Quality Villa Staff Villas in Barbados are generally well-maintained and kept in immaculate condition by carefully trained staff, which usually comprises a butler, cook, housemaids, gardener and security watchman. The Barbadians working in the villas are generally very amiable, efficient and loyal. It is not unusual for villa renters to develop a mutually respectful and endearing relationship with the staff of a particular house, which often results in repeat visits. Such is the strength of these bonds that over the years there have even been examples of villa staff being invited back to a family’s home in their own country or to accompany them on a vacation. In recent times the overall quality of the trained staff in the houses and villas has improved considerably, especially in the kitchens. Nowadays there is not only a good supply of Bajan cooks who can expertly produce a variety of delicious local dishes, there now also exists a sizeable cadre of very gifted, fully trained chefs who are well capable of producing top class cuisine of an international standard; so much so that many villa residents are quite content to ‘eat in’, saving trips to our
138
PROPERTY
Ginger Lily Photo courtesy Realtors Real Estate Limited
many excellent local restaurants as more of a treat or as a special occasion. One of the extra advantages of this kind of arrangement is that you can not only choose the kind of meals that you would like to eat but also the ingredients that will be used to prepare them. As a way to broaden your Barbados experience, you could shop with the locals at Cheapside Market in Bridgetown, especially on a Saturday morning when there is a huge selection of fruit, vegetables, herbs, spices, fresh meat and sundry other items. It might all seem a bit ‘strange’ at first but the more you go the more you will understand and enjoy it. To further enhance the already tremendous appeal of the Villa Lifestyle, it is possible to book house-call appointments for an extensive range of services such as hairdressers, beauticians, massage therapists, personal exercise trainers, yoga and Pilates instructors. The leading real estate and villa management companies generally have a system whereby they will interview and appraise the abilities of the various service providers for prior approval, so these professionals are generally highly qualified and provide international standard service.