Antigua 1997
Destination:
Jolly Beach Resort
Jolly Harbour,
Antigua
Jolly Beach Resort
Jolly Harbour,
Antigua
After our winter trip to Panama, we decided to treat the boys - aged 13 & 15 years old - to an island vacation. We had set our sights on Cuba but my aging mother complained because of the political climate, US embargo etc. She offered to pay the premium for a 'better' island & we chose Antigua. But I only accepted if she would to come with us.
Antigua is a biggish ex-English island. Our resort was in Jolly Harbour on the western side of the island, just outside St. John's, the capital. Full on summer heat was in play since it was late July, but the nice sea breezes (and the AC) kept us happy. In the picture at left above, you can see the island of Montserrat - about 25 miles away - in the distance.
Antigua is a biggish ex-English island. Our resort was in Jolly Harbour on the western side of the island, just outside St. John's, the capital. Full on summer heat was in play since it was late July, but the nice sea breezes (and the AC) kept us happy. In the picture at left above, you can see the island of Montserrat - about 25 miles away - in the distance.
We did the usual resort things including a snorkeling trip which allowed us to see the resort & the mountainous island from the sea. We also hired a driver to show us some of the island including Nelson's English Harbour.
On the evening of Aug 4, 1997 (the camera date is off by a day) we were surprised by a strange cloud forming over the island of Montserrat. Of course, it was the eruption of the Soufrière Hills volcano. This led to the permanent evacuation of the north part of the island.