Happy Kadooment Day!

It's Grand Kadooment Day in Barbados. Kadooment Day is the grand finale to Crop Over Festival, our carnival. Crop Over Festival, started in the 1780's and revived in the 1940's, signifies the end of the sugar cane harvest, or the end of the crop season (crop is over). A kadooment is a big "to do", the last day of Crop Over Festival.

Crop Over Festival is normally five (that's f.i.v.e.!) weeks long from the first Monday in July to the first Monday in August. These days the festivities start in May! That, my friends, is about 14 (fourteen) weeks! That's a long festival season. But we like it. :) During Crop Over we have fairs, calypso/soca competitions, a kiddie costume parade, arts & crafts festivals, heritage festivals, outdoor markets, all kinds of shows, dances, and music everywhere.

Now for the big parade, in the rain (as usual, it seems). Today (Kadooment Day) you'll see lots of band members (paraders) in elaborate costumes jumping (parading) in big bands playing the latest music. It is a sight to see. You'll see people of every nationality, colour (I had to spell that the Bajan way), creed, belief, age, and even visitors from different countries jumping in a band.

I'll be there! Will you? You got your costume? Which band are you jumping in? :) Well, I'm not jumping this year. I did once and it was a great experience. No, I will not show you my picture in costume. Well, if you're not here this year, make sure you contact us at Bridgetown Travel for Crop Over Festival 2011. Plans are already underway, so call us so you don't let next year miss you! Wait...don't call today, though. ;)

Pictures later.

Goodbye 2009!

I was a little dissatisfied with 2009. A lot of things happened: some were in my control, and some were out of my control. I'm usually such a go-getter, but I finished December off in a funk (mood) for a lot of reasons, from which I'm slowly emerging, I'm happy to say. I'm looking forward to a better, well-structured 2010.

Writing

I always find that I write what can be considered a novel when I'm replying to emails, but I can never seem to keep up with my blog.  Hhmmm...  A lot of what I reply to friends can really fit with my blog, actually. Maybe I ought to transfer some of that here. No personal stuff, of course. We'll see. 

Under the weather

So I'm not feeling well today. The family seems to be passing their colds around. Hey, you guys...all sick family must be quarantined from now on until feeling better. :) I'm travelling on Tuesday and hate flying with a stuffy head. Ah...what ya gonna do? I think I may need to recuperate on a sunny beach somewhere. Yeah....that's the "ticket".

Airlines Offering Wireless Access in Flight

Airtran began offering wi-fi and US Airways has followed suit this week. I'm not sure how to feel about this. On one hand it's progress at its best, but on the other hand, it's more people doing stuff to annoy you. Who is going to regulate all the beeps and

US Airways is partnering with Gogo Inflight Internet to provide Wi-Fi Internet access onboard 50 A321 aircraft, which will roll out in early 2010. Full Internet service will include web, instant messaging, email and VPN access, which will be available for purchase to passengers with laptops or Wi-Fi enabled devices. Gogo will initially be installed on US Airways A321 aircraft, flying select domestic routes. And later next year, customers will be able to see if Wi-Fi is available on a specific flight by looking for the Wi-Fi icon while booking their flight on usairways.com. The pricing for Gogo Inflight Internet on US Airways will be announced closer to the launch date. Customers will be able to choose service from Aircell’s standard pricing structure, which currently ranges from $5.95 to $12.95, depending on the length of flight and type of Wi-Fi enabled device used.

Source: US Airways

The Facts on Swine Flu & Travel - Updates

What was our Veep, Joe Biden, thinking with his latest comment about the swine flu, that he obviously didn't think through fully before he opened mouth and inserted foot? Was he trying to scare the entire population into never again taking any kind of transportation where you're "confined" with more than one person, not to mention making my job that much harder? The common sense thing to do regarding this swine flu pandemic is to remain calm and use common sense measures. See below.

This is not to scare you, but to make sure you have all the facts. It is important that we all remain calm and rational, while taking precautions as we would with other more common strains of influenza.

Updates on Swine Flu News

Swine Flu Questions Answered

As of April 30, 2009 at 4:34 p.m., the Mexican government has officially reported only 18 laboratory confirmed human cases of swine influenza A/H1N1 infection, according to the CDC website (http://www.cdc.gov/travel/), though I realize the press has reported more than 150 deaths.

Mexico starts a five-day shutdown due to swine flu

Travelers should check the fine print on travel insurance policy, and ask important questions as it relates to swine flu and protecting their travel investment. Travel insurance is so important to have. Most people think that it is not a necessity, but there are a number of reasons to purchase travel protection insurance, including becoming ill while on vacation, and having to pay again to be flown back home. However, that's a topic we will discuss later.

Common Sense Measures

• If you are sick with a cold or flu-like symptoms, stay home from work. If your child is sick with a cold or flu-like symptoms, keep your child home from school.
• Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth because germs can spread that way.
• Wash your hands thoroughly and often with soap or water.
• Do not cough into your hand! Cough into the crook of your arms instead. Every time you cough into your hand and touch something or someone else, you have the potential to spread germs to whatever or whomever your hands touch.

As I receive more updates, I'll post them here.

Mag

Old Memories

My family is great for stories. My Granny used to tell all kinds of stories, and so do my Mum and Dad. I'm actually planning on writing a book about old memories.

Granny used to tell stories about her parents in Haiti and growing up in the Dominican Republic. Funny stories, scary stories, and stories about how she got her name from the Grandmother she was not too fond of, but ended up with that Grandmother's name, which Granny didn't like too much. My Great Grandfather, Granny's Dad, was a horse trader, and would go from island to island trading horses.

Mum tells stories about growing up in the Dominican Republic and St. Lucia, and about her parents (Granny and my Grandfather) in St. Lucia and Barbados and their travels moving from one country to another and then finally settling in Barbados. She tells stories about going by boat from one island to the next and being so seasick that she could not get off at some of the ports. She also crack my kids up with stories about Ossie Moore, a funny character (true or not) in Barbados.

Dad tells stories about his parents, and Great Grandmother and how hard his Dad was on him while growing up in Barbados.

I contribute my stories to my kids about the difference between growing up in Barbados and the United States -- how things were so different in either place. Some memories are the best that any child can imagine, and some memories (especially moving to the Northeastern US in the dead of Winter) were a little daunting. All these stories are what my daughter Krystina would call: a collaboration of the United Nations.

What stories do you have about great family memories?