lively, evening market offers vendor after vendor grilling everything from your flying fish to tuna and lobster! A massive fish dinner will cost about US$10 and you can then walk it off shopping the various craft stalls or dancing on the stage or in the bars surrounding it. Other options for nightlife? St. Lawrence Gap (a one-way driving stretch along the water) has restaurant after vendor after bar to give you what you might need for a fantastic night out.

But don’t party too hard, the next day will require heading to the West Coast of the Island and reason nine. Start in Bridgetown, but be careful to walk along Broad Street and Swan Street and that’s about it! You do have to be wary here, but it is a fun city that will definitely keep you busy people watching.

Head to the Kensington Oval, where you can pretend you’re in the Cricket World Cup before you head north. Take your pick for lunch in either Holetown with it’s cute and colourful restaurants or drive further north through the mega-resorts to Speightstown, with its historic buildings. Make sure along the way you don’t miss the beaches!

Cricket anyone? Can you tell I don't play?

I am now down to reason ten and that has to be the month of July which is Crop Over and the time to truly party in Barbados! Cup Match, I’m afraid, has nothing on this party time.

But further explanation of Crop Over will have to wait till next week! I’ve run out of space and I think I’ve given you plenty to plan your trip next year and of course once you hear about Crop Over….well let’s just say you’ll have recovered from Cup Match by then.

Until next week, bye!