Antigua is a small island discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1493. The island is nine miles wide by twelve miles long and surrounded by the Caribbean Sea on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. On this small island, the sun always shines and the climate is hot and dry. Therefore, the people in Antigua have to watch the amount of water they use because the island constantly suffers from drought. A lot has changed in Antigua since Kincaid was growing up there as a child. .
Ms. Kincaid sees a tourist as an ugly human being. .
In Antigua, all the cars are mostly brand new and all Japanese-made. There are no American made cars in Antigua that have been manufactured within the last ten years. Although they are all brand new, they all sound terrible. It is most likely because they use leaded gasoline in these brand new cars whose engines were made to use non-leaded gasoline. Yet, no one in Antigua has ever heard of non-leaded gasoline. The people in Antigua live in houses that are by far not as nice as the cars they drive. The banks are encouraged by the government to make loans available for cars, but not so easily for houses. The reason for this is due to the fact that there are only two car dealerships in Antigua and ministers in government own them. .
There is one hospital in Antigua named the Holberton Hospital and are there are three doctors on the island. The Antiguans refer to them as the "three men," not doctors. Yet, the Antiguans do not trust these doctors. Even the Minister of health flies to New York to see a real doctor when he is sick. .
In 1974 an earthquake damaged the library on Market Street. There is a sign hanging on the outside of the building that says, "Repairs are pending." The sign still hangs there and there hasn't been any attempt to repair it. The islanders descended from slaves and they such an unusual perception of time. To the Antiguans, twelve years, twelve minutes, and twelve days are all the same.