Facility Information

General information

More general information can be found elsewhere, but this is a brief summary. McGill's Bellairs Marine Biology Research Institute is located on the West coast of Barbados. The institute itself has a humble rustic charm, although there has been an ongoing drive to renovate more and more of the facilities (perhaps to a more costly and bland upscale appearance). During the Winter when our trials are held the weather is typically warm and the accepted attire is very casual. As a rule, however, the country and the hotels nearby favor a relatively conservative dress code for dinner (i.e. long pants for "good" restaurant food). If you tire of the rustic atmosphere, you can find fine dining nearby including as close as the hotel next door (which is very posh and costly: rack rate room with breakfast in Jan 2011 is from about US$490 for a single room or US$965/night for a junior suite).

Overflow accommodation for our group is sometimes housed in the Europa or Halcyon Palms hotels (both operated by the same management). These places are about 30 minutes South of Bellairs, on foot. You can also take the local bus 2 stops: that costs $2 (equal to $1 USD). Note that these places offer air conditioning, and the rooms get warm during the day, but the AC can only be operated by if you have tokens that must be purchased during business hours at the front desk. See: http://www.thepalmsresort.net/content/view/2/3/
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Getting to Bellairs

1. From the Airport
   1. US dollars can be used anywhere omn the island.
   2. To get to Bellairs from the airport, either take a taxi (about $100 Bds/50 USD) and split the cost if you share or a bus ($4 Bds). If the taxi driver does not know where Bellairs is, say it is located in between Folkstone Park and Coral Reef Club on the North side of Holetown. These two landmarks are famous; but with all the workshops during the past 15 years, Bellairs is also becoming fairly well known among taxi drivers. If you want to take a bus, there are some direct busses but more interesting is to go to Bridgetown first and change to another bus (at another bus station).
   3. Bellairs Telephones: area code (246), main office: 422-2087, dining hall: 422-2034. FAX: (246) 422-0692.
   4. Administrator: Erin, email: bellairs@caribsurf.com
2. When you arrive at Bellairs either come to the office or (if it's closed) go around the main building via a passage on the right and make enough noise so that somebody opens the gate for you. Go straight to the dining hall if you don't see anybody waiting for you. There, you will find either people or a message for you on the bulletin board or the blackboard telling you which is your room. Our rooms are in three buildings called Brace, East Wing and West Wing. The rooms are labeled with B, E and W accordingly. You will find a key to your room, in your room, which should be unlocked unless your roommate has already arrived. In this case, you should look for your roommate on the beach. A few people (e.g. faculty) may have rooms in the new (more expensive) Brace rooms on top of the frontmost building (the dry lab).

The Most Important House Rules

1. Kitchen and Food
   1. Breakfast was provided in the past as part of the room rate. This may still be the case, but it is uncertain. This past policy seems to be changing and we may need to purchase our own breakfast supplies. The breakfast food is kept in the kitchen fridge. This food is to be used only at breakfast and finished by 9:30 a.m. (This needs to be re-verified.)
   2. There is a kitchen with dishes and basic utensils. When we use it, we are responsible for washing all of our dishes after breakfast and any time they are used. Please leave the kitchen clean. You must clean up after yourself. Whenever you use the kitchen, try and leave it at least a tiny bit CLEANER than when you started. (It's usually not that clean: try and recall the image of a typical shared kitchen in an undergraduate residence.)
   3. We can make coffee in the kitchen any time we want. If you make coffee, you are encouraged to tell Greg or Mike (who drink it like bottomless pits).
   4. There is a guest fridge in the dining hall where we can keep our own private food. Please label your food and remove any left over when you depart.
2. Showers and Sand
   1. Sand in the shower drains can cause enormous blockage problems. Please be sure to rinse off the sand from your feet before entering your rooms. There are water taps outside both blocks of rooms for this purpose.
3. Locked Doors and Valuables
   1. Please leave your room locked when you are not in it.
   2. You can leave your money and other valuables in the safe in the main office. If you leave some money in your room I suggest you put it in a purse inside a locked suitcase inside a closed closet; certainly do not leave it within arm's reach of the back windows facing the public park. This was fine ten years ago but Barbados has undergone a lot of progress in recent years.
4. Telephone
   Telephones and computers are available in the main office. Note that calling home via a calling card can be expensive.

