Did You Know?... The islanders call themselves 'Bajans'.

Tourism: The 'Little England' legacy dates back to colonial days when the sugar industry reigned supreme. Barbados gained self-government in 1966, and now tourism rather than sugar is the mainstay of the local economy.

Concert & Exhibitions: Folk concerts and art and photographic exhibitions are integral parts of the festival, highlighting Barbadian history and culture as well as the artistic talents of Bajans.

Cricket: Cricket is huge in the sports category of Bajan lifestyles.

Crop Over Fetival: Calypso is one of the main features of the Crop Over festival. The calypsonians are organised into "tents" (Conquerers, Untouchables, House of Soca, Pioneers, Stray Cats,etc) and these tents are sponsored by Barbados businesses.

What To Do: For starters, there is kitesurfing, windsurfing, spelunking (exploring caves), golf and tours ranging from safari to rum, submarine, helicopter and catamaran adventures.

Seven Wonders: 1) Harrison's Cave, for its gallery of stalactites. 2) The huge Baobab or Monkey Bread tree. 3) Two of the Western Hemisphere's. 4) Three Jacobean mansions. 5) The intact and restored Morgan Lewis Sugar Mill. 6) The 17th century Jewish synagogue - the world's rarest collection of 17th century English iron cannons. 7) The place where a Bajan citrus cross-fertilization produced the world's first grapefruit. In addition, there are many romantic plantation houses, a zoo, and the world-class Pelican Crafts Centre.

What's For Dinner: Your choices are mind-boggling. Bajans are known for their tasty flying fish dishes, but there are many non-Bajan eateries, ranging from Chinese to Japanese, French, Polynesian, Italian, French and Greek.

Visiting Barbados: When you visit Barbados, you will see it is mostly a flat coral island with excellent beaches, but there are rolling hills and many deep ridges and gullies, with an interesting distribution of flora and fauna.

Did You know?... Within the Barbados coral core there is a vast array of caves and underground lakes which provide an excellent supply of drinking water that is amongst the purest in the world. Geologically Barbados is unique, being actually two land masses that merged together over the years.

In Short: Barbados is a beautiful place with much to offer in the arts, entertainment, hotel and restaurant fields. In the science category, you can find geological phenomena unlike any other formations throughout the Caribbean. And the people couldn't be nicer or friendlier. Try to arrange your visit during the gala "Crop Up," when Bajans celebrate the harvest season.