Antigua Revisited

Antigua

The last time we came to Antigua we had been amazed at the superyachts in both Falmouth and English Harbours. The scale of them is just bewildering, as must be the running costs, estimated at 10 percent of the boats replacement value each year.

Since our last visit to Antigua, a new gourmet supermarket has opened up between Falmouth Harbour and English Harbour. It is a very welcome addition to the area. They have a lovely decked area outside with open wifi, so is useful for cruisers looking to catch up on emails and weather.

The second night Peter was with us, the supermarket hosted a 'Let's Cook' competition with 3 chefs. The owner of the Supermarket, Stewart, was one of the chefs, alongside chef Selwyn from a super yacht called Mia Cara, and chef Stefano from a local restaurant. The chefs were given 30 minutes to shop for their ingredients, cook and serve up 3 platefuls for waiting judges. A presenter from the local radio station, English Harbour Radio, was broadcasting live from the event. It was a great event and Stewart was a real performer, doing press-ups halfway through the challenge.

Stefano cooked a risotto with a fish tartar, whilst Stewart cooked lamb chops with roasted vegetables and 'boozy berries'. Last, but not least, Selwyn cooked lobster with 'spaghetti' squash and aubergine fritters.

Peter is a real foodie so he loved it. He even managed to get himself interviewed by English Harbour Radio and blag himself a free t-shirt!

It was a close-run thing at the judging stage, but Selwyn came first with his lobster dish. Peter chatted to Selwyn after the event and he plated up some of the remaining lobster to sample. It really was delicious. The 'spaghetti' squash was something we hadn't come across before. With this particular brand of squash, once it is boiled and you scoop out the flesh, it comes out in long strands, looking just like spaghetti.

The lamb dish would probably have been our favourite, but they were thick chops and there wasn't really enough time to cook them enough for most people's taste. They were very pink and that may have been a deciding factor on the result.

All the delicious aromas coming from the dishes made us very hungry, so we headed across the road to Cap Horn for a pizza.

Getting ready for the start

L-R Stewart, Selwyn and Stefano

And they're off!

Selwyn checking on his lobsters

Stewart and Stefano

Peter live on English Harbour Radio

Selwyn plating up

 
















One place we didn't get to visit last year was Green Island. We had heard it was beautiful and so it was the first place we sailed to with Peter. Well, I say sail, but sadly we had to motor. Our furling drum was causing us problems on the way up from Guadeloupe and by the time Antigua Rigging took a look at it, it had seized completely. A new one was on order from Facnor in France, but in the meantime we couldn't use the genoa. Fortunately, as Peter is a fellow sailor, he understood that these things sometimes happen.

The red arrow is where we were moored

Where we were moored

We took up a mooring ball just north of Green Island and wasted no time in jumping into the water for a refreshing swim. The place did not disappoint. It is surrounded by reefs and so the navigation is a bit tricky, but well worth the effort.

After our swim, we took the dinghy ashore and explored Green Island. The beaches were lovely.

Before our final stopover with Peter at Jolly Harbour, we spent a fabulous evening up at Shirley Heights listening to the steel pans and then a local Reggae band. The music was excellent, as was the barbecue and rum punch!

After Peter left us to catch his flight back, we stayed another night and then headed back round to Falmouth Harbour and Antigua Rigging.

They organised the replacement and fitting of the new furling drum, which we are pleased to say is working really well.

Next stop Jamaica...