This information is a part of a mini collection devoted to spotlighting Black historical past and tradition in locations across the globe, and the most effective methods to expertise them the following time you go to.
Barbados is named one of many Caribbean’s most picturesque gems—and it has a connection to the US that many individuals may not know. About one half of all of the earliest enslaved African laborers despatched to South Carolina arrived through Barbados, as a substitute of instantly from West Africa, in accordance with The Lowcountry Digital Historical past Initiative.
That shut hyperlink between Barbados and the state of South Carolina drew Martinique Lewis to this island nation of 281,000 nestled within the jap Caribbean. Lewis is a range in journey marketing consultant and the president of the Black Journey Alliance, a non-profit that encourages range and fairness within the tourism house, and hosts the TV present Black Journey Throughout America, which is able to premiere this month on Nationwide Geographic.
“Barbados was eye-opening due to its direct relationship between Black individuals who had been introduced [there] from Africa, and Black People,” she says.
Barbados holds a particular piece of Lewis’s coronary heart—actually: She met her boyfriend there throughout a earlier journey to the island. Listed here are a few of her suggestions on what to eat, the most effective issues to do, and the place to remain for a Black historical past expertise in Barbados.
The place to eat in Barbados
Vacationers headed to Barbados can count on to see a lot of seafood on the menu, and plenty of of Lewis’s Black-owned eating suggestions are primarily based on her love of seafood. The Seafood Shack, situated alongside Worthing Seaside, shouldn’t disappoint vacationers in search of contemporary, regionally sourced seafood. The restaurant provides a myriad of dishes, from a build-your-own seafood broil to salmon bites to lobster tails.
At Cuz’s Fish Shack the menu is straightforward, consisting of sandwiches referred to as cutters. Though these are pretty easy—freshly grilled fish with cheese, lettuce, and tomato on a Hawaiian roll—Lewis describes them as “the most effective fish sandwiches I’ve ever had in my life.” Whereas the shack is situated in a preferred vacationer space between resorts, it’s an eatery for which locals and foreigners alike head to the seaside space once they’re hungry.
And no journey to Barbados is full and not using a cease at Champers Restaurant, a seafood spot with panoramic views of the ocean. Seize a seat on the outside terrace, or inside within the eating room, which options an artwork gallery with native and Caribbean artists. Signature dishes embrace shrimp and fish pasta, Cajun Atlantic Salmon, and barracuda.
The place to remain
Tourism investments in Barbados have seen an inflow of U.S. lodge chains in shut proximity to one another in Bridgetown, the island’s capital metropolis. Vacationers in quest of a vibe that doesn’t really feel like a sequence resort could think about Sundown Lane, a small B&B situated only a stone’s throw from the seaside—and the place Lewis herself stays throughout journeys to the island.
