Bequia

Bequia [ bɛkweɪ ] is 18 km ², the largest island of the Grenadines, and part of the state of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The name means " island of the clouds " in the language of the Arawaks, the indigenous people, but rarely is a true name.

Population

On the island population of about 5,000 inhabitants. These are mostly descendants of black African slaves. English is spoken.

Geography

Bequia is located about 14 km south of the main island of St. Vincent and about the same distance north-west of Mustique. It is one of the Grenadines, which in turn belongs to the Leeward Islands and thus to the Lesser Antilles. It lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

The capital is Port Elizabeth ( 839 inhabitants) in Admiralty Bay on the west side of the island. Other villages are Paget Farm, Lower Bay, La Pompe, Hamilton and Derrick. The highest elevation ( Pleasant Top) is 268 m.

Traffic

Bequia has a small airport, which is served by other islands in the region, including Barbados and St. Lucia.

A ferry service runs regularly between the main town and the capital of Port Elizabeth St. Vincent, Kingstown, and the other inhabited islands of the Grenadines.

On the island of minibuses operate as a kind of bus service between Port Elizabeth and the towns on the southern part of the island, which hold a small fee at any point.

Tourism

Port Elizabeth is a popular harbor for yachts and starting point for sailing trips to the islands of the Grenadines. Here you can find most of the hotels and restaurants as well as shops with everything sailors need - from food to nautical charts and nautical accessories.

On the other side of the island Friendship Bay offers quiet hotels, swimming and a diving school.

Whaling

Since the 1870s until well into the 20th century, whaling was an important part of the local economy - under the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, it is the residents officially allowed to catch a limited number of humpback whales in the traditional way, with harpoons from small boats made and exclusively for local consumption. For the years 2003-2007 four whales per year is allowed, these figures have never been achieved in recent years: In the 90s, a total of 9 humpback whales were killed in the years 2000-2002 still together four.

With the last whalers Athneal Ollivierre, the tradition may have died. There are still, built by Ollivierre Whaling Museum, as well as the landing site on the small offshore island of Petit Nevis. On the unofficial flag of the island is due to this tradition a whale.