Honeymoon cruise western caribbean

The Black Watch. It sounds ominous, but actually it is the name of a proud, Scottish regiment. . . and a proud ship.

Owned by Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines of Norway, the ship nonetheless is steeped in British tradition - and we two Yanks (the only aboard) sailed away to the Caribbean spice islands, themselves steeped in British as well as other European tradition.

The Caribbean magic

Just as the European powers fought on their own turf over the centuries, they brought that same quest of dominance to the Caribbean, as we were to see in the remaining fortifications of the British, French and Dutch on our 13-day cruise last November arranged by EuroCruises of New York.

It's all there - Trafalgar square, Nelson's Dockyards, Gun Hill Station, French boutiques and the totally Dutch port of Curacao plus the Emerald Pool, lush mountains and great beaches - a close-to-home microcosm of European colonial history and New World sun and surf.

But there also is the influence of the Africans, first brought as slaves, and their cultural input makes for that special Caribbean magic.

Any good guidebook can describe the many sights to be seen, but we'd like to impart some high points of the ports visited.

Barbados

In Barbados we walked into Bridgetown to visit Trafalgar square (its Lord Nelson statue was there 30-some years before London had its Nelson's Column).

On our island tour we visited Harrison's Cave, where a quiet electrical railway takes passengers past underground stalactites and stalagmites and a waterfall thundering into a beautiful pool.

Then there was the Flower Forest, a botanical garden set on 50 acres. Along the trail was a gazebo, often used for wedding ceremonies, with sweeping views of the countryside.

A final stop was made at Gun Hill Station, which was used by the British to watch for foreign threats to the island (the British were there 300 years before the island attained independence) and to signal other military units of an impending invasion. Our enthusiastic docent was a highlight of the trip - it's a bit of history we'll never forget!

The Dutch

We had been to Curacao three times before, but this is a place that cannot leave you weary.

A very Dutch port, it offers some easy walking to see the sights and be dazzled by the architecture. After crossing the Queen Emma Pontoon Bridge, we made a stop at the 18th-century Fort Amsterdam, now the seat of government and the Governor's residence.

Our final visit was to the Emanuel Synogogue, the oldest in the Western Hemisphere (1634) with its sand floor symbolizing the desert. The adjoining museum, containing valuable historical objects depicting Jewish daily life, is housed in a 3-story narrow structure reminiscent of those found in Amsterdam.

Tortola

Tortola, British Virgin Islands, was our next destination. Most of our group spent their time swimming or tanning; instead, we wandered up the street of the small village.

It was Sunday and we came across a small church with very enthusiastic singing from its parishioners. Standing near the front entrance were two young women ushers (with their identical uniforms and white gloves) singing their hearts out. The sun worshipers from our ship had a good time indeed, but we felt we somehow got a more personal glimpse of the island and its people.

The around-the-island tour gave us an overview of a very lush tropical island awash with avocados, bananas and mangoes. On our way back to the ship we passed the infamous "Bomba Shack," constructed of driftwood and beach-combed items and operated by Bomba, a colorful Tortolan.

French influence

St. Barthelemy (St. Barts) was quite a change of pace as we were now on a French island. We opted to just walk around the very clean and picturesque town of Gustavia (named after Swedish King Gustavus III, who made it a free port; after nearly 100 years it was returned to France).

There were pretty red-roofed houses, trendy cafes and expensive shops, but there also were some old forts and a municipal museum as well as the restored Wall House, also a museum.

Here and there we saw the Swedish touch: the old Swedish clock tower and the shopping streets still bearing their Swedish names.

Too picturesque to mention

Antigua was our personal favorite with the restored Lord Nelson's Dockyard, a mid-18th-century harbor used to shelter English warships. Nelson made it his base in the 1780s. The best-restored building is the Admiral's House.

Looking across the yacht-studded bay, you can see where Princess Margaret spent her honeymoon.

High on a hill overlooking Nelson's Dockyard are the ruins of Fort Shirley with its garrisons and fortifications.

A short walk from the-ship was St. John's Cathedral, still showing some damage from a recent hurricane. The original church dates from 1683, but the existing cathedral was built in 1847. Of special interest are the statues of John the Baptist and John the Evangelist, which are thought to have come from a ship during Napoleon's time.

Dominica

On Dominica we climbed aboard wooden rowboats for a trip up the Indian River, formerly used by the Carib Indians in their trading with the Europeans. It was a trip through dense tropical rainforest.

A visit to the Emerald Pool took us on a 15-minute hike into tropical forests to finally view the pool and its 50-foot waterfall.

St. Lucia, our next port, is famous for the Pitons, the twin volcanic peaks that rise dramatically above the sea. Other sights include the Sulphur Springs' "drive-in volcano" and the Diamond botanical gardens and waterfall.

Here, as on most of the islands, we made a stop at a rum factory. We also enjoyed the music of a steel band.

We then called at tiny Bequia (pronounced Beckway), located in the Grenadines nine miles from St. Vincent.

Port Elizabeth, popular with the yacht crowd, offers the 18th-century Hamilton Battery guarding the harbor. To visit the battery and the Oldhegg Turtle Sanctuary we hired a local driver with a pickup truck (seats built in the back and covered with a canvas roof).

The turtle sanctuary is operated by a local resident on his own to save the Hawksbill turtle. It was a most jolting, hang-on ride to get there but very worthwhile.

Grenada

Our last port was Grenada, known to Americans for the U.S. Marine landing to oust the Cubans who along with the local ruler wanted to make Grenada Communist.

We visited Fort Frederick, constructed by the French in 1779 but finished by the British in 1783.

After this we passed the monument to our fallen American marines and the Caribbean soldiers of the joint operation of 1983. When we asked, the driver refused to stop.

However, upon returning to our point of embarkation a local taxi driver and certified guide overheard us discussing the situation. He indicated that he did not want us to leave his island angry and for $8 (much less than we paid for the tour) he drove us all the way back to the monument and waited while we photographed it.

He told us that 90% of the Grenadans were glad to see the U.S. Marines. We shall ever be indebted to Ezekial Jones for making sure our remembrance of Grenada was a good one.

The Black Watch

We returned to our now-familiar Black Watch, an extremely comfortable ship with elevator, several lounges, a large card and game room and an impressive library with Old World writing desks (you could look up from them to see a ship's figurehead, only one of many decorating the ship).

Although there were two seatings for meals, there was an additional casual Garden Cafe as an option.

Our cabins had comfortable beds and a better-than-usual shower in the bathroom. Service was excellent: we never returned to an unmade cabin and there always was a supply of toiletries.

Entertainment

The entertainment was typical shipboard except for the brilliant Scot bagpipe musician/comedian. We also were impressed with a male vocalist, once the premier singer for Westminster Abbey's choir.

But the best was yet to come when the crew put on a very professional show night with songs and dances from their native lands. The Filipino and Thai dancers were most exceptional.

Another thing about a British cruise - we learned about carpet bowls, pub quizzes (we found out about that rage on our latest trip to London in March) and a different slant on Bingo. There's something for everyone.

Dining, British style

Catering to a mainly British clientele, the dining room provided a hearty breakfast buffet of eggs, bacon, sausages, beans, grilled tomatoes and breads plus cereals, fruit, yogurt and other European favorites. You also could order from the menu if you prefer hotcakes or the like.

Lunch could be had in the dining room or more casually, poolside, on deck - everything from a full meal to sandwiches.