Antigua and Guadeloupe are very different islands, even though they are close together spatially (20 minute flight). Antigua was once a British protectorate; driving on the left and English speaking are leftovers from that era. The islanders are laid back, easy going, with that relaxed joyousness that Bob Marley made famous. The roads are bad, unmarked, no lines and with few road signs, and we were thankful that we did not rent a car. (Besides, the taxi drivers were fun!)

Guadeloupe is a bit of tropical France. They speak French and drive on the right. That is where all similarities with Antigua vanish!

Infrastructure: Antigua has tons of pot holes, no street signs and the tap water is unsafe, so everyone drinks bottled water. It’s OK for showers and brushing teeth, they said, but to drink might make you sick. Also after the water went out on our last day at our resort, when it came back on it was rust colored. Guadeloupe has nicely paved roads, some freeways, good road signs. The water from the tap is not only safe to drink but tastes good, almost as good as Colorado water. Apparently, a volcano or mountainous area is necessary to cause enough rain to fall on the land.

People: On Antigua, the African descendants seemed to want to keep separate from the European descendants (did not see any or many Caribbean descendants.) On Guadeloupe, European, African and Caribbean people are blended, all doing the same jobs, working side by side, speaking the same language.

Our lodgings: We chose lodgings a bit due to differences we read about each island. On Antigua, we stayed in our first ever all-inclusive resort (unless you count our 2018 river cruise boat). The room was huge, with a separate area with couches and tables for us watch the waves when we wanted. Lots of cupboards, lots of hangers in the closet. On Guadeloupe, we have a single room which barely fits the bed, no tables or chairs. It’s a Bed and Breakfast in someone’s home. We can sit out on a balcony to write blogs and eat food that we bought.

Food: Antigua’s resort food was British and abundant. Clare would be OK to never see baked beans for breakfast again. Abundant food and alcohol, all day if you want it. When we walked to the capital, we had nice British-type food. Guadeloupe is French all the way! The breakfast at the BnB is fantastic, fresh cooked croissants and pastries, home-made jams, fresh fruit from their own trees, fresh eggs from their chickens cooked by a smiling gentleman. Fantastic. For lunch and dinner, we are on our own.

Topography: Antigua has mountains but not as steep or tall as on Guadeloupe. The volcano that created Antigua is 35 million years old, so a lot of time for erosion to occur. Guadeloupe’s volcano is considered active, and that mountain, La Soufriere, is very steep with deep valleys around it.

Pictures of our B&B, Villa Mancina:

• Lesser Antilles 2020