The 14th Annual Barbados Jazz Festival - a Success! Start next year off right by
visiting Barbados and attending the first jazz festival of the year. This year,
Webb MMPR, with Webb Internet Radio, was invited by the Barbados Tourism Authority
to attend the last few days of 14th Annual Barbados Jazz Festival and sample some
of Barbados' most enjoyable attractions.
A few days before the trip, I was pleasantly surprised to receive notice from my
travel provider that the flight had been changed to a 1-stop flight with a change
in St. Lucia to a direct flight from JFK to Barbados. Granted, setting foot in St.
Lucia (even if for just a few minutes) would have been nice, but anxious to get to
Barbados, the direct flight did get things rolling for me.
Disembarking from the Air Jamaica airbus was reminiscent of my earliest travelling
days. My grandmother had a small travel business in the '70s that specialized in
tours to Bermuda. I remember being just five years old, walking down the steps leading
from the airplane to the runway, a slight wind blowing and dark-skinned, uniformed,
friendly faces watching to see that you didn't lose your balance welcoming you to
their land. I felt like I had stepped back in time, even for a split second.
After a 40-or-so minute taxi ride from the airport, we reached the Almond Village
Resort – our home for the next 5 days. Our van stopped at the gate and another dark-skinned,
uniformed, smiling face greeted and welcomed us to “Paradise”. The Almond Village,
one of two Almond Resorts on the island, is a family-friendly all-inclusive resort
with three restaurants, private beaches, a business center, shopping, a disco, and
all of the amenities, one would expect from a resort hotel.
Sir Arthur Gobers Auditorium was our first Jazz Festival stop to see up-coming vocalist
Marisa Lindsay and the amazing Macy Gray. Marisa's vocal confidence matched that
of her stage presence and made for a thoroughly entertaining show. Her brand of
jazz is a living tribute to the greats who paved the way for her. Her amazing cover
of Bob Marley's “Waiting in Vain” was so impressive that I set my mind to grabbing
her debut CD, Submit2Love when I got back. Macy Gray's performance was full of color
and spectacle in sight and sound. Her “colorful” prelude to “I Try”, fitting though
not appropriate, raised eyebrows among the audience and tempers among the show presenters.
Despite her humble apologies, the Nation News, Barbados' local newspapers featured
a full-color front page image and the headline, “Macy Fouls Up”. Our second show
at Sir Aruther Gobers Auditiorium was the phenomenal Anita Baker performance. This
was my first time ever seeing her and my only regret was not having seen her sooner.
Two days were spent sampling the best of Barbados' ocean and land. One day at sea
swimming with the turtles made me forget that I was “working”. When they say you’ll
be “swimming with the turtles”, that’s excactly what they mean. The all-island tour,
Island Safari was most definitely the best way to see and literally experience the
island in all of its beauty. They take you by open-air Land Rover from your hotel
to the middle of the sugar cane fields, Bathsheba, Gun Hill, high peaks and coastal
shorelines, and all points in between. Knowledgable tour guides can tell you everything
you need to know about the island’s history, landscape, weather, and even introduce
you to a few locals. Rum punch sips throughout the tour and a lovely lunch (of traditional
flying fish) at the end made thrilling tour that much more wonderful!
The two outdoor shows in two days at the Farley Hill National Park made me feel like
one of the locals. I enjoyed Arturo Sandoval’s performance from the top of the hill
with the locals and sawwhole families and couples with picnics dining and dancing
under the trees of Farley Hill. Once again, I didn’t feel like I was working at
all!
To sum it all up in one sentence: Start every new year in Barbados!
