Stars and the White Garden

I thought that we should head a little further afield for this post, and while we’re there we can pick up some sun at the same time. Yes, for this post we’re heading over to the Andromeda Botanic gardens in Barbados. Clearly I’ve not been there recently, what with it being 2020 and all that, but we did visit at the end of 2019 and our visit is rapidly approaching its year anniversary, which is also crazy.

It was our second time in Barbados, the first time we went for a friend’s wedding and as part of a larger group we spent a lot of time socialising rather than sight seeing, and it was great. But when we went back - and part of the reason for going back - was to see more of the island, and of course the rest of the reason was sun, rum and relaxing.

There were two gardens on my visit list in Barbados, and this was the second one we visited. We booked a cab and off we set. The Andromeda Botanic gardens, is a wonderful place (as their website says) and is both beautiful and informative. It’s also a partner garden of the RHS, and so - and rather bizarrely - I was able to use my RHS membership to enter.

But anyway, on arrival you’re given a clutch of laminated papers with lists of what you’ll see. I was doubtful that it would be useful, but I was so, so wrong. The list fan in me loved it, as I made MOH visit each number in turn, and yes it was hot.

The white garden, you’ll not be surprised to learn included plants that had - or while have - white flowers and/or foliage. We set about looking for the white ginger, bush clock vine, a busy lizzy (found that one), crinum, varigated mondo grass and so on.

Well we spotted some of them, but more than that we enjoyed the garden, and this part of the garden especially. The ‘instructions’ told us to turn left onto the deck, and to take a seat and admire the views.

Who were we to argue?

But then I spotted something hanging from the branches, and so it wasn’t long before I was off to find out more.

I was mesmerised by the stars. It was instant admiration - and many photos were taken as I was convinced they would be easy to replicate. I think they probably are, but I still haven’t tried.

Looking closer I was convinced they were made of newspaper, sprayed - or maybe even just bleached by the sun - and covered in glitter.

They would make stunning Christmas decorations. I even found a website, which I have squirrelled away somewhere, with a tutorial on how to make them. I’m sure that one day I will.

And then MOH spotted the busy lizzie - a plant he knows, and we were off again. But not before stopping and admiring these leaves, which were not only variegated, but huge!

I think these leaves - which are quite similar in shape to the leaves of my Lords and Ladies - are fab, and could have admired their ‘markings’ for much longer than I did.

But with views like this, Andromeda isn’t a place that you stay still in for long.

Dining with faded elegance

The good thing about spending some time over the weekend sorting and editing photos is that I got to relive quite a lot of our holiday to Barbados just before Christmas. I could feel the virtual sun, remember the spiritual-ness of our visit to Hunte’s Garden all while the March weather here did its thing. I’ve said this before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again, but Hunte’s Garden was an amazing place, and spending time working on the photos from our visit reminded me just how special it is.

We booked a driver to take us to the gardens, and while the island isn’t large it was about a forty minute drive from where we were staying. What we hadn’t realised when we negotiated a price was that our driver would stay there while we spent time in the gardens. He said it was a favourite place of his too, and when life was getting too much it was a favourite place to spend some time. And he wasn’t wrong.

Even at the entrance to the garden I knew we were in for something special, and I wasn’t wrong either. I’ll share more on the garden another day, but today after we walked down and around and back up and along exploring the garden we headed towards the house. Neither of us expected to find such a stunning dining room, which was full of faded elegance, with a tropical flavour that we’d come to expect even in our short time exploring the garden.

I think it looks more overrun or faded than it actually is. The roof generally looked to be functioning as a roof should but it was set as if it could almost be ready for a party, and what a party that would be. The garden sold its own rum, and that would help any party go with a swing. After we’d explored the garden, we thought it only right and proper to try the local rum and sit on the verandah and pretend the garden was ours…

From the floral tea set - more tea Vicar? - to the bird cage and other curios, everything felt as if it was in the right place.

Even the plants inviting themselves in through the gaps where the corrugated sheeting goes, and the open window.

Quite a random space, to discover set apart from the house, but still quite a special one. Hopefully once I share some more of the garden, you’ll be as awestruck as me.

The loos in a shed

The variety of photographable loos continues to amaze me. Who’d have thought loos in a shed would be a thing, and a thing I’d photograph. But I have.

There’s plenty more loos I wouldn’t include here, because there’s no reason to, but I am finding more and more loos to feature in the Loo Series, perhaps I’m more attuned to them, perhaps there are more than I thought, who knows?

These loos are the second Bajan loos - the first were in the glorious Hunte’s Gardens, and yes I know I’ve not shared pictures of the actual gardens here yet, and like the gardens have a different feel.

Painted in pastel shades, the shed wasn’t just any old shed either, definitely a step up from the more usual creosoted garden variety.

Maybe the yellow walls helped. I’m almost certain that was the standard colour of my childhood bedroom, which was regularly repainted to freshen it up. I think dad’s yellow paint supply has long been used up, but maybe there’s a tin lurking.

The polite notice did make me smile, and it’s always good to see reminders that we all need to take care of our energy usage.

At one end of the shed was the ladies, with the gents at the other. The door signs matching the character of the island, its people, the gardens and the decor.

All in all a ‘pretty in pastel’ shed, with a completely functional use, that was very welcome after a long explore of the garden in thirty degree heat, and after all the water we drank to try to keep our cool!

The gardens and it’s plants were just as spectacular, with our last view of the garden (before the loos in the shed) looking like this.

A perfect match, and a perfect place to sit and enjoy a nice long drink of mango juice - the garden views, not the loos!