We are visiting Barbados, a beautiful coral island located in the eastern Caribbean. There are around 300,000 people living here, and the capital is Bridgetown, which is famous for its historic buildings and colorful harbor. The official language is English, though you will often hear Bajan Creole, which uses many unique and funny phrases.

Barbados is a small island, covering about 430 square kilometers, or 166 square miles. To imagine its size, the whole country is about two-thirds the size of the city of Chicago. You can drive from one end of the island to the other in just about an hour!

The most popular sport here is Cricket, and it is played everywhere from big stadiums to the sandy beaches. Their national animal is the Flying Fish, a remarkable creature that can glide over the surface of the water for long distances to escape from predators.

The flag features three vertical stripes of ultramarine blue and gold, with a black trident head in the center that represents the sea and the country’s break from its colonial past.

The food is a delicious mix of African and Caribbean flavors. The national dish is Cou-Cou and Flying Fish, which is made from cornmeal and okra served with spicy steamed fish. They are also very famous for Macaroni Pie, which is a baked, cheesy version of pasta that almost every family has a secret recipe for.

Barbados is known as the “Land of the Flying Fish,” and you can see them popping out of the waves all around the coast. Deep underground, you can find Harrison’s Cave, a massive limestone cavern filled with crystal-clear pools and giant icicle-shaped rocks called stalactites. The island is also the birthplace of Grapefruit, which was first discovered growing there hundreds of years ago as a cross between an orange and a shaddock. In many neighborhoods, you will see Chattel Houses, which are small, colorful wooden homes built on blocks so that they could be picked up and moved to a new spot whenever the owner wanted!

From the turquoise waters to the swaying fields of sugar cane, Barbados is a gem of the Caribbean.