The Hash

Have you ever heard of the The Hash House Harriers? 
Barbados celebrated their 25th anniversary from 16th to 21st November 2010 but they started a lot earlier than that.....
The Hash House Harriers are a global outfit  humorously referred to as 'the drinking group with a running problem', the emphasis is on socializing just as much as it is on running.   In 1930's, in Indonesia, ex-pats would go from pub to pub (or bar to bar) and when they couldn't go any further would have a meal of corned beef hash, or any left overs from the kitchen put together as a 'hash',  hense the name Hash Harriers.

Every Saturday and Bank Holiday this group meets at different locations across the island.  At the sound of the horn, everyone moves in search of the correct trail which is designated by three dots of flour.  Once found, there is a loud shout of 'On on!' and the hash has begun.   The Hares, those who have set the run, keep the event interesting by throwing turns and other unexpected direction changes along the route.  The runners, otherwise known as the Hashers, must look out for the dots of flour to ensure that the group is on the right course.  The object of the run is for all involved to have a good time and to go at your own pace.
In my case that would be walk or not at all thanks.....

The Barbados Hash House Harriers certainly live up to the adege  'the drinking group with a running problem', with the ever present party atmosphere at the end of every hash meet.

What a way to spend a Saturday......

Barbados Independance Day

On 30th November 1966 Barbados was granted Independance from England with the Right Honorable Errol Barrow becoming the first Prime Minister.  Since then Independance celebrations take all forms starting at the beginning of November each year, including sports competitions, fairs, community events and religious services.  It culminates with a televised parade of armed services at Garrison Savannah (horse race track), and celebrations showcasing artistic talents on the island such as the National Independance Festival of Creative Arts, which encourage Barbadians of all ages to show their talents in the fields of music, dance, drama, fine art, photography and crafts.
It is also about having a good time and most beaches are packed with families pic- nicing, bars bursting with party goers drinking the local rum and beer, us included.  As 30th November is, not only St Andrew's Day, but my husbands birthday, we thought we would do something we have not done before on the island.  Everyone at some time in their life has done a 'pub crawl' in England, so we thought why not do the next best thing here and do a bar hop.  Unfortunately, or fortunately depending how you look at it, we are not much good at 'hopping' from bar to bar, and after 3 bars where abit fatigued with it all.  Michael & I decided to leave the partying to others and go home to watch a good movie - which is what we would of done on a winters evening in England.
I've posted the National flag of Barbados so here's a quick explanation of the symbolism; The flag is a representation of Independance from England, Neptune's Trident appeared on the Seal when the island was still a colony.  The broken Trident on the flag is representative of the break with the past and the step towards independance.  The blue panels are for the sea and sky, while the centre gold panel is for the sand of the beaches.  A beautiful flag, I think.