Bellairs Survival Hints

1. Food and Snacks
   1. We will have a cook and the food is great, but if you need anything special please bring it along. As of 2011 the dinners on-site will included vegetables and fish, but probably not meat. The standard meals for our group should be adequate for vegetarians. There will be a fridge where we can keep our private food items. We are expected, however, to eat several meals prepared by the cook since this is what allows her salary to be paid.
   2. The coffee there is of the instant variety. If you wish to bring your own coffee you may do so. Greg and Mike need a constant supply of brewed coffee and usually make arrangements of their own.
   3. There is a local supermarket nearby (20 min. walk) as well as a range of restaurants. There are good vegetarian roti in several places near Bellairs.
2. Local environment
3. Beach, Sun, Snorkeling, and SCUBA diving
   1. Bellairs is situated on one of the best beaches in Barbados, so don't forget your bathing suit (and skin protection) experimental work, as well as for swims before breakfast and in between work sessions.
   2. You can buy swimwear and other supplies in the nearby town (Holetown), but the prices are fairly high so it is best to bring your own gear. Buy a good dive mask before you go, even if you have never tried one out before.
   3. It is absolutely crucial and required that you bring and use sun protection.
   4. There is also good snorkeling right in front of Bellairs so if you have a mask and fins bring them along too. In fact, if you have SCUBA dive bring your gear. The is an ongoing need for divers with the Aqua project. There is recreational diving right there as well, and air tanks at Bellairs cost about US$12.00 per tank.
4. Work-related SCUBA diving and robotics research
   1. We normally deal with 2 to four dive operators on the island based on availability, price, convenience and other factors. High Tide Water Sports is right next door and is by far the most convenient place. They can rent full scuba gear, but will be reluctant to rent gear unless you also go for some dives on their dive boat(s).
   2. The tips below are reminders regarding safe practice, but this listing is not exhaustive or definitive.
   3. You need to be officially and formally certified to scuba dive. Don't think about scuba diving with training: the places won't rent you gear. The important exception is the carefully monitored "Discover Scuba" dive session you can take, which is highly recommended if you have no prior experience and are comfortable in the water. It takes a few hours and costs about $100USD.
   4. It is mandatory that divers working on the Aqua project adhere to PADI safe-diving practices (DAN would be fine too, but I am selecting PADI since it is better known.) This includes going in closely-collaborating buddy teams, careful gas management, making sure people are informed about you dive plans.
   5. Keep a very careful eye on your buddy. This is doubly important if either of you might be distracted.
   6. Unless you have been diving recently, you need to take a supervised refresher dive when you arrive.
   7. Diver safety is more important than equipment. Watch your buddy before anything else.
   8. No diving should occur within 24 hours before departure. Be conservative about this.
5. Risks
   1. The traffic can be intimidating, especially at night if you walk to town. Bringing a small flashlight is a good idea.
   2. The island seems to be fairly safe with respect to crime, but don't leave valuables unattended. Lock your room when you are not in it.
   3. Sunburn is a serious risk that can ruin your stay: bring sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses. Use it even if it cloudy, especially the first few days.
6. Mosquitos
   1. Depending on the weather conditions and other factors, we may get some mosquitoes. You should bring some bug repellant just in case. I have been bitten uncountable times there without consequence, but Dengue fever exists in Barbados (like most equatorial regions) and as such you should taking mosqiuto eradication especially seriously.
7. Snorers
   1. We will be living in intimate quarters. All of us will share a room with one or possibly (but very unlikely) two others (even four to a room has occurred in the past) with a resulting distance of inches between beds. If you snore let me know in advance and I will put all the snorers together. It is my experience that a snorer has no problem sleeping with another snorer. In fact they enjoy it!
8. Exchange : The value of the Barbados dollars is pegged to the US at 2 BDS to 1 USD. US dollars can be used everywhere while Canadian dollars can be used almost nowhere. Bringing some US monday is a good idea.
   1. In Canada: The best exchange rate is available here in Montreal. The exchange house beside Tim Horton's on Sherbrooke has generally better rates than local banks. Major credit cards are also accepted at many (upscale) locations.
   2. In Barbados: Both the Royal Bank and Scotiabank have branches near Bellairs, so customers of those banks can withdraw cash without incurring Interac charges. The rest of us have to make do with the ~5$ fee per transaction.
9. Supplies: You can buy most normal supplies including toiletries, pharmaceuticals, swim wear and good in the nearby town of Holetown. Prices tend to be a bit high by Canadian standards, but almost everything is available. Holetown is a 20-minute walk.

Work-related SCUBA diving and robotics research

1. We normally deal with 2 to four dive operators on the island based on availability, price, convenience and other factors. High Tide Water Sports is right next door and is by far the most convenient place. They can rent full scuba gear, but will be reluctant to rent gear unless you also go for some dives on their dive boat(s).
2. The tips below are reminders regarding safe practice, but this listing is not exhaustive or definitive.
   1. You need to be officially and formally certified to scuba dive. Don't think about scuba diving without proper training: the places won't even rent you gear. Scuba training should be The important exception is the carefully monitored "Discover Scuba" dive session you can take, which is highly recommended if you have no prior experience and are comfortable in the water. It takes a few hours and costs about $100USD.
   2. It is mandatory that divers working on the Aqua project adhere to PADI safe-diving practices (DAN would be fine too, but I am selecting PADI since it is better known.) This includes going in closely-collaborating buddy teams, careful gas management, making sure people are informed about you dive plans.
   3. Keep a very careful eye on your buddy. This is doubly important if either of you might be distracted.
   4. Unless you have been diving recently, you need to take a supervised refresher dive when you arrive.
   5. Diver safety is more important than equipment. Watch your buddy before anything else.
   6. No diving should occur within 24 hours before departure. Be conservative about this.
   7. About lionfish. If you see one, report it to High Tide Water Sports ASAP.